Hello and happy Monday!
Lets start with Mike Green. Before this season, I didn't know who Mike Green was. I sure knew about him this season just with the amount of times he showed up on the Highlight Reels every night. I REALLY learned about him when the playoffs started and I was able to watch the Capitals for 7 games. You really can appreciate a player when you watch them play for a couple games. Man is this guy good. He went from 2 goals last season, to 18, yes EIGHTEEN! this season- tops among NHL defensemen. He was 7th in defensemen scoring. From out of no where to leading the league and now playing for Canada at the World Championships. Not a bad improvement. Maybe just more credit to Bruce Boudreau as a coach, as he tutored him in Hershey of the AHL last season.
Pierre McGuire said of Green "I can't believe he didn't make the 2005 Canadian World Junior team" No kidding.....I guess this could be good motivation for every kid that gets cut from a team that he thinks he NEEDS to make, or should make. Don't give up if you don't, let it motivate you.
I just HAD to bring Green up today after watching a couple of games at the World Championships and then seeing his goal yesterday. Incredible skill. Hit up tsn.ca to watch the video highlights of the 7-0 Canada win over Latvia yesterday. The Latvians might've needed Arturs Irbe. Nah, even he couldn't have helped.
For me, Green is another reason to like the Caps, and another reason to fear them if you are the rest of the league.
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I had a great time playing in and MC'ing the Gold in the Net golf tournament, in support of the Aaron C. Cornwell Memorial Scholarship Fund Saturday at the Morning Star Golf Course in Parksville.
Aaron's dad said it best "This is something very good that came out of something very bad" as over 20,000 in scholarships have been given out to date.
Thanks to everyone that took part in the tourney, and thanks to Perry Elderbroom for inviting me to MC it. It was a great time.
Some of Perry's connections were evident through the Silent Auction items. I was near drooling at a few items, autographed schwag from New York Ranger Henrick Lundqvist, Miika Kipprusoff of the Calgary Flames, Antero Nittymaki of the Philadelphia Flyers, Fredrik Norrena of the Columbus Blue Jackets, just to name a few.
The neat story of the night came from Aaron's dad Mike. One of the auction items was a Henrik Lundqvist jersey, complete with a signed and dated certificate of authenticity from a Community Relations staffer with the Rangers. Another of the items was an autographed Teemu Selanne Anaheim Ducks jersey that Mike picked up. He told me that while he didn't get a certificate of authenticity with it, he did take it from Teemu's wife right at their front door. He said she had a newborn in one arm, and the jersey in the other, and that was AUTHENTIC enough and we'd just have to trust him. That makes it more authentic in my mind. Cool story.
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How about Dallas and San Jose last night? FOUR overtimes. The game finally ended sometime after 11pm Pacific, more than 5 hours after it began. I don't know the exact time, but I know it was too late for this guy who was up at 4:30 this morning and on the air at 6am. I just couldn't turn it off. I have a greater respect for San Jose after that one, they sure battled hard. The goalies were the stars last night, as both of them were incredible.
Now, about it ending on a penalty.......Nah, won't go there.
Someone asked in the comments below in an earlier post what the longest game was that I called. I remember it like it was yesterday. The longest game I called was Game 2 of the 2006 first round series between the Bulldogs and the Cowichan Valley Capitals. I have called a couple of double OT games before both with the Bulldogs and before I came out to BC, but this was by far the longest, as the Bulldogs won at 4:04 of the THIRD overtime period. It's kind of funny now, but every long game I can remember had one team tying it up late, this one included. I remember being proud of how I called the game, and even more proud after then-Bulldogs coach Jim Hiller gave me a glowing review from his dad who was listening in up in McKenzie. He said that I was like a marathon runner, and I just got better as the game went along. Not easy as your throat wants to go and hide sometimes when games go that long. To make matters worse, the game the night before was equally crazy, as the Dogs opened the series with a 10-7 win. Anyway, if you want a little trip down memory lane, click the link below, to the longest game I have called with the Bulldogs besting the Caps 3-2 in the third OT.
Click to listen to the broadcast-Capitals @ Bulldogs
That's it for now. Off to catch up on some sleep!
Thanks for reading!
Hammer
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