Liveblogging Hockey Day

Note #1: all times in PST. I plan on drinking later and I will have no interest in doing eastern time zone math calculations.

Note #2: I can be reached all day by email at alanah (at) canucksandbeyond.com. Send tips and encouragement.
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9:00 a.m.— It’s official! The 7th (right?) annual Hockey Day in Canada kicks off. For the rest of the day, every hour, I’ll be posing a trivia question—starting at 10:00 a.m. The first comment that comes in with the right answer will win bragging rights and (maybe) a small prize. It all depends on whether I can convince someone to donate prizes.
(I need sponsors, dammit!)

The trivia questions are all coming from the “Hockey Night in Canada Game” I got for Christmas. They’re actually pretty easy, honest. Even I know the answers sometimes…

9:10 a.m.— I love the CBC hockey crew, but if they continue to dress this badly all day, I may have to provide photos. Man, us Canadians are such willing fashion geeks.

9:16 a.m.— For more about Nelson, BC, where HDIC is based out of today, here is the city website.

9:35— There’s a live chat with Drew Remenda online right now. Join in. Ask him about how he thinks Toronto fans will react when the Leafs miss the playoffs this year…

10:00 a.m.—Trivia Question #1
“Who was the last player to win the NHL scoring title in 1980 before Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux took over in 1981?”
(Updated 10:55—the answer was “Marcel Dionne”. No one even tried. I’m very annoyed…)

10:10 a.m.—
What? No one can answer that trivia question? Are you kidding me…?

10:16 a.m.— One of the commitments I made today was to record the CBC broadcast for this Canucks fan who can’t get the show himself in China. Of course I’ve been sort of terrified of screwing up the tape, so guess what? I did. I somehow hit the stop button for 20 minutes. (Sorry Expat.)

It’s recording again now and I’ve hid the remote control from myself to avoid sitting on it or something else moronic in the coming hours.

10:28 a.m.—Random Moment of Canadian Solidarity #1

10:37 a.m.—Heart Issues
CBC just had a feature discussing the issue of heart problems amongst hockey players. In case anyone has further interest, here is a dedicated page on Healthy Heart Hockey Tips. Good, basic advice for players of all ages and levels of conditioning.

10:50 a.m.—Hockey in Vancouver Today
Since the Canucks are playing on the road tonight, GM Place is opening up the building for fans to come on in and watch the team take on Toronto at 4pm PT. Then after the NHL game, everyone in the building can hang out and catch the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds game.

I understand some of my podcast mates from The Crazy Canucks will be there, so if you’re at the game watch for them as they walk around with microphones and beer, asking odd questions of random strangers around the concourse.

11:00 a.m.—Trivia Question #2
(Let’s try this again. These hourly questions are not that hard, people. Bloody hell…)
Q: “In 2001-02, who became the first Russian defenceman to record 500 career NHL points?”
A: Sergei Zuboz (updated 11:57 a.m. No guesses. You people are a great disappointment to me)

11:10 a.m.—Montreal and Ottawa Game 1 of the Triple Header
The fans are loud and ready to go. Should be a good game. Meanwhile, a Habs fan just sent me this link as a reminder to Senators fans of previous ‘good times’. So, “Go Habs!” (Or Sens… honestly, I don’t much care…)

11:15 a.m.—Break Time
Okay, I’m going to take a break as this game gets underway.
No, wait. I’m actually going on strike till someone makes a stab at answering that trivia question above. I mean, for godsakes, these questions are from the HNIC trivia board game… Don Cherry himself probably wrote these questions. How hard could they really be?

11:55 a.m.—Bill Barilko
For all the trash talk I intend to throw at the Toronto Maple Leafs today, allow me to demonstrate a bit of respect. Here’s a glance a famous Leaf who died tragically. CBC just did a short feature with his sister, at the Hockey Hall of Fame.

12:00 noon—Trivia Question #3
Q: “What two Montreal Canadiens both had a 50-goal season in 1976-77?”
A: Steve Shutt and Guy Lafleur (Updated 12:50 pm. No guesses. Y’all suck.)

12:08 p.m.—Bad Behavior
Cider, anyone?
Why, thank you I do believe I will…

12:14 p.m.—Wow.
Geez, this game is already at 6-0 early in the 2nd period? Forget this lowly blogger—maybe we should all buy Cristobal Huet a drink.

12:16 p.m.—Wow Part 2
Umm. Suddenly the Canadiens have scored two, and the score is 6-2. Just ignore me. Where’d my cider go…

12:26 p.m.—Random Moment of Canadian Solidarity #2
Nice to be able to throw both Vancouver and Montreal some good karma at the same time.

12:38 p.m.—A Small Complaint
I wonder why CBC didn’t think to do an online broadcast of the entire show today—like TSN did for the World Junior Championship games? It’s my understanding that TSN’s online experiment was hugely successful, and it’s usually CBC I expect to come up with the innovative ideas in hockey broadcasting.

But perhaps they think drunken liveblogs are the wave of the future? Hmmm.

12:43 p.m.—Wow, Part 3
Ottawa makes it 8-2 late in the 2nd. You know what we really need to talk about later? Why there aren’t enough goals being scored in the NHL these days.
(God willing, Vancouver has a game like this against Toronto in a couple hours.) Another cider, anyone?!

1:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #4
Q: “Who became the first Ottawa Senator to record a 100-point season when he scored 103 in 2005-06?”
A: No one tried, yet again. So allow me to reveal the answer to the easiest hockey trivia question in history - “Dany Heatley”. (updated 1:50 pm)

1:14 p.m.—Hockey Stops Crime
It might be HDIC, but here’s an American story from a while back on the Tampa Bay Lightning message boards:

“Some guy was trying to break into my house and I chased him off with my son’s goalie stick. I hope the druggie peed his pants! My son plays at the mite level, but even the little kids have big goalie sticks!

“For those of you wanting the details…I was home when my 8 year-old son called out from the living room that someone was on our lanai. I had planned on being safe and opening the window to see what this person wanted, but I realized he was playing with the lock and knob, so I called 911 and let it be known that there were people in the house. When I realized he was about to break in before the sheriff arrived, I grabbed my son’s goalie stick slammed it against the door. The guy backed away, but came right back. As soon as I saw that he got the door open I went after him with my son’s goalie stick. I scared the crap out of the guy as I swung at him (high sticking, tripping, every penalty in the book). The sheriff said he was still running when they passed him on the way to my house! Talk about adrenaline rush. I could not have done that if my kid was a soccer player! THIS IS HOCKEY!”

Okay, so it’s not exactly a standard hockey “feel good” story, but what the hell.

1:22 p.m.—Edmonton Sucks?
Why, sure it does. Besides, I can’t use up all my Toronto material before the Vancouver game. Courtesy of OilersSuck.com (is that a killer domain or what?) I thought I’d pass this along:

You have to understand: HDIC isn’t just about loving hockey—it’s about hating every other team but yours. (Or is that just me…? Never mind.)

Note: I just noticed that OilersSuck.com has a merchandise store. Beauty, although I’m thinking that thong really sends the wrong message. For too many reasons to mention…

1:42 p.m.—Senators Win
Oh, sorry. I mean, the Senators slaughtered the freakin’ Habs… 8-3. I like and dislike both teams equally, so I don’t care much. However I also see that Pittsburgh took their 6th game of the season off of Philadelphia, and that was fun.

Really, who doesn’t like watching the Flyers lose repeatedly for no apparent reason? The answer, of course, is ‘nobody’.

2:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #5
Q: “In 1911, what was added to the NHL player uniforms to make them easier to identify on the ice?”
(If someone can’t guess this one, I give up on all of you forever…)
A: Numbers. (Those who guessed correctly are mentioned below. Thank you for renewing my faith your hockey expertise, guys.)

2:38 p.m.—Excellence!
I see the last trivia question FINALLY earned the correct answer. Hell, I’m just happy some people even tried. Appreciation to resident trivia experts Sherry, Temujin and GZ Expat.

I didn’t mean to take such a long break, but I stepped outside into -100c weather. This is the west coast, for godsakes. I’m not built for this madness, so I froze up solid and I’m still thawing.

Back in a minute…

2:54 p.m.—Hockey Challenges
I got back in time to see a great feature about a young boy (Tyler) who has a some social challenges, and his family has found hockey has given him a some great lessons.

This isn’t really related, but it reminded me there are many other areas of hockey we should learn about—reminders that hockey is for more than just our kids and our NHLers. The Canadian Amputee Hockey Team is a good example.

3:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #6
Q: “As of the 2005-06 season, who held the Vancouver Canuck record for most career playoff points?”
A: Trevor Linden (And Zanstorm wins the cookie for #6. Well done!)

3:13 p.m.—Matt Cooke Signed with the Leafs?
Prepping my brain for the Most Important Game in The Country Today, I read this article:

Cooke was nearly a Maple Leaf 10 seasons ago when he signed a free-agent deal with the team after going to camp as an undrafted junior. However, former Leaf general manager Cliff Fletcher didn’t register the contract in timely fashion, making Cooke eligible for the 1997 draft.
The Canucks then selected him with the 144th pick. A year later, Cooke made his NHL debut in Vancouver colours.
“My signature was on that contract,” Cooke said before the Canucks flew back east on Friday, “it’s just that Cliff Fletcher’s wasn’t. He didn’t send it to the league in time. Anyway, it will be nice to play in Toronto.”

Scary to realize how close one of my favorite players came to having become one of my most hated ones. *shudder*

3:35—More Canucks Trivia
Trevor Linden wears Arnold Schwartz-a (howeverthehellyouspellit) pajamas. I really didn’t need to know that.

3:43 p.m.—Running Down Toronto
I believe clever hockey fans will have noticed an anti-Leafs theme today. Or am I too subtle? Just in case, here is a must-watch video to enjoy before the game starts.

My endless gratitude and affection to Jes Golbez for sending this over to me earlier. God bless his blackened, Leafs-hating soul…

4:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #7
Q: “As of the 2005-06 season, what goaltender had played the most career games for the Calgary Flames with 467?”
A: Mike Vernon—And this hour’s cookie goes to Tyler, who actually gets bonus points for adding “He sucks” in his answer. Nicely done.
*Almost missed Dave, who also guessed correctly. But no bonus points for Dave, as he didn’t manage to work any insults into his response. ;)

Note: This next couple hours is gonna be a bit heavy on the Canucks… for obvious reasons.

4:09 p.m.—Mission Impossible?
Very nice that the Leafs are honouring the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces today. But I can’t be the only one who nearly coughed up a lung laughing just now, when I heard the theme music to Mission Impossible being played in the Air Canada Center.

Wow. That’s just PERFECT! It’s enough to make a Canucks fan almost feel welcome in that building. :)

4:24 p.m.—Bieksa and Salo Suck
No not really. But what the hell? We’re down 5-3 because of two of our best d-men? Not a great sign.
On the other hand, Luongo’s late-in-the-penalty save? A very good sign.
Not to mention a nice McCabe penalty. (What a putz.)

Still, all of this sort of thing is easier to take when you’re drunk.

4:27 p.m.—Score!
Go Ohlund! And about that complaining I was doing a minute ago? I take it back.

4:39 p.m.—Bastard Toronto Cheaters
Bates freakin’ Bataglia. Nice to see a video review, for fun anyway. But geezus… (yeah, it’s possible Toronto wasn’t so much “cheating” as Vancouver was “sucking”)

4:42 p.m.—Yay Penalties! Fun!
Yeah, I’m joking. Still, I do find it slightly more fun when it’s Leafs penalties…

4:49 p.m.—Random Observation
One of the unexpected bonuses to having an expensive so-called ‘superstar’ goalie is that every time Luongo makes a save—no matter how easy it might happen to be—every commentator in the NHL can’t help but gush over him. “Look how Luongo stopped that puck drifting 3 feet wide of the net! Wow!” A strange phenomenon.

Note: I’ve discovered that too many people get upset with me when I say stuff like that Luongo comment above. Honest, I like the guy. I swear!

5:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #8
Q: “In 2005-06, who became only the fourth NHL rookie to score 50 goals in one season?”
A: Yup, it’s Ovechkin, and Tyler raids the cookie jar again. With more bonus points for trash-talking one of the best players in hockey. I’m in awe. :)

5:08— Sedin Squared
A Swede just scored from a Swede through some other Swedes… or something. Canucks are ahead on a powerplay goal and that’s ALL that’s important. Excellent.

5:15—Green Squared is Fu#king Me Up
Two Greens on the ice, for different teams. Maybe it would be a good idea if the freakin’ Harry-Cole pair used FIRST names when running down the plays. “Green backhands and Raycroft makes the stop!” isn’t helpful. I have no trouble imagining Travis Green firing shots against his own goalie.

5:30—Was that a Cuban?
Honest to god, what the hell is up with the penalties in this game?
And did I just see Mark Cuban out of the corner of my eye?
And why does he love Don Cherry so much?

So many questions, yet I have so little commitment to answering them…

5:41 p.m.—End of 2nd Period
Gotta like it when the referee takes out a Toronto rush down the wing. Nice consolation prize for all the penalties, anyway.

6:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #9
Q: “What NHL franchise has won the most playoff series in the history of the NHL?”
A: Montreal Canadiens—correct answer goes to Dave.

6:05 p.m.—What’s in a name?
It’s one thing when the Harry-Coles mess up Bieksa/Beeksa/Bliska/Benson ‘s name, but Markus Naslund’s name? Seriously? Oy.

6:06 p.m.—Go Linden
Guess the PJ’s are working for him.

6:07 p.m.—Go ??!!
Ah, Pyatt. Nice work for a 13 second span of time… 4-1. Fun!

6:08 p.m—Dear Zanstorm
Canucks > Leafs
Agreed? :)

Ignore that—I’m the one having a meltdown…

6:23 p.m.—More Damn Fun!
Canucks get a wacko goal. Raycroft just did sort of a glove-version of that Tommy Salo goal from the 2002 Olympics. 5-1 Canucks.
Crap, I’m not even sure who scored… uh oh…

6:32 p.m.—Not Mats Naslund
6-1 goal by the Captain, and Harry-Cole get the name right. I think blow-outs are awesome… when it’s my team.

6:35 p.m.—Belak Boxed
Canucks fight for that ever-important 7th goal. Go Canucks!
Oh god, I’m really going to need a break before Game #3

6:45 p.m.—Fantastic!!
Anyone that knows me will understand why I think this photo is the coolest thing ever. Wow.
That just makes my day.

HELP!

7:10 p.m.—Calgary & Edmonton
I hate them both so much… I’m not sure where to go with this liveblog now.
It could get ugly. Oh boy.. just let me think…

7:20 p.m.—Embracing the Hatred
Okay, well, if it’s a challenge to cheer for anyone, I might as well create a liveblog series all about the joint evil of Calgary and Edmonton. At least until something else entertaining occurs to me.

To start with Calgary: Lombardi is fast and slick and very, very good. He also spanks the Canucks regularly, so he’s a natural target. Then there’s Phaneuf—any guy who’s name can be used as a profanity (i.e. “Phaneuf You!”) is worthy of derision. And then there’s Kipper. Aside from having a cutesy nickname like Kipper, the guy’s also been a major Canuck thorn. I hope he gets 9 goals against tonight.

Edmonton: I’m not sure how to express my repressed hatred from last year’s horror of them making the playoffs and us missing them, without seeming totally insane. So I’ll get back to them later. I also wouldn’t mind Roloson getting 9 goals against tonight. Cross your fingers.

7:34 p.m.—Sit back and watch
I’m going to sit back and watch the game for a bit, secure with the suggestion that Baroque just made in the comments: “you can blame the Flames for all the destruction caused by wild fires, and blame the Oil for global warming.”

Works for me. :)

By the way, check out this story. Not cool at all.

Note: I realize I missed the 7 p.m. trivia question. I’ll be sure to put up two of them at 8 o’clock.

8:00 p.m.—Trivia Questions #10 and #11

Q: “Who did the Ottawa Senators pick up in the 1994 draft with the 133rd pick?”
A: Daniel Alfredsson—Well played, Nigel.

Q: “What are the standard dimensions (in feet) of the opening of an NHL net?”
A: 4’x6’—Al and Nigel both get a blue ribbon. Thanks for playing. :)

8:03 p.m.—Vern Davis
For the year of the volunteer angle that HDIC has been promoting all day, they spent time with Vern Davis, who had a chance to drop the puck at the opening of the Oilers/Flames game. More about Mr. Davis can be read here. Davis: “Hockey is in my blood. I’ve played it all my life, until I was about 65.”

8:11 p.m.—Go Kipper!
I know it reveals my petty side, but I really like it when someone, anyone, scores while Kipper is stretched out on his stomach, staring at the ice. Makes me enjoy the game a bit more. Edmonton, 1-0. Now let’s see if Calgary can do something fun, like score off Roloson’s butt, or something…

8:20 p.m.—Go Roli!
Sad—beaten by a guy who hasn’t scored a goal in 50 games - since last March. Nice one Jeff Friesen. I enjoyed that. 1-1.

8:26 p.m.—Alumni Game
Courtesy of Miss 604 I see that the Canucks Alumni have a game scheduled tomorrow. All sorts of great ex-players there, which is to be expected. But here’s the weird thing—Dave Coulier from the old tv show, Full House, will be playing.

Is our Alumni so thin that ex-sitcom stars are added to the lineup for extra flair?

8:40 p.m.—A Gift For Eastern Conference Fans
In case you’re not familiar with this charming resource, LeafsSuck.ca will provide you with hours of personal amusement whenever your team has to play Toronto for the remainder of the season. Enjoy.

8:50 p.m.—Italy Rules
This just made my day. HDIC just reported the broadcast of the Canucks/Leafs game that was done in Italian earlier. The thing is, Toronto even sounds like they were punked in a language I don’t know a single word of. Very nice stuff.

(Geez, a 6-1 win over the Leafs really is the gift that keeps on giving.)

9:00 p.m.—Trivia Questions #12
Q: “Who became the second Czech-born player to record a 50-goal season in the NHL when he scored 50 in 2002-03?”
A: Milan Hejduk is the guy. Tapeleg gets the whole cookie. (Al also reported the same answer but I think there’s little doubt he just copied it off Tapeleg.)

9:05 p.m.—Truth in Reporting
From the Associated Press tonight, this headline “Canucks Enjoy Embarrassing Maple Leafs” and writer Rob Gillies opens his story with “The Vancouver Canucks enjoyed embarrassing the Toronto Maple Leafs at home in front of a national audience.” Mr. Gillies might be my new favorite sportswriter. (And now, I promise to quit being smug about that game. I’m sure fate will punish me if I don’t shut up about it soon.)

9:21 p.m.—Calgary gets a goal
Just in case anyone is actually depending on me for the box score. (Fools.)

As Baroque pointed out in the comments earlier, we (as in Canucks fans) would be smarter rooting for Edmonton since they’re not able to take us out of the top spot in the standings tonight. But honestly, nothing will make me happy unless there’s a way for them both to lose. Someone, make that happen. Please.

9:25 p.m.—Calgary (yawn) gets another goal
I told you Lombardi was ridiculous, did I not? 3-1 Calgary, 4 minutes + remaining. (Wow. ESPN has nothing on this game summary…)

9:39 p.m.—Last Call
Okay Calgary wins—no worries. Keeps the NW division interesting, I figure. Till March I can handle ‘interesting’. After that I’ll worry.

Now we’ve got “After Hours”, then at 10:00 p.m. I’ll put up the last trivia question of the day, the winner of which will be called the ‘Hockey Trivia God’ on this blog.

And then I’ll be passing the hell out.

Sound good? Excellent!

10:00 p.m.—Trivia Question #13 Last Question!
Q: “How many teams were in the NHL during the 1991-92 season?”
A: 22.

Hockey Trivia God: Tapeleg

Well done everyone! Thanks for playing, thanks for hanging out. Thanks for an entertaining HDIC.

Good night!