The players I still secretly follow are for the most part ex-Calgary Flames. And through the bad years and the new good ones, there's been quite a few. I'll run through a few faves of mine...
There's Gary Roberts, last still-active relic of our Cup winning team back in the day. How weird is it that he won the Cup back when at least two or three of his current teammates were still in diapers? I was sad when he retired about ten years ago due to back/neck injuries, and sooooo thrilled when he made his comeback. I wasn't a huge fan of his (to be honest) during his stint with the Leafs
There are the remnants of the "Young Guns," a failed marketing ploy of the 90s, back when we had nothing going for us other than minty-fresh cute hockey players. Cale Hulse? Todd Simpson? They'll probably never make a splash in the league, but I still get a thrill of "oh, are they still around?" every time I see them do something. For the most part they haven't panned out, so it's like rooting for the underdog when they are playing.
There are a few guys who just didn't fit in over the years - Marty St. Louis is probably the prime example (even if he did win the Cup fom right under our noses).
The biggest group by far are the guys who left after the Cup run three years ago. I absolutely can't hate on them, and for the most part wish them well. Guys like Boston's Shean Donovan, Kobasew, and Ference, Carolina's Mike Commodore, St. Louis' Ville Niemenen, Florida's Steve Montador.
Most notable from this group is Washington's Chris Clark (I often refer to him on IM as "Chris! Clark!") He was a character guy from Calgary who I watched develop from a raw youngster to becoming a mainstay on the team. Not a flashy player, but definitely a solid heart-and-soul-guy. I'm incredibly thrilled that he's now Washington's captain, even with older, more experienced players, and even younger, incredibly talented ones. And I'm glad that on Washington he's got a chance to rack up some points by playing a fair bit with Ovechkin.
I know other fans who've been much more upset by players coming and going recently...for the most part, I've seen far too many guys become exes for me to really be crushed. And so many exes, so little time...
Monday, March 05, 2007
Oh, the exes
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2 comments:
Aw, Clarkie-Poo...we love him here in DC! Just the best choice for Caps' captain I could have ever hoped for. He's awesome :)
What is it about the Flames over the last few years? There's so much character in that locker room day in and day out, its hard not to root for them. I certainly adopted them for exactly that reason during their playoff run of 2004, and continue to root for them to this day.
Sniff. Enjoy Clark. He definitely deserves his recent success...
I think it stems from Sutter. He's always about the guys who are most like him and his brothers back when they played. More effort than ego, an absolute willingness to sacrifice the body for the team. Knowing that the team always, always comes first.
So Calgary's stars aren't always flashy, but damn, they earn your respect...
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