blocker

Nice to see Union, from the ECAC still in it.

Wish them well.

Lots of pretty good players. A few who catch your eye, but I haven't noticed any real horses. I haven't seen any of the S17 games or the girls. This weekend, skaters in those two groups will be picked to attend the national tryouts. The younger kids who did well will be invited to another regional session this summer. Those who stand out there will be chosen to go to the national tests.

I've seen a bunch of these festivals. A couple things that have changed over the years are goaltending and officiating. There are far fewer easy goals now. Most of the goalies are very good. The officiating is way better than it used to be. The refs are uniformly skilled and competent. There are also more big kids who can skate well.

AAAH..........

Warren Zevon and Hockey.

Two favorite things.

There's a bonus in the Women's Worlds. Sweden and Slovakia will play exhibition games against North American Hockey Academy. (NAHA is one of the local hockey development schools.) The games are at Jay Peak and tickets are 10 dollars. The night after these two games, Canada plays Sweden at the same rink. Tickets are 20 dollars.

Pretty good entertainment for the price.

BTW.......I don't know which deodorant you guys buy. (Or if you even use one) But, Degree is buying 90,000 jerseys for young kids who play at the house league level. It's on a first come, first served basis. So, if you're involved with youth hockey, there might be an opportunity for you to get some free jerseys.

Starting tomorrow, we're having the USAHockey New England Festival. Kids chosen from each state, except Massachusetts, will get to strut their stuff. Eighteen players per state per age group. We'll look for the next Roenick or LeClair.

In two weeks, the Women's World Championships take place at three of the same arenas.

Lots of hockey. Lots of fun.

It certainly was nice of your grandson to help her out.

He has the Flyer mentality.

Hi....

We were driving home. My grandson had gotten into a small scrap during his game. He says to his brother "Did you see me punch that kid?". His brother says "That kid you hit was a girl.". My buddy was quiet for a minute, and then he says "Well yeah, but she was a big girl.".

An intelligent and well thought out response

Don't be so quick to take offense. Podein25 has played and understands hockey, unlike the publicity hound Ralph Nader.

1750 is my high score. I tried to save it to the site but it would not let me. :-) Like all goalies and defense, this one has a glaring weakness. :-)

I saw your score. I think you cheated. I couldn't register mine, which was a lot less than 1750.

Anyway, Goddam Moose wouldn't shoot where I told him.

It was truly a scenic drive to get there.

Hi again.......

I sometimes take pics of games. 99.99 percent are awful. I've asked some of the cameramen for tips, but I can't get the hang of it. How do you get that clarity in all your pictures?

Yeah, it's a crap shoot

That was the same draft in which Mario Lemieux walked out of the forum, rather than accept a Pittsburgh jersey. I dunno the whole story, but I know he and his agent were unhappy with Pittsburgh's offer.

I love those old stories.

And 3 picks prior Flyers took one John Stevens...

You made me curious, so I googled it. Brett Hull didn't go until the 6th round.

We were speculating about June's draft this morning.

In 1984, a local kid was about to be a second or third round pick. We were all sure that Canadiens would select him because their scouts were the only ones we'd seen at his high school games. Serge Savard was a regular visitor in his UVM days. When draft day came, Canadiens used their first and second rounds for guys who were better prospects. Shane Corson, Svoboda, and Richer got chosen ahead of our kid. Everyone assumed that Montreal would use their next pick for him. But, St. Louis had the turn just before Canadiens in the third round, and they drafted our Toby. Canadiens had to shuffle papers and scramble for an alternative. They chose Patrick Roy. St. Louis had other big, strong wingers, so our boy spent a couple years in Peoria. St. Louis bought him out in his third year and he came home.

Patrick Roy turned out to be Patrick Roy.

Blocker will probably appreciate this:

I'd heard about that, but didn't know the whole story.

Crazy people.

Maybe it WAS blocker! (Joking)

Lasers are bright, and I'm not.

Well, I guess I'll give him a pass for that then.

Me too.

I know Don Cherry can be mouthy, but I think he's good for hockey. We need all the ambassadors we can get. Also, He's very gracious toward fans. I've seen him wait with humor and grace while people fumble with cameras.

That is not interference in my book at all as he was finishing a hockey play on a player who had just had the puck.

I'm too lazy to check the exact wording of the rules on interference, but I always thought you could check the player with the puck or the last guy who had it.

I got off my butt and checked. FWIW;

"Possession of the Puck: The last player to touch the puck, other than the goalkeeper, shall be considered the player in possession. The player deemed in possession of the puck may be checked legally, provided the check is rendered immediately following his loss of possession."

White team's end.

The officials agreed with you.

A goal was scored that decided a tournament win. The placement of a face-off had a lot to do with the scoring of the winning goal. The officials were competent and respected. They were faced with an immediate, difficult decision.

A delayed penalty was called against team White in team Blue's zone. Blue got the puck into White's end where a White player got another delayed penalty by charging a Blue. The Blue player retaliated with a cross-check and was whistled, still inside White's end.

This is a USA-hockey sanctioned game. Where should the face-off have been after the whistle?

this is insane

Sure is.

I think their junior team, the Condors, will still play.

Never saw this before,

Me either. He blindsided Modano.

Was that his skate kicking out the leg on the stretcher?

The state hockey tournaments are being played now. Those of you with youth players will agree with me that these tourneys are a lot of fun. Yesterday, when we were shopping, a lady with kids in a neighbouring association grabbed me by the sleeve. She spent a good quarter of an hour describing their tournament games and prospects. It was enjoyable to watch and listen. She was all excited and eager. I know that parents sometimes go overboard, but anything that creates that much enjoyment for kids and their parents to share, has to be a great thing.

This past weekend, I'm leaning against the boards on the other side of the glass from a bench. Occasionally exchanging comments with one of the coaches. The other team was changing lines on the fly and the puck strikes one of the players exiting, resulting in a stoppage. My friend hollers "Too many men". The closest ref gets a little snarky. He tells the coach that the contact was incidental and he should read the rules before shouting advice. My friend says "you better read them to your partner, because he's taking a player off for too many.".

Poster formerly known as Cannon

Pretty neat.

http://www.cbc.ca/sp...ators-gill.html

The Montreal Canadiens will have a "Geoffrion" in their lineup once again. Blake Geoffrion, the grandson of Habs legend Bernie (Boom-Boom) Geoffrion, is on his way to Montreal from Nashville along with a second-round draft pick for defenceman Hal Gill and a conditional fifth-round pick.

The Habs also added minor-leaguer Robert Slaney in the trade.

The 23-year-old Geoffrion appeared in 22 games for Nashville this season and had three assists.

Gill is due to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer and was in high demand.

The six-foot-seven defenceman had spent parts of the past two-plus seasons in Montreal and previously won a Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh in 2009.

Blake Geoffrion is also Howie Morenz's great-grandson. Pretty impressive blood lines.

Brelic.---When Canadiens broke up the pairing with Subban and Gill, I think Gill was made expendable.