On Sunday, I was anchoring Connected with Evanka Osmak when we had some pre-game footage of the Flyers’ Simon Gagne locking his car and walking into the rink for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final against the Habs.
How fitting that a guy who has rejuvenated the Flyers’ offence drives a jet black Porsche 911 Turbo. I don’t mind admitting I had a serious case of car envy. And now on to this week’s questions.
Name: Ted
Comment: Jim, correct me if I am wrong but didn’t the Edmonton Oilers play the fewest games (19) en route to the 1988 Stanley Cup since the format changed to the four-rounds best-of-seven series format (16 wins to take the Cup).
Answer: Actually Ted the 1988 Oilers needed to play only 18 games in winning the Stanley Cup that year. In what was Wayne Gretzky’s final year with the Oilers, the Great One was incredible as he led everyone with an amazing 43 points. Here’s an old highlight clip of his heroics from the 1988 playoffs. My personal favourite was his overtime goal against Mike Vernon. Sorry Flames fans.
Name: Rob
Comment: Hey Jim, I ran into you a few years back in North Carolina, the year the ‘Canes won the Cup. You were strutting your stuff down ‘Sabre Alley’ before the game. That was a fantastic series to be a part of. The tailgating before the game is definitely something to be involved in, but in the playoffs, this event is heightened by the fans of the opposing team all parking in one area. They are all usually waving their flags, sporting their jerseys, and chanting their chants. When I ran into you walking through that alley, you were grinning ear-to-ear, probably thinking to yourself “now this is hockey.”
Was that experience one of your highlights of NHL playoffs? Or have there been others that you would like to share.
Answer: Hi Rob, thanks for reliving some great memories from the 2006 Stanley Cup final.
Covering the Cup final between the Oilers and the Hurricanes was a great experience. I will never forget running into three guys in a pickup truck who had driven all the way from Dryden, Ontario to Raleigh, North Carolina so they could be there for Game 1 of the series. That works out to a 2,400 km road trip for three guys just to see a playoff hockey game.
To me that’s the ultimate definition of a hockey fan. The one thing I loved about those games at the RBC Center in Raleigh was the tailgating. They didn’t just cook burgers and hotdogs at the Hurricanes games; you would see guys barbequing massive slabs of pulled pork or 16-ounce porterhouse steaks. They take barbequing meat very seriously down in North Carolina and that extended to the hockey games.
Not only did the Canes really rock out to some righteous tunes, every time they scored a goal Ric Flair popped up on the jumbotron with one of his patented “Wooooo!” chants. Then there were the Hurricane cheerleaders, The Storm Squad. Not that I noticed them or anything, but I have been told that they are all really hot.
Now it wasn’t a playoff game, but I will always remember being there for the last game played at Maple Leafs Gardens. Of course, the Leafs got smoked by the Blackhawks that night and Bob Probert scored the last goal at the old barn.
I was covering a Leafs–Canadiens game on a Saturday night at the Bell Centre once and I could not hear Sportsnet reporter Louis Jean when he attempted to speak to me even though he was seated right beside me. We ended up having to yell at each other just to be heard over the noise of the crowd.
When the Bell Centre is really rocking, there are few rinks in the NHL that are louder.
Name: Andy
Comment: In lieu of the most recent perfect game thrown by the Oakland Athletics, I know there are still and handful of teams that have never had a no-hitter. I was wondering what teams have never been on the receiving end of a no-no?
Answer:Hi Andy, every team in the Major Leagues has allowed at least one no-hitter. It is interesting to note that the Chicago Cubs haven’t allowed a no-hitter since 1965. On September 9th, 1965, the legendary Sandy Koufax of the Dodgers threw a perfect game against the Cubs. (FYI- Vin Scully’s call of that perfect game from Koufax is generally regarded as the finest example of baseball radio play-by-play ever)
Name: Rob
Comment: Hey Jim, great blog! After reading this recent blog and the nicknames at Sportsnet, it reminded me of a Seinfeld episode where George was intent on getting the nickname – T-Bone. Who over at Sportsnet has it and what did they have to do to get it?
Answer: Hi Rob, thanks for the kind words. We have an audio engineer named Troy that goes by the name T-Bone. I am not really sure the whole story behind it. But I do know that he often wears a pair of those cheesy 1980’s Dallas Cowboys Zubaz pants.
Of course, I used to own a pair of Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals Zubaz pants. I thought they looked really cool at the time and they were a perfect fit with my mullet. Then I got married and I am not sure what ever happened to them. I tell my kids that if I ever find those pants I am going wear them when I take them to school. My wife just shakes her head and wonders where it all went so wrong in her life.
Name: Mike
Comment: I understand NHL players’ contracts are for regular season. How do they get paid in the playoffs?
Answer:Mike, players get paid based on each round they play, with the winning team making more than the losing team. Each team’s share of the playoff money is split between the players. The deeper into the post-season you go, the more playoff money a player can earn. Now, compared to what players make in the regular season, the playoff money looks like their Tim Horton’s money.
Name: Mitch
Comment: Hi Jim, love your blogs. Sports announcers/play-by-play/colour commentary has had many memorable calls. So Jim, my question to you is, what sports call gives you goosebumps? For example, when Joe Carter hit his World Series winning home run in 1993, any time I watch that and hear Tom Cheek say, “Touch’em all Joe” I get a huge chill down my back.
Answer: Hi Mitch, this is always a tough question and I have been asked it a few times. “Touch ‘em all Joe” is a classic. I have always loved Al Michaels and his “Do you believe in miracles?” call. Dan Kelly’s call of the “Gretzky to Lemieux” goal still gives me chills.
If I live to be 150-years-old, this call from Danny Gallivan on Guy Lafleur’s goal against the Bruins from the 1979 playoffs will still give me goosebumps.
Keep in mind, certain calls that give me goosebumps, might not have the same effect on someone else. There are a lot of calls that gave me goosebumps that didn’t come from a championship game or a golfing major. I still get major chills up my spine when I watch Bob Cole’s call of Doug Gilmour’s double overtime goal against the Blues in the 1993 playoffs.
I am not a Washington Redskins fan but I absolutely love the call from Frank Herzog on John Riggins amazing 43-yard touchdown run against the Dolphins in Super Bowl 17. The play was called “70 Chip” and on fourth down Riggins took the handoff from Joe Theisman and ran through tackle Don McNeal. The rest is a part of Super Bowl history.
Herzog’s radio call, “He’s gone! He’s gone!” is as good as it gets.
As far as great goals that give me chills. Check out this call from Diego Maradona’s ridonkulous goal against England in the 1986 World Cup.
I get chills on calls from lacrosse and rugby, from NASCAR and high school football. To me it doesn’t matter what the sport, just as long it’s a good call.
Name: Geoff from Halifax NS (originally Moncton NB)
Comment: Hi Jim,
My question is related to the idea of an East Coast city one day getting a CFL team. Some people say it would fail in this market and others think it could work. The location of the team is another subject often debated. In your opinion, would the CFL work in the Atlantic provinces and also, where would you locate the team? Halifax, (the largest city) or Moncton NB (the most centralized)?
Answer:Hi Geoff, I love any question from the Maritimes. Expansion to either Halifax or Moncton is crucial to the CFL’s long-term future. For the CFL to ensure their long-term health, they need to push hard for a 10-team league; five in the West and five in the East. It will make for a much better schedule and avoid so much repetition during the year. I have no doubt that if the CFL ever expands to the Maritimes it will be a big success.
While Moncton is a centrally located city, I would have to go with the greater Halifax/Dartmouth area for a CFL Atlantic team. Halifax/Dartmouth has a larger population base to draw from and there is a strong history of University football there as well. All someone has to do is figure out a way to build a 25,000 seat stadium without spending any taxpayers’ money and the CFL can finally expand to the Maritimes.
That’s the big issue with the idea of a Maritime CFL team; an adequate stadium and coming up with a way to fund it’s construction.
Name:Pat
Comment: Hi Jim, with the ousting of Washington and the Penguins, by Montreal no less, I’m not as disappointed by the Canucks losing to Chicago. But having said that, they have lost to them the past two years.
My question is, do you think Alain Vignault has taken Vancouver as far as he can as coach? Maybe it’s time to change the coach. Granted he did have some key defencemen out with injury, but he should have made the adjustment is what I’m thinking.
I would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Answer: Hi Pat. I am sure after this year’s playoff disappointment; there are a lot of Canucks fans who feel it might be time to bring in a new head coach. If Mike Gillis decides to hire a new coach, he better acquire a big, nasty defenceman at the same time. Not having a defenceman that could handle Dustin Byfuglien hurt the Canucks a lot more than any of Alain Vignault’s alleged shortcomings. While we are at it, Canucks fans wouldn’t mind if Roberto Luongo passed on the idea of being the captain and concentrated on stopping pucks.
Personally, I would give Vignault some more depth on the blueline and give him another chance. If he can’t do it after all of that, then it is time for a change.
That’s it for this week.
May 17th is a lot more than just Monday; it’s also the birth date of James “Cool Papa” Bell. A legend in the Negro Leagues, Cool Papa was born in 1903 and many baseball historians think he was the fastest man in that era.
Satchel Paige once said that Cool Papa Bell was so fast, “that he could turn out the lights and be in bed before the room got dark.”