TBC: Book Of Jerseys

If there's one thing that piques my interest in the hockey world, it's the fashion and design that goes into jerseys. Call them what you want - jerseys, sweaters, tarps, whatever - but the colours and designs used by teams become the identity of that franchise. Think of the Fisherman's legacy when it comes to the New York Islanders or how the bleu-blanc-et-rouge is synonymous with the Montreal Canadiens. It's those team identities that fans embrace when cheering for their favorite teams, so finding collections of amazing jerseys is always a treat. In saying that, Teebz's Book Club had a chance to review the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys, written by Steve Milton and published by Firefly Book, and their collection of jerseys might be unparalleled for the number of teams and leagues it covers!

From the 49thshelf.com website, "Steve Milton has over forty years' experience as a sportswriter and writes for the Hamilton Spectator. He has won numerous Ontario Newspaper Awards and has been both a Gemini and National Newspaper Award finalist. He is the author of more than twenty books and is a member of both the Skate Canada Hall of Fame and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. He lives in Hamilton, Ontario." It should be noted that Milton retired from the Hamilton Spectator in 2023 after 38 years at the newspaper, and now spends his summers covering the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and FC Forge as a Multiplatform Columnist for Hamilton Sports Group, writing for both club's websites while lending his expertise to the Ticats Audio Network and the Forge Audio Network. He has also appeared on various programs for CTV and TSN in his career where he provided sports coverage, and he also wrote for The Sporting News.

I'll be honest when I say I did very little reading when I first went through the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys. The pictures of some of the jerseys are amazing in showing details like puck marks and holes when it comes to how beat up these integral pieces of the uniform get, but it was downright amazing to see jerseys that I had never seen before. Brian Leetch's jersey from the Cheshire High School Rams, Rod Langway's jersey from the Randolph High School Blue Devils, and Harry Howell's WHA jersey from the New York Golden Blades were all featured in the first section of legendary players, and I had never seen these jerseys in such vivid colour and resolution!

The international section of jerseys in the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys is a treasure trove of amazing images. Jörgen Jönsson's Färjestads BK jersey from the 1998 Spengler Cup is a gorgeous artifact, Constant Priondolo's jersey from Italy's Alleghe Sile Caldaie has an interesting story to it, and Cammi Granato's jersey from the NWHL's Vancouver Griffins is a sight to behold! Each jersey displayed in the book comes with a write-up about the player who wore the jersey, giving some insight on the career of the player whose jersey is part of the Hockey Hall of Fame. For some of the lesser-known players, it was very interesting to learn about their careers!

The section in the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys about all-star game jerseys has tidbits of information from the NHL All-Star Games that are featured, but it's the minor-league and junior all-star game jerseys where there are some gems. The "Champions" section is loaded with interesting jerseys, but it's the "Hockey Hodgepodge" section that captured my attention. There are many interesting sweaters in this section that probably could have had their own books such as the Edmonton Flyers, the Riverdale Skeeters, the Des Moines Oak Leafs, and the Preston Rivulettes! This book is filled with history!

One of the interesting bits of history came from the All-Star Game section where it seems that the NHL was helping other leagues by giving them their old jerseys! Milton wrote of the 1972 NHL All-Star Game jerseys and the Robbie Irons' 1973 IHL All-Star Game jersey,

"Irons' IHL All-Star sweater is of the same vintage and style as Ed Giacomin's NHL Eastern Conference All-Star sweater, a design that the NHL had used for several years, ending in 1972."

Could you imagine the NHL sending their old jerseys to the AHL or ECHL today when they changed designs? I completely understand the IHL not having piles of money to outfit their all-stars every year back in the early-1970s, but to wear another league's sweaters seems a little crazy. Of course, hockey at both levels was all sorts of crazy back in the 1970s so maybe I shouldn't be all that surprised that this sort of clothing swap happened. If I hadn't read the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys, I wouldn't have known about this fact!

Overall, the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys is a feast for the eyes when it comes to all the jerseys shown on its 192 pages. I would have liked to have seen more information about the jerseys and that part of their careers pertaining to those players who wore them, but there's enough information about a number of players that I didn't know to make the profiles worth it. Because of the great pictures, the chosen jerseys and the historical nature of those jerseys, and the info about the players, the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys certainly deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

The Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys was released on August 30, 2012, so copies of the book should be available at libraries and local bookstores. The book is easy to read with no crass language and zero controversial stories, and the sections are filled with amazing images with each two-page set having a photo and a write-up, making the book easy to put down if one needs a break. In saying that, I read the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys very quickly because of its easy-to-read nature, and it is absolutely recommended for all hockey fans, especially those who love hockey jerseys and hockey history!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Four-Jersey Xenophobia?

The ECHL will hold their annual All-Star Game in Boise, Idaho this season with the Idaho Steelheads serving as hosts to the rest of the league. The Steelheads have been a solid team for a long time so having them host the annual event makes sense despite their remote location to most of the ECHL teams. It will be their second time holding the event after being awarded the event back in 2007, and they become just the third team to host the event twice since 1988. This year's game, however, won't be the same as the 2007 one.

The ECHL has changed its all-star game formats several times since they added the event to their calendar in 1993. The first three games saw a traditional East-vs-West matchup. The 1996 game in Tallahassee saw the league pit the Northern Conference against the Southern Conference before the 1997 game switched to the hosts playing the ECHL All-Stars. Three different formats over five years is a bit of a head-scratcher, but we're not even close to being done with format changes. The good news is that some last longer than others.

1998 was the first time we saw a Canada-vs-USA all-star game format in Lafayette, Louisiana before the league swapped the format back to the Northern Conference-Southern Conference format in 1999 in Biloxi, Mississippi. That format would last until 2004 when the league went back to East-vs-West matchup, and that was shelved in 2005 when the ECHL switched to a National Conference versus America

In 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017, the ECHL went back to the host team playing the ECHL All-Stars while there was no All-Star Game played in 2012, 2014, or 2016. I'm not sure these gap years make any sense for the ECHL, but that's how the ECHL operated for seven seasons. In 2018, they went to the four-division tournament format in Fishers, Indiana, and 2019 saw the ECHL All-Stars play "Team Fins" in Toledo, Ohio. 2020 went back to an East-vs-West format, and 2021 saw the game cancelled due to COVID as Jacksonville did not get to host.

2022 would see the game arrive in Jacksonville as the ECHL All-Stars played the Icemen before the ECHL went back to a modified four-team tournament in 2023 that saw the Norfolk Admirals split into two squads - the Cruisers and Destroyers - while the other two teams were the Eastern Conference and Western Conference All-Stars. 2024 saw the ECHL All-Stars battle the Ghost Pirates in Savannah, Georgia while 2025's game was cancelled in favour of the ECHL Winter Classic played between the Kalamazoo Wings and Toledo Walleye.

2026's game in Allen, Texas saw Team Stars and Team Stripes battle in the ECHL All-Star Game where the Allen Americans' players were mixed in with the ECHL All-Stars on both sides in a unique twist. And that leads to Wednesday's announcement of the ECHL returning to the Canada-vs-USA all-star game format in Boise next season which, when you consider some of the past recent all-stars, makes very little sense when you read that "United States-born ECHL All-Stars will take on Canadian-born ECHL All-Stars over a two-day format" in Idaho.

Where does that leave Swedish-born, Fort Wayne Komets goaltender Samuel Jonsson or Russian-born, Calgary Wranglers goaltender Arsenii Sergeev or Finnish-born, Hamilton Hammers goaltender Henrik Tikkanen who all were all-stars in 2026? Three of four goalies in last season's ECHL All-Star Game were neither Canadian nor American, and none of them will be able to play in this season's event because of where they were born? How is this even being discussed?

I get that the vast majority of ECHL All-Star selections are players who were born in Canada or the US, but Russian-born Max Andreev tied for tenth in league scoring last season with Maine. Russian-born Nikita Sedov was the second-highest scoring defender in the ECHL's regular season last year, and Hungarian-born Kristof Papp had 20 goals and 46 points for Norfolk. None of those players made the All-Star Game last season, but they won't be invited this year based on the format no matter how many goals or points they score.

I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that Swedish-born, Augusta Lynx forward Jonas Poling of the Southern Conference was the ECHL All-Star Game MVP in 2001 and that Russian-born, Huntington Blizzard forward Andrei Bashkirov was the ECHL All-Star Game MVP in 1997. I know they can switch formats after next season's game once again, but switching back to a format when the game is more international than ever makes zero sense from a hockey business standpoint.

The ECHL can pat themselves on the back for the jerseys shown in the lede photo all they want, but it makes no sense to exclude good players who simply were born outside North American borders. According to their release on Wednesday about the event,

"The United States jerseys for the skills competition are a dark blue base featuring a star design and lighter blue highlights with USA prominently in the middle while Canada's jerseys are a dark red base, with a maple leaf and Canada displayed in a brighter red. The shoulders of both jerseys will include the All-Star Classic logo and the participant's team logo."

The jerseys have a fun element to them for the skills competition and they'll likely get a pile of bids during the jersey auction that will follow, but, as a foreign-born player, it's hard to see just those two countries celebrated in a league that features players from numerous countries. The league, however, will double-down in the game with another set of Canada and USA jerseys that are uniquely ECHL.

"... both teams will wear retro-inspired jerseys. The United States jerseys are a cream base with red stripes and blue shoulders, with the USA letters inside a shield on a red star. Canada's jerseys are a red base with white stripes, with a red maple leaf featured inside a white shield. Similar to the skills jerseys, the shoulders of both jerseys will include the All-Star Classic logo and the participant's team logo."

I'm generally not a fan of these jerseys in most years, and it seems the Skills Competition jerseys are superior to the actual All-Star Game jerseys based on the image above. With the very limited scope of this event in pitting Canadian all-stars against American all-stars, I understand why design options may be limited. This is just another reason why the format of the 2027 ECHL All-Star Game is a mistake.

I'm not rating jerseys that exclude good players based on where they were born. If hockey is supposed to be working to be more inclusive of all people, pitching the idea of United States-born ECHL All-Stars against Canadian-born ECHL All-Stars is incredibly xenophobic. I know that likely wasn't the intention here, but that's the path the ECHL has chosen to follow for its 2027 ECHL All-Star Game in Boise.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Rundown - All-Star Selections

I hope things are going well for everyone who enjoys visiting rinks to watch Canada West women's hockey. With everyone writing exams over the next few weeks, the conference is on break and will return on January 9 and 10 for more action after the holidays. In saying that, we can take a look at a few things that need some addressing and examination since we have a few moments. Let's settle into the Stats 101 material that I've prepared along with identifying 24 players who have stood out in the first half of the season on The Rundown!

Each year, I choose two teams based on first-half performances. Each team is represented with at least one player, and there is always at least one rookie named to each squad. Six forwards, three defenders, and two netminders make up the teams so that there would be three lines of 3-on-3 hockey at this Canada West All-Star Extravaganza played by my chosen teams. This would be a fun hockey exhibition!

I want to be clear once more: these choices mean nothing outside of the teams being made up of players who I believe are having strong seasons up to this point. The players that are chosen won't necessarily be the top scorers, but they will be the players who stood out on each of the teams in this writer's view. In saying that, though, let's look at who I chose for the Canada West All-Star Extravaganza!

• Grace Elliott (UBC) - leads the conference in goals and scoring.
• Annalise Wong (UBC) - leads the conference in assists.
• Kyra MacDonald (TWU) - leads TWU in goals, tied for scoring.
• Holly Magnus (ALB) - second in assists; tied for Pandas' lead.
• Abby Soyko (ALB) - tied for lead in Pandas' scoring.
• Sydney Jack (MAC) - leads MacEwan in goals and scoring.
• Sadie Isfeld (TWU) - top scorer for rookie defenders.**
• Presleigh Giesbrecht (TWU) - Spartans' top-scoring defender.
• Jaylyn Morris (UBC) - leads all defenders in scoring.
• Mya Lucifora (UBC) - top GAA, .954 sv%, 8 wins, 4 shutouts.
• Taya Currie (MAC) - second-most shots, 2.40 GAA and .925 sv%.

People are going to look at this team and be outraged by some of the players who aren't on the list. Admittedly, I had a very hard time leaving Chloe Reid (TWU), Elise Hugens (UBC), and Vanessa Schaefer (UBC) off this list, but they got bumped due to numbers. Hugens might surprise the most, but Lucifora has better numbers and has played more minutes so she deserves a little of the spotlight in helping UBC to the top spot on the meaningless national rankings.

Currie got the bump as the second netminder simply because she's giving the Griffins the goaltending they need to compete. A few more goals in opposition nets, and the Griffins might be in the playoff race in West Division. The rest of the explanations are shown above, but the goal light would nearly be a strobe light behind the opposition net with the scoring on this roster while having solid netminding.

• Peppi Virtanen (SAS) - leads all rookies in scoring.**
• Sydney Benko (MRU) - leads MRU in goals and points.
• Sydney Mercier (CAL) - leads the Dinos in goals and scoring.
• Pippy Pritchard (REG) - leads Regina in assists and scoring.
• Jerzey Watteyne (MRU) - second on MRU in goals and scoring.
• Aimee Patrick (MAN) - leads the Bisons in scoring.
• Alex Spence (CAL) - top defender scorer for Calgary.
• Kendra Zuchotzki (SAS) - Huskies' top-scoring defender.
• Summer Fomradas (MRU) - leads MRU defenders in scoring.
• Amelia Awad (CAL) - top sv%, 8 wins, 1.11 GAA for the Dinos.
• Scout Anderson (MRU) - 1.28 GAA, .933 sv%, won nine games.

Selecting the East Division team was slightly easier, but I struggled leaving Allee Gerrard (MRU), Clara Juca (SAS), and Evelyn Lawrence (CAL) off this team when it came to roster spots. There's no doubt that this East team has less points collectively than the West team, but there's a lot of hustle and drive on this roster. Defensively, Fomradas, Spence, and Zuchotzki are among the best defenders at both ends of the ice, and I suspect they'd be invaluable on this team.

Building on the solid defence are the two goalies who have helped their teams to the top of the division as Amelia Awad and Scout Anderson have been excellent in their respective creases. Awad has played less often than she had in the early part of the season, but her and Anderson just keep turning in results when they're between the pipes. All-Star Games usually wreak havoc on goalies, but these two should do fine as this squad can score and defend their goalies!

Honour Roll

Since there were no games this week, the Honour Roll thought it had the week off. However, there are still incredible players doing incredible things as the Saskatchewan Huskies women's hockey team dropped by Canada Blood Services to donate some blood and plasma in order to help people and save lives in their community when it comes to this necessary fluid! I counted a dozen Huskies who made the trip to their local Canada Blood Services office to donate blood, and this kind of effort doesn't go unnoticed here on The Rundown because of how vitally important this kind of effort is.

Besides saving lives in their community, the Huskies may actually benefit from this activity more than you think. Research has shown that donating blood is linked to lower blood pressure, a lower risk for heart attacks, and a lower risk of strokes since since it lowers the viscosity of the blood by removing the total amount of hemoglobin in your body. Donating blood can save up to three lives, but the volunteering and team effort shown by the Huskies also has greater positive health outcomes including a lower risk for depression and greater happiness forged through those group outing bonds.

We know athletes can consume food like no one's business as well, but the snack that one receives to help replace the donated blood totals about 500 calories - virtually the same amount that's removed in the donation! By that count, the cookies and juice are a zero-calorie option for these athletes! How cool is that?

All jokes aside, this is an excellent effort from the Huskies, and I'm proud of the group who went down to Canada Blood Services and gave life to someone else. Hockey teams need their communities to help them be successful, so there has to be some reciprocal giving on their end. The Huskies are doing that with the blood donations, and that's how the entire Huskies team makes the Honour Roll this week!

A Telling Stat

This is your annual reminder that scoring first usually leads to good results. We've seen 78 games played between the nine Canada West teams to date, and the annual trend of scoring first continues like it always does. None finished in a 1-0 shootout final, so every game was counted with six teams playing 18 games and three playng 16 games. Due to this, no team can score first more than 18 times, but one team did hit the scoresheet first on 17 occasions - the most we've ever seen since I started tracking this. And yes, that number matters.

I'll do more breakdown below, but here's each team's first goal stats.

SCORING FIRST IN CANADA WEST

School	Record	1st	2nd	3rd	OT	Score 1st	Pts %
UBC	16-1-1-0	10	7	0	0	16-0-1-0	1.000
Mount Royal	9-3-5-1	8	4	1	0	8-1-4-0	.923
Calgary	10-4-1-3	10	1	1	0	10-0-1-1	.958
Alberta	7-6-0-5	4	2	0	0	5-0-0-1	.917
Saskatchewan	5-6-3-2	6	3	0	1	5-1-3-1	.850
Trinity Western	3-9-5-1	6	2	0	0	3-2-3-0	.750
Regina	3-8-2-3	5	1	1	0	3-0-2-2	.857
Manitoba	2-8-2-4	2	0	0	0	1-1-0-0	.500
MacEwan	2-12-2-2	2	0	0	1	0-1-2-0	.667

It's ridiculous to think that the only game in which UBC didn't score first, or at all in that one game's case, is the only one they have lost. In every other game this season, they have led and never ended up on the wrong side of the score. The only time they came close was a shootout win over Manitoba, but they won that game to take the full two points in that contest. Obviously, there isn't near enough data to determine how they play when trailing, so it might be a good idea for teams to score first and prevent UBC from playing with the lead.

The same rule may apply to the Calgary Dinos who have lost all six games where they haven't scored first, recording just two of 12 points in those games. The Dinos are scoring first by committee as well as all of Brooklyn Anderson, Sydney Mercier, April Klarenbach, and Hannah Reagh have two first goals apiece. The bigger number that everyone should notice is both UBC and Calgary have double-digit regulation wins, and they have the most first-period first goals.

Finally, it took 28 games this season for a team to rally and win a game in regulation after surrendering the first goal. MacEwan earned a 2-1 win over Trinity Western for their first win of the season on a late Sydney Jack goal, but there have been just six regulation losses in 78 games to date for the team that scores first, totaling 51-6-16-5 on the season so far. If you're doing the math, that's an .859 winning percentage and an .891 points percentage. That's incredible.

As I say every December on this blog, scoring first in Canada West matters. When it comes to this season, scoring first is almost is an unfair advantage so it would be wise to do it more often than not.

Players By The Numbers

If you're wondering which player has been the catalyst for the wins shown above, one player stands alone this season and her name shouldn't surprise you since she's been all over The Rundown.

Grace Elliott leads the way with six first-goals this season in helping her team to the best Canada West record. Behind her is teammate Jaylyn Morris who, as a defender, has four first-goals to her name as she's really shown a knack for getting pucks to the net. From there, there's a list of six players with three first-goals that includes:

• Kyla McDonald (TWU)
• Sydney Benko (MRU)
• Tessa Stewart (REG)
• Mia Bierd (UBC)
• Allee Gerrard (MRU)
• Peppi Virtanen (SAS)

There are also a pile of players who have two first-goals scored this season, but I'm only posting the top-three spots on the list. Wanna add your name to the list? Score the first goal of the game.

Ontario Math?

Before we even break into the standings, let's establish how points are determined in this conference. I took a look at their operations manual, and this is the statement made in Section 3.4.2: "For all regular season games, teams will be awarded 3 points for a regulation victory, 2 points for an overtime/shootout victory, and 1 point for an overtime/shootout loss." Hold onto this information because the OUA website might be inventing its own math.

There are three teams who are having big seasons in the OUA at first glance, so we need to take a deeper look. The Queen's Golden Gaels are out in front with an impressive 13-2 record, but things get a little more complex when one considers that they might be 5-2-8-0 this season (W-L-ETW-ETL)? Toronto is 8-7, but how do they have an 8-1-0-6 record, and the Ottawa Gee-Gees are 8-6, but actually hold a 7-2-1-4 record? The math just isn't mathing in the details here.

Adding to the madness is that Queen's, who leads the division, should have 31 points as per OUA Rule 3.4.2, but the standings show Queen's with 33 points as shown below. It's like the OTW don't even count!

The West Division sees Guelph out in front with an 11-4 record that actually shows the Gryphons as having three overtime losses and three shootout losses. Not surprisingly, this causes all sorts of math problems with an 11-4 team because how do they have more extra-time losses than actual losses on their record? Hint: they don't.

With my explanation above fitting the narrative, let's rewrite the records properly as Queen's is officially 7-2-6-0, Toronto is 8-4-0-3, and Ottawa is 7-4-1-2. In the West, Guelph is 9-1-2-3, Laurier is 9-2-2-1, and Waterloo is 6-6-3-1. Now we're comparing apples to apples.

Honestly, this is easily the most confusing standings board I've ever read for any sport anywhere. What the heck is going on in Ontario?

La Belle Province

Quebec's RSEQ is much more straight-forward in its standings. You don't need an advanced math degree or training in cryptography to understand the records accumulated by each team. Concordia holds an 8-1-4-0 record with their only loss coming on November 2 to the Bishop's Gaiters who, coincidentally, are the defending National Champion and second-place in the RSEQ with an 5-2-3-3 record. Montreal sits in third-place with a 3-6-2-2 record, and McGill finds itself in fourth-place out of four teams with an 0-7-1-5 record.

Les mathématiques sont très facile ici, Ontario. Take note.

The Maritimers

There may be a dogfight when it comes to who will grab the top seed in the AUS Playoffs as both StFX and UNB sit with identical 12-4-0-0 records. Those two teams are 1-1 against each other right now, but the X-Women have outscored the Reds 6-3 in those two games. As it stands, StFX holds the tie-breaker, but they'll meet on January 17 and February 6 in games that may determine who wins the conference.

Not to be forgotten are the 10-5-2 UPEI Panthers, the 7-3-6 Dalhousie Tigers, and the 9-6-1 St. Thomas Tommies, but those teams will need a big push in the second half of the season if they are going to dethrone one or both for one of the top-two seeds in the AUS. And this might be a bigger concern for all due to the next bit of news.

The Dumbest Alignment

In reading the U SPORTS Operations Manual for the 2026 National Championship, I came across a rather interesting tidbit of news of which I'm not sure many know. Allow me to inform everyone that the participating teams for the 2026 Championship will be as follows:

• AUS Champion
• OUA Champion
• RSEQ Champion
• CW Champion
• Host (Waterloo)
• OUA Finalist
• RSEQ Finalist
• CW Finalist

Does it seem like someone is missing? If you're asking where the AUS Finalist is, I had the same question. Apparently, this format now follows the men's format when played in Ontario which, if you're asking me, is the dumbest idea that U SPORTS has had in some time considering there are four conferences, two finalists in each conference, and a host team. The men don't have an RSEQ conference, allowing for three Ontario teams to go to Nationals every year because that extra spot is balanced out by the host team.

With Waterloo hosting, U SPORTS seemingly changed the format to allow the OUA champion and finalist into the tournament by eliminating an entire berth for the AUS finalist. How is that fair for the AUS when compared to a four-team conference like the RSEQ? Why does the AUS get one less berth than Canada West despite having one less team? Who would even agree to this tournament format?

If U SPORTS is trying to kill university women's hockey programs, this is a good way to do it. Every player wants a shot at playing for the championship, but giving preferential treatment to the Ontario teams makes it a lot harder to call this event a "national championship".

The Last Word

It's December 14. We're ten days from Christmas Eve and Hannukah starts tonight, but exams will continue through to the end of next week for most student-athletes. My hope is that everything goes well, the studying pays off, and exams are a cinch for those writing them. For everyone else, be merry, be kind, look out for one another, and enjoy the festive season. The World Junior Championship and the Spengler Cup start soon, and then it's back to competing for the Canada West banner! It's truly the most wonderful time of the year!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

KHL Shifts Its All-Star Format

Despite its former claims of hockey excellence, the KHL quickly became the league of complete irrelevance. No longer are they attracting stars with wild contracts, no longer are they claiming to be a rival of the NHL, and I doubt we're going to see the KHL dig its way out of the political and socio-economical turmoil that its host country finds itself in, but anything could happen with better leadership. I say that while referencing both the country and the hockey league, but the main reason is that KHL has decided to alter the format of its All-Star Game to resemble something like a mini World Cup of Hockey. I have no idea if this new format will work, but the KHL is going to give it a go after making the announcement on Friday for their All-Star Weekend in February.

I'm not against making changes to make any all-star game better, but the changes shouldn't be done just to see if they work. I know some people feel the format of best-vs-best has lost its lustre, but changing the overall format of the game or, in this case, the entire All-Star Weekend may actually make the entire thing worse. Nevertheless, the KHL is getting experimental with their new format that we'll see From February 6-8, 2026 across the entire weekend.

The schedule in Yekaterinburg, Russia will see four teams of 14 players that will play a mini-tournament across two periods of 10 minutes of game time for each game. The host team will be the KHL Ural Stars comprised of players from Avtomobilist, Traktor, Metallurg, and Salavat Yulaev. Metallurg is currently in first-place in the Eastern Conference with a 17-5-3-2 record, Avtomobilist sits in fourth-place at 11-10-4-3, Traktor is the sixth-place team at 9-10-4-5, and Salavat is the ninth-place team at 9-13-1-3. I'd imagine that Metallurg Magnitogorsk will make up the largest chunk of that 14-player roster.

Players from the remaining 18 teams in the KHL will make up the rosters of Team World Stars, KHL RUS Stars, and KHL U23 Stars. Team World Stars will be made up of non-Russian players competing in the KHL including Belarusian and Kazakh players. KHL RUS Stars will be made up exclusively of Russian-born players while the KHL U23 Stars will be a team of players who were born no earlier than January 1, 2003. If you're getting vibes of Team Europe and Team North America with the breakdown of these teams, you're not alone.

Metallurg's Vladimir Tkachyov leads the KHL in scoring right now while teammate Roman Kantserov is third in scoring, so they're likely locks for Team Ural. American Sam Anas is second in scoring while Dutch forward Daniel Sprong is fourth in scoring, so I expect them to be leading Team World Stars. Avangard's Konstantin Okulov is tied for fourth in scoring and he's the highest scoring Russian, so I expect him on the Team RUS Stars roster. Mikhail Ilyin, who is way down the scoring list, is the top scorer for the U23 Stars as the 22 year-old from Severstal has 22 points. Nothing has been announced yet, though.

One of the reasons nothing has been announced is that the fans still get a say in who goes to the KHL All-Star Game. From November 21-24, fans can vote for a player who decided the outcome of one of this season's overtime games as an All-Star. From November 25 to December 3, fans will get to vote on the Fonbet Hockey Stars Week website for four players for each team. After those four players for each team are selected, the media representatives and KHL executivies will make their choices to fill out the rosters.

There is one catch, though, as the KHL U23 Stars will hold two roster spots open for two players from JHL Challenge Cup which will be played on February 6 to kick off the festivities. Those two players will join the team on February 7 for the semifinal games between the four teams with the winners moving on to the KHL All-Star Game on February 8. That day will also see the skills competition completed before the final is played. It's going to be a busy weekend.

KHL President Alexei Morozov said in the release, "... the new format should increase the entertainment value and competition between the participants of the All-Star weekend. We deliberately moved away from the traditional divisional geography. As hosts, the Ural stars will play in Yekaterinburg, which will create a special 'home' atmosphere for local fans. The return of Team Russia and Team World is a classic rivalry. And the team made up of young players will add speed, excitement, and showcase the future of our League."

I'm not certain having a team of 22 year-old players getting crushed by KHL veterans is a goos way to "showcase the future of the league", but I'll let Morozov have his moment. Personally, I think seeing best-vs-best in a single game would dazzle fans just the same, but what do I know? I'm just a guy who has had his fill of All-Star Games.

Hockey is becoming a sport of gimmicks, and this new format is just another gimmick to keep a meaningless All-Star Game relevant. Enjoy it if that's your thing, but I'd like to see the best players in the game from each conference squaring off against one another again. I guess you can just call me a "traditionalist" when it comes to hockey.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Summer Concert Nights - Part Two

We're back for the second day of the concert series featuring musicians in jerseys after seeing Tate McRae, Max Kerman of the Arkells, and Noah Kahan headline the images yesterday. I've always wondered if these musicians put their jerseys into storage somewhere for a future charity auction or potentially as something to sell to fans when their careers slow down, but no musicians have ever come forward to comment on that. I'm still holding out hope that Taylor Swift will want to talk hockey jerseys on The Hockey Show at some point, but I feel like this topic isn't high on her list of interview subjects. In any case, here are the next musicians, and the full list of musicians in jerseys can be seen here!

We'll start with a Canadian-fronted band as we have to go back a few years, but Neil Young and Crazy Horse have been making music since 1968 when they first got together. Neil Young has been on the full list a few times, but we can add Crazy Horse bassist Billy Talbot to the list as he played a gig in a Minnesota North Stars jersey! After suffering a stroke in 2014, the good news is that Talbot is back to his rocking ways with Crazy Horse once more.

Breaking Benjamin has been producing rock songs since 1999 when the formed in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, but they've gone through a pile of changes when it comes to band members over the years. Since 2014, guitarists Jasen Rauch and Keith Wallen have been part of the band's lineup, and they were in Nashville to catch a Predators game where they received their own personalized jerseys! Another person who got a personalized jersey from the Predators? That would be Lauren Alaina who was the runner-up on the tenth season of American Idol! The 30 year-old singer-songwriter also appeared on Dancing with the Stars where she finished in fourth-place, and is the youngest member of the Grand Ole Opry! American country band Shenandoah also got to sing the anthem at a game, but they've been making music since 1984!

Shinedown isn't a Pittsburgh-based band as they were formed in Jacksonville, Florida, but Shinedown front man Brent Smith got a Penguins jersey when the band came to town! In February 2024, Smith announced that the band was working on its eighth studio album, so we could more Shinedown on these lists in the future if they do a tour to promote this new album. Joining Smith on the Penguins' musician fans list is *NSYNC's Chris Kirkpatrick who is a self-professed Penguins fan after growing up near the city. I'm surprised we haven't seen him in a Predators jersey considering he lives there.

The defending champs have a few musical fans this time. The Florida Panthers welcomed pop and country artist Cassadee Pope to their arena as the 35 year-old was the first female winner of The Voice in 2012. Older music fans will know our next artists's mom from her work with the Miami Sound Machine, but Gloria Estefan's daughter, Emily Estefan, produced and released her own album entitled "Take Whatever You Want" in 2017! Pop singer-songwriter Gina Miles also is a Panthers fan after showing her talents by winning Season 23 of The Voice, and VËR - short for "Vered" meaning "Rose" in Hebrew - is a Montreal-born singer based in Miami where she's sang for the Panthers while entertaining folks with her sultry, intimate jazz-inspired renditions of classic songs. The Panthers were singing "This Is How We Do It" after winning the Stanley Cup last season, and they had Montell Jordan in their colours earlier in the season!

The New Jersey Devils are back in the music game as Gina Teschke sang the anthem for the Devils while establishing her music theatre and acting career. 1990s adolescent rap duo Kriss Kross, fronted by Chris Kelly and Chris Smith, were also known to rock the Devils' colours in their time among the various jersey they wore.

Darren "Buff Love" Robinson was part of the rap group known as "The Fat Boys" before his passing in 1995, but he was one of the early adopters of hockey jerseys as part of the rap culture, seen here sporting the Edmonton Oilers logo! Canadian rockers Our Lady Peace also came through Edmonton, and they received their own personalized jerseys. Singer Raine Maida needs to turn his around!

Glass Animals' frontman Dave Bayley was caught giving the thumbs-up in his Detroit Red Wings 2014 Winter Classic jersey. OneRepublic drummer Eddie Fisher was supporting the Detroit Red Wings at Bud Light NHL All Star Concert at The Tabernacle on January 24, 2008 in Atlanta during their performance! Good ol' Thrashers days!

Deadmau5 is a Canadian artist, and he was invited to the Air Canada Centre in 2016 where he took part in the opening ceremony for the Toronto Maple Leafs 100th season! Dinah Jane is probably better known as a member of the popular girl group, Fifth Harmony, but she was invited to sing the anthems in Toronto before the 2024 NHL All-Star Skills competition! Canadian Juno award-winning rapper Haviah Mighty performed during a November 2024 game at the Scotiabank Arena. James Hetfield of Metallica was gifted a Wendel Clark jersey by Wendel Clark himself! Toronto can also add Sabrina Carpenter to their list of fans after she sported the jersey while in the city!

I know nothing about her music, but Emei is an alternative/indie pop artist who apparently appreciates the Tampa Bay Lightning! She competed on Chinese Idol where she placed third, Dancing with the Stars in China, and was a member of the a cappella group Mixed Company while attending Yale! SHe released third album, "RABBITHOLE", in November 2024. English pop band The 1975 have been making music since 2002, and they got the jersey treatment when they stopped at Amalie Arena. How cool is it that they used the same number font for The 1975 name on the back? Well done, Lightning, but only one jersey for four guys? What the heck?

Another artists with whose wore I'm not familiar is Josh Waters, but the young man is a St. Louis Blues fan! He has worn other sports' colours, but his chosen hockey team comes from Missouri! One artist who grew up with the Blues is SZA, and she sported a Brett Hull Blues jersey in Drake's "Rich Baby Daddy" music video.

Kevin Oliver is a "skilled vocalist as well as the consummate guitar player and session musician" who has worked with a number of bands, artists, and companies on projects and commercials, and he lent his talents to the Pre-Game Party at the 2015 NHL All-Star Game in Columbus, Ohio where he sported a Blue Jackets jersey!

I know nothing of his music or his scene, but King Boss LA is an Anaheim Ducks fan based on his jersey choice!

Linkin park has recently started making new music and touring again after adding Emily Armstrong as a vocalist, and they were in Raleigh where they got Carolina Hurricanes jerseys for their appearance! Carolina also likes to invite celebrities to ring their storm alarm, and American country singer Scott McCreery was one of the celebrities they invited! I expect more musicians in the future.

Canadian country singer Madeline Merlo met with her fans while in Nashville where she sported her Vancouver Canucks jersey! Considering she's from Maple Ridge, BC, she was supporting her hometown team! Sideone, a Canadian band that prides themselves on being a cover band, was invited to perform at the 2014 Tim Hortons Heritage Classic where they sported the throwback Vancouver jerseys! Check out their awesome YouTube video that explains who they are and what they do. I can see why they're successful!

Germany has produced a number of well-known artists in their time, and Sarah Connor is a pop singer who has been on the radio and on stages in Germany since 2000. The fun part? She appeared on a German game show called "Who steals my show?", according to Reddit. Redditor Grizzly-Berry posted a shot of Connor on the show wearing a Boston Bruins Pastrnak jersey! Speaking of international additions, Chinese singer and actress Juke Junyi was at the 2018 NHL game held in China between Boston Bruins and Calgary Flames where she wore Bruins colours. The 37 year-old was the third-place finisher on the very first edition of The Voice in China!

I feel like this is almost blasphemy, but it might fit the 1970s rock scene of rebellion. Triumph's Rik Emmett is boldly wearing a Montreal Canadiens jersey shirt despite him being born in Toronto. Mike Levine, guitarist for Triumph, has been pictured in both Calgary and Toronto jerseys, so maybe that balances it out?

Australian singer, songwriter, and rapper The Kid Laroi was on tour with Tate McRae at points, and their paths crossed in Washington where he got his own personalized Capitals jersey. He also picked up a Panthers jersey when he performed in Sunrise prior to Game One of last year's Stanley Cup Final, but his jersey collection is significantly smaller than his on-again/off-again partner Tate McRae's collection.

Speaking of McRae, let's add another one to her collection as she was a celebrity captain for the 2024 NHL All-Star Game. That game saw her, Michael Bublé, Chxrry22, the aforementioned The Kid Laroi, Owen Riegling, Loud Luxury, and Justin Bieber all get NHL All-Star jerseys. Garth Brooks was on-hand for the 2008 NHL All-Star Game where he got a jersey as well.

Before we end this look at a pile of musicians with new threads, we need to stop in the international jersey department. I mentioned Raine Maida above, but his wife was invited to sing at the Four Nations Face-Off as Chantal Kreviazuk wore her Canadian jersey. Sofia Camara is a 23 year-old pop star born in Portugal, but who has lived nearly her whole life in Toronto. She's sang anthems, she's signed by Universal Music, and she wore a Team Canada jersey in a publicity photo as her version of of Nickelback's "What Are You Waiting For?" became the official 2025 IIHF World Junior championship song! How cool is that for the young lady?

And in one of the coolest jerseys you'll see, Canadian singer Jugpreet Bajwa sang the anthems at the Vancouver Canucks game in a Team Canada Blind Hockey jersey in 2021! For those asking, Bajwa is multilingual Indo-Canadian classical, folk and rock singer who is visually-impaired, and he crushed the Canadian anthem at the game!

That will do it for the second part of the summer concert updates as the summer concert season will surely get underway as we get closer to June. Of course, if you find any images or want to submit your own pictures, please email me here and you'll get credit! Everyone on this list has been added to the full list of musicians in jerseys, so make sure you check out that list before emailing!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Rundown - Championship Sunday

It's the final day of hockey for the Canadian university league. Both the men's and women's finals will be played today, and we'll crown champions on both sides of the coin. Of course, The Rundown only focuses on U SPORTS women's hockey thanks to that level of hockey receiving almost zero coverage from anyone not inside the game, so let's dive into the final three games here on Championship Sunday as the consolation final, the bronze medal game, and gold medal game were all decided today! Who is coming home with hardware?

A Quick Note

As stated yesterday, I was going to continue doing the Headline Sports-style recaps as you saw in the Canada West playoffs, but I highlighted the lack of effort from U SPORTS when it came to highlights this weekend. Again, I can't change anything from where I sit so, with no highlights, we're reverting back to the scoring summaries only. I know it sucks, but that's what happens when people don't do their jobs promoting the athletes on the ice.

Let's get into the game action!

Consolation Final

This game had an oddly-familiar feeling to it as the two Canada West finalists met for a fifth and deciding time this season. UBC had won the series with two victories way back in October when the season opened, and Alberta roared back by winning the Canada West banner earlier this month. This would be the fifth time these two teams played this season, and they both wanted to finish in fifth-place. We know the important players for both sides, so all that was left to decide was which team would capture fifth-place!

Pandas goals: Natalie Kieser (1)
Pandas assists: Abby Soyko (1), Taylor Anker (1)
Pandas netminders: Grace Glover (17/21) in 40:00; Mackenzie Dojahn (14/15) in 20:00

Thunderbirds goals: Jacquelyn Fleming (1), Mackenzie Kordic (1), Makenzie McCallum (2), Mackenzie Kordic (2), Grace Elliott (2)
Thunderbirds assists: Annalise Wong (3), Karine Sandilands (1), Ashton Thorpe (1), Meadow Carman (1), Jacquelyn Fleming (1), Mackenzie Kordic (4), Sierra Laplante (2)
Thunderbirds netminder: Elise Hugens (20/21)

Result: 5-1 victory for UBC over Alberta.

UBC will finish in fifth-place, and Alberta will finish in sixth-place. This game also determined seventh-place, and, thanks to UBC's win, the UNB Reds will finish in seventh-place while the StFX X-Women will finish in eighth-place. The non-medal placements are now set!

Bronze Medal Final

The bronse medal game featured last year's U SPORTS finalists in the Concordia Stingers and the Toronto Varsity Blues. Concordia came into the game holding a 5-1 record all-time against Toronto at Nationals, and they were looking to claim a second medal against the Varsity Blues. The last and only time that Toronto was successful against Concordia was back in 2002 when they won 2-1, so it's not like they could draw on recent history to help them. Both teams wanted to bring home their second-straight medal from Nationals, though, so this game had all the makings for great hockey!

Blues goals: Sophie Grawbarger (1), Abby Whitworth (1), Scout Southward (2)
Blues assists: Kaitlyn McKnight (1), Emma Elders (1), Aili McKeown (2), Emma Potter (1)
Blues netminder: Lyla McKinnon (9/10) in 32:47; Sarah-Lynn Gauthier (9/9) in 27:13

Stingers goals: Jessymaude Drapeau (4)
Stingers assists: Emilie Lussier (2), Emilie Lavoie (2)
Stingers netminder: Arianne Leblanc (24/26)

Result: 3-1 victory for Toronto over Concordia.

Toronto is the 2025 U SPORTS bronze medallists while Concordia is the fourth-place team. Of note, Sarah-Lynn Gauthier earned the win after replacing Lyla McKinnon in the Toronto net following an injury suffered by McKinnon. Concordia's Leonie Philbert was assessed a five-minute major and given a game misconduct for the goaltender interference that caused McKinnon's injury. McKinnon did not return.

Gold Medal Final

The gold medal game featured the two "new kids" to the Nationals scene as Waterloo was in their second appearance at this year's tournament while Bishop's was in their first-ever appearance. The Warriors had used a balanced attack, solid defence, and excellent goaltending to reach this pinnacle while the Gaiters were capitalizing on offensive opportunities, holding the fort defensively, and getting solid netminding. Waterloo would have the home crowd on their side, but the Bishop's faithful had been loud all weekend. It came down to one game for all the marbles as one of these two highly-talented squads would claim the 2025 U SPORTS National Championship!

Gaiters goals: Gabrielle Santerre (3), Gabrielle Rousseau (1), Maude Pepin (2)
Gaiters assists: Daphne Boutin (2), Angelique Page (1), Gabrielle Santerre (3), Gabrielle Santerre (4)
Gaiters netminder: Ericka Gagnon (27/27)

Warriors goals: none
Warriors assists: none
Warriors netminder: Kara Mark (26/28)

Result: 3-0 victory for Bishop's over Waterloo.

Officially, the Bishop's Gaiters are your 2025 U SPORTS National Champions while the Waterloo Warriors are the 2025 U SPORTS silver medallists. The scoring summary doesn't give you all the details, though, as Waterloo had a number of chances that were either missed or denied by Gagnon and the Gaiters' defence. This game was far closer than the score states, but it was a heckuva battle between two teams that earned the right to play for Canadian university's biggest prize by being so good all season long.

To The Victors

Congratulations to the Bishop's Gaiters as they had been building all season towards this ultimate ending. One could argue that they were robbed of this chance last season when a missed offside call allowed Montreal to eliminate the Gaiters from the RSEQ playoffs, but none of that matters now. The Gaiters stand atop the mountain and no one can take that from them! It's a huge accomplishment for a program that joined the RSEQ and U SPORTS in 2020-21, and it goes to show what can be accomplishment with support and leadership.

The Gaiters are one of the best feel-good stories in Canadian university hockey in some time, and I'm glad they've shown everyone that dreams can be achieved in a short time with the right amounts of talent, hard work, leadership, and support from all levels. For as expensive as hockey is for U SPORTS schools, this is one of those times where you can truly say it was worth the investment.

Be like Bishop's University. Support women's sports at all levels!

The All-Stars

As we always see at these tournaments, players raise their games to another level after wowing us all season with their talents. This year's tournament All-Star selections are no different as they stood out over the weekend as the games progressed. They include:

• Goaltender Ericka Gagnon - Bishop's Gaiters
• Defender Lyndsey Acheson - Waterloo Warriors
• Defender Regan Garreau - Bishop's Gaiters
• Forward Jessymaude Drapeau - Concordia Stingers
• Forward Kassidy McCarthy - Waterloo Warriors
• Forward Gabrielle Santerre - Bishop's Gaiters

One could make the case that Kara Mark in the Waterloo net was just as good as Gagnon in this tournament, but there's no denying that Gagnon won the battle between the goalies in the gold medal final. The last award was the tournament MVP, and it should surprise no one that Bishop's Gaiters forward Gabrielle Santerre was named the most valuable player at the tournament. She was dynamite all weekend!

Over At The Other Rink...

The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees men's hockey team made good on their second chance after failing to qualify for Nationals as a champion, finaist, or third-place team in the OUA by winning the whole thing! The Gee-Gees beat the seemingly-invincible UNB Reds in overtime in what was an incredible game before dispatching OUA foes TMU and Concordia to win the U Cup as the eighth-seeded team. Add in the fact that they were hosting the tournament, and this story had all the necessary elements of a storybook ending!

For those that don't know the backstory, the University of Ottawa suspended the team in 2014-15 following sexual assault allegations against the team. The head coach at that time, Réal Paiement, was fired, and it seemed like the program was headed for demise. The University of Ottawa did reinstate the program in 2015-16, but with major changes to how the program was run and who was running it.

Patrick Grandmaître was hired to lead the program out of the darkness, and I'd say he's done a masterful job with the conclusion of this season after some lean years. Solid recruiting, a commitment to principles, and hard work has Ottawa standing above all others this season! It's taken a decade, but the Ottawa Gee-Gees are back to being a highly-respect hockey program, and that's a credit to the decade of hard work this program has put into finding good, quality people who want to do better and be better in all they do.

We Should Go And Watch

Yes, you should go and watch if you have the means. The entrance costs to the tournament are fairly low, and the action is so good. While I don't have attendance for the tournament, the gold medal game at the Woolwich Memorial Centre was a solid 1482. It looked sold out on the CBC stream, and it helps that the local team was playing in the final. Either way, the crowds were pretty solid all weekend in Elmira, Ontario, so well done to the Waterloo Warriors for hosting a great tournament for teams and fans alike!

If you're wondering where the next tournaments will be held, you can start making plans for next season and beyond:

• 2026 - Elmira, Ontario with the Waterloo Warriors hosting.
• 2027 - Fredericton, New Brunswick with the UNB Reds hosting.
• 2028 - Halifax, Nova Scotia with the StFX X-Women hosting.

The bidding process hasn't opened for the 2029 tournament yet, but there are several schools and communities interested in hosting the event. I'm sure we'll hear more about this as we get closer to that year, but the next three tournaments have homes and hosts! Get down to one of those rinks if you can and cheer on the ladies who make this game so great! They appreciate the support!

The Very Last Word

Today's finals will bring the 2024-25 season to a close, and what a season it was. Congratulations to the Alberta Pandas, the Toronto Varsity Blues, the Bishop's Gaiters, and the StFX X-Women for winning their conferences! All four showed that it's not have one starts the season, but how one ends the season. To that degree, all will have a new tapestry hanging in their respective arenas next season!

35 teams started the season before that number was pared down to eight who would represent the four conferences at Nationals. From there, it was reduced to four, and then reduced against to two. On March 23, 2025, we found the one team who rose above all others this season as the Bishop's Gaiters claimed their first U SPORTS National Championship banner. It wasn't won easily as they rallied from being down in their opening game of Nationals and defeated the top-two teams in the country en route to victory, so credit where credit is due: the Gaiters earned this championship!

Most teams are near being done or are done recruiting, so there will be a new wave of talent joining the U SPORTS ranks next season. While the senior and graduating students leave their programs as icons, leaders, and stars both on and off the ice, the new generation brings with it hope and talent for each of the 35 teams when it comes to their future championship aspirations. It starts again in October.

To the players, study hard, crush your exams, work hard in the summer if you choose to, and we'll see you on the ice in the fall! For all the coaches, equipment managers, training staff, support staff, and officials, have a great summer, enjoy your well-deserved breaks, and we'll see everyone in the fall as well! You gave us five months of incredible hockey that was so much fun to watch and discuss, and I'm already looking forward to next season!

To all the fans who watched a game via a webstream, attended a rink to catch a game, cheered loudly when your team scored and won, offered encouragement during setbacks, and to anyone who stopped in here to read The Rundown, thank you for believing in these women and supporting them on their journeys that involve getting a top-notch education, making life-long friends, and playing a little stick-and-puck. As much as we cheer for them every weekend, they are student-athletes with the more important part coming first in that hyphenated word. We need to reminded of this every now and then.

It was a heckuva season, everyone. Deep breath. Exhale. Go enjoy your summer, and we'll see everyone again in October!

Until then, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Rundown - All-Star Week

There are no games this week or for the next few weeks, so this gives me time on The Rundown to explore some other things. If there's one thing that I wish Canada West did, I wish they played an All-Star Game for deserving players who have had themselves great starts to their respective seasons. There would be time to do so after Christmas as all schools are closed, no classes are being taught, and players could congregate in one city for this event. None of the schools would want to pay for this, I'm sure, but it still would be a fun game where the best players could really show off their skills.

Each year prior to the divisional format that we're in this season, I'd choose two teams based on first-half performances. The two teams included the four Alberta-based teams known as "Team Rockies" versus the five remaining teams from BC, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba who were called "Team Surf-and-Turf". Every team was represented with at least one player, and there was always at least one rookie named to each squad. Six forwards, three defenders, and two netminders made up the teams so that there would be three lines of 3-on-3 hockey at this All-Star Extravaganza.

The format will remain the same, but we're reconfigure the player distribution by remaining under the East and West Divisions rather than lumping the four Alberta teams on one side and the remaining five on the other. Players that are chosen won't necessarily be the top scorers, but they will be the players who stood out on each of the teams in this writer's view. In saying that, though, let's look at who I chose for the Canada West All-Star Extravaganza!

• Grace Elliott (UBC) - leads the conference in scoring.
• Aliya Johma (MRU) - leads the Cougars in scoring.
• Brooklyn Anderson (CAL) - leads the Dinos in scoring.
• Olivia Leier (TWU) - leads the Spartans in scoring.
• Chanreet Bassi (UBC) - second on T-Birds in assists and points.
• April Klarenbach (CAL) - leads all rookies in scoring.**
• Summer Fomradas (MRU) - top defender scorer for MRU.
• Kasey Ditner (TWU) - Spartans' top-scoring defender.
• Jaylyn Morris (UBC) - leads all defenders in scoring.
• Kaitlyn Ross (MRU) - second in wins; backbone of MRU team.
• Elise Hugens (UBC) - most wins; .773 win% all-time.

There should be no surprises here as the top three scorers in the conference in Elliott, Bassi, and Jomha all find their way onto this All-Star team. Olivia Leier led Trinity Western up the standings, Brooklyn Anderson leads the Dinos in goals, and April Klarenbach is the top-scoring rookie so far. Each of the defenders spark the offence from the blue line for their teams, and both Ross and Hugens have been nearly unbeatable all season. This squad will have no problem lighting the lamp as it may be one of the most offensively-gifted teams ever assembled with two outstanding goalies to stop pucks.

• Paige Hubbard (REG) - leads the Cougars in scoring.
• Norah Collins (MAN) - leads the Bisons in goals, 2nd-overall.
• Maia Ehmann (ALB) - leads the Pandas in scoring.
• Kori Paterson (MAC) - leads the Griffins in scoring.
• Jayde Cadieux (SAS) - leads the Huskies in scoring.
• Aimee Patrick (MAN) - leads the Bisons in scoring.
• Sara Kazeil (ALB) - top defender scorer for Alberta.
• Kendra Zuchotzki (SAS) - Huskies' top-scoring defender.
• Jules Stokes (REG) - leads all rookie defenders in scoring.**
• Grace Glover (ALB) - the only goalie with a sub-1.00 GAA.
• Natalie Williamson (REG) - 1.10 GAA and a .960 sv%.

While the East team may have less points collectively than the West team, there's no doubt that this team can find the back of the net with regularity as well. Hubbard is tied for fifth-overall with six goals, Collins has been lighting the lamp regularly, Patrick has been good both scoring and setting up goals, and Maia Ehmann has five goals. Paterson has shown good play-making skills with a MacEwan team struggling to score while Cadieux has been solid all season at both ends of the ice. Kazeil, Zuchotzki, and Stokes have been jumping into the offensive side of the game while playing strong defence, and both Glover and Williamson have shut down scorers all season long. This squad would be fun to watch.

Thoughts on these selections? Any you'd change? Personally, there were a handful of players who just missed the cut for various reasons, but they would have been good choices as well. In the end, these are the players I'd send to a Canada West All-Star Extravaganza, and I think that the game and the skills competition would be fun!

Award Winners?

Yes, I'm very aware that there are a few winners of Canada West awards for outstanding seasons, so let's expand that opportunity and name a few players who likely could end up winning NHL Awards with the seasons they're having to this point.

• "Rocket" Richard Trophy: Grace Elliott (UBC). She may be unstoppable at times, but she has only scored two-or-more goals once this season. Her consistent play may fetch her 20 goals this season. She's currently one off her career-best of 13.
• Vezina Trophy: Kaitlyn Ross (ALB). She's second in wins and is top-five for all other major statistics. She has played every meaningful game for Mount Royal, but has allowed less goals and made more saves than her closest competitor.
• Calder Trophy: Jules Stokes (REG). This was the toughest vote for me, but Stokes gets the nod for playing in all situations while being the top-scoring rookie defender.
• Norris Trophy: Jaylyn Morris (UBC). Last season's pick for Rookie of the Year continues her solid play as the top-scoring defender in all situations. She has two GWG this season.
• Jack Adams Trophy: Brandy West-McMaster (REG). Did anyone have Regina at 20 points at the December break? Regina finds ways to record points, and it shows in the standings.
• Hart Trophy: Grace Elliott (UBC). Elliott has been on some kind of tear this season as she's using her size, skating, and hands to decimate opponents. She holds a ten-point lead over second-place in scoring, and it doesn't seem like anyone will close that gap. She has been the best player thus far.

I'll be completely transparent here and say that the Calder Trophy could be won by others as April Klarenbach could have a big second-half if the Dinos find their game again while players like Seanna Price in Manitoba and Dara Thompson with Mount Royal have scored at better rates than any of the rookie leaders. Stokes has helped Regina to a playoff spot with her play, though, and that's the wild card here.

The Vezina Trophy race could be tighter as it's Ross and UBC's Elise Hugens who are neck-and-neck, but Alberta's Grace Glover and Regina's Natalie Williamson need to play more to jump into the conversation while TWU's Kate Fawcett has to win against the better teams to add her name into the debate. Ross has been a difference-maker for Mount Royal, but the January 10 and 11 games against UBC could push Hugens ahead of Ross depending on the results.

Ontario Contenders

Being that the OUA is still airing games for free, it's a lot easier to see these teams play than other conferences. That being said, there are six teams that look like they could challenge for the OUA banner this season. Let's take a look at who's playing well in Ontario.

The Nipissing Lakers hit the December break as the top team in the OUA both in points and statistically. They are tied for most goals-for, they are tied for least goals-against, they have the best goal differential, they have three players with 15-or-more points, they have the top goaltender in terms of GAA, save percentage, and shutouts. Nipissing has won games at the National Championship before, but this might be the best team that head coach Darren Turcotte has assembled to date.

The other team that looks like a serious contender already has a spot at the National Championship booked as the Waterloo Warriors are hosting. Waterloo sits a point back of Nipissing, is second in goal differential, is tied for scoring the most goals in the conference, has balanced scoring, and Kara Mark has the third-best GAA and save percentage. After seeing them in person, Waterloo didn't look as polished as I thought they may be, but one game is hardly a solid sample size. Clearly, they're winning often in their own conference, and they could be a threat to win the Golden Path Trophy.

The Ottawa Gee-Gees are quietly putting together a solid campaign as they have the third-most goals-for and third-best goal differential. They have the conference's top scorer in Arianne Gagnon and four more players with 12-or-more points. Mireille Kingsley gives them solid goaltending with a 1.87 GAA and a .935 save percentage, but Ottawa's losses have come to Toronto, Guelph, Waterloo, and Nipissing - teams they'll have to beat in the playoffs. Ottawa looks like a threat, but they have to beat the good teams as well.

The Guelph Gryphons are among the OUA's best once more, and they're paced by the goaltending of Martina Fedel as she's second in GAA, save percentage, and shutouts. Guelph doesn't score a lot as they're tied for eighth-best goals-for in the 14-team conference, but they are tied for the least goals-against as well. Their goal differential won't wow anyone, and Jamie Magoffin leads the team with nine points - tied for 11th-highest in the conference. Guelph will rely heavily on goaltending as they push for a spot at the National Championship, but that may also be their downfall if they fall behind.

Both Toronto and Windsor are in virtually the same spots in the two divisions, and both have statistically similar numbers. Where they differ is that Windsor's goaltending is significantly better as Rebecca Noble and Chantal Petitclerc split games whereas Toronto's Lyla MacKinnon plays almost every game. The Windsor tandem has better numbers overall comparatively, so they could be better off if defence wins championships. However, Windsor doesn't score a lot either as no player has more than four goals, but that distribution is more balanced than Toronto. The Varsity Blues do have Alli McKeown with seven goals, but things drop off after the Delahey sisters. In short, Toronto and Windsor could challenge, but they seem to be long shots when compared to the four teams above.

Four-Team Conference

The RSEQ still somehow gets two National Championship spots despite only having four teams, so I'll point out how ridiculous it is that a Quebec-based team needs to win one playoff round to go to Nationals. That being said, there's one team who is a lock unless something goes dramatically wrong while two others will battle in their annual playoff series.

Concordia is the class of the four-team circuit as they have an 11-0 record, and only Bishop's seems to be able to give them a competitive game. Bishop's is 0-4 against Concordia, but they did get a point in an overtime loss. However, Concordia appears to be a lock to defend their championship in Kitchener-Waterloo at this point.

Bishop's and Montreal are separated by one point in the standings, but Montreal holds a 2-1-1 edge in the head-to-head with Bishop's. Bishop's can score and have shown that against Concordia whereas Montreal has been blown out by the Stingers in a couple of games. That being said, whatever Montreal does against Bishop's seems to work, so goal differential may be deceiving despite Bishop's have excellent scoring. This playoff series may come down to defence and goaltending, and Bishop's Erika Gagnon holds the statistical edge over the Montreal tandem of Maude Desroches and Élissa Jean.

It would seem that, based on what the RSEQ is giving us, one of Bishop's and Montreal will join Concordia at Nationals this season unless the McGill Martlets can figure out a way to shock the hockey world and upset the Stingers.

Representing The Country

Congratulations to all the players who were named to the 2025 FISU Team Canada women's hockey team this past week! Canada appears to be taking another powerhouse team to the tournament being held in Torino, Italy, and that could mean a second-straight gold medal finish for the team if they play to their potential.

Specifically, I want to highlight Mount Royal's Aliya Jomha, Alex Spence, and Kaitlyn Ross, UBC's Sophia Gaskell, and Calgary's Sydney Mercier on their selections for the team, and I'll be watching as they look to replicate Canada's success in Lake Placid in 2023. These five players have shown they're among Canada's best, and they often appear here on The Rundown as some of Canada West's top performers week-in and week-out.

We all cheer for the maple leaf, so fans can put team allegiances aside when it comes to cheering on Canada. No matter what colour of medal Canada comes home with, these women should be proud of their selections to represent the country. Cheer them on via FISU.tv as they look to win Canada's second-straight gold medal!

The Path Walked

Next week, I'll have updates on all the former Canada West players who have gone off to play professionally somewhere on the globe. Whether it be here in North America, Sweden, Switzerland, China, Russia, or anywhere else, next week is all about getting caught up with players who walked the path that the current teams are following. If you're wondering where a player landed or how well they may be doing with their new team, I'll have that update next week here on The Rundown! Don't miss this one!

The Last Word

I don't have much for this one other than I hope exams are going well for everyone writing them. I hope the holiday shopping and festivities have been fruitful. And, if you're travelling to get home this month, I hope your travels are safe and efficient so get as much time to spend with the people you love.

We're ten days from Christmas, so be merry, give everyone a little more benefit of the doubt, and smile often. Most of all, enjoy the break in whatever form it takes for you, and we'll reconvene next week for another installment of The Rundown!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Before FoxTrax

If there's one complaint that people who are new to hockey seem to have, it's knowing where the puck is on the ice when watching the game on TV. If you were around when the Fox network acquired NHL rights in 1996, you likely remember their "innovation" to help American viewers keep an eye on the puck while it zipped around the ice. That comet-like glow as the puck was moved and shot was known as FoxTrax, and it was introduced to the world at the 1996 NHL All-Star Game. FoxTrax was revolutionary at the time, but it wasn't the first attempt to make the puck more visible on TV. That honour belongs to another puck known as the Firepuck!

The image above was taken in Minneapolis at a Minnesota North Stars practice where the Firepuck was being tested. As you can see, the puck looks like a spot of light on the video image, and that can be seen clearer here on the actual video of that North Stars practice.
Unlike the FoxTrax pucks developed by Etak that saw pucks cut in half before having infrared transmitters, a circuit board and a battery inserted in them and epoxied back together, the Firepuck had no electronic pieces inserted in the puck. Rather, it used coloured retro reflective materials of either embedded lens elements or prismatic reflectors laminated into recesses on the flat surfaces and the vertical edge of a standard hockey puck with yellow being the preferred reflected colour. A spotlight was positioned on the TV camera and focused at the centre of the viewing area which caused the puck to glow for the cameras tracking it. Pretty cool, right?

Well, I was hooked on this new glowing puck, and I found an article reprinted in The Medicine Hat News on October 13, 1994 that was originally published in the Toronto Star and written by Tim Harper!

In the article, Harper notes that the Firepuck was an idea that was formed by Don Klassen of Lake Elmo, Minnesota 19 years before it debuted in 1994 as he watched his son's mites game. Working on it for the previous 18 months, it made its Canadian TV debut on the October 12, 1994 TSN broadcast of the IHL game between the Atlanta Knights and the Minnesota Moose, but it made its TV debut back on January 26, 1994 at the IHL All-Star Game in Fort Wayne, Indiana!

In fact, the 1994 IHL All-Star Game saw the puck used for the second period of the contest, and here's some video evidence of the Firepuck being introduced to TV audiences before being used on the ice!

I chuckled every time the announcers reminded everyone that "it is an experiment" with the Firepuck's system, but it clearly didn't work as intended with where the cameras were located based on how little the "glow" was seen as the spotlight likely wouldn't pick up the reflective material well on those wide-angle shots. Nevertheless, the puck did make its worldwide debut in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and the IHL was the first league to get into this new puck-nological advance!

Harper's article above also notes that it was also used in a game at Richfield Coliseum in Cleveland, and it made its third appearance in that Knights-Moose game. It's fourth and final appearance came on January 17, 1997 when the ECHL adopted it for their All-Star Game in Charlotte, North Carolina, marking the last time that the Firepuck would appear in any professional hockey game. The reasons for leagues to stop using it included its tendency for the puck to bounce, the spotlights reflecting off the ice, and its difficulty in being picked up on wide shots as mentioned above. Despite the initial excitement over its use with the Minnesota experiment, the Firepuck was ultimately done in by what it tried to solve: tracking the puck with the spotlight!

Full marks to Don Klassen for the effort he gave in trying to solve a problem, but it seems that the technology in the mid-1990s needed to make this Firepuck idea work simply wasn't a reality. After the FoxTrax puck debuted, NHL fans were cold to the effects that Fox used to make the puck glow, and the ideas for glowing pucks to help fans track the puck on the ice pretty much died.

I'm not sure that we'll ever see a glowing puck in any form again, but hockey's history should note that the two pucks that glowed lasted only for a couple of years before being mothballed. With high-definition television, seeing the puck on the ice has been easier than ever, so glowing pucks seem destined to remain in the archives.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!