Talk about playing to a tough crowd

If there was any question about whether Chicago hockey fans are a lunch pail crowd, such doubt was dispelled last night during a game in the Windy City with the visiting Winnipeg Jets.

With Chicago on its way to a 4-1 victory late in the game, Jets defenceman, Adam Pardy found himself digging a puck out of his own corner when Hawks forward Brandon Bollig rode him into the boards. A pane of glass was dislodged and Pardy went half way over the boards with it.

At that point, the Jets player appeared to try to keep the glass from falling onto spectators. What did he get for his trouble? As a melee ensued behind him, pinning him in his precarious position, a young guy in the crowd reached down and yanked his helmet off. You can see his arm reaching down in this shot.

Not to be outdone, the man's companion, a young "lady", decided she had a better purpose for her beer than drinking it, and doused the Winnipeg player's head with it. In the meantime, her (boy)friend had already donned the player's bonnet, much to the delight of the partisan crowd.

Watch the video:

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Karma (and the law) catches up

The chickens have come home to roost. Peter Pocklington may die in prison if he's convicted of the fraud charges filed against him in Palm Springs, California stemming from a personal bankruptcy filing in 2008. If the name doesn't ring any bells, "Peter Puck" is the former owner of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League who was vilified by the entire country of Canada for selling Wayne Gretzky, the greatest hockey player who ever lived, for about $18 million to the Los Angeles Kings.

The man collected enemies like kids collect hockey cards. He brought in strike breakers to settle a company dispute with workers at a company he owned which eventually closed. He had another company bailed out by the Canadian government to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

In his personal bankruptcy papers, he claimed he was worth $2,900. He um, forgot to mention the luxurious home he has, the contents of a storage locker, the investment companies he owns offshore and last but not least two bank accounts. This man used to boast a wine collection worth $750,000 and a house full of Renoir sketches.

At some point he left Canada because he was displeased with its socialist leanings. He preferred to be among "people who are impressed with those who get up early and make things happen." He made things happen, alright--mostly disasters left in his wake. He has had more failed companies than Michael Jackson has had surgeries.

He has a United States citizenship application currently being reviewed, but now, at 67, he is a broken man with $20 million in debts and possibly facing prison time. I'm not so sure that the Americans are as enamoured with him as he is with them. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

What's just below Gold?

National disgrace. This is the reality that every Canadian national hockey team (not to be confused with Canadian NHL team, who have been a national disgrace for longer than I care to remember) must contend with every time they step on the ice. Despite the tremendous pressure, team after team--junior, Olympic, World and women's teams keep coming through with the goods. The current World Junior Hockey tourney is no exception.

The Canadian machine has sputtered on the way here--they allowed the Americans to build a 3-goal lead on New Year's Eve, but fought back to win 7-4 and then in an even more remarkable match this past Saturday night, the boys scored on Russia with five second left in regulation to send it into overtime, where the Canadians won in a shoot-out.

So, tonight they go for Gold for the fifth time in as many tournaments. They face a very talented and determined Swedish team and it should prove to be a highly exciting and entertaining game. And once again, nothing less than Gold is acceptable.

I beg your pardon?

Dallas Stars forward Sean Avery is in hot water again. The Superpest of the NHL received a suspension for conduct "detrimental to the league or game of hockey."

The offence occurred when the team was in Calgary and Avery made these comments on camera:

"I'm really happy to be back in Calgary. I love Canada. I just want to comment on how it's become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my sloppy seconds."

Avery's ex-girlfriend, actress Elisha Cuthbert, is dating Calgary defenceman Dion Phaneuf and had been romantically linked to Mike Komisarek of the Montreal Canadiens. Avery also dated model and actress Rachel Hunter, the girlfriend of Los Angeles Kings centre Jarrett Stoll.

Elisha Cuthbert:



The Stars were so shocked by their own player's conduct that they publicly supported the suspension. In the past, he's occasionally painted his fingernails black to distract an opponent during a fight. On the ice, he is human sandpaper. Newsweek dubbed Avery "the human equivalent of jock itch."

Caution: offensive content

Earlier this evening, I found another reason for my waning interest in watching hockey. Mind you, it's not a biggee, but just the same...

The Toronto Maple Leafs' Nik Antropov had just tied the game late in the third period against the Mighty Ducks (I still can't believe they adopted that name). The home crowd was going wild and the camera did a pan across the Leaf bench.

Many of the players were looking down as if there was something fascinating going on down there, and many others were looking in various directions, looking about as interested as if they were at a lawn bowling game. No offence to lawn bowlers who many I'm sure can make the Maple Leaf team.

Getting back to the camera pan, it stayed long enough on one player for the presumably millions of faithful Canadian hockey fans to witness the "horking up" of a "loogie" just shy of the size of a regulation golf ball, and its propulsion halfway across the ice surface, quite possibly landing on centre ice. If it were black, it might have instigated an invalid faceoff. However, the best was yet to come. One player, who will remain nameless, only because I was less interested in him, than he was that the camera was on him, had an index finger lodged up his nose, seemingly to the third knuckle, where it remained until it was out of camera range.

I think the ending of Taxi Driver is less offensive...maybe because it is reminiscent of old-time hockey. ;)