Love Guru Trailer

This looks like a funny movie. I mean, the possibility of the Toronto Maple Leafs winning the Stanley Cup anytime soon? HAHAHAHA

Hockey Commercial 29: This is my best looking linemate

It's Leap Day, and it's also the last day of the "Hockey Commercial" series. It certainly has been fun, from Molson's curved stick commercial to Joe Thornton and his buttered toast.

Good times.

So, without further ado, here are three "This Is My NHL" commercials that aired last year. They're wicked great :)







Hockey rocks, injuries suck. Go Pens.

Hockey Commercial 28: We Believe

We believe in the Next One.



Go Pens!

Hockey Commercial 27: Is this the year?

"Is this the year the Cup comes to Pittsburgh?"

We've all seen the original, now here's the spoof:



ESPN Two

Go Pens

What on Earth is going on in Pittsburgh?

The deadline has passed and I'm left with a bad taste in my mouth. Just minutes before 3 PM ET, Gord Miller announces to the world that Hossa has been traded to....the Pittsburgh Penguins.

WHAT!?!???!?

I said last night that Shero inquired about Hossa, but I didn't think that it would happen. This isn't like Shero - Mario Lemieux must have put pressure on him to make it happen now. Most of the guys at TSN like this deal but I'm with Pierre McGuire - I hate this trade. Just hate it.

Pens fans have been saying that we need a scoring winger for Sid. Is Hossa that? Well, he is a sniper. But will he even have chemistry with Sid? I don't know. Just because you pair a top playmaker with a top sniper doesn't mean that it's a match made in heaven. Gretzky was traded to St. Louis to play with Brett Hull in the 1990's, and seems to me there weren't fireworks between them.

There are more questions about Hossa:

Will he disappear in the playoffs? Hopefully not. The playoffs are not the time to take a break and relax.

Will he resign with the Pens this summer? If yes, he will want a lot of money and a lot of years, and the Penguins will be the Tampa Bay of the North. Look how well Tampa's doing now. I'm sure Pens fans out there love this Hossa deal, but how will they feel in 3 or 4 years when Pittsburgh is back in the basement of the Eastern Conference, selling off Malkin...Staal....Fleury...Malone...Is this the price that they want to pay?

Let's say Hossa doesn't sign with Pittsburgh this summer. Well, then the Penguins will be in search of another scoring winger for Crosby and they'll be without Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito, and this year's first round draft pick (which will be a strong draft). All the Pens will have to show for this trade is Pascal Dupuis.

If you look at the League as a whole and what happened today, you could say that things were blown wide open in the East. A few of the top Eastern players were traded out to the West (Richards, Campbell) and the Pens made the biggest deal of the day. The argument could be made that the Penguins could win the East if Hossa plays well with Sid and if Hal Gill does what he does best - be a big body, shutdown defenseman who is good on the PK.

So, let's say the Pens do make it to the Stanley Cup Finals - can they actually win the Cup against the West? Detroit has the best record in the NHL and should be healthy by the time the playoffs roll around. San Jose has been really good all season and they just addressed their glaring need of a puck-moving defenseman. Anaheim was .500 at the start of the season, then something like 12-7 since getting Niedermayer back, and virtually unbeatable since Selanne came back. Dallas has been crazy good, and now they have Brad Richards. I'm not sure the Pens, or any team in the East, can do it.

If the Pens can't win the Cup this year, can this Hossa deal be seen as a success?

I don't think so.

Hockey Commercial 26: Bowling would be better if it were hockey

I would love to see his happen at the bowling alley.

Forsberg back in Colorado, and Hossa a Penguin?

One week ago, Peter Forsberg said that he probably wouldn't be back in the NHL this year because of his wonky foot. This afternoon, he signed a one-year contract with Colorado.

What gives? Did his foot miraculously get better? Hmm...I think he may have made that statement last week to get the media people off his back. You have to admit, after he said that he was essentially done for the season, the focus shifted to Mats, Hossa, and everyone else still on the trading block. A week of peace and quiet probably made the negotiations a little more pleasant, and less pressing.

Is it just me, or is Colorado starting to look good? I (and others) have been saying that getting Crosby, Fleury and Roberts back from injury is like the best trade deadline deal in the League. If that's the case, then Colorado has the second best deal going on - they got Smyth, Stastny and Sakic back in the lineup this month, and now they have added Forsberg without giving anything up. If Foppa is healthy for the remainder of the season, the Avs just may go on a tear in March like they did last year. Heck, they may do it even if Forsberg isn't healthy.

------------------------------------

Marian Hossa is the big fish to catch now that Mats Sundin is officially out of the trade talk.
Rumour has it that Montreal and Ottawa are making a big push to get the winger from Atlanta, but could he end up being a Penguin tomorrow? Bob McKenzie said tonight on OTR that Shero has been inquiring about Hossa.

As far as I'm concerned, this is just a rumour. I would be infinitely surprised if Shero won the Hossa Sweepstakes, and infinitely concerned. Scoring winger he is, but how has he done in the playoffs? And how is his attitude in the locker room? And what kind of contract would he want to sign in July? Sorry, but I don't want to give up 3 draft picks, a prospect and a roster player for a guy who won't show up in the playoffs and commands a big money, long term contract that will make it impossible to resign Malkin, Staal, Fleury, Malone, AND Letang. Not worth it.

Hockey Commercial 25: Street Zamboni

I post this in honour of the Zamboni that died today before the Pens/Sharks game.

James Duthie was right - it did look like it had run over Iceburgh.



Absolutely gotta LOVE that song playing. "Someone roars, Bobby scores!"
------------------------
A few random thoughts on today's (yesterday's) game against the Sharks and other stuff:

1- Were the Sharks on the PP the whole game? It certainly seemed like the Pens were asleep at the wheel for most of the game and the Sharks really took it to them. Thankfully Conklin was awake.

2- I was so glad to have Gord Miller/Pierre McGuire for the game. There were satellite issues for a few minutes and TSN had to switch to the FSN Bay Area feed, and I can say that I prefer the TSN crew. Always the Miller-McGuire tandem; they know so much about the game, and they are absolute freaks with stats (and I say that in a good way). How on EARTH does Miller remember all that stuff? Even if he has it written down on sheets of paper, how does he read that and do play-by-play?

3- Sundin is stayin' in Toronto, so that's that. Brad Richards, however, is rumoured to be on the move if he waives his no-trade with Tampa. Cities in the mix are Vancouver, Dallas and Columbus.

4- Exciting week ahead! TSN has a full day of hockey analysis ahead - TradeCentre starts at 8 AM ET and goes until 5 or 6. The whole crew is on set to discuss each trade, and JFJ is joining the team. With Duthie as host, it should be a rockin' good time, AND there's an NHL game on after TradeCentre.

5- Speaking of the trade deadline, there should be great coverage over at FF. Can't get enough of this stuff.

6- Philly = hahahahahahahahahahaha. That's for all the crap you gave us after the Pens lost to the Flyers in December.

7- Detroit = second worst record in the NHL (behind the Flyers) for the last 10 days. AND they're without Lidstrom for at least another 2 weeks. AND Hasek is out. AND Rafalski is out. AND Chelios is out for the time being. AND Dallas is only 6 points back. Something tells me that Detroit is coming down to earth just like Ottawa did, and that they may not be number one in the West by the time the playoffs start.

8- Murphy's Law = you drop a guy from your fantasy team who hasn't scored a point in like 2 weeks, and that very night he scores 2 goals and 2 assists. Ribeiro sucks.

9- In case I haven't alluded to it before, James Duthie is the best host in sports history.

This is from the second intermission of the Pens/Sharks game:



And for my all-time favourite Duthie moment, here he is last summer at the Roger's Cup tennis tourney in Canada. He was the umpire for a 'celebrity' match involving Anna Kournikova (number 4). I can be your hero baby....

Hockey Commercial 24: Workin' the Corner

Here's an old Nike commercial with a Bruins goaltender who is upset after being kicked out of the League because his stats were ruined by Jeremy Roenick. I thought I'd post this one today because JR's team is rolling into Pittsburgh this afternoon, and *knock on wood* the Sharks will be put in their place by the Pens.

The way I see it, the so-called food chain has Penguins over Sharks.



...but the best part of this commercial has to be the Flyers' goalie trying to find a street corner for himself. How sad, can't even get his own corner...I guess that's what happens when you lose 10 games in a row.

Hockey Commercial 23: Canadians are Polite?!?

I don't think so!

(Okay, so maybe this commercial isn't a true 'hockey commercial'...but whatever)

I swear every Molson commercial has a hockey theme. It must be the law. They sell beer...but hey, just show a bunch of hockey and put up a maple leaf and the crowds will buy.



It's a Hockey Night in Canada triple header tonight, starting with Sens/Pens this afternoon. Ottawa may be semi-slumping, but they know that a loss tonight will mean that there will be a new Eastern Conference leader. The Ottawa lead has been challenged for a few weeks now, but they have managed to keep it despite losing a few games. Tonight, the Sens will show up to play and the Pens will have to play like they did in Montreal.

Watch for Cory Stillman - he's starting to settle into the Ottawa lineup and I predict he'll be the key for the Sens.

Now that I wrote that, watch the CASH line start to actually produce.

Hockey Commercial 22: I said left, LEFT!

Here's another NHL promo from last year, starring Alex Ovechkin. I think this may be the only way Ovechkin is "just like me." Stupid vending machines...



And here's a little behind the scenes footage.

Hockey Commercial 21: Oops, I slipped

Flashback to the 1990's. It's Gretzky and Messier, reuniting to play a game of chess. Good stuff.



By the way, I apologize for not responding to comments left in the last few days. Unfortunately, Winter Break = dial-up internet. I'm lucky if I can get access to this website at all, and Explorer doesn't seem to want to let me into the comments pages. At least I can still read them through my e-mail.

Tonight: Montreal....Pittsburgh....RDS....I can hear it now - "Le tir, et LE BUT!!!" Hopefully it will be directed at the Pens because I'd very much like to see Pittsburgh take that game. Montreal deserves a rest, don't you think?

Biggest comeback in franchise history

When you're up 5-0 and you lose the game, you deserve that loss.

Rangers = losers

I was watching MVP last night, flipping back and forth between the Ottawa game and the Montreal game to check the scores. Montreal went down 3-0, then 5-0 to the Rangers by the middle of the second period and I thought, "Oh crap."

Rewind a few weeks: Montreal and the Rangers played a Sunday afternoon game on CBC, and the Rangers were down 3-0 then rallied to win 5-3.

Last night, the tables were turned.

After Montreal was down 5 goals, I'm sure most fans thought they were done. I know I did. But the goals started coming, from likely and unlikely sources. Michael Ryder, the whipping boy in Montreal, scored a hat trick and Kovalev got a couple to tie the game by the end of the third. OT solved nothing, and Captain Koivu scored the only shootout goal (a beauty, at that). The Montreal franchise has been around for 99 years, and this is the first time that the team has rebounded from a 5-goal deficit to win a game. Wow.

To make things even better, the Pittsburgh Penguins came from behind to win their game against the Florida Panthers. Glad to have another win in the bank, and I'm glad to see Richard Zednik out of the hospital.

Oh, and the Senators won against the Philadelphia Cryers, handing them their eighth consecutive loss. Boo frickin' hoo. Hosers.

Hockey Commercial 20: Swedish Twins

One of the funniest commercials I have seen in recent years.

Hockey Commercial 19: Naslund vs. Iginla

Yesterday's featured commercial saw Naslund and Kovalchuk chasing a puck around town. Today's commercial is from Nike and supposedly represents the average shift of an NHL player (45 seconds) and has Naslund trying to kill Iginla. Those Vancouver-Calgary games can sure get rough.

Sad day in the OHL

One of the Flames' top prospects, nineteen-year-old Mickey Renaud, collapsed in his home today and was pronounced dead around noon ET. He was a centre and the captain of the Windsor Spitfires in the OHL.

The cause of his death is not known, but one of his teammates was on TSN tonight and said that 'they' are saying that it may have been a brain aneurysm. An autopsy will be performed tomorrow.

''This is the biggest tragedy in Spitfire history,'' said team vice-president and general manager Warren Rychel. ''Words alone cannot describe our pain at this time.''

Thoughts and prayers are with the Renaud family and the Spitfires' organization.

Hockey Commercial 18: Chasing the puck

Naslund + Kovalchuk = race time

Imagine seeing these two coming at you, chasing a puck?

Part 1:


Part 2:

Loo-oo Serr-rrrs

I wonder, how does it feel to lose 7 games in a row?

I suppose we could just ask the Philadelphia Flyers, eh?

They just lost their 7th consecutive game tonight, against the Montreal Canadiens. I saw last night's game against the Habs, when the crowd at the Bell Centre was chanting "Carey, Carey, Carey" as rookie goaltender Carey Price earned a shutout against the Flyers. Tonight, it was another strong showing, and the Habs won 5-3.

Gotta love it when Atlantic Division teams lose and the Pens win (4-1 over Buffalo = sweet). The Habs are now tied for first with Ottawa, but the Senators have one game in hand. I guess the Senators have officially been put on notice that their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference has come to an end.

Hockey Commercial 17: Annoying Guy in the Penalty Box, where he belongs.

This Molson commercial features 'Annoying Guy', who is the current star of Molson's commercials. I tried to find the newest ad with Annoying Guy, a little video called "Expected/Unexpected", but YouTube is being lazy and does not have it. You can, however, go to Molson's website and see the video, and fire pucks/balls at Annoying Guy, who is tied to a hockey net. Nothin' makes you laugh like hearing him cry in pain. Good times.

Hockey Commercial 16: Buttered Toast

The only thing bad about coming home is the dial-up internet. I forgot how s-l-o-w it can be.

Here's a commercial that was on TV last year, one of those 'Just Like Me' commercials the NHL made to appeal to the public.



But I also found this...a little behind the scenes footage with Joe and his toast.

Hockey Commercial 15: Hairy Legs

Another Molson commercial. I guess the company decided that combining beer with hockey = good marketing in Canada.

So, back to this commercial. Some find it funny, some find it gross. You be the judge.

Hockey Commercial 14: Marty makes the big save

I apologize for the video quality of this commercial. I've been trying to find a better version, but this seems to be the only copy available.

This commercial was shown all day, every day last winter/spring. It disappeared over the summer, but it is making a strong comeback.

My favourite part is when Luc Robitaille looks at Marty Brodeur and says, "It's not delivery, Marty, it's Delissio." The look on his face and the tone of his voice...it just kills me.

Hockey Commercial 13: I'm sick, Coach

I realize I have been going 'post crazy' in the last several days, virtually littering the blog with useless posts. I think it's a way to avoid doing the stuff I need to do. So, as a result of this realization, I will cut back on the random posts.

To continue the hockey commercial series, today's selection is from Molson and I have chosen it because the Olympic Games are now just two years away. I thought I'd post it because I like to think I have a sense of humour and I think you do too, and it is in no way a shot at Team USA. Just thought I'd put that out there...

Campus Linebacker

Like those Terry Tate 'Office Linebacker' commercials? So do I, but the video below is one of my all-time favourites.

It's Campus Linebacker 2 (director MacPhizzle didn't post the first one).

The reason why I love this video so much is because I basically know most, if not all, of the people in it. I used to go to ABU, a university in Moncton with about 700 students, and I remember these guys filming LB 1 and 2 in the hallways, in the library, in the classrooms, in the stairwells...well, you get the idea.

I love how it's not just students - it's Profs (Dr. Dempster), their kids (Jordan Soggie), the Athletics Director (that would be Bob), the Director of Finances (Dale), the school's President (Dr. MacArthur), and other staff members. It really seemed to be a campus-wide production and MacPhizzle's videos were shown to the entire student body on several occasions.

Good times...good times...

Canada will win gold in Vancouver

Twenty-four months. That's how long it is until the Vancouver Olympic Games. I get more excited by the day.

I found this CTV article by Michael Stittle this morning, a little advertising for tomorrow's Olympic special "Olympic Journey: Calgary to Vancouver", airing tomorrow night on TSN.

Twenty years after the Calgary Winter Games, Canada is haunted by an
embarrassing fact -- it's the only country to have hosted the Olympics twice
without winning a gold medal.

But athletes should bring in a record haul in Vancouver, says CTV Olympic
Host Brian Williams.

"In the past, Canadians were content to show up and then that was good
enough. Showing up is not good enough," Williams told CTV.ca.

"This is not an intramural activity. They're on the world stage. I'm
not saying they all have to win medals, but you must show up and do your best."

Canada won 24 medals in Turin, the most ever captured at the Winter Games.
Sixteen of those medals were won by women like speed skater Cindy Klassen,
arguably won of the finest athletes the country has ever produced.

Williams said the Own the Podium program, launched in 2005, has
contributed greatly towards the growing success of Canada's amateur athletes. It
gives them much-needed support in terms of doctors, physiotherapists and
equipment specialists.

[...]

"I will tell you that as I travel across this country, Canadian
athletes are not intimidated by the pressure," said Williams. "In fact, they're
looking forward to it, they're thriving under it, and they're all talking about
who will be the first Canadian athlete to hear 'O Canada' on Canadian soil."

[...]

Stories of passion, of trying to overcome the odds, are already emerging among Canadian athletes looking toward the 2010 Games.

One of the most remarkable is cross-country skier Brian McKeever. He has less than 10 per cent of his vision -- he's legally blind -- but is considered one of the top competitors in the world.

McKeever's vision problems come from Stargardt's, a form of macular degeneration that has left him with only peripheral vision. Because of his condition, he relies on his brother Robin to guide him from behind during races.

Robin is a former Olympic athlete who competed at the Nagano Olympics in 1998. He gave up his Olympic aspirations to train McKeever, pushing him to fight beyond his limitations.

"Brian has competed in a regular world cup event and finished in the top half," said Williams.

"He hopes to compete in Vancouver-Whistler. The problem is that at the world cup, robin was there to ski behind him and direct him; at the Olympics, you're not allowed to have someone directing you. It will be interesting to see what happens, but it's a wonderful story."

If McKeever is allowed to compete with Canada's Olympics team, he'll have to deal with intense pressure to perform better than any other Canadian team in the history of the Winter Games.

Hockey Commercial 12: Lucky Jersey

An IBM commercial starring Eric Lindros and the Philadelphia Cryers, er, Flyers. Pink suits him well...suits the whole team, in fact.

Senators and Hurricanes make a trade

We have our first big trade leading up to the trade deadline!

The Ottawa Senators made a splash when they sent defenceman Joe Corvo and forward Patrick Eaves packing to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for forward Cory Stillman and defenceman Mike Commodore.

Stillman will help bring secondary scoring to the Senators, something that they were clearly lacking when two-thirds of their top line was out with injury. Commodore, a stay-at-home defenceman, will hopefully help to keep the pucks out of Ottawa's net, something else that was a clear problem for the Sens.

On the other side of the deal, Corvo's power play abilities should give Carolina more offensive punch from the back end. Eaves is a young player who, though injured for much of this year, should develop into a good player for the 'Canes.

The way I see things, Ottawa is stocking up for the present, seeing as both Stillman and Commodore are UFA's this summer. It will be harder to push this team around with Commodore in the mix. This could be what they need to make another serious run for the Cup, and these two know what it takes to actually win the Stanley Cup.

Carolina, on the other hand, is looking more long term. Corvo is under contract for two more years and Eaves is an RFA this summer.

I am a fan of Ottawa, and I think that this is a really good deal for them. If the Pens can't win the Cup this year, then I hope the Sens will win it all.

Bon Cop Bad Cop: Action, Comedy, and Hockey all in one

What's the best hockey movie of all time?

That seems to be the great debate among hockey fans - along with best team, best player, and whatnot.

The movies that usually top the list include "Slap Shot"..."Miracle"...perhaps "The Rocket"....never "The Mighty Ducks"....

Those are all good choices, but I'd like to add another movie: Bon Cop Bad Cop, the highest grossing Canadian film in history and one of my favourite movies of all time.

I like to think of it as "Lethal Weapon" - because it's a funny action flick - centered around hockey.

Bon Cop Bad Cop features Colm Feore (Henry Taylor from "24") as Martin Ward, the stereotypical uptight, straight-laced English detective from Ontario, and Patrick Huard (a prominent actor in Quebec who also wrote the script for Bon Cop Bad Cop) as David Bouchard, the stereotypical bad boy Quebecois detective who doesn't follow the rules.

The paths of Ward and Bouchard meet when they are forced to be partners on a case in which members of the hockey community are being murdered. It really is a clash of cultures as each has to deal with the habits and methods of the other. The film is completely bilingual, with the characters switching from English to French and back, sometimes in the same sentence, but subtitles fix those problems.

One of the things I love about this movie is that the hockey story basically parallels the NHL, with names of key players being changed - but just barely.

We see the LHC's Toronto Loyalists playing the Montreal Patriotes for the Holt Cup.

Rick Mercer plays 'Tom Berry', the loud-mouthed hockey commentator with ugly shirts and ties who cannot stand French Canadians.

And then there's 'Harry Buttman', the vertically challenged commissioner who wants to let (another) Canadian team move to the Southern belt - Houston, specifically.

They talk about how Grossbut moved the Quebec to Colorado....and then won the Cup (the guy's name in real life was 'Aubut').

And how Martina Flabcheeks was the agent of a certain number 1 draft pick of Quebec, and how she wanted him to play for Toronto, but "#88" ended up in Philadelphia without playing a single game in Quebec and now has concussion issues.

Who could forget about Pickleton (err...Pocklington), the one who sold the greatest player in the world to Los Angeles? Number 99?

I don't know, maybe it doesn't take a genius to weave key NHL characters into this script, but it's a thoroughly enjoyable movie.

After all, who doesn't like a good movie with action, comedy, and a hockey story? Plus, it doesn't hurt that this movie isn't your typical cheap Canadian movie.

Here are a few scenes from the movie:

Border Relations:


The "Tom Berry" Show:

Trouble is following the Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are having problems.

They lost to the Maple Leafs, and then they lost to the Senators. Now, two of their players have been arrested in Tampa.

Last night, several players were at a nightclub in Tampa and a woman left her purse on the counter and it went missing. Habs defenceman Ryan O'Byrne (left) was found outside with this purse and the woman's cell phone in his hand. When asked whose purse it was, he said it was his girlfriend's, but couldn't seem to come up with her name.

O'Byrne was arrested and charged with grand theft. His teammate, Tom Kostopoulos, was also arrested - for resisting an officer without violence when he refused to obey the police officer's orders.

Both players posted bail (O'Byrne $2000, Kostopoulos $500).

The Habs have yet to comment on the situation, but are said to talk to the media following this afternoon's practice.

Hockey Commercial 11: Try that, Mr. Fancy Stick

Here's a McD's commercial from the 1990's, featuring Mr. Fancy Stick himself (aka Wayne Gretzky) and baby-face Mats Sundin.



Great job McDonald's...It's 1AM and I want some food...

--------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, so the Pens win against the Flyers (booyah!) and I found this video of the Downie/Ruutu fight.

I thought Downie was supposed to be some tough guy who will fight anyone, anytime, not walk away in the middle of a fight like a baby.



Downie = Joke

and

Flyers = Stunned

Go Pens!

Zednik's neck cut with skate.

A scary thing happened tonight at HSBC Arena in Buffalo.

The Sabres were playing the Panthers. Midway through the third period, Olli Jokinen of the Panthers fell and his skate accidentally cut Richard Zednik's neck. Zednik was able to make his way to the bench and was taken to hospital, where he had emergency surgery to repair the damage.

Thankfully, it appears as though Zednik is in stable condition. The assistant GM of the team and the assistant trainer will remain in Buffalo as the rest of the team returns to Florida. The Panthers are arranging to have his wife, Jessica, flown to Buffalo.

The accident conjures up memories of when Sabres goalie Clint Malarchuk had his neck slashed by a skate in 1989, and all of this happens just one day after a linesman gets his face cut by a skate.

My thoughts and prayers are with Zednik and his family.

Hockey Commercial 10: The Janitor

In honour of today's game against the Flyers, I thought I'd post this Nike commercial starring their goaltender.



Biron's a little pissed after being out-goalied by the Rangers' backup, Valiquette.

Oh, the good ol' hockey game...

...is the best game you can name.

And the best game you can name, is the GOOD OL' HOCKEY GAME!



Best. Hockey Song. Ever.

We are now 10 hours into Hockey Day in Canada and the final game of the triple header is just starting - Vancouver vs. Colorado - so why not take some time to write about today's show?

First off, the Flyers and the Steelers played a game today, with the Steelers winning in the shootout. A heartbreaker for sure.

Did I confuse you just a little bit?

The Winkler Flyers and the Selkirk Steelers, Junior A teams in Manitoba, got some special attention tonight on CBC, as Winkler was hosting Hockey Day in Canada and we got the privilege of seeing the highlights from the game. The goalie for the Flyers is Dayn Belfour, son of Ed Belfour (who is currently tearing up the Swedish Elite League with something like a 13-2-2 record with Leksand).

Here are a few other stories from HDIC:

- Hockey festivities were not only held in Canada today, but around the world. The Canadian embassy in Kiev, Ukraine had a celebration going on, and the Canadian Forces in Kabul, Afghanistan held a ball hockey game (which is a common sight), and the soldiers watched Hockey Day in Canada on the satellite feed.

- Rideau Canal in Ottawa is almost 8 km long and can fit 90 Olympic-sized rinks, so no wonder it's a common site for skating and hockey games. Today, the Ottawa Senators Alumni played the Canadian Forces Flyers on the Canal, with the Sens beating the Flyers by a score of 37-35. The defensemen for the game can be found on milk cartons in your local supermarket.

The Forces were celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Canadian hockey team that played at the 1948 Olympics in St. Moritz. Canada wasn't even going to send a team to the Games because of cost, but they found a bank to sponsor them and the military put a team together. Team Canada left for Switzerland without having even one practice, but that didn't seem to matter. They earned 5 shutouts in 7 games on the way to Olympic Gold.

- Alain Vigneault, head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, held his annual Coaches Clinic today in Vancouver. The team had its practice and Vigneault talked to a crowd of over 200 hockey coaches from all over the province, many of whom were scribbling notes.

- Dustin Penner of the Edmonton Oilers was in Winkler, MB this week as his number 27 was retired at his hometown arena. Apparently they had the Stanley Cup at his parents' house and his mom didn't see his name on the Cup, so she told "Stanley's bodyguards" about the goof, and they had it fixed the next day. When she saw her son's name on the Cup, she started to cry and she called him on the phone and told him all about it. Good story...and funny :)

- Jon Sim of the New York Islanders was in New Glasgow, NS today on behalf of the NHLPA. Sim and Colin White of the New Jersey Devils (also of New Glasgow) put on a charity tournament over the summer to raise money for kids hockey equipment. There was also a little game today in Pictou County so that deserving kids can have hockey equipment.

- Matt Stairs of the Toronto Blue Jays has quite the story. Originally from Fredericton, NB, he has made quite a name for himself as one of the most successful Canucks in pro baseball. The CBC crew caught up with Stairs today, who is a high school hockey coach in Bangor, Maine in the off-season. Stairs grew up playing hockey and baseball as a kid in Fredericton, scoring 100 goals one year in minor hockey, and a knee injury cut his hockey career short. He was asked what league he would have rather played in: the NHL or the MLB. Without hesitation, Stairs played the part of a true Canuck and said that he would choose the NHL over the MLB. If I ever get a baseball jersey, it will be a Matt Stairs jersey.

- There is a team in Cambridge, Ontario that is for special needs kids. These are kids who would not be able to play hockey on any other team, but who thrive on a team of their own. I've said it before, and I'll say it again - there needs to be more teams like this.

- Scott Stafford is a 17 year old kid with the Sarnia Blast, a Junior B team in Ontario. He was born without his left hand, but that hasn't stopped him from playing hockey. He is one of the best players on the team, and can really shoot the puck. Just the other day, his team went to a shootout and the game was still tied after 12 rounds. Stafford went in and scored. Good on ya, kid. :)

Plenty of good stories today on Hockey Day in Canada. It's nice to see the spotlight on these people who are involved with the game because they love hockey.

Can't wait 'til next year.

Maybe they'll be talking about the Stanley Cup coming to Cole Harbour again...

Hockey Commercial 9: Sundin

Lesson of the day: don't be an ass when you're skating around wearing a Sundin jersey. He'll find you and you'll pay.

Writer's strike no more?

So the people on ET Canada said that the writer's strike could be over by the end of the weekend and that the best show on Earth - House - could be back as early as April.

April?

Now, season finales tend to be in May, so what's going to happen here? I wonder, will the networks decide to extend the season through the summer?

If not, it will kinda suck, eh? House comes back in April, and ends in May...

Ugh

Well, at least CBS has decided to make a winter season of Big Brother. I know, it's a trashy kind of reality show, but I can't help but watch that crap. It's like an addiction.

Just like my newfound addiction to MVP...

Hockey Commercial 8: Do you really want to hurt me?

These two Molson videos are from a few years back.

Can you guess when??



The sequel...

Ottawa's still number one

A few general thoughts before I retire for the night:

- Montreal lost to Toronto at the Bell Centre. Beautiful shorthanded breakaway goal by Kovy, but Carey Price's unbeaten streak against the Leafs still came to an end. It's amazing how the Leafs can turn in a great performance against some top of the top teams in the League (Detroit, Ottawa, Montreal...edit: oops, Toronto hasn't played Detroit yet. That's this Saturday), but then lose to teams that aren't so great.

Oh well, at least Montreal didn't lose 8-0 in front of a home crowd that cheers when the other team gets a hat trick...

- Ottawa won their game against Florida tonight...even though it was a close 5-4 victory. This win means that they stay on top of the conference, three points ahead of the Habs.

- Heater returned to the lineup tonight and proved that his shoulder is just fine. Two goals and an assist. What the frig?

- Pens win! AND it was against a DIVISIONAL RIVAL!! Ryan Whitney with two goals and an assist - I guess MT knew exactly which buttons to push, eh?

And LeGame with the game-winner. The kid's a keeper.

Phoenix = Championship Team

No, not the Phoenix Coyotes - at least not yet, even if Rick Tocchet is back behind the bench with Gretz.

Nah, I'm talking about the Suns.

"I'm very upset. You just don't really want to get me upset. When I'm upset, I'm known to do certain things - like win championships."

- Newly acquired Phoenix Sun Shaquille O'Neal on the criticism that has accompanied in his recent trade from the Miami Heat.

Booyah-shaka! I'm likin' that kind of championship talk. I'm not a basketball fan, but I'm a huge Steve Nash fan and I'd like to see him win the whole shebang!

Steve Nash = greatest player in the NBA.

Toronto at Montreal...and Robot Farts

Tonight is a special Thursday night Hockey Night in Canada, featuring a classic Original 6 matchup...


Toronto Maple Leafs
and
Montreal Canadiens

How much sweeter can the night get????

I swear, it's virtually impossible to find a game that's more exciting than the Leafs/Habs games. The crowds cheer like it's Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, especially in Montreal...even if it's November. LOVE it.

GO MONTREAL!!!!

A win by the Habs, combined with an Ottawa loss to the Panthers, will give Les Canadiens the conference lead.

What a way to introduce Saturday's Hockey Day in Canada....14 glorious hours of hockey. Our unofficial national holiday...sweet.

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YouTube must be the best site on Earth...or at least the most addictive. I've been watching videos all afternoon (while my biochem lab sits in my school bag, untouched), including videos of Colby Armstrong from rookie days with the WBS Baby Penguins - from Chasing the Dream, I believe. I can seriously understand why Crosby is best friends with Army...someone would have to be out of their mind to not be drawn to a character like Army.

Anyways, since I have started posting a crap-load of videos, why not continue, eh? I found a few that just had me laughing like an idiot.

These next two videos are of Raj Binder (a character that used to be on CBC's This Hour Has 22 Minutes, played by Newfie Shaun Majumder). He's giving his thoughts on the 'upcoming' playoffs (it was filmed last year).

It is seriously some of the funniest stuff I have ever seen.

If you liked that, here's Raj talking to the Ottawa Senators (a few years back).



"What is more important to you? The Stanley Cup, or the protective cup?" HAHAHA

The World of Mad Max

For those who didn't know, Max Talbot has a weekly column over at RDS.ca. It's usually a pretty good read where he talks about the team and what's going on that week.

In this week's edition, he talked about 'The Commercial'.

You know the one...the one with Max, Army, Sarge and Geno...the BMW commercial...the OMG what was THAT?? commercial

I can't remember if I posted it before, and I'm too lazy to go find out, so I'll just post it again.




According to Max, he's a friend of the owner of the BMW place, and they were asked to do the commercial. Max decided to do a little 'improv' (I figure he's referring to the McLovin imitation) for laughs and they decided to keep the "chicka-chicka-yeeeeahhhh"...or whatever he's saying.

I guess the commercial has received so much publicity (good? bad?) that Jay Leno talked about it on his show and said it was the worst car commercial he's ever seen.

Umm...yeah..hahaha

Hockey Commercial 7: Road Trip

Update: I put this post up this morning and it didn't have a comments section. I was messing around with the settings last night and I must have done something. Anyways, I think it's fixed now, so here's a new post of the old post. :)

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I know that many, if not all, of you have seen this one. The NHL made it last year during the All-Star break.

Seriously, how much fun would this have been???



And now, here are the behind the scenes stuff.



Joe Thornton cracks me up...



And now, Seeker sent me this video with Chelios and Samuel L. Jackson.

"The next time I see him, I'm gonna take Lord Stanley's Cup and shove it right up his candy ass." hahahaha

....Did you buy your WWGRD and Conkblock t-shirts yet?.....

Pensblog Storeblog Open for Business!

I'm not sure how many of you read the Pensblog (if not, then you should), but in case you didn't know, they have opened their own online store!

Now you can order shirts with "WWGRD", "Rock out with your Conk out", and Pensblog Charlie...among other things

They are adding more stuff, so be sure to check back.

You know you want to buy stuff from the Pensblog Storeblog, so just do it already!

Hockey Commercial 6 - Shanny

Time for an ESPN commercial.

Imagine that, ESPN and hockey. Yep, such a thing did exist once upon a time.

This one stars one-time Red Wings winger Brendan Shanahan.



Haha what a freak :)

Hockey Commercial 5: Spitball

This is why you need to enroll your kids in hockey.



Little kids playing hockey are so cute.

Ya Friggin' Hoser

When you see a movie with plenty of quotes that people recite day after day, you know you have a great movie. Think of Slap Shot.

Well, this six-minute video has a ton of great quotes (as evidenced by the number of comments on its YouTube page quoting the video). It simply made my day.

It's "Clark, The Canadian Hockey Goalie"...Enjoy, ya friggin' hoser. :)



Snack on that for lunch.

Hockey Commercial 4: Summer Shift

This is a Nike commercial that aired all summer and right up until the World Juniors. It stars some of the CHL's brightest stars (like Brad Marchand of the Halifax Mooseheads), and at least one current NHL rookie (hello Sam Gagner of the Edmonton Oilers, shootout master extraordinaire).

Yzerman to be GM?

There are reports out there saying that Yzerman will be named the GM of Team Canada for the upcoming World Championships in Halifax and Quebec City.

My thoughts?

Oh yes!! Yzerman put together a team that went undefeated at last year's World Championships in Russia. One of the notable things about that team was that it was largely devoid of superstars. Sure, Rick Nash was on the team and scored the sweetest goal of the tourney, but which other major stars were on the team? Umm...Eric Staal?...yeah, that's all who comes to mind right now.

The key to winning last year was chemistry...not the cast of (aging) superstars that played in Torino.

If Yzerman can prove that he can put together another team with amazing chemistry, then I will lead the pack of people declaring him to be the best choice for the job as the GM for Vancouver 2010. Heck, I am willing to give him my (worthless) endorsement right now.

Hockey Commercial 3: Nice try, Nogoalov

This McDonalds commercial for mini goalie sticks is being shown on TV every 2 minutes, or so it seems. Eh, doesn't matter, cuz it's funny.



I'd like to get all six...Brodeur, Luongo, Huet, Fleury, Emery, and Toskala...sweet.

Then maybe I could get team pucks from Pizza Delight to go along with my goalie sticks. Poke check!

Sledge Hockey

The Seeker sent me this video, and I thought I'd post it for all to see.

It's a bunch of kids with physical disabilities who play sledge hockey for the "Mighty Penguins". Who knows, maybe some of these kids will go on to compete at the Paralympic Games in 10-15 years...



There needs to be more programs like this for people with disabilities...

Hockey Commercial 2: No Swedish Hockey Players

These two Nike commercials are simply hilarious. Some people think that the goalie is Patrick Roy, but it's not...he's not actually a goalie for the Habs. Just some French-Canadian guy named François Dupuis in Habs gear who hates Mats Sundin for his strong skating and stick handling.

Die Maple Leafs! Die!





"Learn how to make a kick save! Face de boeuf!!" haha

Hockey Commercial 1: The Curved Stick

Seems like everyone is at the Michael Buble concert except me.

No worries, I have YouTube to keep me entertained! Or, more specifically, hockey commercials! How much sweeter can you get?

I quickly realized that YouTube is exploding with great hockey commercials, so I decided that February is "Hockey Commercial Month" at Ultimate Hat Trick.

Every day I will link a great commercial (or two). You may have seen some of these commercials before, others you may be watching for the first time. Either way, it's gonna be a good time. After all, hockey is the greatest sport and is good for a laugh or 10, so making a hockey commercial is sheer brilliance.

And so, without further ado...

The very first featured hockey commercial is "The Curved Stick" from Molson Canadian.

Do YOU agree?