I admit it. I am an Oilers fan. I know I am the Habs representative here, but as supreme overlord - I call upon emergency powers and write an Oilers post (I am actually wearing an Oilers cap as I write this post). You see I have a thing for... Finnish goalies. And there's been Toskers, Kipper and "all those other guys". But Jussi Markkanen? This sounds like a job for Jordi.
If you ever paid attention to the Cup Finals you will know of the "eternally cool" Jussi. If you tuned out after your team got knocked out, all you know is "If that mask comes off ONE more time - I am going to nail it to his damn jaw!".
Jussi Markkanen is not a superstar. He is just a guy out there to do his jobs. In fact, he may be destined to a life of being the second guy. But it's the little moments where fans will go "bless his heart".
There had been a bit of a joke last season with the duo of Ty Conklin and Jussi Markkanen. Affectionately dubbed "Conkkanen" - they made made fans cry and cheer. Eventually the Oilers met Roloson. And sure he was a little shaky but he was suddenly a superstar, pushing away any question of who was to stand second to their sudden saviour.
And um, things went bad. You know the story, the Conklin brainfart and the sudden shoe-in of Jussi. There's a problem when you know you put in the third goalie. Jussi was scared, you could basically see his nervous nature plain and clear. But he played anyway. And not once did you suddenly see Jussi lose it and murder the hell out of Marc-Andre Bergeron.
When Jussi is cold and scared - it looks like this. In fact, it's his almost fustrating nature that makes me smile and want to rewind and go "Did you see him do that!?". When he sees the puck move to a blind spot, he makes an actual star shaped sign with his body. To call him 6 feet would be pretty generous. Even in the games now, you can almost see his discomfort in the nets. When he comes out to play the puck, something he doesn't mind doing, he doesn't try to be fancy or do a Marty Turco. I do how ever freak out still when he goes out for bizarre reasons and the Game 6 of the Cup Finals where he made a failed poke check and Greene was in the way creating an empty net situation. Seriously, I still have nightmares.
And you know the part where the goalie slides the puck under them and lies on the ice straight to freeze it? This usually happens when the goalie knows the puck's there but doesn't know where. Jussi tends to sometimes have that happen a bit. And then the fans are treated to a show of snowangels.
Fast forward a bit, look this guy took us through the finals? He deserves to at least have a couple of starts? Well recently he got a lucky break against Columbus (I call it the day Jussi made Rick Nash his bitch) and LA. And there was the Canucks game where everything fell apart. (This was where you actually got to see the angry side of Jussi. You knew he wasn't talking to the guys tonight.) Roloson now looks like a guy who's really tired having been ridden way too hard, and Jussi looks like a scared girl on her first day of school. But Jussi has proven that he can do it if you apply the pressure and at least give him a job bigger than bench warming or bottle holding. Why? Because he's done it before silly!
Rewind to the days of a lockout. Jussi decided to go to Russia. Sure that sounds good enough. Picked up by Lada Togliatti which I thought was a team just as fictional as Jokerit, he played defensive hockey to the max alongside Viktor Kozlov, Alexander "not Ovy" Semin and Dainius Zubrus. He posted 11 whole shutouts and one playoff shutout, including a jawdropingly low 1.20 GAA. He was on fire, and when he came back people were confident that he would be able to turn some heads. Unfortunately the grind was not to his liking and he floundered with his duties. He may be a solid 1-B goalie and some people have suggested that the Roli and Jussi duo may be more of a 1-A 1-B tandem, because of Roli's endurance and Jussi's... well inconsistency. However one goalie gets paid starter money (can you guess which one!?). For now, all hail Jussoloson. Or Rolkkanen.
In his spare time, Jussi idolises Jari Kurri and bleeds copper and blue (despite being a fifth pick). To play for the Oilers has always been his dream, even if he had been traded to the Rangers for a short time. He has a loving wife, children and his own SM-Liiga Hockey Team "Saipa" which he partly owns. He has the experience of playing in Tappara (which was the same club that churned out Niemenen) in 2001 where he was awarded the Urpo Ylönen trophy which is Finnish for "Crazy Ass Goalie". The trophy had already been awarded to Kipper and later on, Kari Lehtonen. At the end of this season he will be a fresh new UFA, most likely seeking to return to the Oilers. However if the worries of Smyth continue to plague the team, he may start searching a new place to call home.
By the way, Jussi does not look like Nick Carter. Unfortunately, he did not had the advantage of attending the school of parting your hair in creative and flattering ways.
By the way I found a little image of the Lada jersey and his name on the back in Russian. How kickass is that?
Friday, February 02, 2007
*puts on Oilers tinfoil hat* aka Juicy Jussi!
Monday, January 29, 2007
Miller Robs Him Blind!
The Sabres starting goalie is Ryan Miller, he of the (now slightly less) long flowing locks. As those of you who watched any of Versus' playoff coverage know, he's 26 years old (he had a b-day since then), went to Michigan State, and is so thin his leg pads have to be specially fitted for him. After a very good college career which included a Hobey Baker Award (outstanding men's hockey player), Ryan struggled some in adapting to the professional game. He's very philosophical and in his own head and that really worked against him. If he gave up a goal it seemed to completely derail him which is a problem since most goalies do tend to give up the occasional goal. He would get fixated on his mistakes and had a difficult time putting them behind him. Many Sabres fans remember him getting beat in Detroit (in front of many friends and family members) and then breaking down and crying through all his post-game interviews. The boy, he was fragile.
Something happened though and he managed to find some mental toughness. Sometimes it's hard to remember that last season was his first as the starter. Unlike the days of yesteryear, poor performances seem to spur him on. If he has a bad game, he's almost sure to follow it up with a great game. When he wasn't selected for the Olympic team last year, he went on a hot streak, seeming to play especially well against teams whose coaches or GMs had something to do with the selection process. His style is a bit of a mish-mash. He's very athletic, but he rarely has to make highlight reel saves because he's almost always reading the play and in position for the shot. He's a perfect goalie for the Sabres style of play. Because the offense is so agressive and the defense is often joining in on the rush or pinching in, we give up a pretty decent amount of odd man rushes and good scoring opportunities. Ryan never seems to panic in those situations and he rarely bites on a deke or a fake. He always lets the shooter make the first move. Despite the fact that he didn't look great in the shootout portion of the skills competition the other night (perhaps he was trying to sucker the Western Conference into thinking he has a glaring weak spot?), I think he has to be one of the best breakaway goalies in the league. I'm always a little shocked when someone scores on him in that kind of situation.
A rare highlight reel save from just a few weeks ago against Boston:
I love watching Ryan during the national anthems. He stands in his crease and turns toward the Canadian flag, looking up at it during O, Canada. Then when The Star Spangled Banner starts, he turns toward the U.S. flag. Him staring up at that flag with the flag super-imposed on the ice around him is an awesome image. Before every game he stands at the bench, chin resting on his stick, in a few long moments of meditation. (See Paige's post for a great photo of this.) The only superstition I know of is the Miller spin. At intermissions, he's the last Sabre off the ice. He skates to the doorway, stops, and spins around before exiting. If you ever see him play live, watch for it. It's kind of cute.
I totally adore Marty Biron so it took me a while to warm up to Ryan but the kid's growing on me. He's so laid back it's hard to not like him. He's kind of a quiet, go with the flow guy. He's a funny interview because he almost comes across as indifferent. I'm sure he enjoys parts of his growing stardom, but he seems like someone who just can't really be bothered with it all. He seems amused more than anything. I personally don't get the appeal (give me Gaustad!), but Ryan is super popular with the puck bunnies and preteens of the world - you could tell he had stopped to sign autographs at the team scrimmage in the preseason by the rising shrieeeeeeeeeks coming from all the 12-year-olds. He's also one of the most popular with kids. Ryan is very, very sweet with fans as far as I've seen however and has a smile for everyone. GM Dary Reiger has been very upfront about the fact that the organization feels the team should be build around the goalie position and if he has anything to do with it, Ryan will be standing in the crease for Buffalo for a very a long time.
A few words about Marty Biron, one of the league's best back-ups. Many of you love Marty so I won't go on about his charming personality, his beautiful eyes, his friendly, talkative nature, or his team-first mentality. Marty is a great back-up and will probably be a solid starter if not a star. He makes a lot of great saves but usually lets in one softie a game. He plays with spirit and never hesitates to leave the crease to charge a skater or poke a stick at a guy and he's totally willing to mix it up when necessary. When Scott Nichols sucker-punched Jaroslav Spacek, (which Spacek admittedly kind of earned) the first guy on Nichols was Marty. Many a team has been torn asunder by a goalie controversy but the Sabres have thrived (mostly - let's ignore the last month or so please) under the two goalie system and it's largely because of Marty. He's been very honest about the fact that he'd like to get more starts (and he should be starting more in my opinion) but he's never let it dim his awesome personality. Lindy is on the record as saying that he believes part of the reason Ryan had such a great season last year is because he had Marty behind him offering support and encouragement whenever he needed it. Because we have a little group of players who have come up through the system together (Pominville, Roy, Miller, Vanek, Mair etc.) chemistry is one thing we don't really have to worry about in Buffalo, but I know the lockerroom will seem a little bit darker once Marty moves on. If he ends up on your team, I want your solemn promise that you'll love him and enjoy him as much as Buffalo has. Got it?!
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Okay, I need to stop getting seats behind the net!
Goalies. I think all the stereotypes are true.
I have been searching for quotes about goalies that I have read over the past year, but can’t find them of course. Hopefully someone else’s post will be chock full of quotes.
I love watching the goalie come out at the start of the period and make the crease his own. They seem to have a million little tics and superstitions and things they do to prepare for the game. I love how they sweep their stick across the crease after being scored on, as though they are sweeping away the bad energy. I hate when another player comes over and taps the goalie on the knee after a great save...I worry that they are jinxing him.
I love when goalies do eye exercises. I watched one visiting goaltender look left/look right/look left throughout the entire national anthem. Very strange birds indeed.
I also love during warmups when the other players crowd around the goalie and totally mess with him. My favorite part of the entire game! (I know that is not entirely goalie related, but I thought you needed to know that I love that!)
My favorite goalie, Scott Munroe (don’t worry, he will be in the NHL next year, I promise) has a very zen approach to the whole thing. He takes his job very seriously, and appears to be meditating before the game. He also appears to be emotionally scarred after any puck gets by him.
Although I have not been the victim of a goalie crush (yet), I can definitely see the appeal. As my friend said (red faced) at her first hockey game while watching the goalie warm up right in front of us, “I bet goalies get all the girls…”
edit: Okay, so now all my favorite players are goalies: Leighton, Lehtonen, Biron! Help!
Saturday, January 27, 2007
So... ah... Aebischer, you know what Swiss Cheese is?
(Sorry for not posting much - really. Your overlord is so sorry, will you accept her peace offering? Just lotsa work on the block recently.)
Before I go on any further, Huet's last name has always become a topic of debate to fans. Is it the Huet that all those darn yanks keep including? Or is it the elegant Ew-ay? Huet doesn't give a damn. You could call him Hewitt if you wanted to and he'll smile back with his great French charm.
Back onto the goalies. As Huet was already covered, I shall move onto Aebischer whom I assure you is every bit as interesting as that guy. This season, he unveiled his new mask with the feature of a Quebec license plate with the words "ABBY". I mean boys are getting Nickelback and stuff but aint this stylish?
Many people first think of Huet first before this young boy. Acquired in the blockbuster trade with Colorado where we offered an expensive bag of pucks and got this guy in exchange, Avs fans were patting themselves on the back for their recent acquisition. After all, players like Roy continued to sizzle after they left the Habs and Theodore was not by any means an old washed up goalie.
Leaving the issue of Theodore just at that, I have no wish to analyse why Habs fans did not enjoy Theodore or whether they are justified because of their reasons. The real topic is Aebischer. When this season started, people were still unsure on who was to be the starter. Ultimately it seems that we have created a goalie situation that some teams would envy. Huet could make stellar saves but what Aebischer lacked in flash, he made up for in what was consistency most of the time.
Recently, there were surveys of who Habs fans felt was ready to leave the team. Aebischer was one of the popular choices. But I have to ask you all, are you ready to give up a player who has once stopped 50 shots in a single game and bring it to overtime? Sure it's not always a quality shot - but eventually goals trickle in. Aebischer can handle the load of an intense game. And he doesn't need a lot of starts to be able to catch fire and go on a hot streak. For 1.9 million, he can be quite a steal.
With the Avs Aebischer has actually won a Stanley Cup, his name engraved in 2000-2001. What else can I say about this Swiss goalie apart from his accomplishments? I am not really one to explain whether he is insane or not, but he does have a great personality to match. However Swiss players are winners, Roger Federer knows.
Friday, January 26, 2007
It's Miller Time
"The best chance Buffalo has to change it's sports history comes down to the space between Ryan Miller's ears. --- The good news: He seems ready." -The Buffalo News
The quote above says it all. Miller is the heart of Buffalo's sucess, saving us time and time again. I'm so very glad I finally have a chance to blab about my dear Millsy (as his teamates call him).
Millsy is perhaps the just plain weirdest dude I've heard of. Anyone who describes him usually mentions "intense." The Buffalo News showed an article on him, where his father describes Miller as "A baby who you would poke in the ribs, and instead of giggling he would look at you with a look on his face saying "What was that for?"." He is so serious about what he does that he has a sports psychiatrist who sometimes even travels on the road with him. Of course, Miller is royalty in Buffalo. Listen to this, which I found in the same article in the Buffalo News:
"Amanda Shultz, a waitress at Pearl Street Grill where Miller ate that late autumn lunch, took one look and called her mother, Patricia. "Mom, guess who is here," she said on the phone. "God is here." "
^I LOVE this picture, but I'm not sure if I should be insulted by it.^
Also, Miller has a distinct pregame ritual that he does before every game. He is so into the routine that he doesn't seem to notice cameras or even screaming fans. I have a funny habit of mimicking him when I'm concentrating really hard. Especially the way he stretches his neck. You can see his weird tactics on you tube.
So, that's my grub on the one, the only, "MILLLERRR...!" as Rick Jeanneret might say. He is just so amazing at what he does, and so exciting to watch. He was the All-Star starter goalie too.
Just to throw this in: Have you ever noticed that most goalies tend to be number 30, or a number in the 30's? Either that, or their are a few that are number 1, Emery and I think Luongo. Just something to think about.
Speaking of All-Star game, let me take the chance to praise my Danny Boy. It turns out he is more "petit" than Heather B. might think. It turns out he is admittingly 2 inches shorter than his statistics say, making him a mere 5 ft. 8 inches. He was often told that it was too bad he wasn't 6 foot 1 inch, or he could be a great hockey player and make the NHL. Then, after the Pheonix Cyotes dropped him, he thought of traveling to Europe to play. Luckily, the Sabres got hold of him (in exchange for a better draft pick). Good thing they did, because we now have the MVP in the NHL. Danny is leading us on our quest for the cup! (I just hope we can keep him since he's a free agent after this season.)
Bring on the Straitjackets!
I am a firm believer that anyone who voluntarily becomes a goaltender is completely nuts. If someone said to you, "put on this plastic mask and a few pillows - I'm going to fire a piece of frozen rubber at your head (or worse, your groin)" the first response would probably be to run away. At least, that's what the normal, sane response would be. Goalies are another breed, though. They have to be. You can't go through what they go through and not be some sort of mutant human.
Olie shows off his wicked left hook
(by the way, this is my favorite Olie picture EVER!)
Johnny says "Hello" to Dan Boyle
Too darn cute for words, right?
Of course, they may be spending too much time together lately. Olie has long been known for having a quick temper that he's had to learn to control over the years, and many a goalie stick has met it's violent death after a bad goal. So imagine my surprise when the normally mild-mannered Johnny did a perfect imitation of his mentor during the most recent Buffalo game:
Olie? Is that you?
They have great personalities and together are hilarious, but most of all I love what these guys do every night on the ice. They've given this team more chances to win this season than they probably deserved and have been a big reason for the team's relative success to this point. It's comforting to know, then, that both should be around for at least a little while longer. Olie has made it clear that he wants to finish out his career here in DC, hopefully with a Cup run, while Johnny has recently been signed to a two-year contract extension. Yay!
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Hip Hip... HUET
Dude, the Montreal Canadiens have always been known for three things.
- Insane Fans
- Insane Quebecois Press
- GOALIES
It doesn't MATTER if Jose Thedore slips and falls on the ice after having a craptastic season and breaks his heel or whatever the heck he broke.
The Montreal Canadiens have DEPTH in net.Right now, the Habs are one of several teams in the NHL that are working the two goalie system. You really can't call Cristobal Huet the "starter" over David Abischer. That said. I'm all about Huet.
Not that Abby's not great. He is.But Huet came in when the Habs needed him the most. When Theodore was sucking a nut. When we needed a strong presence in net to make the playoffs. Huet was there.
Now, as we all know, I normally have a thing for the Hottie McHotties in this league, as long as they're great players. I'm also big on guys with BIG personalities.
Huet isn't exactly either of those things. He's good - but he hasn't been great.
He's not Jose Theodore HOT, but he's not Patrick Roy dirty hockey ugly.
But for the Habs, he plays good, solid hockey and has helped the team have one of the best PK units in the league this year.
Abby's been there too, helping out along the way, but I for one, will forever remember the first time that I cheered, hip, hip... HUET.
Read More......His name is Raaaaaaaay: Part a Million
Seriously, who doesn't know all about super-fly-ghetto fabulous Ray Emery by now?
Mr. Emery, otherwise known as Em, otherwise known as Sugar Ray, otherwise known as Rayzor [the REAL Rayzor! That thief in Toronto is unworthy] is the newly minted number one in Ottawa after out-playing and generally out-cooling the free agent albatross known as Martin Gerber.Emery played for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in the OHL and was named Top Goaltender of the entire CHL in 2001-2002. He moved on to the Binghamton Senators in 2002-2003 where he made the All-Rookie team in 2003 and had a couple of stints with the big club.
Our boy is a boxing fan as he's been known to be quite the fighter. During his stint in the OHL he had 4-on ice fights in 2000-2001 and during his time in the AHL he was suspended twice. In 2003-2004 he was again suspended, this time for 5 games for swinging his stick at Michel Ouellet.
His antics didn't stop as he drew the ire of the rather conservative Senators front office with tales of cockroach eating, inviting the press along while he got inked up, bleached hair and masks with Mike Tyson on them. When Old Man Hasek's duct tape and paper clips fell out of his groin, Emery let his play do all the talking by setting a record for wins in the 2005-2006 season. He won his first 9 games and tied Bernie Parent's record of most wins in a month with 12 Ws in March. He helped the Senators through the first round in the playoffs although his inexperience was certainly evident against a stronger Buffalo team.
After the Senators were bounced from the playoffs, people were still tentative about whether or not this guy was indeed the answer to the Senators' perpetual goaltending woes. Cue Gerber, the large contract and what was supposed to be goaltending security. However, Gerber proved the theory that sometimes numbers don't lie as he struggled greatly throughout the season. Emery was called in and stole the show as he solidified his position as the go-to guy. He's a key component in the Senators' success despite being out Mike Fisher and Jason Spezza.
I have no doubt in my mind that Emery should be number one. I'm on record in saying that I thought bringing in Gerber was a good idea simply because it was a logical move to make. Hasek certainly wasn't going to be brought back and Gerber was the best goaltender available. Sure, he stunk during the playoffs but you could rationalize and say that was because he was ill and his psyche was effected as a result of having to play even though he wasn't 100%. He may have put the Senators in a bit of a situation financially, but if anything, his presence helped push Emery to work harder and develop his own skills. He's a competitive guy by nature and to have that sort of motivation must have done wonders for him. Emery is characterized as an athletic goalie with great lateral movement. He's a rare breed in goaltenders in that he's a big ball of weird. While he's curbed some of his bad boy wild antics in the past little while [well, I don't know if he's curbed them, we just hear less about them] you can still see him show up in some interesting suits and hear stories of him asking his parents for 3-foot ball pythons for Christmas. And I love that he's a freak of nature and that yes, he probably could kick your arse.
The Ideal Game
In no specific order:
1) The right arena music: Nothing kills the mood more than a poor choice of an accompanying soundtrack.
2) Big Hits - The kind that make you go "MAN, IF I WAS SITTING CLOSER I COULD HAVE DIED!"
3) A Tight Game - I'm one of those people that get nervous and stressed easily. But heck, if your team is running away with it, then it just isn't as interesting, is it?
4) A Hat Trick - Because I'm really curious as to whether or not you get your hats back. I will pretend to throw one but secretly put it back in my seat.
5) FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! - One where the players on the bench bang their sticks on the boards, you're up on the edge of your seat and one that just sparks something in the crowd.
6) Break! Away! - Preferrably one where the guy just stepped out of the penalty box. If it's against my team, the one where the goalie just makes a save that you know won the game for you.
7) A Backstory - Whether it be an old teammate visiting, or an old coach, like Primetime television, it's just not the same without a little bit of drama.
8) Somebody Mic'd Up - Throwing out gems like singing "Mr. Brightside" horribly [or adorably].
9) The Three Stars come out on the ice - And give their sticks to the kids in the crowd.
10) The High-Fives - For both teams, even the visitors to acknowledge the kids hanging over the railing, just looking for some acknowledgement because it's the fans that make it.
Read More......
Miikka on parhaiten maali! Noodles - not so much
Flames' goalie, Miikka Kiprusoff, is one cool cat. Maybe not as cool as Raaaaaaaaay but he's a different kind of cool. Miikka hails from Turku, Finland and has played for Team Finland in the 1996 WJC, 1998 and 2001 World Championships, and the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.
Kipper, as he's known, started his NHL career with San Jose in 2000, playing 5 games that season. Luckily for Flames fans everywhere, he was traded to Calgary in 2003 and led the team to the Stanely Cup finals. Alas, they lost in game 7 to the Lightning (forgive me, it's still painful). Kipper was nominated for the Vezina but didn't win until he was nominated again in 2006 and he won, also taking home the Jennings trophy.
Last year, it seemed like every single game I listened to, the commentators just had to talk about how flexible Kipper is - Did you know he stretches FOR THREE HOURS A DAY? Crazy, I know. Ninety minutes before and after the game. Is that even possible? Anyways. It's old news now.
Kipper may be the most unflappable goalie in the league. He never seems to show any emotion, negative or positive. If he lets in a goal, he just pops up the helmet and takes a drink like nothing happened.
Usually, he's scruffy like a puppy which is why I was shocked to see his makeover for the All-Star game. I know the Flames are having a sideburns growing contest, so I was expecting those on Kipper but the hair-do? The suit? Clean-shaven? He's a new man.
Miikka's backup goalie is Jamie "Noodles" McLennan. Noodles doesn't play much but he's always got things to say about everyone. I would like him a little more if he didn't have such a lame mask.
James Joseph's hair used to bug me too, but he recently got it cut into something much more current and stylish. McLennan has been around for a quite a while, starting with the New York Islanders in the 1993/1994 season. From there, he played with the St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild, Calgary Flames, New York Rangers and Florida Panthers before coming back to the Flames this past summer.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Weekly Topic: Jan. 22 - 28: Goalies
We've covered quite a bit about our teams but have not yet talked about those guys who are the last line of defense, those guys who have weird rituals that no one understands, those guys who are the goalies. What's your goalie like? What's the back-up like? Should they switch roles? Any strange rituals or quirks? Share!
