The Hockey Show - Episode 703

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, hits the UMFM airwaves tonight once again as we settle in for some more hockey talk. With the weekend we just had and the Paralympics coming to an end this weekend, it's been an outstanding week of sledge hockey from all over the globe, and our hosts will chat about some of that tonight among the many topics they'll cover. Want in on the chat? Get your radios and internet-connected devices ready tonight for The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason offer their thanks to Sledge Hockey Manitoba and Team Manitoba for allowing them to be part of the Cross Border Classic last weekend that was an incredible exhibition of hockey! From there, the two hosts discuss the Paralympics and Canada's chances at a para ice hockey gold medal, Matthew Tkachuk being the dumbest hockey player alive, the PWHL's struggles in Ottawa, the Ottawa Senators earning a draft pick back, the DEL with great numbers, players going pro, and more! It's another busy show with a lot to go over from all variations of hockey being played across the globe, so make sure you tune in 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 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 express their gratitude before chatting about medal chances, stupid comments, moving arenas, playing politics, full rinks, big opportunities, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: March 12, 2026: Episode 703

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Where Does He Land Next?

You might recognize the player to the left if you're a Winnipeg Jets fan. That's CJ Suess who skated for both the Jets and the AHL's Manitoba Moose in his career before deciding to take his talents overseas to Germany this past season where he signed with the Dresden Eislöwen. There was no doubt that this was going to be a tough season for the Eislöwen as they had been promoted from the DEL2 last season to play in the Penny DEL this season against some of the German superpowers like Berlin, Munich, and others. There has been all sorts of personnel turnover, though, as Dresden has been going through players faster than they go through bags of pucks, and we found out today that CJ Suess had left the Eislöwen after he and the team agreed to terminated his contract, making him a 31 year-old free agent.

I'm not here to lobby any team to sign Suess, but the options he'll have at this point of the season are relatively small. He scored just four goals and five assists in 31 games in Germany, and I don't know how many European teams will be hunting for a veteran, bottom-six guy. Suess could jump into a more offensive role if he can find it, but hunting for that opportunity in late February normally doesn't materialize unless one is a can't-miss player. That's not CJ Suess.

This departure, though, might be more due to the environment in Dresden. Earlier this month, Ice Lions captain Travis Turnbull left the team to sign in the DEL2, forward Andrew Yogan left Dresden for Norway's Stavanger Oilers, and January saw Jens Baxmann takes over as sporting director. Baxmann admitted in an interview with rbb24.de that "even if we had the economic means, we can no longer strengthen ourselves with other players" due to not having enough roster spots, so perhaps the terminating contracts of players who underperformed is Baxmann's way of solving that problem.

If that was his solution, Baxmann just opened up three roster spots in February held by veteran, import players. Turnbull and Yogan landed with new teams as reported above, so what becomes of CJ Suess?

That might be the toughest question he has to answer before going into the summer. There's probably a good chance he can find his way onto a DEL2 team or land in one of the other European leagues, but his options will be limited as to which teams have the flexibility to bring in an older, import player. Teams in Sweden and Switzerland usually fill their import roster spots very quickly, so there won't be much to find there. Norway, where Yogan went, could be a spot, we saw a former DEL player sign in Slovenia this week, and there could be options in the KHL if one wants to give that option a test.

Unfortunately, Suess may be forced to wait until summer to find a new team when free agency opens. He could return to North America where a number of AHL teams would likely welcome him, but the contract he signs might be for less money than what he'd receive in Europe. Of course, he could find a new team in Europe to join, but, like Dresden this year, there's no guarantee he'll finish the season there. This is the reality for a 31 year-old, hard-working forward.

My hope is that CJ Suess finds a team where he can be a veteran leader and help the younger players find a path to the next level. Whether that's in the AHL or in Europe is up to him, but there's no doubt in my mind that CJ Suess can still be a valuable asset for a team in the right role. He has experience, he's skated in the NHL, he's had success at the AHL and NCAA levels, and he's shown he can adapt his game to play the role he's assigned. Those are valuable traits.

Maybe we'll see the guy who wore #20, #25, and #27 for the Moose and #73 for the Jets back in Winnipeg next season? It could happen!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

First Out Of The Tournament Again

If you look at the picture to the left, there's something significant about that image. That picture was taken with 5:18 to play after Sparta Praha went up 2-1 on Canada when Filip Chlapík scored from former Winnipeg Jets forward Kristian Vesalainen, and you may notice that there's only one white jersey in the entire picture. Far be it for me to suggest that's how Canada played this entire Spengler Cup tournament, but scoring just two goals in two losses when they had a chance to earn the bye pretty much sums up the entire problem with Canada's player selection process for the Spengler Cup. Canada's first out at the tournament for the second-straight year, and it might be time to start asking the hard questions about why Canada has become also-rans in Davos, Switzerland.

I'm not here to question heart or passion from the men who pulled the Canada jerseys on in Davos, but the roster didn't leave me much hope when it came to scoring goals in bunches. San Diego's Nikolas Brouillard pushed the offence from the blue line and Rockford's Brett Seney looked good for most shifts, but what this team had for effort was lost in speed up and down the ice. As we see in most hockey games, speed creates scoring opportunities. Team Canada had none.

This team played 180 minutes of hockey. Outside of a ten-minute span against the US Collegiate Selects where they scored three times, Canada looked like it was back on its heels most shifts. Canada never led again in the tournament, being outscored by HC Davos and HC Sparta Praha by a combined 9-2 score, surrendering eight of those goals in the third periods against those two teams when games were tied. Those results suggest a bigger problem with this team, and history will show Canada going home earlier than they wanted. Again.

I'm not sure why Canada asked Michel Therrien to coach this team either. The last time he was a head coach was in 2016-17 with the Montreal Canadiens. He worked as an assistant coach in Philadelphia for three seasons before being fired, but he had spent more time out of hockey than in it when he was announced as Team Canada's head coach. Giving him a roster that was already thin on scoring didn't look good, but Canada scoring just five times in three games while giving up 11 goals reinforces how his systems aren't suited for the big ice.

General Manager Marc Bergevin should likely be dismissed as well since this roster and the coaching staff never really found their game. Bergevin had lots of options for coaches that could have produced, at worst, the same results, but he desperately needed a coach who could squeeze every last bit of talent and effort out of the Canadian roster for at least three games. Names like Pete DeBoer and Gardiner MacDougall would have been better choices while coaches like Dave Tippett, Jay Woodcroft, and Bruce Boudreau likely would have accepted the opportunity. I'm not sure if any were asked.

One has to wonder why Canada wasn't more aggressive in bringing in younger and higher-scoring players like Gregor McLeod who is fourth in DEL in scoring, defender Alex Breton who leads all DEL defenders in scoring, or forward Samuel Dove-Falls who has a ton of speed and 14 goals in the DEL. Maxime Fortier is third in scoring in Finland's Liiga for SaiPa while Alex Beaucage is tied for sixth in scoring with Lukko. Defender David Quenneville is tied for seventh in SHL scoring while former Canadiens forward Charles Hudon has 22 points in 29 games in the SHL. There were lots of good players who could have been asked to play for Canada, but we'll never know if they were or not.

Look, some of this is written out of frustration after watching Canada implode today, but today's game was tied at 1-1 with 6:53 to play before Canada lost 5-1. Canada and Davos were tied 1-1 with 15 minutes to play before Davos scored three goals to win 4-1. Maybe it was the altitude where some players just lost their legs. Maybe it was bigger ice than on what the AHL guys were used to playing. Whatever the case, Canada scored two goals in 150 minutes of action while giving up 11 in the same span, and their tournament is officially over.

The Spengler Cup used to be a tournament in which Canadian players wanted to play and took pride in being asked to play for their country. Make no mistake that every single player and coach in the Canadian room today likely had that pride as well, but I'm wondering what kind of work is being done to bring the best Canadian players from across Europe to Davos for one week of hockey fun. Some of the guys who played this year likely should be included on that list, but the players mentioned above either not being released, opting not to play, or simply not being asked is proving that something is broken with how Canada builds its annual team for the Spengler Cup.

Do we need some sort of major change? Possibly, but perhaps Jason was right on The Hockey Show when it suggested that a U SPORTS team should go over and play as Team Canada. Send the top-ranked team in men's hockey over as a reward for their solid season thus far, and let's see how they play. If that was to happen, the UBC Thunderbirds men's team would be in Davos right now, and dare I say they probably would have scored more than five goals in three games.

I'll still be watching the remainder of the 2025 Spengler Cup, but there's less to cheer for now with Canada out. For those needing some sort of carrot to chase, we can still see one of Davos try to capture it's 17th championship, Fribourg-Gottéron defend its championship, Sparta Praha try to win a third Spengler Cup, or the US Collegiate Selects shock the world with a Spengler Cup title. Having Canada eliminated first today really sucks, and it will be 52 more weeks before we'll know if Canada's going to be a contender again.

The semifinals go tomorrow before the final is played on Wednesday. It will still be a fun finish this year, but with less national pride.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The McIntyre Monster

It isn't often that a player with NHL experience finds himself accepting a contract offer from an ECHL team, but we've seen a few players turn what some believe to be a "last-ditch effort" to make their way back to the NHL into a long-term residence with their new team. Goaltender Zane McIntyre is in that situation now as he signed a standard player's contract today with the Tahoe Knight Monsters after Jordan Papirny was recalled by the AHL's Henderson Silver Knights. McIntyre's return to North America after a year in Germany might have led some teams to look past his name when looking for goaltending help, but McIntyre has never been afraid to work hard to earn his spot on the roster. The Knight Monsters will offer that.

Zane McIntyre hasn't spent a lot of time on NHL ice surfaces, and his eight-game totals of a 3.97 GAA and an .858 save percentage aren't entirely accurate of the type of goalie McIntyre is. He was excellent in the NCAA with North Dakota where he played 92 games, posting a 2.10 GAA and a .926 save percentage are slightly elevated when looking at his body of work, but it's clear that he can stop pucks.

His AHL numbers are what should be considered, and we can point to his 153-97-45 record as the first reason he might be a good signing for Tahoe. He has only posted a losing record in one of his nine seasons in the AHL, and that was in 2022-23 with the Iowa Wild. Statistically, that has been his worst season in the AHL across the board, so his consistency between the pipes when it comes to winning should be what's highlighted here. He wins hockey games at the AHL level.

His 2.61 GAA and .908 save percentage at the AHL should have had a few teams calling his agent about a potential AHL job, but that didn't happen. McIntyre went 15-12-0 with the Straubing Tigers in the DEL last season, and his 2.67 GAA wasn't far off his AHL numbers. However, his .889 save percentage was down from what he posted in the AHL, and it was the third-straight season where he didn't crack the .900 level for save percentage. That could be due to how the Iowa Wild play, but his work in the DEL turned in the same results.

So what can be taken away from this analysis?

Well, the 33 year-old is likely looking for place where he can take one more run at an AHL job, and getting started in the Vegas Golden Knights' system isn't a bad idea. Adin Hill is currently out week-to-week in Vegas, and Carl Lindbom is backing up Akira Schmid. The radioactive Carter Hart has yet to see a puck this season, so he's not anywhere close to being NHL-ready, and both Cameron Whitehead and Jesper Vikman are playing in Henderson. With Jordan Papirny being recalled by Henderson today, that left goaltender Zach Borgiel with the Knight Monsters as their lone netminder, and he has yet to log a second in the crease at any level of hockey professionally.

In short, Tahoe needed a netminder that had some experience, and Zane McIntyre certainly has that covered. We'll see how McIntyre fares in the ECHL behind the Knight Monsters' defence, but Tahoe is hoping he can catch fire quickly to help the Knight Monsters climb the standings in the ECHL's Mountain Division. I'm guessing his first test will be tomorrow against the division-leading Idaho Steelheads, so McIntyre will get thrown into the fire almost immediately.

There's no telling how long Zane McIntyre will be around the Tahoe Knight Monsters moving forward, but his two-game ECHL totals will have more games added to it after he signed in Nevada today. He is 0-1-0 in those two games with the Atlanta Gladiators dating back to the 2016-17 season, so we'll see if the Grand Forks native can come up big and turn into the McIntyre Monster for the Knight Monsters!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Passport Stamps

It's likely been a minute or two since anyone in the hockey world referenced goaltender Antoine Bibeau, so I might as well be the guy who reminds everyone that he's still playing. Bibeau looked like he had the moxie to potentially step into an NHL role at some point after posting a 2-1-0 record in four games split between Toronto and Colorado, and his 2.52 GAA and .907 save percentage were reflections on his ability to stop pucks at the NHL level. This might be why I'm not an NHL scout, though, because he bounced around the AHL before landing in Sweden and Finland in the last two seasons, and he's on the move again after another NHL team released him from his PTO contract.

Bibeau played in the SM-Liiga last season in Finland with KooKoo Kouvola where he helped them reach sixth-place in the sixteen-team league before they fell in the opening round of the Finnish league playoffs to Sport Vaasa. Clearly, it wasn't how Kouvola wanted to finish the season, but Bibeau had a solid season where he posted a 20-13-0 record in 35 games on the strength of a 2.60 GAA and a .905 save percentage. As we saw with most of his career, those would be solid AHL numbers, but should have teams looking at him as a potential option as an inexpensive, veteran, backup netminder.

One team did take a flyer on this netminder as the Dallas Stars invited Antoine Bibeau to training camp on a professional tryout contract, and Bibeau was't sure if he'd be with the Dallas Stars, the AHL Texas Stars, or with another team once training camp ended. He told Robert Tiffin of StarsThoughts.com about his invitation to camp,

"I just thought it was a good opportunity for me. My wife's pregnant, I'm getting older, and I was more patient this season as far as where I was going to play next season. I thought it was a good opportunity to just give myself a shot at coming back.

"I always said that if something came up in North America that I thought made sense, and that I was excited about, I was open to coming back. When Dallas came up with the PTO, I thought it was a great opportunity for me."

Fast forward to September 28 where Bibeau was released from his PTO contract, making him a free agent again. With a number of leagues in Europe already preparing to start their seasons, the options for Bibeau to return to one of those leagues may have been limited. For a 31 year-old netminder with an expanding family, he and his agent needed to find a place where he could land quickly!

Well, wonder no more as to where Antoine Bibeau will land because he has accepted a deal to join EHC Red Bull Munich in the Penny DEL in Germany! Bibeau will be one of four goaltenders on Munich's roster as he joins Mathias Niederberger, Simon Wolf, and Matthias Bittner in the blue paint, and he might be needed as Munich currently sits with a 4-5-0-0 record in eighth-place of the fourteen-team DEL. They have also surrendered the second-most goals-against to this point, so it seems clear that they need some help keeping pucks out of the net.

Mathias Niederberger has logged the most ice time of the three current Munich netminders, but he and Simon Wolf share the same inflated numbers. Through six games, Niederberger has a 3.71 GAA and an .848 save percentage while Simon, in three games, has a 3.71 GAA and an .851 save percentage. Simon sits 24th-overall in save percentage while Niederberger is 25th-overall, so Munich is looking for someone who can stop pucks with regularity.

In his defence, Bibeau's AHL numbers have him at a 2.79 GAA and a .906 save percentage in 225 games, and it seems Munich is looking for that kind of puck-stopping ability when he finally suits up for Team Red Bull. That .906 save percentage would put Bibeau at eleventh-overall in the DEL while his 2.79 GAA would have him at twelfth-overall. Clearly, that's a big increase from Niederberger and Wolf.

Bibeau's passport is starting to look like a stamp book as he moves to his fifth country and league in the last five years to stop pucks. He obviously has the skill to be a solid netminder on a number of teams, but he'll take his talents to Germany for the foreseeable future as he looks to help Munich climb the Penny DEL standings this season.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Better Opportunities

I've never played professional hockey, but it would seem that with more and more leagues investing in players, facilities, and growth that there are going to be better opportunities for players who are seeing the prime of their careers dwindle away in the minor leagues. Make no mistake that players who skate in the AHL still make pretty good money to play hockey, but playing minor-pro hockey means that other priorities may influence where a player plays. For Winnipeg Jets/Manitoba Moose forward CJ Suess, that opportunity came up this summer as he'll leave Winnipeg for a second time to join the Penny DEL's recently-promoted Dresden Eislöwen for the 2025-26 season.

Drafted in the fifth round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft following two solid seasons with the USHL's Sioux Falls Stampede, the 31 year-old Suess played four seasons with the Minnesota State-Mankato Mavericks where he continued to show his improving scoring talents. Following a 28-point rookie season, Suess managed to hit double-digits in goals in each of his next three seasons while never scoring less than 25 points. His senior season saw him notch 22 goals and 43 points in 40 games. It seemed he'd be a good addition to the Moose.

His first few seasons with the Moose were derailed by various injuries as he never came close to playing a full season, but he did manage to his double-digit goal totals in two of the four seasons he wore Moose colours. He also managed to skate in four games with the NHL's Winnipeg Jets, but scored no points in that cup of coffee with the big club. Regardless, he was viewed as a good foot soldier who went to the dirty areas on the ice and battled for pucks on every shift.

After a short stint in the San Jose Sharks' organization where he played one more NHL game with the Sharks and 46 with the Barracuda, Suess returned to Winnipeg where he signed a two-year deal and skated with the Moose as a veteran player. 21 goals and 43 points over those two seasons showed that he was still an effective player, but the opportunity to be an NHL player seemed to be gone.

Perhaps that was one of the reasons for the change as it looks like Suess will get more of an offensive opportunity with the Eislöwen than perhaps what he saw at the AHL level in Winnipeg.

"CJ is a fast player with a good transition game, wit, and a drive to score," Eislöwen sporting director Matthias Roos said. "Throughout his career, he has repeatedly earned the opportunity to show off in the NHL—most recently at an age when others have actually passed that step. This mentality, coupled with his quality, will take us further on and off the ice. From the NCAA, he is familiar with the large ice surface, which will suit his game and productivity."

There were no financial terms disclosed by the Eislöwen about Suess's contract, but one has to figure that he'd receive a lot of the perks that we see for players who play in Germany - rent is covered and free transportation at the very least. Suess will also get a chance to see most of Germany as the Eislöwen travel the country to play games, but the opportunity to potentially travel to other places in Europe also exists. Frankly, the perks alone may make the DEL better than the AHL when it comes to older players weighing options!

"I'm very excited about my new role in Germany and with the Dresden Eislöwen," Suess said following today's announcement. "My discussions with the organization immediately gave me a good feeling. I want to use my experience, my pace, and all my energy to help us succeed as a team and make the fans proud."

With Paul Stocker, Karl Gärtner, and Malte Barthold signing development contracts this season, they may start the season with the KSW IceFighters Leipzig in the German Oberliga. Needing some additional firepower, Suess will fill that role nicely for the Dresden Eislöwen while bringing a bit of a power forward game to the team. As he said, Suess's experience could prove valuable for the Eislöwen as well, so this seems to be a good fit for former Moose forward!

While the German name "Suess" often is spelled "süß" and pronounced "Soose" like "loose", the meaning is one of "sweet," "pleasant," or "agreeable". While the contract might be agreeable, the experience in Germany might be pleasant, and the opportunity might be, colloquially, sweet, I'd expect CJ Suess to show everyone that he's none of those things to the opposition when the DEL season opens!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Kid Gets A Shot

Every year in U SPORTS men's hockey, there are a handful of players who look like they're a level above everyone else. They make split-second decisions with the puck that usually results in good things, they skate effortlessly up and down the ice, and they always seem to the in the right spot at the right time. That's how Alberta Golden Bears forward Jakin Smallwood played the game, and he won't be touring western Canada this season with the University of Alberta because he's moving on to bigger things. Announced today by the Panthers, Penny DEL team ERC Ingolstadt signed Smallwood to a contract for the 2025-26 season! The Millet, Alberta native will suit up in Germany next season!

Smallwood really hit his stride in 2021-22 in his final WHL season with the Winnipeg Ice where he scored 25 goals and 68 points in 68 games as he anchored a right-wing position in the top-six. He would finish fifth in scoring for the Ice that season while helping the Ice to a 53-10-5 record and first-overall in the WHL. The Ice would rip through the Prince Albert Raiders and the Moose Jaw Warriors in five games apiece before the Edmonton Oil Kings downed the Ice in five games.

Smallwood, though, decided to take the next step by enrolling close to his hometown as he joined the Alberta Golden Bears. Under the watchful eye of former NHLer Ian Herbers, Smallwood exploded onto the Canada West scene with an incredible rookie season where he scored 16 goals and 35 points in 26 games to earn himself the Canada West Rookie of the Year honours. While the Golden Bears fell in the Canada West Final to the Calgary Dinos, Smallwood and his teammates would head to PEI for the U CUP National Championship where they played extremely well in the tournament, but came home with silver medals after falling 3-0 to the UNB Reds in the final.

Smallwood's 2023 kept getting better as the summer hit because he'd finally get a ring while putting one on his soulmate! Smallwood married Caitlyn Mourits in June 2023 in what was described as a beautiful ceremony, and they'd add another member to their team on July 17, 2024 when they welcomed a baby boy to the world!

Without prying too much into Jakin's personal life, his 2023-24 season wasn't as productive as he scored eight goals and 28 points in 28 games as Alberta fell to UBC in the Canada West semifinal, but, as stated above, he might have won the year with the addition to his family. In 2024-25, Smallwood would only score three goals and nine points in 17 games as Alberta fell in three games to the Mount Royal Cougars in the semifinal. Obviously, he had some decisions to make with a young family beside him when it came to his 2025-26 season.

That may be the reason for the move to Germany as Ingolstadt announced the signing of Smallwood today as the final addition to their roster for the 2025-26 season. While I'm not saying that Smallwood couldn't have played for Alberta this season, it's very possible that he can play hockey in Germany while completing his fourth year as a Business major abroad. In this regard, he's be doing what he loves to do and getting paid for it, enjoying European life with his wife and son, and he can earn his business degree. That's not a bad year at all when all things are considered!

He'll also be joining a very good team that has the likes of Kenny Agostino, Austen Keating, Morgan Ellis, and Matthew Bodie on it, and Smallwood will only make them better. Sam Ruopp, who played at the University of Saskatchewan, is one of the team's defenders, and Devin Williams, who spent one season at Acadia University, is one of the netminders. Ingolstadt led the Penny DEL in points last season, and it appears they're loading up for another run with the addition of Smallwood to their squad! I think he's going to do well!

It's easy to cheer for the guys who put the work in at the Canadian university level, and Smallwood certainly was a key piece of Alberta's success. He has a knack for scoring which will help Ingolstadt aim for a Penny DEL title, and I'm hoping his time in Germany will be an incredible experience for his entire family! Best of luck to Jakin, Caitlyn, and Henry as they begin a new chapter of life in Europe!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 668

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back tonight to take care of all the little notes and bits of news that have filtered in across our hosts' respective desks. As you may be aware, the offseason is when a lot of hockey business gets done that may or may not affect the product on the ice when things get rolling again, and we need to hit all of those small stories to get us ready for another summer of fun on The Hockey Show. Buckle up those seatbelts because we're going to jump from country to country as we cover all the news from a plethora of leagues tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight on the program, Teebz and Jason will get off of North American soil to bring you hockey news from other parts of the globe! They'll chat about hockey news in Germany, Finland had some hirings of people you know, Sweden has some big news for women's hockey coming this season, Switzerland is implementing a change for its women's league, Russia checks in with all sorts of signings and news, we have Australian hockey updates, and we may even slide a few North American news stories in if time allows. It's going to be a busy show with lots of discussion on players, coaches, management, strange decisions, and more tonight 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. 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! 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 Germany, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, Australia, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: July 10, 2025: Episode 668

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Big Cats Promoted

It would never work in North American hockey in any way, but I appreciate that European hockey uses a promotion-relegation method to push teams to continue to improve. While there are some teams who never really worry about being relegated, the teams that get promoted to the top European hockey leagues often need a season or two get themselves settled into their new leagues. One such team this season will be the Dresden Ice Lions - Dresdner Eislöwen in German - as they were promoted to the DEL for first time in that team's history. Will they have a shot at sticking around the DEL for more than a season? Can they skate with powerhouses like Eisbären Berlin, EHC Red Bull München, and Adler Mannheim? We'll find out as they join the DEL as the 14th team in 2025-26 in place of the relegated Düsseldorfer EG club after winning the DEL2 last year.

If you look at the Dresdner Eislöwen roster, the first thing you'll notice is that they have five goalies listed. Out of those five, Slovakian Július Hudáček has likely logged the most miles with stops in all of Slovakia's Extraliga, Sweden's HockeyEttan, Allsvenskan, and SEL, Russia's KHL, Czechia's Extraliga, and Germany's DEL. He's had some very successful stops in his career including the Cologne Sharks last season with 2.45 GAA and a .909 save pecentage despite being 16-15-0 on the season. Hudáček could be that veteran goalie that every team wants on their roster, and Dresden may lean on him heavily.

It's very interesting that Dresden boasts the brother tandem in the crease of Paul and Clemens Stocker. Paul was on the roster last season as part of the DEL2-winning team while Clemens suited up for the Rosenheim Star Bulls in the DEL2. 20 year-old Paul and 18 year-old Clemens could be fun to watch this season if they both make the club, but they'll have to work their tails off to unseat some of the other netminders. Janick Schwendener was the starter for the Ice Lions last season, and Marvin Berbner was his backup in the crease.

Of the eight defenders listed on the roster, Justin Braun's name jumps out as the most significant. The former Sharks, Flyers, and Rangers defenceman will log his third season in the DEL this year with Dresden, and he comes over from Straubing where he had three goals and 18 points in 51 games last season. At 38 years-old, Braun has logged a lot of minutes patrolling blue lines across the planet, and it will be interesting to see how what impact he'll have for Dresden.

Former Predators draft pick Simon Karlsson never made it over to North America, but he's been with Dresden for the last four seasons where he's turned into one of their most reliable defenders, notching 28 points last season for the third-straight year. David Suvanto also had 28 points from the blue line last season, but the Swedish defender led all the Ice Lions defencemen with nine goals. Oliver Granz added 17 points, Bruno Riedl had 12 points, Tariq Hammond scored 10 points, and Felix Krüger scored one goal. Emil Johansson joins Dresden from EHC Red Bull München where he had six helpers, but, as you can see, there isn't a ton of scoring from this group.

Up front, there's an ex-NHLer skating for the Ice Lions as former Flames and Blackhawks winger Lance Bouma joins Dresden after a five-goal, 12-point season last year with Linköpings HC in the SEL. Those 12 points wouldn't have moved the needle much for Dresden last season as that would have landed as the 13th-best scorer on the team, but Bouma will bring solid defensively hockey and leadership to a team that will need good leaders this season as they enter the DEL. Like Braun, the 35 year-old won't be on many highlight reels, but he'll help Dresden in their first season in the top German league.

The good news is that Dresden may not have to lean too heavily on Bouma for scoring as they have their top-five scoring forwards returning for the 2025-26 season. Leading scorer Dane Fox lead the team in helpers last season, second-leading scorer Andrew Yogan led the team in playoff scoring, and Travis Turnbull notched a team-leading 21 goals en route to being the team's third-highest scorer. Drew Leblanc and Tomas Andres each had nine goals while Leblanc had two more assists, and they round out that top-five in scoring. It's clear that Dresden might need more goal-scoring, but Tomas Sykora and Sebastian Gorcik each had a dozen goals last season.

David Rundqvist only played in nine games last season, but he's consistently been a double-digits goal scorer while scoring over 30 points, so the Ice Lions will need his production again. Niklas Postal had two goals and 11 points while Ricardo Hendreschke had three goals and nine points, so they need a few younger guys to find the net a little more. Connor Korte was promoted to Freiburg in the DEL2, but scored just one goal. Perhaps the biggest addition up front, however, will come from Trevor Parkes who scored 16 goals and 30 points with EHC Red Bull München last season. He makes them better.

You might be wondering what kind of offence the team will need to skate alongside some of the powerhouses mentioned off the top. Last season's MVP, Ty Ronning, skated with DEL champion Eisbären Berlin where he led the league with 37 goals and 73 points. Teammate Leonhard Pfoederl led the league in assists with 45 en route to finishing second in scoring with 71 points. Chris DeSousa had 27 goals for EHC Red Bull München while Zachary Senyshyn hit the same total with the Schwenningen Wild Wings. Just for the record, the relegated Düsseldorf club had six players with more than 25 points, and that still wasn't good enough. Dresden, by comparison, had eight players with more than 25 points in the DEL2, so they'll need to score.

There was a considerable gap between the bottom-three teams in the DEL and the rest of the field last season. Düsseldorfer EG finished with just 51 points, and were tied in the standings with the Augsburg Panthers who are making all sorts of moves to improve their team this season. Just ahead of those two clubs was the Iserlohn Roosters at 53 points, and they finished 15 points back of Wolfsburg Grizzly Adams. I'm not saying that Dresden can't hit the 60-point mark, but they're going to have to work their collective tails off every night if they hope to grab one of the playoff qualifying spots this season.

I feel like the Dresdner Eislöwen are going to be fun to watch this season. They'll open the season in Berlin, their closest rival, by playing the DEL champions on the DEL season's first day, September 9, 2025, to kick things off. From there, they return home for their home opener on September 14 against ERC Ingolstadt which should be fun inside a packed Joynext Arena that holds 4412 fans - smallest in the DEL! That intimate arena will be rocking all season until January 10, 2026 when the Ice Lions take the game outside for the DEL Winter Game (powered by MagentaSport) that sees the Ice Lions host the Eisbären Berlin potentially in front of 32,000 fans at the Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion football stadium! How cool is that for Dresden fans?

The last home game of the season will see the Eislöwen battle the other lions in Löwen Frankfurt on March 13, and the Eislöwen will wrap up their first season in the DEL with a game Bremerhaven against the Penguins. We'll see where the Eislöwen stand on that day, but it's pretty clear that Dresdner Eislöwen are starting to put the stakes in the foundation of what could be a very long and prosperous run in the DEL if a few things go their way in this historical season.

Get ready, Germany. The Ice Lions are on the prowl!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 655

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back with reminders, champions, and tournaments to discuss as the hockey world is looking to crown winners before the summer starts! Whether it be teams clinching playoff spots in their respective leagues, women's teams battling to find out which nation stands atop the podium, contests you can enter to win some prizes, or leagues wrapping up by crowning their best teams as champions, there is a lot happening across the globe on ice surfaces! Our hosts will take you through all the news from many corners of the globe on another news-filled, busy edition of the program tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Teebz and Jason will remind of you that Survivor: NHL Playoffs kicks off next week and how that ties into Pledge-O-Rama that starts on April 18! After they get through that jumble of info, they will chat about the IIHF Women's World Championship happening in Czechia, the IIHF Women's World Championship Division 1, Group B championship happening in Great Britain, a number of European leagues who crowned champions, some playoff scheduling for the ECHL, the Melbourne Mustangs getting off to a big start in the AIHL, the awful ending to Chaz Lucius's career, and there will be a shoutout to the Esso Cup representative from Manitoba and Saskatchewan! If there's enough time to squeeze all this news in, we'll get it done tonight 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 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! 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 contests and radio telethons, world championships, league championships, playoff schedules, AIHL results, being forced to retire, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: April 10, 2025: Episode 655

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Best Feature Is Missing

The stadium to the left is Frankfurt's Deutsche Bank Park. Normally, Eintracht Frankfurt plays their football matches here as part of the Bundesliga, but the stadium will be filled with hockey fans this weekend as Germany's DEL gets set to have its sixth outdoor game played in its history. In what seems like a bit of a mismatch, Löwen Frankfurt will host Adler Mannheim this weekend, and outdoor games in Germany's highest hockey league have featured one key feature which makes them unique compared to the North American outdoor games. Except that feature seems to be missing in Frankfurt.

Adler Mannheim head coach Dallas Eakins shared the following video of his club arriving at the rink, and things look pretty standard.

We have arrived. @adlermannheim is ready for practice. #del #delwintergame #wintergame #adlermannheim #pennydel pic.twitter.com/MlSgMG4Rw4

— Dallas Eakins (@dallaseakins) January 3, 2025

One might be inclined to say that the environment looks somewhat more intimate based on having the fans closer to the action, but that's not the feature that is missing. In past years, European leagues that have played outdoor games have used transparent boards like boards seen below in Switzerland, but many leagues across Europe, including the DEL, have used them in outdoor games in the past.

Frankly, this is one of the things that Europe did better than the NHL or AHL, and it's bothersome to see Frankfurt moving away from a feature that gave a new perspective on board battles and scrums in the corners. While advertisements on the boards are vital for the operation of European teams and the promotion of outdoor games like these, losing the one thing that Europe did better than North America seems like a major step in thw wrong direction.

If you want to watch the game, there is a link via OnHockey.tv to catch the action. The game begins at 11am CT, but the broadcast will be, of course, in German. My German isn't anywhere close enough for me to understand the chatter, but the action on the ice should be pretty easy to decipher. With 50,000 fans in a soccer stadium, things will look different than what we see here in North America so I may tune in just to see what this game looks like as it's being played.

If you need a bit of a primer to get into this one, Löwen Frankfurt sits in eleveth-place with an 11-14-2-4 record while Adler Mannheim is the fourth-place team in the DEL with a 17-10-2-2 record. Frankfurt comes into the game having dropped a 3-2 shootout result to Kolner while Mannheim has lost two-straight games that saw first-place EHC Ingolstadt drop a 6-2 loss on them while Kolner also took a 4-1 result from Mannheim. Mannheim sits 12 points back of first-place Ingolstadt while Frankfurt is four points back of a playoff play-in game and 14 points back of a guaranteed playoff spot.

Former Jets and Sharks defender Leon Gawanke and former Penguins forward Tom Kuhnhackl are the recognizable names for the Mannheim Eagles. The Frankfurt Lions could have former Islanders and Red Wings goalie Thomas Greiss in the crease, but we'll likely see former Manitoba Moose netminder Jussi Olkinura between the pipes while former UNB Reds forward Cameron Brace leads the team in scoring.

As stated above, I know the importance of advertising for European clubs, but if you have something that's uniquely yours, don't get rid of it. The DEL and all the European leagues should embrace the transparent boards when it comes to playing outdoor games as it made it different than all the other outdoor games we see. Unless there was a safety issue, losing the one thing that set their games apart from the North American games feels like a bad decision.

Of course, I'm also hoping that Adler Mannheim doesn't blow out Löwen Frankfurt as well as there's 16 points between these two teams in the standings. For once, I'd like to see a competitive, high-tempo outdoor game where scoring chances are given priority to defensive schemes, but I'm not getting my hopes up with both teams needing wins tomorrow in their quests for playoff seedings.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Giving The Farm Away

It's hard to justify the Winnipeg Jets continuing to employ general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff. As he pointed out in his season-closing press conference with Winnipeg media, Cheveldayoff feels he doesn't need to justify the bewildering extension he was given considering how the pillars of salt and sand have eroded beneath him with his club failing to make any meaningful gains in the NHL. He claims he's drafted well, but only three players he's drafted since 2018 have played more than 30 games with the Jets, and none have played more than 74. With his latest roster management gaffe, keeping Cheveldayoff around as a "yes man" seems to be True North Sports and Entertainment's only true purpose for having him in the front office.

Announced earlier this morning, the DEL's Adler Mannheim have inked 2017 fifth-round pick Leon Gawanke to a four-year deal, making him unable to skate for the Jets or the Moose for the foreseeable future. With Gawanke's departure, the Moose lose another very good, very capable defender whose skills have once more been overlooked and underappreciated by both management and coaches of the Jets.

Gawanke's last two seasons in the AHL pointed to a defenceman whose stock was rising within the Jets organization. He scored ten goals and 36 points in 65 games in 2021-22, and then doubled his offensive spark by scoring 20 goals and 45 points in 68 games this season. You can argue that his stats may not be "NHL-ready", but he tied for seventh in AHL scoring among defencemen and he finished with more points than Michael Del Zotto, Will Butcher, and Connor Carrick who have all skated for NHL teams for at least one season.

Gawanke will be good for Adler Mannheim, though, so kudos for the Eagles picking up a puck-moving, offensively-minded defender to skate on their blue line. Winnipeg's efforts in "draft and develop" are working wonders for teams not based in Manitoba, it seems, and those players who have chosen to remain in the Jets' depth chart are buried nicely behind overpriced veteran players who apparently enjoy playing one playoff round in seasons where they qualify for the playoffs.

Don't believe me? Here's the breakdown in simple numbers between 2015-2020 as those players should be eligible NHL players:

• The Jets drafted 37 players including seven first-rounders.
• In total, those 37 players have played 2319 NHL games - an average of 63 games/player for all teams.
• First-round selections have played 1602 games - 69.1% of the 2319 games for all teams.
• Only 15 of 37 drafted players have skated for the Jets at some point - 40.5% of all picks.
• Of those 15 players, Kyle Connor has skated in the most games as a Winnipeg Jet at 466 games.
• Of those 15 players, five are currently playing for teams other than the Jets - 1/3 of picks that made an NHL roster.
• Of the 37 players drafted, 13 are still somewhere on the Jets' depth charts.

It's not a matter of drafting well. It's pretty clear that the Jets have had a ton of success with first-round selections as they make up some 70% of games of all the games played in that five-year span. Sure, Laine, Roslovic, and Vesalainen are skating for other teams as I write this, but the point is that first-round selections are fairly safe bets to crack NHL rosters. What should concern fans and management alike in Jets Nation is that 30 players not selected in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft have only skated in 717 games - an average of 24 games per player - and of those 30 players, only eight have logged those 717 games to date.

If the Jets are developing just 26.7% of their non-first-round picks to skate at the NHL level, this is not a "draft and develop" team. It's only a "draft" team because there isn't much development happening when it comes to producing NHL talent. First-rounders are thriving, but the work needed for players selected lower in the draft simply isn't being realized if it's being done at all.

Since this team returned to Winnipeg in 2011, players drafted in the fourth-round or lower have skated in 1512 NHL games. If we remove Andrew Copp, Connor Hellebuyck, Mason Appleton, and Tucker Poolman from that total, fourth-round picks or lower have skated in just 92 NHL games. Of the 42 selections made in the fourth-round or lower in twelve years of Jets 2.0 hockey, just four - 9.5% of picks - have played over 100 games, and two of them skate for teams not named the Jets.

If you're wondering why I'm dissecting the draft history of the Jets when it comes to NHL talent, the problems are compounded by Winnipeg allowing good young players to walk away from this team due to variety of reasons. Most times, NHL teams draft players based on their skills - scoring, defence, and goaltending - and the Jets are no different. They celebrate the scoring skills of players they draft while talking of development, but it should be clear that the Jets haven't learned a damn thing when it comes to the new way of thinking in the NHL.

The Curious Case Of Comrie

If we consider the case of Eric Comrie, a 59th-overall pick in 2013, the Jets simply couldn't figure out what to do with their developing netminder. He'd win games and look superb at times, but he'd also suffer games where stopping the puck seemed more like a challenge than a routine. In three months in 2019, he was waived to go to Arizona from Winnipeg, to Detroit in a trade with Arizona, and back to Winnipeg off waivers from Detroit as he lived out of a suitcase. Chevy again lost him on waivers to New Jersey in 2021 only to reclaim him a month later. It was hard to understand what Chevy was doing with Comrie after all those moves, but it seemed they wanted him based on the number of times they reacquired him.

Backup netminders are paid to win the few games they play in place of the team's starting netminder. Comrie seemingly could do that for Winnipeg as he was 10-5-1 with a 2.58 GAA and a .920 save percentage in 2021-22 while earning the league's minimum salary value, so it was baffling that the Jets allowed him to walk as a free agent by not playing for 90 more minutes in that season to retain his rights as a restricted free agent. Yes, he may have played above his head, but given the option of either David Rittich or Eric Comrie, I'll take the 27 year-old kid over the proven-to-fail veteran.

Yet Winnipeg, needing just 90 more minutes of playing time out of Comrie, allowed him to leave without any compensation for his play in 2021-22. Even if the Jets believed this was an aberration in his career where he'd never have another season like this, teams are always hedging their bets on young goalies. The Jets could have simply qualified him, and then traded Comrie to bring back an asset. All it would have meant was 90 more minutes in the blue paint, and the Jets might have been able to maximize his value. Instead, he signed with Buffalo while the Jets searched for another inexpensive backup netminder.

Too Many Defenders

It wasn't hard to see that the high-priced defenders that the Jets had assembled on their roster for the start of the 2022-23 season was going to push players back down to the AHL, but the one player expected to go was Logan Stanley. Instead, the Jets waived Johnathan Kovacevic in a rather inexplicable move to send him to the Moose only to watch the Montreal Canadiens claim the defender after a solid preseason. He didn't score, but he played physical, had good gap control, and seemed to fit nicely into the bottom-half of the Jets' defence corps.

Instead, Montreal used him in 77 games this season where the 6'4" defender scored three goals and added 12 helpers while only being whistled for 39 PIMs. Earning the league's minimum salary, Kovacevic showed his value by anchoring the defence on the third pairing while providing valuable penalty-killing shifts for the Canadiens in his 16:55 of ice-time per game.

Nobody expected him to be Shea Weber or Erik Karlsson, but he was leaps and bounds better than Logan Stanley ever was. Chevy's failure on this one was not recognizing his mistakes in drafting Stanley in the first round and then sacrificing Kovacevic to keep him on the depth chart. That's just inexcusable.

How About Mikey?

Another player that the Jets mismanaged into a better situation than what he had in Winnipeg was Michael Eyssimont. Leaps and bounds more effective than both Sam Gagner and Mason Appleton in a third-line role alongside Morgan Barron and Adam Lowry, Eyssimont was the player that threw himself completely into his work. His advanced stats were much better than his point totals, but he was expected to cause chaos in the offensive zone with his touch and he often was praised for his work ethic.

Somehow, Eyssimont ended up on waivers as the Jets couldn't find a spot for him in the lineup, and the San Jose Sharks scooped up the available forward where his additional ice-time and play in all situations benefitted him greatly. In fact, he looked quite at home alongside Logan Couture on the Sharks' second line until the Sharks flipped him to Tampa Bay. And when he got to the Lightning, he was given the same green light by Jon Cooper as he had in San Jose.

All said, Eyssimont totalled a goal and four assists in 20 games with the Jets, but rattled off four goals and six assists in 35 games between San Jose and Tampa Bay, and then added another goal and an assist in three playoff games by the Lightning. It leads one to ask how on earth does Cheveldayoff continually misjudge the talent he has on his roster?

What About Axel?

In a similar lack of astuteness when it comes to asset management, the Jets seemingly didn't care enough to keep forward Axel Jonsson-Fjällby around after he joined the Jets as a waiver pickup from Washington after 23 games. He played in 50 regular season games for the Jets and appeared in one playoff game to end the season with 74 games where he scored eight goals and ten assists. It should be noted that was more than Saku Mäenalanen (four goals, seven assists in 69 games) and Sam Gagner (eight goals, six assist in 48 games) in their entire season of work.

Beyond that, the speedy Jonsson-Fjällby was an excellent forechecker and played hard on the penalty kill when sent over the boards, but I guess making the league minimum was too rich for the Jets' blood and they missed his contract requirement of 75 NHL games by one game in order to keep him as a restricted free agent, allowing him instead to become a Group 6 UFA on July 1.

While his stats certainly won't have all 31 NHL franchises lining up for a shot at signing him, Jonsson-Fjällby is a very serviceable player who will help teams be better. He's not going to win an Art Ross Trophy nor captain an NHL team, but he doesn't have to as long as he plays in his role like he did here in Winnipeg. And the Jets will receive nothing for him if they had deemed him expendable just like Comrie.

Burying The Best

The Jets, at one time, owned the rights of the best defender in the AHL in Sami Niku. Niku was voted as the AHL's best defenceman in 2017-18 as he collected the Eddie Shore Award that year, and it seemed the Jets may have found another highly-skilled offensive defenceman in the flashy Finn. Detractors of Niku will point to his inability to move players from in front of the net or his avoiding physical play while looking for loose pucks as problems with his game, but at no point was he ever seen as an Erik Černák, a Jan Rutta, a Brendan Dillon, or a Jake Muzzin.

Time and time again, though, we saw Niku planted in the pressbox when called up. Paul Maurice opted to dress Dmitry Kulikov over him in January 2020. Luca Sbisa and Anthony Bitetto were played ahead of him. Somehow, Carl Dahlstrom got ice time over Niku. It would be one thing if the Jets were a sound defensive hockey club under Paul Maurice, but they weren't. They were pretty darn horrible when it came to most metrics, so why not add some offence to the mix if you can't prevent teams from scoring?

Sami Niku, the AHL's top defender in 2017-18 with the Manitoba Moose, played 54 games with the Jets in parts of four seasons, scoring two goals and eight assists. The Jets then put him on waivers in 2020-21 order to buy out his contract.

If the Jets believed they could develop a Lidstrom-type defender, they went about it all wrong. If they thought they could get him to rachet up the physical play, they completely missed the boat on Niku as a prospect. He was an offensive defenceman through and through, and it's hard to understand how the Jets missed so badly on Niku.

Confused By Offence

It seems the Jets are falling into the same problem they had with Niku when it comes to Ville Heinola. He's virtually the same defenceman as Niku was - slight in stature, all offence, very little physicality - and it seems the Jets have no clue what to do with him other than bury him in the AHL. He can skate, he has good vision, and he does occasionally turn the puck over when trying to push the offence, but he's never going to be a traditional defensive defenceman.

How long does Heinola stick around the Jets organization? No one can be too sure, but he has 35 games of experience in four seasons so I don't think averaging nine games per campaign is going to make him anxious to return when his contract expires.

Back To Leon

You can probably see why a skilled German offensive defenceman would look at the depth chart - one where he's never been called up from the Moose to the Jets - and figure he's better off playing elsewhere. He's never been close to winning anything in North America as a junior player or as a professional, and he made that very clear in Mannheim's release, stating, "I haven't won anything in my career and I'm hungry for titles. I want to win the championship with Mannheim."

As North Americans snicker at the idea of winning a DEL championship being on the same level as the Stanley Cup, it needs to be mentioned that a lot of European players take extra pride in winning their nation's top league. Whether it be Joel Lundqvist in the SEL, Ilya Kovalchuk in the KHL, or Jussi Jokinen in the SM-Liiga, there's a ton of personal and civic pride in these players returning home to help their clubs win their respective championships. Gawanke seems to be the next young player to follow that thinking with his four-year pact with Mannheim. Hockey is simply viewed differently in Europe than it is here, and I commend Gawanke for going where he's wanted.

There's The Door

Whether it be his trainwreck of a season-ending press conference, his belief that the Jets' core group is good enough when it clearly isn't, his rather terrible draft record that he claims is good, or his brutal asset management within the organization, it seems pretty clear that Kevin Cheveldayoff's time with the Jets should have been over long ago. Quite frankly, it should have been over when the Blackhawks' sexual assualt coverup unfolded, but Chevy somehow eluded the axe in that chaos. In my view, having Gawanke sign overseas with no conversation with management says more than enough about the problems within Chevy's kingdom.

At this point, there's not much for which fans should be optimistic when it comes to next year. If the team was going to purge a number of veteran contracts and go young, they're losing good young replacements quickly. While Heinola and Chisholm are likely ready to step in and be part of a rebuild, the Jets have no goaltending candidates ready to step forward nor do they have a deep enough pool of netminders that they can wait a year or two. In short, a rebuild will be long and painful because the Jets' ability to keep good, young players seems be something with which they struggle. Based on the number of players that have been waived only to excel elsewhere, Chevy's done a helluva job in giving the farm away.

Culture and player issues aside, none of this should surprise anyone. Chevy's been here for twelve years, meaning he's watched three coaches battle players inside the room and through the media while nothing has changed. He's watched his team make one phenomenal run to the 2018 Western Conference Final while spending the rest of the time holding that up as an achievement and justifying his contract through various letdowns and disappointments. As critical as I may seem right now, the NHL is a business that excels when teams are winning, and if the Jets are wondering why their season ticket numbers continue to fall they should look no further than the office with the General Manager's name on it.

Since there's only one man who has continually said that he's in charge of the team, it's his head that should roll. He made it clear in his season-ending chat with the media that he's the guy making decisions, and it seems pretty clear that he's responsible for the messes shown above. If he's going to thump his chest and take credit for the team's successes as he did with the media, he's also responsible for the mistakes and failures they've experienced. Based on the lack of development throughout the organization outside of a couple of players and based on the number of players he's simply gifted to other organizations along the way, it's time for that man to be dismissed as easily as he's dismissed talented players.

In short, Kevin Cheveldayoff is the problem with the Winnipeg Jets.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Three Names Remain

As we know, the search for a replacement for the man to the left is underway in the Manitoba capital. That's Mike Sirant, the newly-retired head coach of the Manitoba Bisons men's hockey team, and his departure left a hole on the bench that would need to be filled by someone who brings a renewed vigor and philosophy to a team that last won a playoff game - not a series, but a single game - in 2017. The last time that the Bisons men's hockey program played beyond the quarterfinal round in Canada West was in 2014, so things are going to have to change from top to bottom if the Bisons want to chart a new course in Canada West. The question that needs to be answered is who is coach with the vision to do so?

From the information that I've collected, it seems that the Bisons won't be revolutionary in naming their new head coach as all three finalists, from what I've been told, are men. It would have been a major step forward in being a progressive institution if one of the finalists was a woman, but that's not happening at the University of Manitoba. For anyone hoping for the next Kori Cheverie, it won't be in Winnipeg as a head coach for the upcoming Canada West season.

The final three candidates bring all sorts of different backgrounds to the table in their playing and coaching careers, and all three men are Canadians who have ties to playing university hockey - two in U SPORTS and one in the NCHA. While their paths to reaching this point haven't crossed yet, the resumés of two men are certainly more decated than the third man. Where he may have an advantage, though, is familiarity.

From what I've been told, let's pull back the curtain and take a look at the three candidates whose resumés sit in front of the Athletic Director and whose visions for the Bisons may earn one of them a shot at standing behind the bench in Canada West in October.

Gordon Burnett

The first of the three candidates we'll review here on HBIC is Gordon Burnett. Burnett's playing career saw him move through the SJHL with the Melville Millionaires before landing in the NCHA with St. Scholastica College in Duluth, Minnesota. The Regina-born defenceman played 104 games at the NCAA Division-III level, scoring 12 goals and 24 assists in his four-year span in Duluth. That led to an opportunity with the Utah Grizzlies in the ECHL in 2006-07 before bouncing around the CHL and ECHL where he finished with 200 ECHL games and 87 CHL games to his name that saw him rack up 874 PIMs in seven professional seasons. Burnett earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business, Management, and Marketing in 2005 at St. Scholastica before adding a Master of Arts degree in Organizational Development. In 2021, Burnett earned a diploma from the University of New Brunswick in University Teaching and Education. Yes, there's a lack of U SPORTS experience in Burnett's past, but his connections to other leagues could be the "in" he needs.

For the lack of U SPORTS experience that Burnett brings, he does bring a strong tie to the WHL thanks to his seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Kootenay Ice and the Moose Jaw Warriors. From 2015-16 until 2018-19, Burnett worked alongside Luke Pierce and James Patrick behind the Ice bench in trying to build a Memorial Cup team, but the team ended up in the basement of the WHL's Central Division in three of those four years. In 2020-21, he joined a considerably better Moose Jaw Warriors team where he's been coaching as Mark O'Leary's assistant coach.

Burnett's dabble in Manitoba hockey saw him take the head coaching position of the MJHL's Winnipeg Blues in 2019-20 after the Kootenay Ice became the Winnipeg Ice, and he led them to a 24-29-7 record in his lone head coaching stint. The Blues made the playoffs, but were dispatched in the opening round before the playoffs were cancelled with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, Burnett brings a wealth of experience in terms of both his playing and coaching days, and his efforts with Hockey Canada likely means he has good ties across the country when it comes to sourcing players. As we know, a lot of WHL players end up in U SPORTS, so having ties to both the Ice and the Warriors means he may be able to attract some undrafted WHL talent to the Bisons. The only drawback that I can find on Burnett is that he has a lack of head coaching experience, but he's worked with some great coaches and players at the WHL level where he's likely learned a lot.

Jason O'Leary

The second of the three candidates is Jason O'Leary. O'Leary's career on skates started in his hometown of Fredericton, New Brunswick where the defenceman skated for the Fredericton Canadians U18 AAA. After two seasons in the Quebec Provincial Junior Hockey League where he played just 29 games and one in the Maritime Hockey League where he played 36 games, O'Leary landed at St. Thomas University in the AUS in 1998-99 where he skated for four seasons. In 94 games at the school, O'Leary scored one goal and eight assists, but posted a whopping 200 PIMs as a member of the Tommies. In 2001, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Literature, and he followed that up by earning his Bachelor of Education degree in 2002. It's been 22 years since he last skated in U SPORTS, and he hasn't crossed into Canada West at any time, but his coaching experiences might make him the best candidate of the three finalists.

In 2018, O'Leary landed in Austria where he earned the head coaching job for the Lower Austria Stars U20 team while coaching both the Austrian U18 team at the World Division-1B Championship and the Austrian U20 team at the World Division-1A Championship. His two seasons in Austria didnt see him make the playoffs, but Switzerland's SC Langenthal liked him enough to hire him as an assistant coach for the senior and U17 teams and as a head coach for the U15 team.

In 2014-15, O'Leary was promoted to the head coaching position for SC Langenthal, and by 2016-17 he had captured a National League "B" title with Langenthal for just the second time in the team's history. That victory put O'Leary on the coaching map, and he was hired by the National League's Genève-Servette HC for the 2017-18 season as an assistant coach before joining EVZ Academy as a head coach in 2018-19. One season later, he was the head coach for the DEL's Iserlohn Roosters before being fired in 2021. Another short stint the SCL Tigers in the National League ended with O'Leary's dismissal in 2022, and he moved on to coaching the Ducs d'Angers in the Ligue Magnus in France where he's still behind the bench.

It seems clear that O'Leary has a passion for coaching, and his work with younger players likely means that he's able to adapt and find strategies that work at a variety of levels. Coaching in four different countries over eight years also means he's been exposed to a number of coaching styles, tactics, and systems used on the ice. I do question why he was dismissed in both Iserlohn and Langnau im Emmental in two consecutives seasons, but his varied coaching background outside of North American hockey makes him an intriguing candidate for the Bisons' head coaching position.

Jon Rempel

The third candidate really needs no introduction if you're a Bisons hockey fan as he's been behind the bench for the women's program for a long time. Jon Rempel is the third coach being considered for the head coaching position of the Bisons men's hockey program, and it's a bit of a head-scratcher as to how he made it this far in the competition when comparing his coaching experiences to the other two candidates. It makes sense if one is to believe that the University of Manitoba is adhering to the expression "Better the devil you know than the devil you don't know," but I'm the certain the university is giving Rempel a long look as he's the only man to have brought a National Championship hockey banner - men's or women's - to the school. He's a tenured educator at the school already and will be back in a classroom this year, so this may be a candidate of convenience more than anything else. In the interest of impartiality, though, let's look at Jon's qualifications.

Jon spent time in the MJHL with the Selkirk Steelers for three seasons that also saw him make a brief cameo with the SJHL's Melville Millionaires. He played three seasons under Mike Sirant for the Manitoba Bisons where his eleven goals and 24 assists were eclipsed by his 205 PIMs. His play earned him parts of three seasons on the blue line with the ECHL's Baton Rouge Kingfish along with a two-game appearance in the AHL with the Portland Pirates where he recorded an assist. His playing career would finish in the British National League in 1998-99 with the Slough Jets where he'd help the team win the BNL championship. It should be noted that Rempel earned his Bachelor of Recreation Studies in 1999 from the University of Manitoba after returning to the school.

After earning his degree, Rempel worked as an assistant coach for the MJHL's Winnipeg South Blues, and spent a year as an assistant coach with the University of Manitoba Women's Hockey Team. In 2004-05, Rempel took over the head coaching duties for the women's hockey program at the University of Manitoba. In 16 seasons behind the bench, Rempel has guided the Bisons to six CIS/U SPORTS National Championships, returning home with three bronze medals (2005, '07, and '08) and a gold medal ('18). He's been voted as the Canada West women's hockey Coach of the Year five times ('05, '07, '15, '17, and '18) and U SPORTS' Coach of the Year once ('18) while compiling a 247-141-32 record in-conference and 377-229-41 record overall.

If you're noting the years above, most of Jon's success with the women's program came prior to the 2018-19 season where he took a sabbatical. Since returning, he's rebuilt the program with exceptional talent, but his squads have made the playoffs just once in three seasons, and haven't won a playoff game under his direction since 2018. Rempel knows success - the pinnacle coming with the National Championship banner in 2018 - and his current employment and tenure with the university would make him the easy choice to replace Sirant, but there should be a "what have you done for me lately" question asked of him. For a team that may mark ten years without winning a playoff round next season, Rempel's past performances don't necessarily guarantee future successes.

Who Gets Picked?

I can't answer that. I'm not the Athletic Director at Bisons Sports, but I'm sure this won't be an easy decision in any direction. There's a coach with solid WHL ties which is vital for any U SPORTS men's hockey program, there's a coach who has a ton of international experience and head coaching experience who has worked with players of all ages, and there's a coach whose trail of success with the women's program and whose commitment to the university can't be questioned.

While all three men bring unique qualifications to the program, all three also have Grand Canyon-sized limitations on their resumés. One has to wonder if there were calls made by the administration to find coaches who may attract players to the program on reputation alone - Tony Granato, Marc Savard, or Josh Green, for example - but I also know there's a teaching component that the University of Manitoba wants that will eliminate a number of coaches such as the three listed above. This might be the biggest hurdle for any coach who had thoughts about taking over the reins for the Bisons: one has to hold a teaching degree.

Since you asked, though, I do believe that both Burnett and O'Leary would bring a new perspective and new philosophies to the men's hockey program that have been sorely missing for the better part of a decade, and their enthusiasm in gaining the job to coach the Bisons should perpetuate through the players as they look to start their own eras in Winnipeg.

What I suspect, however, is that Jon Rempel will likely get job since he's already completely integrated into Bisons Sports, and the only change that would be needed would be for him to grab the men's schedule and walk down the hall to the men's dressing room. He already is well-versed in Canada West life, he's accustomed to the travel and work schedules, and he likely has been talking to Sirant about the team. It's seems almost too easy for Bisons Sports to appoint Rempel, but they do need to do their due diligence on both Burnett and O'Leary.

I guess what I'm saying is don't expect me to be surprised when the announcement is made. My experiences with Bisons Sports lead me to believe that if they can take the easy way out, they will. In other words, it's business as usual when it comes to the only men's university hockey program in the province.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Summer Music Jersey Collection

While the pandemic is far from over, it has quieted somewhat thanks to vaccinations and general cautiousness among the mass of humanity. Because of this, venues began opening their doors once again, musicians loaded up buses with their gear, and we had live music this summer for the first time in what felt like a long time! I'll be honest in telling you that I didn't attend a concert personally, but that's not something I do regularly as it is. That didn't stop any musicians or bands from touring, though, and that means hockey jerseys were en vogue once again for musicians to wear! Who was wearing your favorite team? Let's find out in this edition of Musician In Jerseys!

I linked the database of images above, but there have been a lot of musicians who have already appeared in jerseys at some point in their respective careers. We're adding a pile of new images today, so bear with me as we work through each team's roster of musicians - both current and historical - who have worn or held a jersey for a photo. If you want to submit a musician in a jersey, fire it over to me and I'll add it to the next round of musicians who have taken home a hockey jersey! Check the database, though, because there are a ton of duplicates that I receive!

Alphabetically, we start with the Anaheim Ducks. Machine Gun Kelly picked up a Ducks alternate jersey. Five For Fighting is technically the name that John Ondrasik goes by as a performer, so his touring band doesn't get much publicity when it comes to who is playing behind him. There's nothing wrong with that arrangement, of course, but it makes it harder to identify musicians such as his guitarist who wore a Ducks jersey and his drummer who wore a Ducks jersey at the Stadium Series game in 2014. I suspect the drummer may be Randy Cooke, but I have no idea who the guitarist is. Friends of the blog, if you know, you get full credit. Send me the details if you know!

The relocated Atlanta Thrashers don't have many musicians who wore their jerseys, but The Flaming Lips bassist Michael Ivins was one of them. Like the Thrashers who left Atlanta, Ivins has also left The Flaming Lips as of August 20, 2021 for reasons not yet disclosed. In both cases, fans deserve better than a team or a band member walking away despite both likely having good reasons to do so.

The Buffalo Sabres played in the 2018 Winter Classic at Citi Field against the New York Rangers, and they got a special visit from the Goo Goo Dolls who were founded in Buffalo in 1986! Perhaps they are true hometown fans of the Sabres being from Buffalo? Seems like that might be the case!

Alphabetically, the Calgary Flames are the first team to have multiple musicians show up in their threads. We'll start with the Backstreet Boys who are on another world tour despite not being boys nor being from any sort of "back street" in two decades. Country singer George Canyon performed the anthem before a Flames game. And at the recent Canadian Country Music Awards show, Canadian country music star Jojo Mason not only showed up in a Flames jersey with new star Jonathan Huberdeau, but his jersey was a Huberdeau jersey! The Flames have a new a new fan in Regina-born Jojo Mason, it seems!

Rapper Rapsody, born in North Carolina, went with the Carolina Hurricanes for her photo alongside Remy Ma for their collaboration. The Backstreet Boys were also in Raleigh, North Carolina during their world tour. I wonder if they came home with more clothes than with which they started? It seems like it could be possible at this point.

The Chicago Blackhawks helped the Backstreet Boys out in the past with more clothes, but it seems that Kevin Richardson had a white jersey given to him at some point while Howie Dorough received a red jersey for his intermission shooting skills. Speaking of shooting skills, Rick Neilsen of Cheap Trick took a shot, drummer Mince Fratelli of The Fratellis fired pucks, bass guitarist Barry Fratelli tried to hit the targets, and the Brothers Osborne actually scored on one of their attempts! SWV's Leanne "Lelee" Lyons was in Blackhawks red in the linked photo. And in perhaps the most iconic photo in this set of Blackhawks fans is Anna-Frid Lyngstad of ABBA wearing the red Blackhawks jersey!

The Dallas Stars have had a few key people come through American Airlines Center who left with a jersey. Among them are country music legend George Strait, Lukas Forchhammer of Danish pop band Lukas Graham, and Canadian crooner Michael Bublé, compliments of Blair F., who all came out with Victory Green jerseys! Bublé, it should be noted, now has two Dallas Stars jerseys of two different designs!

The Detroit Red Wings make an appearance today as they have a few musical fans. They include Jon Bon Jovi, and both Joe Elliott and Phil Collen of Def Leppard. He's already part of their list in Detroit's white jersey, but Kid Rock is back in the red jersey as well.

It nearly took a forensic investigation, but I believe the man in the Oilers jersey from a 2009 game against Columbus is Haymaker's Aaron "Justice" Simpson. I say that mainly because his Facebook page has Connor McDavid featured prominently. American country music star Hardy showed his Oilers colours. Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo sang the anthem prior to a game in 2007. Nova Scotia-born Natalie MacMaster showed off her fiddle skills by performing the anthems prior to a game in 2010.

The Los Angeles Kings have a pile of musical fans, but none might be bigger than Five For Fighting's John Ondrasik who has a Robitaille black-and-purple jersey and a black jersey (which he may have been wearing when he met Wayne Gretzky!). Zakk Wylde, lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne, played the US national anthems on opening night in 2005. Latino musician Virlan Garcia appears to be a fan of the Kings. Stone Temple Pilots singer Jeff Gutt belts out the anthem prior to a 2018 game. The Eagles' Glenn Frey wore a Gene Carr jersey on-stage in some concerts, and there was a good reason for it as the two were close friends! Ciara sported a Kings jersey as she filmed a music video as well!

This had to be included: He wasn't part of the Bee Gees, but youngest Gibb brother Andy Gibb wore a Minnesota North Stars jersey!

Soul Asylum was invited to perform at the 2016 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild where lead singer Dave Pirner wore a Minnesota Wild jersey!

The Canadiens saw Annakin Slayd sport their 1909-10 centennial jersey alongside Habs celebrity superfan Jay Baruchel. Old Dominion's Trevor Rosen has his own personalized jersey he wore in a recent concert. Australian rapper The Kid Laroi wore a Montreal jersey during a performance, and the Backstreet Boys also added some more clothes to their closets, but it seems like Kevin Richardson may have already had a jersey?

Calgary-born country-pop singer Lindsay Ell took the stage in a Nashville Stadium Series jersey. Madison Marlow and Taylor Dye of the group Maddie and Tae had their pictures taken with the Stanley Cup in 2018. Country music legends The Oak Ridge Boys performed the anthem prior to a 2018 game.

The New Jersey Devils invited Ra Ra Riot's Wes Miles out to perform the anthem prior to a 2010 game, and they also had Wyclef Jean out in 2019 to drop a ceremonial first puck! He's been mentioned a few times already, but Machine Gun Kelly also acquired a Devils jersey at some point in his career.

It's not a jersey, but it was hard to miss Twenty One Pilots' Josh Dun very clearly wearing the logo of the New York Islanders.

The New York Rangers found a new fan in Luisana Lopilato as the former member of pop-rock band Erreway participated in a series of challenges against her husband, Michael Bublé. Phil Collins is already entrenched as a Rangers fan, but he wore a second Rangers jersey with the shield logo in this photo! Like Collins, Chad Smith, drummer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, was also added to the Rangers' fanbase in a blue jersey, but here he is in a white Rangers jersey as well! I didn't think Sting would be a Rangers fan, but apparently he is. Drummer Tyler Stewart of Barenaked Ladies accepted an award in New York City in 2001 and showed the local team some love. Cheryl "Koko" Gamble was representing her hometown in NYR blue. While she is likely better known for her acting, Zendaya has released a number of singles and at least one album in her career! Rapper Remy Ma broke out the hometown Rangers' blue jersey for her collaboration with Rapsody. Brian Littrell of the Backstreet Boys wore the blue Rangers jersey during an anthem performance.

Trooper's Ra McGuire entertained fans prior to the Stanley Cup Final game in Ottawa in 2007.

The Philadelphia Flyers can add both Method Man and Phil Collins to their fanbase.

The Arizona Coyotes had a couple of musicians join them in performing the anthems as Laura Walsh had the honour in 2017 while Jordin Sparks sang at a 2011 game when the team was still the Phoenix Coyotes!

The late Mac Miller was a big Pittsburgh Penguins fan as he wore the robo-Penguin jersey and the diagonal-name jersey at times, and Michael Bublé was in Pittsburgh for a concert where he wore the reverse retro Penguins jersey. Tamara "Taj" Johnson also sports a diagonal-name jersey in the SWV photo. AJ McLean of the Backstreet Boys performed the anthem in a Penguins jersey.

I don't know if Machine Gun Kelly is a big fan of bedazzling, but it would seem someone got a little carried away on his Seattle Kraken jersey.

The St. Louis Blues had Echosmith perform before Game Three of the Stanley Cup Final in 2019, and singer Sydney Sierota donned a Blues jersey. Post Malone's recent tour stop in St. Louis saw him go home with a jersey and bruised ribs after he fell through the stage. Mike Levine from Triumph was a Blues fan back in his era. Michael Bublé recently picked up a St. Louis Blues jersey while stopping there. And Machine Gun Kelly added a Blues jersey to his growing collection of jerseys as well!

Did Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys bring his own Tampa Bay Lightning jersey or did he get a new one when he joined his bandmates in the Backstreet Boys for a performance of the anthem?

We have a pile of reader submissions coming for the Maple Leafs. "PhotoBlair" had this side profile of Queen's Freddie Mercury. Mick K. sent in the late Tiny Tim in a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey. Jim S. found The Band's Robbie Robertson wearing Maple Leafs colours. Mike Levine of Triumph shows up in a Maple Leafs jersey in the picture sent by Steve K. Rob D.'s image of Linda Ronstadt in Maple Leafs colours is astounding. Steve C. had a newspaper clipping of Jimmy Buffett in a Maple Leafs jersey. Gordon Lightfoot wore his Maple Leafs jersey with the hosts of Sportsnet's Hometown Hockey. Glenn Frey showed his range of jerseys by appearing in a blue Leafs jersey after previously being seen in a white Leafs jersey. Matt D. dug up this beauty image of Rush's Geddy Lee in a Maple Leafs jersey. Benny Andersson of ABBA wore a customized jersey at a concert while Greig D. found an image from a Swedish newspaper of ABBA in Maple Leafs jerseys. It appears that Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys wore a Maple Leafs jersey for an anthem performance. And late rapper Mac Miller wore a Maple Leafs jersey in concert as well!

The Backstreet Boys stopped off in Vancouver where the Canucks contributed to their clothing haul on their tour. Machine Gun Kelly got himself a Canucks jersey on his stop in Vancouver. LANY lead singer Paul Jason Klein also endeared himself to Vancouver fans by donning the Canucks' colours. In their video, rap duo Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz donned hockey jerseys with Gunz opting for a Canucks jersey!

The Vegas Golden Knights always seem to be welcoming musical guests to their arena as Imagine Dragons were outfitted with jerseys while Motley Crue's Vince Neil has a Golden Knights jersey as well!

Just one entry for the Washington Capitals on this concert review, and that's Michael Bublé wearing the jersey of his friend, Karl Alzner, at a concert!

The Winnipeg Jets have a single entry as well, but it appears that Diplo is a Josh Morrissey fan based on that number!

A couple of All-Star Game updates include Aaron Lewis of Staind and John Hiatt both playing at the 2016 All-Star Game in Nashville.

Internationally speaking, Bjoern Dixgard and Patrik Heikinpieti, members of the Swedish Rock band Mando Diao, were at the DEL game on November 23, 2014 in Düsseldorf, Germany where they received Düsseldorf EG jerseys. Irish pop group Westlife showed their allegiances by supporting the Belfast Giants. Paul Baloff of Exodus was on stage in a Soviet Union CCCP jersey. It isn't often Michael Bublé is the lesser of two stars in a photo, but here he is with former NHL star Jochen Hecht after receiving a Mannheim Eagles jersey. Bublé makes a second appearance in the international section after sporting a Dubai Mighty Camels jersey. And he makes a third appearance in a Team Canada jersey as well! Linkin Park received a singular jersey for the band from the Eisbaeren Berlin in Berlin, Germany. As mentioned above, rap duo Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz donned hockey jerseys with Lord Tariq sporting the Team USA threads!

A couple of major junior hockey teams got boosts from celebrity fans. For those that don't know, Michael Bublé is a minority owner in the Vancouver Giants where he received a black Giants jersey upon completing the purchase of his share of the team. He's since added a personalized white jersey and has worn an alternate jersey as he helped clean up teddy bears on Teddy Bear Toss Night as well! Papa Roach got himself a USHL Omaha Lancers jersey after a stop in Nebraska. Brett Kissel showed his support for the OHL Bulldogs during a stop in Hamilton!

A few musicians were lucky enough to receive university jerseys. DJ and beatmaker Metro Boomin got his hands on an NCAA Bentley University Falcons jersey while rapper Iggy Azalea received her own NCAA University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks jersey as per the images John M. sent!

As for other jerseys, the Barenaked Ladies received jerseys from the ECHL's Atlanta Gladiators when the band played in Atlanta. The late Mac Miller performed in a Mighty Ducks jersey from the Disney movie. And in one of the coolest jerseys I've seen from the 1970s, Tony Banks of Genesis wore a WHA Houston Aeros jersey at some point!

That was quite the set of concerts had we seen all of these bands and musicians play this season, but the amount of jerseys given away by hockey teams to musicians is rather ridiculous. I guess free publicity helps the hockey teams while the bands and musicians get some free gear - win-win in the highest sense, I guess.

In any case, feel free to check out all the teams and jerseys on the Musician in Jerseys database I've been keeping! There are a ton of free jerseys shown there! And if you have photos of musicians that I don't have in the database, follow the instructions at the top of this article to get them added!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!