Nice 4-1 win for the Bolts last night in Toronto. (Somebody must have forgotten to pass along the memo about losing being not so bad at this stage of a lost season, and the reward for as much – read: Hedman on the blueline in Tampa – potentially earth-shattering.) I’ll spare you a game recap that you can get 4,000 other places (that's not really my “thing” here anyway) and try something different today.
Yesterday, ‘The Ekster’ posted
a blog called, “20 Random Hockey Facts About You”, apparently inspired by some internet phenomenon called a “meme”. Now, I have no idea what that is and I don’t really care enough to look it up – if you must, enlighten me – but, from what I understand,
the infamous “Rick Roll” would be a classic example of a “meme”. (If you clicked that link, I think I’m supposed to say,
“You got Rick Rolled!” and laugh … Or something …)
Anyway, the premise of the blog was 20 random hockey facts about
you and it turned out to be pretty entertaining to read some of the submissions posted by readers in Ek’s comment section, so I thought I’d
steal copy borrow his idea and run one of my own here in my little corner of the Hockeybuzz world.
I submitted my own list among the 800+ comments so, after a little editing and cleaning up, I’ll re-post that here for your perusal. Hopefully, you’ll all post some of your own for further enjoyment, though I don't expect 80, let alone 800. (I'd be pleased with 8. Ho-hum ...)
1 – I grew up a die-hard New York Islanders fan and, really, still consider myself as much deep down – when there’s room to be a fan anymore anyway. I’ve never hidden from this, despite my Lightning duties here and, since my innate allegiance is automatically trumped by the professionalism necessary when covering a team, it’s not an issue whatsoever. The way I’ve been treated by the Lightning organization makes it impossible not to root damn hard for them as well and there’s plenty of room in this
cold, cold heart of mine.
2 – I was a charter member of the NYI Blog Box, penning
the debut feature on the Isles’ signing of former Bolt Ruslan Fedotenko, despite having lived in Florida since the age of seven. When my Lightning coverage took off, I resigned from the innovative endeavor to focus all of my attention on the Bolts. I haven’t looked back for a minute. As an outsider, I was holding down a spot far more well-deserved by someone who could actually
attend more than one or two Islander home games a season and the local club needed a strong, internet presence, totally committed to the cause. I trust your belief is that I’ve provided as much, as I work very hard at this.
3 – I remain the proud owner of four Islander Stanley Cup commemorative beer mugs, one for each Cup, which will remain dry until the next championship on Long Island. (If they move before then, I'll drink from all of them at the same time and then smash them on the street, promise!) I vow to do the same with a Lightning mug of the same ilk, when they win another Cup, just as soon as one of
you tells me where to find one! (I also hold out hope that I will one day actually drink from Lord Stanley’s chalice itself but, don’t worry, I won’t be breaking any rules or hockey bylaws in order to do so. Follow me?)
4 – I was once told, quite literally, that I would
never be recognized as a legitimate member of the media by the Lightning. Less than a year later, open arms. (What can I say? I’m a charming guy …)
5 – I nearly stepped on the Lightning logo my very first time in the locker room but was reminded nicely by a member of the training staff to watch my step. Months later, I laughed with the same team employee after he lambasted a visiting scribe for prancing right across the damn thing. I believe the words uttered were something along the lines of,
“What is this? Your first day on the job?” (Said offender never even apologized … But I know who you are, sir!!! Shame on you!!!)
6 – I once fought in the stands of The St. Pete Times Forum (then, of course, The Ice Palace) when two old drunkards accosted my father. I now laugh, snicker and sneer (and sing
Memories to myself) every time I walk by the team security office on my way to the press box or the locker room area. A 20-year-old JJ pummeled the 39-year-old aggressor, for whatever that’s worth, and did okay in round two with the other guy to boot. (Hey, they picked one with Pops. What do you want me to do?) The best part about this story is that, because those idiots started the brawl and the surrounding fans in our section backed us up wholeheartedly on as much, we were A) given our money back for the game, B) moved to far better seats for the third period and C) offered comp tickets to an upcoming
Palace Forum event. My choice? WWE wrestling a few weeks later. I figured it rather apropos, you know …
7 – Always ballsy, while attending a hockey school in Syracuse, NY at the age of 16, I interrupted a guest speaker who kept using Joe Nieuwendyk as the prime example for a great professional. My question:
"Isn't Nieuwendyk holding out for a new contract right now?", referring to the holdout that led to Nieuwendyk’s trade from Calgary to Dallas for a prospect named Jarome Iginla, was met with an evil stare and effectively dodged. I was disappointed. Needless to say, I didn’t win any awards at camp’s end. I actually think that guy – who I believe played with Joe at Cornell University – took a run at me in a scrimmage game between campers and instructors at week’s end.
8 – A close personal friend of the family is Mike Smith (not the Lightning netminder). Smitty worked for years as a linesman in the American Hockey League, played five seasons in the Eastern and North American Hockey Leagues for the Syracuse Blazers and both Long Island franchises, the Ducks and Cougars, lived with Bill "Goldie" Goldthorpe at one time, was an extra in
Slap Shot and blames the demise of his professional career on my father and another family friend, who showed a “good Canadian boy” the wild ways of a couple of Long Island “thugs”. (One day, I’m going to write a book on his life in hockey. Oh, the stories …)
9 – I was on the bench with the Syracuse Stars (then of the OPJHL) in the Newmarket Showcase Tournament in December of 2004 and laughed out loud at the face made by now-Colorado Avalanche prospect Kevin Montgomery when he was told to,
"Bite your f*ckin' lip!" to draw an extra penalty after a high stick from the opposition. To his credit, he certainly
tried to oblige his overzealous coach, but the poor kid just didn’t have it in him. Kevin is now a teammate of John Tavares with the OHL’s London Knights and has played in ten games with Lake Erie of the AHL over the last two seasons. I look forward to reminding him of the lip-biting attempt when he cracks the Avs lineup and visits Tampa in the future.
10 – I scored the overtime goal, albeit on a deflection square off my ass, for Florida State University against the arch rival Florida Gators in a tournament during the 1997/1998 season in Orlando. Yes, folks, the Florida State Seminoles were (then) among a handful of schools in non-traditional hockey areas to play intercollegiate club ice and roller hockey in a half-way organized fashion. Other opponents included The University of Central Florida, Georgia Tech, Tennessee, Valdosta State, The University of South Florida, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and a slew of schools that I’ve clearly forgotten in the years since. A rag-tag bunch of college kids/hockey freaks who were more concerned with what
else our road trips had to offer, aside from hockey, we weren't very good ... Quite often, it was comical. We actually played two men down on a couple of occasions that I can still recall. Once, a couple of bozo teammates were too hung over to get out of the hotel room in the morning and another time, the same two had been arrested some time the night before. Didn’t matter much to me, really. As a freshman, in particular, I looked at that sort of thing as an opportunity for more playing time (headache or not). But I botched that chance on occasion myself. I was always a heady player, so the brain fart of
"the kick" as it infamously became known, baffles me to this day. Somehow, I convinced myself that kicking pucks (rather than using ... what's it called? Oh yeah, a
stick) was the most effective way to pass and defend. Forgetting that, in my early youth, I was the
worst soccer player in the history of the world, I whiffed. Twice. And the opposition scored both times. Ah, the good old days … (By the way, I believe the 'Noles now play in the ACHA, though I'm not totally sure of that.)
11 – I broke the same bone in the same hand twice in a six-month period in college, costing me about three months of playing time. Initially, the injury was the result of hand-on-helmet in a stupid pick-up game fighting incident (stupid, yes, but at least it was a legitimate cause). The second time, I was playing in an intramural softball game and the bone snapped as soon as I made bat-to-ball contact at the plate. Guess it never healed right. Still hasn’t, actually, six-plus years later but that’s probably mostly because I got the cast wet a few weeks into the second setting (something to do with bumper boats at a local amusement park, as I remember it. Another wonderful idea.) After itching incessantly for a half-day or so, I cut the cast off myself with a Dremel hand rotary saw and went on my merry way, wonky hand and all.
12 – I played with a guy named Andy Borggaard, briefly, in pickup leagues in Tallahassee, FL. You know you're in trouble when a guy with
pro stats like these, is
by far, the best player on your team. But I guess having a pro with 56 career ECHL games to his credit is better than no pro at all. (Always gave me the impression, too, that – had I caught a break or two – I could have at least cracked a fourth line in that league. For a shift or two, anyway ...)
13 – I also played with a guy, who shall remain nameless, that took out his false teeth for games. Nothing strange there, until I tell you that he didn’t store them in any sort of sanitary case made for such dentifrices. No, this wild man tucked his falsies away
in his sneakers!
14 – The same guy (still nameless, cause he was beyond crazy and, if I ever run into him again, he’d probably kill me) had a fake eye that would pop out from time to time if he was hit right. Once, after getting hammered in the corner, the eye popped out and he picked it up immediately off the ice, put it
in his mouth and
finished his shift! Now
that’s a hockey player.
15 – I tried and tried not to, but I couldn't help watching Roller Hockey International and, sadly, Pro Beach Hockey whenever ESPN2 would put either on the air – at 3:00 am or otherwise. Yes, PBH rules involved the sacrilege of playing with a
ball – roller hockey or not, hockey is played with a
puck, people – but, come on! They had
ramps! Not sold? How about teams named
Salsa,
Dawg Pac, and
Heavy Metal?!?!?
16 – I think I would literally kill for an original, working copy of
NHLPA '93 on any video game system. Who needs real team names when you have video game
blood? (Insert obligatory
Swingers line,
“I'm gonna make Gretzky's head bleed for super fan 99 over here,” here.) For a Florida kid who needed his hockey fix anywhere he could get it at that time, this game was an absolute godsend. I don’t even think I ever even actually owned my own copy of the game but I should probably have had my own piece of the local rental store that I got it from time and time again. (Consequently, I should have gotten a cut when they sold out to Blockbuster years later too. Damn!)
17 – I have played games in not-so-hockey hotbed arenas like The Amway Arena (then The Orlando Arena, home of the NBA’s Orlando Magic and, for a time, the IHL’s Orlando Solar Bears), The Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center (affectionately known as the TLC Double C, where we played and practiced
after ECHL home games for the Tallahassee Tiger Sharks, often until the wee hours of the morning, with 100 or so
completely loaded T-Sharks fans remaining for the post-game undercard), Rock on Ice (another Orlando rink where you’d find ruts so deep, your ankles hurt
on the way to the rink) The Space Coast IcePlex and the Jacksonville Ice and Sportsplex. There are many others, of course, though none as relatively obscure as these.
18 – On a nightly basis, I wonder why there is a full, functional keg of beer in the press box at every Lightning home game but I’ve never seen anyone drink from it. Just sayin’, cause we certainly could have used a few pops during some of the snooze fests we’ve witnessed this year.
19 – I’m admittedly still intimidated by the presence of a legend like Phil Esposito, with whom I share the same physical space on a regular basis. So much so, in fact (coupled with the honest truth that Espo is literally
always already engaged in conversation with someone else any time I’m around), that I’ve not gotten the opportunity to so much as introduce myself all season long. Gotta take care of that before the year’s out. Otherwise, I become “that weird guy” that always says hello but never anything else.
20 – My favorite legendary off-the-wall hockey stories are 1 and 1A, in my book. 1, Punch Imlach's drafting of the fictional "Taro Tsujimoto" of the “Tokyo Katanas” 183rd overall for the Buffalo Sabres in the 1974 NHL Entry Draft as a prank at the expense of league president Clarence Campbell. Imlach, so says the legend, was irked at how long the draft was taking. 2, “The Reijo Ruotsalainen Rule”, preventing teams from hiding players in Europe and bringing them over late in the season for a boost to a playoff run. It isn’t so much the rule that makes me laugh, rather then-Oilers GM Glen Sather keeping Ruotsalainen on the protected list for expansion drafts as well as the now-defunct waiver draft long after his NHL career had been over. Was this Slats imitating Punch? Or did Sather plan on bringing a 40+ year-old Reijo back some time in the 21st century? Either way, makes for a good chuckle ...
I could probably extend this list well into triple digits had I the time. I don’t, of course, so I’ll turn it to you folks now.
Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed a bit of my personal hockey history and I certainly look forward to reading through some of yours.
JJ
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