DOUBLE FIST PUMP OF GREATNESS

I know I don't post much over here because I know most of the world could give less than a rat's hindquarters about the AHL, but this merits some internet-wide yelling.

Andrew Gordon is made of awesome. (and also the AHL player of the week)

For those of you who haven't been keeping up with the Bears/my life, Gordon has scored two hat tricks with me in attendance wearing his jersey. In my book, the kid could sneeze puppydogs and rainbows and not be more awesome than he already is. Mark it, if he doesn't make the Caps outright next year, he's gonna be the first callup from Hershey when they break a winger. And you can quote me on that.

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Philadelphia Freedom

Hi, everyone! I'm Nadine and I'll be the second voice for the Flyers. I've been an obsessive hockey fan for about 16 years, and I love goalies because I lived with one...one of my younger brothers...and I know what the job takes.

Big thanks to Kristin for seeing my blog and encouraging me to join the group. And larger thanks to all of you for creating and participating in this space for female hockey fans.

So, here’s my take as a Philadelphia Flyers fan…where we are passionate about our team – win, lose, or tie!

1. Where you're from, what you do - basic things.

We moved a lot when I was growing up, so I never know how to answer this. Here’s the short version: Born in Altoona, PA. Lived in various places in Ohio, then Maryland, college in Virginia, a year in Ecuador, out to Chicagoland, and back to Maryland.

I now live in Philly, and work tirelessly planning education seminars around the country. But I see the occasional game in-person, and watch others on TV.

2. Your team and why you like them.

The Flyers! I’ve liked them since I started watching hockey obsessively 16 years ago. (My brother Eli started playing hockey and there was no turning back for my family.) What attracted me to the Flyers? Rox Hextall.

Since then, the Flyers have had other interesting and talented players. There have been great seasons and last year’s nightmare. And while there are other teams and players I like, the Flyers are the team I keep coming back to each year.

3. Your least favourite team and why?

I don’t really have one. I just enjoy watching hockey, played at any level.

But I have to answer, so it’s the Penguins and only because they’re in Pittsburgh – the other big city in Pennsylvania. Cross-state rivalries can be so much fun!

4. Your favourite player of all time & now?

All-time: Jacques Plante – He had all kinds of goalie firsts, but he was the one who made the goalie mask a part of everyday equipment. (And now we get to enjoy some fantastic artwork!)

Now: Martin Biron – First, he plays for the Flyers. Second, I am so happy he has the chance to be our #1 goalie! He played back-up to some really good ones in Buffalo. Plus, I believe his contribution last season after his trade was immediate and helpful.

5. If you had to punch one hockey player or member of the NHL organisation, who and why?

For me, this is a two-way tie.

Gary Buttman, uh, Bettman: Can we please have a new commissioner? Someone that will get us a good TV deal? Someone who will veto merchandisers that try to give me a jersey in pink?!! And I really miss Campbell, Wales, Norris, Patrick, Adams and Smythe. (This is not basketball!)

“Dollar Bill” Wirtz: He’s destroyed the ‘Hawks, an Original Six team. When I lived in the Chicago area, I couldn’t watch hockey on TV (because the volunteer house didn’t have cable) and I couldn’t go to a game (because I couldn’t buy a ticket on my volunteer stipend).

6. What you'll be looking forward in this group blog.

I like the idea of talking about all things hockey with other female fans. I can’t do that with rink/puck bunnies because they don’t seem to understand my snarky remarks. Guys just don’t know what to make of my more in-depth commentary. “She sure doesn’t sound like a puck bunny.” Honest, I heard that at a game last season. Grr!

7. What you don't like in general?

Double standards. Math. Guys who dive (Briere, I'm looking at you). Drunk driving. People who hate. Rink/puck bunnies. Pay grades. The NHL merchandisers who bought into the pink idea that permeates professional sports. Gary Bettman. Bill Wirtz. Bobby Clarke (as a non-player). Bush administration (Is it 01/29/2009 yet?).

8. What role do female fans play in keeping the game alive?

Female fans are more consistent and loyal. When we become a fan, we stay a fan. We don’t defect just because of one bad season, like some male “fans” I know.

More importantly, we raise future athletes – in one way or another. We’re their mothers, aunts, cousins, godmothers, sisters, mentors, best friends, muses and acquaintances. We care about them being more than “that big guy” who hits really hard, scores a lot of goals, or stops a lot of shots.

9. What role do female fans play in picking heroes for the community?

We know there’s more to being a sports hero than just good stats, and we don’t let the stats override the importance of the human component. How involved are the players and team in my community, beyond working hard to bring in the Stanley Cup? Who contributes to our community in a positive way?

(Guys: It’s so much nicer to be able to respect you as a human and as a player. Who knows when a trade will happen? But female fans talk to each other, and we will spill the beans on your bad rep and exactly why you have it.)

10. Hockey just isn't the same without...

Steve Yzerman suited up, making spectacular plays, and befuddling goalies across the league. (This guy was and still is a hockey hero!)

11. If you were on a deserted island, which player would you pick tostay with you?

I’m going newly old-school on this with Alexander Mogilny. Because if we were on the deserted island due to a turbulence-related plane crash, we both would have refused to fly that day! Instead, we’d probably be having a really great conversation in the airport waiting for the next flight with seats available.

12. Crosby, Ovechkin or Phaneuf (hey he tried!)?

I’m going with Ovie because he plays for the team closest to where my parents and brother live now. So if Eli and I take in a game over a long-weekend visit, it will be the Caps.

13. The player you'd like to take for a grand night out/a movie/a boring event?

I’m picking Maxime Talbot for all three, because he is just so darn funny/cute.

14. If you could make your own team, regardless of whatever players,what would it be called and where will it be/how would it be like?

I would raise a capital campaign to buy-out the Chicago Blackhawks and return that Original Six team to its fans, local TV stations, the playoffs…in short restore it to its former glory. (It’s so poorly run right now that it would be like starting over anyway.)

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I wish I was Sean Avery's Girl Next Door...

Hey, hey everybody. My name is Kerri, and I'm *so* excited to be here. Oh, and I come in Peace.

I understand the team I'm representing is not one of the most popular teams in the NHL. (Or, they are, which makes them unpopular. Huh?) But before you get your panties in a twist (this means you, Isle/Devil fans!), give me a while to introduce myself, and my large market team. We're classy and we're cool... I promise.

Here's my survey. Enjoy it. :P.


1. Where you're from, what you do - basic things.

I'm from Long Island, New York. I'm current attending college to be a Social Studies Teacher, and I work part time at a Physical, Occupational, and Speech therapy office. I also teach a religion class and tutor academic subjects on the side. I <3 my family, my friends, and my boyfriend. Oh, and I'm getting a puppy in December. So excited.

2. Your team and why you like them.

My team is the New York Rangers. I'll blame my father for this one. He became a fan in the 70's, for no reason besides they were New York's "underdogs." (First and ONLY time I would ever hear the Rangers being described as such). Of course he made my brothers and I watch the Rangers constantly. So by the time 1994 rolled around, when the Rangers won the cup for the first time in half a century, I was thrilled and in love.

If I can't root for the Rangers, I support the Habs and the Red Wings.

3. Your least favourite team and why?

The Islanders are a fun team to hate on and play around with, but my boyfriend of three years loves them. My dislike of the Islanders has softened over my years with Shawn, but we can agree on one thing as Ranger/Islander fans; We hate the Devils. My problem with the Devils has less to do with their "the Ranger's Suck" chants and has more to do with their defensive game. On my personal opinion, the Devils have hurt hockey. Of course Devil fans disagree; and that's what makes the world go 'round.

4. Your favourite player of all time & now?

My favorite player of all time would be Mike Ritcher. He was a Ranger from start to finish, a fan favorite throughout his career, and an excellent, excellent goaltender. Arguably one of best American-born goaltenders ever, Ritcher played for the USA in two Olympics and helped lead the Rangers to the Stanley Cup. He is funny in interviews and is very smart to top off his athleticism. He just graduated from Yale, after his hockey career was cut somewhat sort due to concussions. You probably didn't want his biography, but I like to give it. I like him for what he was on AND off the ice.

As for now, I love Petr Prucha. Of course that would sound somewhat random to someone who doesn't follow the Rangers, but Petr Prucha is amazing, all 172 pounds of him. Ranger fans are constantly afraid Prucha is going to fall down one day and never get up, but he always gets up. His explanation was "in case she's watching, so my mother doesn't think I'm hurt." The future mother in me melted. He was rookie back when Crosby and Ovechkin were, so he went somewhat unnoticed. However he does score more per minute of ice time than just about anyone... (my thanks to HockeyRodent.com for this insight on Prucha). Prucha's also quite the cutie :P.

On a side note, I also love Sidney Crosby and Jonathon CheeChoo.

5. If you had to punch one hockey player or member of the NHL organisation, who and why?

Can I punch Gary Bettman? Please? I blame him for the lockout, him for taking Canadian and Northern United States hockey teams and moving them south of the Mason-Dixon line, and him for dumb non-penalties being called hooks. Ok, so they are penalties now. Doesn't mean I have to like it! There are very few players I would actually want to punch. I like gritty guys... except Cam Jannsen and Brendan Witt, 'cuz we have to play them 8 times a year.

6. What you'll be looking forward in this group blog.

I read a great quote the other day on Rangerland.net. It said something like "I don't know anything about the Red Wings because GARY BETTMAN TOOK WESTERN CONFERENCE HOCKEY AWAY FROM ME." Not only was it funny, but it's true, and it's also a shame. I read a lot of Ranger blogs, but I'm interested in learning more about hockey and the NHL in general, and that does include the mystical and scarcely-seen Western Conference. Moreover, although I do talk hockey with my boyfriend, brothers, and friends, few of my girlfriends like hockey. Actually, I'd bet most of my girlfriends have no idea who Sidney Crosby is. This is an issue for me, and I really look forward to talking hockey with girls who can

a) appreciate the beauty of the sport and

b) appreciate the beauty of the players. (hehehe)

7. What you don't like in general?

Math. Work. Blinding puke-orange color third jerseys. (Just kiddddding.) Boys, sometimes. Chippy nail polish. Global warming. Tanning salons. People hating on Britney Spears. Tomato sauce. Aaron Burr. Battery-powered computer mouses. Did I say Math?

8. What role do female fans play in keeping the game alive?

Fans in general, obviously, keep all sports alive. However, I think the individual fans of hockey play a much greater role than fans of Baseball, Basketball, or American football. These sports are built on commericals and Michael Jordan Hanes advertisements. Their news is spread in Newspapers and ESPN. In a very different way, NHL fans keep their sport around through talking and blogging. ESPN coverage of Hockey and Baseball is as different as night and day, and the average American newspaper prints a tiny blurb about what is happening around the league. I depend on the Internet for most Ranger and NHL related news (since my home newspaper, Newsday LI, focuses mostly on the Islanders), so it really is the fans and not the media who keep hockey alive.

Female fans, unfortunately, are not a predominant group of bloggers/beat writers who do write about hockey (at least, from what I've seen). This doesn't mean female fans don't play an important role; it makes the few female fans who do blog even more important. Getting back to the point of this question, female fans do have a distinct way of looking at the game. For instance, I describe hockey as a violent ballet. When people don't really "get it," I try to explain Donald Brashear (the violence) and Jaromir Jagr during his Penguin days (the ballet). (If I have some footage, even better!) My brothers and male cousins and boyfriend care about the Brashear end of it; the violence, the hard hitting, the fighting. Although I do love the violence, I also love the ballet. Hockey is Gretzky/Messier/Kurri (the big and the strong, plus the graceful and the fast) and I think females can appreciate that, not better than a male, but in a different way.

9. What role do female fans play in picking heroes for the community?

I think this goes back to what I said previously about females appreciating hockey in a different way. My hero is the gutsy player, whether he's a first liner or a fourth liner; starting goalie or the back up to the back up. While males tend to see the whole picture, females care more about the details... it's not about how many goals he scored, it's about the effort he put into those goals. Because we look closer at details, we can appreciate more fully the difference pieces to the game and I think we help give credit to where credit is do. Plus, look at baseball. You think Derek Jeter and A-Rod would be as big as they are if their female fans didn't like their smile? I don't.

10. Hockey just isn't the same without...

Can I cross out the "out" and just leave the "with?" I miss more contact in the game. Hockey isn't the same with the de-emphasis on enforcement, with the frustrating "phantom" hooking calls, and with the introduction, this year, of new jersey's. Particularly to fans of Original Six teams or other older teams, jersey's stand for their teams longevity and their teams history. If I see any Original Six team without horizontal stripes (which from what I heard, was the original plan) I am going to be one upset hockey fan.

11. If you were on a deserted island, which player would you pick to stay with you?

Mario Lemieux 'cuz he's a survivor.

12. Crosby, Ovechkin or Phaneuf (hey he tried!)?

lol "hey he tried." Crosby. Ovechkin is a great goal-scorer, without a doubt. But Crosby is a goal-scorer, a playmaker, and he makes everyone he plays with a better player. He's the new Wayne Greztky, Mark Messier, Mario Lemieux. I can't think of a current player who I can compare him to. Crosby is a leader. He may be arrogant, but he's the real deal. Don't get me wrong, I would pay top dollar for Ovechkin or Phaneuf, but Crosby is worth everything. I can't wait until he's old and wants to retire with the Rangers. I'm just kidding. Sort of.

13. The player you'd like to take for a grand night out/a movie/a boring event?

My answers are all Rangers... forgive me, but that's who I know personality-wise.

Grand night out?- Henrik Lundqvist, that hottie.

A movie? Petr Prucha (pleassse date me Pruuu).

And a boring event? Sean Avery. It would no longer be a boring event. Move over, Elisha Cuthbert.

14. If you could make your own team, regardless of whatever players,what would it be called and where will it be/how would it be like?

Medford Penguins. I make fun of the Islanders for being a suburban team, so with all the talk of the Penguins moving... I offered up my backyard. Really, I would put my team in Canada or Northern US... no more of this Florida nonsense. I should be a politician, man, I most certainly did not answer this question.

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