59 Year Old Woman Wins Truck By Making Hole in One

Mrs. Brenda Hewlett, who is 59-years old and had never played hockey before, won a chance to be one of 5 people to shoot the puck to win a brand new 2011 Ford F150 4×4.

Frenchies Ford from Massena, NY, held the contest last week at the Massena Arena, home to the minor league Warriors, and called out Hewlett who just landed an early Christmas present when she netted this sweet hole in one shot to win.

Personally, I never get lucky like this. Maybe she could give me some pointers.

59 Yr Woman Wins Truck From Frenchie’s Ford By Making Hole in one from Clayton Plourde on Vimeo.

Toronto Maple Leafs: 5 Things I Want From This Season

While I consider myself to be a huge Toronto Maple Leafs fan, I also would like to think that I’m a realistic one as well. Being a Leafs fan isn’t easy, but it seems as though the team is finally heading in the right direction.

This season could easily be the year the Leafs make the playoffs for the first time since the lockout, and could also be one where young players begin to emerge as stars for the club. I still have plenty of optimism for this team, and with the season less than 10 weeks away, my hopes are still very high.

If Toronto continues its play from late in last season, this year could be filled with a lot of wins and good memories – two things that Leafs’ fans have begun to forget.

Let’s hope that some of these offseason wishes come true. Here are five things I’d like to see from the Maple Leafs this season.

1. Phil Kessel Scores 40 Goals

Ever since the trade that brought Kessel to Toronto I’ve been undecided about my feelings toward it. As I stand currently, I’m not against Kessel but I still believe he hasn’t lived up to his potential.

Only three years ago, Kessel scored 36 goals for Boston in only 70 games. While he certainly isn’t on the level of players like Stamkos and Ovechkin, Kessel definitely has the potential to be a solid goal scorer in this league.

I don’t think asking for 40 goals from him is too much, considering that he could finally drop his reputation as the “worst of the best” since he was picked dead last in the All-Star game fantasy draft.

Scoring 40 would give Kessel a tremendous amount of confidence that he desperately needs to prove to himself that he’s the number one guy on this team. It would probably get him some more fans around the city too.

2. Tim Connolly Plays 75+ Games with 50+ Points

These are two very important things that all of Leafs Nation is hoping for from their new top line center – don’t get injured and feed Phil the puck.

Many fans are worried about Connolly because he hasn’t played 80 games in a season since 2002-03, and if he can even produce if he manages to play that much. In order for his signing to be worthwhile, I’d like to see Tim give the fans both of those wishes. Even if his 50 points are all assists, I’d still be happy (see Kessel).

3. John Michael Liles Helps the Power Play

Toronto was third in the league in power play opportunities last season with 326, but scored only 52 times giving them a total efficiency rate of 16% which was good enough for 22nd overall.

In short, that’s not how you make the playoffs.

JML was brought to the TML to bolster the blue line, but also to quarterback the power play when Phaneuf needs a line change or in tandem with the big captain.

Even though Colorado was considerably worse than Toronto last year, they still had a better power play. Hopefully Liles will bring that north of the border with him.

4. They Play More Defensive Hockey

While Toronto did finish with I would still consider a winning record of 37-34-11, they were still outscored by opponents 245-213 on the season. Not only that, but there were only six members of the entire Leafs roster who finished the season with a positive plus minus.

That being said, not only do the actual defensemen need to up their game this year, but the entire Leafs team needs to play more defensively. If they can win most of their games even after being outscored in general, then playing more defensive hockey could mean many more wins.

Kessel and Bozak finishing with ratings of -20 and -29 respectively is not going to cut it.

5. With Giguere Gone, Reimer Needs to be an Elite Goaltender

If you don’t think that James Reimer can be one of the best in the league, here’s a little breakdown of why you should: Cam Ward, one of the top goalies in the NHL, played 74 games last year – more than any other goalie. He won 37 of those games giving him a 50% winning percentage.

Reimer, a rookie suiting up in the pressure-filled city of Toronto played exactly half the games that Ward did, and won 20 of them, giving him a 54% winning percentage.

I hope that after being given the starting job, Reimer will continue his solid play from last season and be a big reason in the Leafs’ return to the playoffs. Optimus Reim does have what it takes to be a great goalie and a 35+ win season from him will not only help him prove that to himself, but he will prove it to the Leafs Nation as well.

NHL 2011-12 Preview: The 8 Players Who Will Score 50 Goals This Season

This past season, Anaheim Ducks star Corey Perry took home the Rocket Richard Trophy for the NHL’s top scorer after he netted 50 goals. The 50 goal plateau is considered quite the achievement in the league, and once a player crosses it, he is usually guaranteed the number one spot.

I believe that this season will produce not just one 50 goal scorer, but eight of them.

Hear me out. After the shuffling that occurred since free agency began on July 1st, many star players are now in a position to score like they never have in their careers. Other players, like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin had shortened seasons due to injury and will be back in top form for (hopefully) a full campaign this year.

The last time that eight players scored 50 goals in a season was 1995-96, three years before the Richard Trophy’s inauguration. The competition that year was fierce as Paul Kariya and Keith Tkachuk were tied in 7th place in the league with 50 goals, while Mario Lemieux topped everyone with a respectable 69 goals.

Out of the top 20 goal scorers in the 1995-96 season, only one remains active in the NHL. We are now in a new age in the NHL, a post-lockout era with more emphasis on scoring and many superstars capable of reaching the 50 goal mark. Here’s my list of players who will rival the ’96 league leaders.

Sidney Crosby Needs Some Tough Love After Concussions

We’re just about two months away from the start of the new NHL season and a drop in free agent signings and trades has ushered in a wave of preview and predictions for the upcoming campaign. One of the main story lines from last year that is still ongoing is Sidney Crosby’s questionable health after suffering multiple concussions.

Crosby is arguably one of the greatest in the game right now and to see him become the next “star who could have been” because of his injuries would be an outcome that no one is hoping for. While Crosby has been practicing and expects to make a return to the lineup by opening night, there are still many questions surrounding the Penguins’ captain.

Most notably is, how can this be prevented in the future?

Many fans of hockey know the importance of each player’s role on a team. Some may argue that the goalie is the most important, being the last line of defense, and in many instances the best overall talent, on their team. Others may argue that the defensive pairings or scoring leaders are the players that lead towards success. However, there is another vital role that seems to be overlooked in many instances: the enforcer.

Toughness and grit are as much a part of hockey as sticks and pucks, and when used correctly they can be very important to a team’s overall play. Some teams use their enforcers for intimidation, others use them to amp up the other players following a board-rattling hit. These may help the morale and intensity of the game, but enforcers are best used as protection.

Wayne Gretzky had McSorley, Bobby Clarke had Dave Schultz and Darryl Sittler had Tiger Williams, to name a few examples. Who does Crosby have? Well, that seems to be the million dollar question.

Pesky little forward Matt Cooke led Pittsburgh in trips to the sin bin this past season, so could we say that he should be stepping up and protecting his captain? Unlikely. His mark of 129 penalty minutes, also his career high, isn’t even a third of the 472 that Dave Schultz racked up protecting the Flyers en route to a Stanley Cup. Sure Schultz fought to intimidate other players, but he also did it to show the other team that his Flyers weren’t there to screw around. No, I believe that Matt Cooke is more of a pest than the answer to Crosby’s problems.

Crosby’s problems are also very much Pittsburgh’s problems as there may not be a suitable enforcer who is available in the league. In fact the enforcer role that McSorley, Schultz and Williams portrayed so well may only be part of NHL history now as the most physically dominant in the league are either in that category because of their size as opposed to their edge like Boston’s Zdeno Chara and Philadelphia’s Chris Pronger. On the other side of the spectrum, the guys leading the league in penalty minutes would be considered pesky thugs as opposed to enforcers. In short, it’s slim pickings for superstar protection these days.

Pittsburgh GM Ray Shero added some depth to the club in free agency and is excited for the return of his star forwards, but he must also address the overwhelming lack of muscle on his team. Every other team’s enforcers will be gunning for Sid the Kid come October and unless he has some protection, Penguins fans could be feeling some intense deja vu come wintertime.

Paul Kariya Retires: NHL Loses one of its Most Beloved Stars

It would be difficult to place Paul Kariya in the list of the 50 best NHL players of all time, but he would fit in rather nicely with the 50 most exciting NHL players of all time.

The small, quick Canadian forward ended his career last month as one of the most recognizable hockey names of the past generation. He put the Anaheim (Mighty) Ducks on the map and was a beloved member of Team Canada, both in the junior and national levels. Kariya was a household name, and played the game with class. Even one of my pro-MLB/NFL anti-hockey friends recently brought up Kariya’s retirement saying, “I don’t know anything about hockey, but I know who Paul Kariya is.”

Here’s a solid Kariya on the Ducks tribute:

It’s always unfortunate when such a dynamic player like Kariya has to cut his career short due to injuries. If he had managed to stay healthy, who knows what amount of damage he could have done in the league. Unfortunately, Kariya wasn’t one of the biggest guys in the league and he took some rough treatment; hits that could have led to his earlier-than-desired retirement.

Scott Stevens drills Kariya, in a play I wish never happened:

Take away this hit, and some other injuries, and Kariya finishes his career a few more years down the road with well over 1,000 total points. Just a shame.

After all was said and done though, Kariya totaled 989 points over 989 games (cool, right?), placing him 79th all-time. That total includes 402 goals, 53 of which were game-winning.

Kariya was also a solid player on the international stage, earning two golds and a silver for Team Canada in the World Junior Championships. Playing for the men’s national team at the Olympics, Kariya led Canada to a silver in Lillehammer in 1994 with 12 points, and helped Canada earn its first gold medal in 50 years in 2002 at the Salt Lake games.

I don’t know about you, but Kariya was always one of the first guys I picked when doing a fantasy draft in NHL hockey games. He was fast and had great hands and always seemed to be in the right place at the right time.

Classic old-school NHL commercial:

After a solid 15 year career, Kariya will go down in history as many fans’ favorite all time player. He scored goals, won relay competitions on all-star weekend, and was just a hard-working nice guy on the ice. We will miss you, Paul, and the league just got a little less awesome.

NHL Realignment and You: What to Expect From the Future of the League

With the official relocation of the Atlanta Thrashers north of the border to Winnipeg, the NHL finds itself in a serious geographical predicament. The Winnipeg Jets will remain in the Southeast division for this season, but that is not something that can continue long-term. With travel times/expenses/exhaustion the league must find a solution for teams like the Jets and other clubs with similar issues. Thus, we have a proposition for realignment – not only of divisions but of the entire league.

Right now what’s flying around the rumor mill is a plan for four divisions – two with eight teams and two with seven – which would split up in a way to alleviate the pressures of travel while still maintaining divisional rivalries and (hopefully) the split of the western and eastern conferences.

The top four teams from each division will make the playoffs, and round one will be a divisional round with teams re-seeding into their conferences for the following playoff rounds.

There are already multiple scenarios of how the divisions should be split and I don’t believe there is one true answer. Consider Dallas’ geographical positioning – it makes it almost impossible for it to fit nicely into one division as opposed to another because of its distance from other NHL cities.

I’ve decided to try to split up the teams into four divisions in a way that seems best to keep rivalries intact as well as allow the teams some easier travel routes.

1. Pacific Division – 8 teams:

Vancouver Canucks

Edmonton Oilers

Calgary Flames

San Jose Sharks

Colorado Avalanche

Phoenix Coyotes

Anaheim Ducks

L.A. Kings

This one is a bit of a no-brainer. It consists of every team in the western half of North America, and includes eight of the 10 teams in the current Northwest and Pacific divisions. It seems fitting that these teams should be grouped together and both Dallas and Minnesota should be excluded (considering they are in the middle of the country and not nearly as west as the others). This grouping keeps the California teams as well as the three western-Canada teams together as divisional rivals.

2. North Division – 7 teams:

Toronto Maple Leafs

Montreal Canadiens

Buffalo Sabres

Ottawa Senators

Winnipeg Jets

Minnesota Wild

Chicago Blackhawks

With the serious cluster of teams in the northeast area of America/Canada this division could be split up in a few ways. First of all, it is completely impossible not to put Toronto and Montreal in the same division, and Buffalo and Ottawa must be included because of sheer geographical reasons. Winnipeg and Minnesota are too far east to be considered for the Pacific division, but too far west and north for any other division. The real question is the Detroit/Chicago divide. I like taking Chicago in this group to provide some star power, but I excluded Detroit in order to split the Original Six teams into two divisions. Plus I think the recent Detroit-Pittsburgh rivalry is very exciting. Which brings us to the next division…

3. Atlantic Division – 8 teams:

Boston Bruins

New York Rangers

New York Islanders

New Jersey Devils

Philadelphia Flyers

Washington Capitals

Detroit Red Wings

Pittsburgh Penguins

This is one heck of a division. Just the history and recent successes of this division make realignment worthwhile. 12 of the last 20 Stanley Cups have been won by teams in this division – and seven of the losing teams over that span are also featured in this grouping. There is a ton of star talent, plus plenty of new and old rivalries that could make this the greatest division the NHL has ever known.

4. South Division – 7 teams:

Columbus Blue Jackets

St. Louis Blues

Nashville Predators

Tampa Bay Lightning

Florida Panthers

Dallas Stars

Carolina Hurricanes

Unfortunately, these teams will still be fairly spread out even with the new divisional groupings. However, the popularity of the NHL in already established northeastern cities is the only thing to blame for this widespread group. The South division could be very exciting to watch with the mix of established clubs like Dallas and St. Louis, with young and successful ones like Carolina and Tampa Bay. These teams know each other well and could make for some great hockey.

There you have it. With the league proposing that each team will play in every arena throughout the year, plus the added excitement of intense divisional rivalries, realignment could be just what the doctor ordered.

Tim Thomas and Goalie Dominance of the Conn Smythe Trophy

After his stellar performance throughout the entire 2011 NHL playoffs, Tim Thomas was the runaway favorite for the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. That fact would not have even changed with a loss in game seven.

Thomas only surrendered eight goals in the seven game series, breaking the record of nine dating back to 1945. After such an amazing season, Thomas quieted any remaining doubters when he continued his hot play all the way through the playoffs. Four shutouts, highest save percentage, most shots faced, goals against average under two, and four penalty minutes to prove he’s tough.

Thomas had such a complete postseason and his play will go down as one of the best goaltending displays of all times and could very well be considered one of the all-time Bruins for being the main reason for ending their 39 year drought.

What shines most about Thomas’ postseason is how he proved the overwhelming value of having a solid goalie in the playoffs. Many goalies who started for their respective teams in these playoffs are above average in their overall skills yet could not do what Thomas did. Not very often is there an undisputed Conn Smythe candidate halfway through a seven game final series.

After watching Thomas over these past few weeks, I am reminded of other great goalie performances in the playoffs, most notably those of Patrick Roy. Arguably the best goaltender of all time, Roy is the only player EVER to win three Conn Smythe Trophies, including during his rookie season. Roy’s three wins are part of the 15 times that a goaltender has won the playoff MVP award. There have been 45 total Conn Smythe’s handed out and goalies have won a third of them.

What’s most significant about Thomas receiving this award is that there was no doubt that he would take home the MVP trophy even if the Bruins fell in game seven. His play set him apart from the rest as he was the single player on everyone’s minds when the words Conn Smythe were uttered. This fact also works into the Conn Smythe facts as the award has been given out to losing players five times and four of those have been goalies, most recently Jean Sebastian Giguere in 2003. Even when a team fails to complete their run to the Cup and fall in the Finals, their goalies have had such an impact to be considered the most valuable player.

Thomas winning the Conn Smythe also has an impact on the national level. He is only the second American to win the award (only five of the 45 winners have been non-Canadians) and considering the other winner is Brian Leetch, Thomas is the only American goaltender to win it. He has now earned another title besides Boston’s savior or the best goalie in the NHL. Thomas is a pioneer. The United States has not been known for producing Hall of Fame goaltenders, but Thomas is definitely making us forget about that. His play announced to the world that the goaltending position is no longer within the unreachable clutches of the French-Canadian netminders, but now it’s America’s turn.

This year truly belongs to Tim Thomas and he earned every accolade that comes his way. Vezina winner, All-Star, MVP, pioneer and now NHL Champion. Enjoy every minute of it, Timmy, keep setting that bar even higher.

Bruins End 39 Year Cup Run With Hard Work, Determination and Shutouts

I don’t believe that many would have predicted that Boston would be the team hoisting the Cup this year, let alone doing so over the Canucks. The victory was achieved through the combination a lot of hard work, exorcising past demons, stellar goaltending, and of course tremendous beards (see: Chara, Thomas, Bergeron, anyone but Seguin).

First came the Canadiens (deja vu, anyone?). Boston went down 2-0 in the series and had to battle through three OT games, including game seven, in order to knock off Montreal. Thomas was not yet on top of his game in this series, but he was just getting warmed up.

Next up were the Flyers (deja vu, anyone?) – the team that embarrassed the Bruins last year after winning 4 games in a row to take the series in seven. This year would be very different. Was Thomas actually getting warmed up? You bet – just look at these goal totals: 3, 2, 1, 1. Four games, seven goals, series over. Also those seven goals were up against the 20 that the Bruins’ offense tallied in order to take some of the pressure of their netminder. Well deserved ticket to the conference finals.

Here comes Tampa looking to head back to the Stanley Cup Finals when they won a few years ago in 2004. The Lightning seemed to have figured out Thomas, scoring give goals in games one, two, four, and six to take this series the distance. They also seemed rather lost in games three, five, and seven where they netted a grand total of one goal. Tampa’s inconsistency was not enough to take down Boston’s natural goal scoring abilities and they just could steal this one from the Bruins.

That brings us to the Cup Finals – a place the Bruins hadn’t reached in 21 seasons. Another seven game series, and another inconsistent performance by both teams. Scoring eight goals in game three didn’t erase the fact that Boston was shutout in games one and five, leading to a game six facing elimination. No biggee – Thomas only get in two and the offense stepped up so the series was headed back to Vancouver for the greatest moment in sports: a game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals.

ALL of that lead to this moment – one game to win it all.

Cue Tim Thomas. Here’s what I imagine his speech was to the team before the game: Luongo got two 1-0 shutouts – so why can’t I get a second 4-0 shutout? Sounds about right.

In my opinion, the game seven shutout culminated the Bruins 2011 Cup run. Here’s why. Boston was out-shot 37 – 20. Thomas stopped all of them. Their rookie sensation Marchand netted two goals and an assist – what kind of rookie steps up like that? Perfect finals performance as part of this historic run to the cup. Shorthanded breakaway goal in game seven of the finals? Yeah that NEVER happens. Still, Bergeron managed to check that one off his bucket list.

Best of all, Boston waltzed into Vancouver’s house after a grueling series and SHUT THEM OUT. Doesn’t get much better than that.

Boston wasn’t the best team in this year’s playoffs. They did however have one of the greatest playoff performances ever by a goalie, and a team that just would not quit through 25 games. Three seven-game series, a sweep and a Cup-clinching shutout. The fans could not have thought up a better postseason.

Congratulations to the 2011 Boston Bruins – get some rest, you’ve earned it.

What’s On The Fans Minds Tonight [CHART]

The end of the 2010-11 NHL season is upon us as Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals is slated to drop the puck tonight at 8 PM. After what I expect to be a very physical game with tons of fights, hits and some flops, the Stanley Cup will be awarded to one of the teams.

Which one will win it is still a mystery. For the series as a whole it seems the games come down to the goaltenders and the Canucks Luongo is looking very susceptible right now. He’s the type of guy to come out of the game with a shutout or get chased in the 2nd after letting in 5 goals. Which Luongo will show up is a mystery at this point.

The Bruins have a more reliable goalie in Tim Thomas but will have to come out of the gate swinging and scoring to get the upper hand on the Canucks. With that in mind here’s a look at what’s on the minds of the Canucks and Bruins fans minds as they head into Game 7. Click the below image to see a larger version.

Bringin’ the Cup Back To Canada – To Where It Belongs

Let’s turn the clocks back a few months, back to the middle of the NHL season when we all broke out of our hockey hibernation to enjoy a memorable sporting event. I believe it was called the Super Bowl (but the trophy design doesn’t suit the name – American sports are weird). In this elaborate event of gridiron intensity, the Packers prevailed and declared that the Vince Lombardi trophy was coming home. In fact, they made that statement so many times that I was ready to strangle anyone who uttered after that day.

However, there is something to the joy felt by the Cheeseheads across the state of Wisconsin as they felt that Championship belongs in their town. I believe it is the same with the Stanley Cup, but not just in one town – in one country.

Let’s be honest, hockey is Canada’s game, even without our dominance on the world stage. Just because a Canadian NHL team hasn’t won since 1993 doesn’t make any difference at all – there’s only 6 of them. The craziest thing is that even with only 6 teams, Canada has managed to win 44 of the 94 Cups in the NHL era, dating back to 1915. That’s nuts. So when I think of a Vancouver victory tomorrow night meaning the Cup’s return to Canada, I get pretty excited about that. Especially because this is where it belongs.

Many may argue that the 2011 Canucks are not very deserving of a parade this week, but I think they owe it to their country to pull out the W tomorrow night. With the recent move of the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg, Canada is slowly gaining more ground in a league hell-bent on moving further south. Who knows if we’ll ever have more than 7 teams before Bettman decides to open an arena in Panama.

Tomorrow night’s game comes down to a city looking for its first Cup, as well as a country rooting for a piece of that moment. Think of Americans turned Mavs fans vs. Lebron – yup, we care that much about our nation’s hockey status. This is our chance to shine outside of the Olympics, World Cup and World Championships. The Cup must come back home – back to north of the border! Let’s Go Canucks!!

For your enjoyment here are some great Canadian hockey moments:

The golden Goal

Paul Henderson’s Goal 1972

Canada Cup 1987, Lemieux goal

2002 Team Canada Hockey Gold

MONTREAL CANADIENS 1993 ROAD TO THE CUP

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