Very few NHL players can call themselves a Stanley Cup champion. Even less can call themselves a four-time champion. Not many can say they played 16 years in the NHL either, 14 with one team. And only 250 can say they’ve played 1,000 games in the show. But what exactly qualifies someone for the Hockey […]

In professional sports, and specifically hockey, you have significant franchises and then you have everybody else. For each Original Six team in a city that understands how ice works, you have a handful of irrelevant franchises battling for the attention of viewers with archived footage of Slamball and tape-delayed episodes of Regis and Kelly. We […]

“Tell them I’m through, ‘for love of the game,’ Billy Chapel.” Clear the mechanism. Snowstorms, rain, hail, tornado warnings, or maybe it was sunny skies. You drag your net out onto the shovelled street or driveway with a smile on your face. You throw sticks to decide on teams and usually argue on who is […]

He knew what he wanted to do, as he had done it several times before; stick-handle, deke in tight to the backhand, and slip the puck between the goaltender’s legs. Taking a running start from deep in his own end, Olli Jokinen represented the final glimmer of hope for the New York Rangers’ 2009-10 season. […]

It’s very easy to say that hockey is Canada’s game. But as the Stanley Cup Finals carry on between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks, the question that needs to be asked is “who cares?” In cities across Canada, it’s nothing to see millions of hats and shirts of Canadian teams and then some […]

James Balsillie never had it this close. On May 11, news leaked out that the NHL’s schedule-makers had drafted a proposed schedule that included a team based out of Winnipeg – could it be a sign that the NHL may be prepared for some movement? A recent vote by the Glendale city council means that […]

Destiny – the only word that can be used to whole-heartedly describe the Eastern Conference Final match-up between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Montreal Canadiens. What other word in the English language can encapsulate 2010’s edition of the NHL Playoffs and its uncanny ability to present jaw-dropping moment after jaw-dropping moment? The best part is […]

With an Opening Round that evolved into a circus of excitement – nearly a quarter of the contests were resolved in overtime, both the eighth and seventh seed in the East upset the top ranked squads, All-star goalies underachieved while no name net minders overachieved – it is wishful thinking to hope for the same […]

Cam Fowler isn’t going to go first or second overall, but he may be the best player coming out of this year’s NHL Entry Draft. To call Fowler a stud would be an understatement. Amidst all the talk about Taylor versus Tyler, lost in the conversation has been the excellent puck-moving defenceman. He has an […]

When the NHL playoff match-ups were determined in the closing hours of last Sunday, there was a collective hustle to media outlets by fans of the coolest game on earth in order to see who officially fit where in Lord Stanley’s shuffle. All but one spot was determined coming into the day, and it was […]