The Hockey Chicks

You probably already know Julie Robenhymer from hockey buzz or Flyers Buzz TV. She's the one who rolls out the red carpet for Marty during episode two (and can be seen in the preview clip below playing some bizarre game with Marty at the Skatezone).

But did you know Julie hosts a weekly webcast called The Hockey Chicks? And that chicks call in and talk about hockey? Yeah yeah, you probably already know. I guess I was the last to find out about this! In case you don't already know, or you need a reminder: the call is every Monday night at 9 PM EST. I've been listening to some of the archived episodes, and all I can say is Julie knows her stuff. She knows hockey. Wow. And, she was Miss New Jersey 2005! And she knows hockey! How cool is that?

Even cooler is the fact that she's been checking out the HLOG ladies. Last week she recounted kms2's story about her season ticket vs wedding/wedding gifts story. And on another webcast last week, she referenced Jordi's blog (she likes shoes, and therefore Jordi's blog subtitle).

So I guess what I am trying to say is: check it out! The ladies gotta stick together! And seriously, she knows her hockey!

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They pre-empted Seal on Ice for that?!?!

Thank goodness there is no Triple Crown racing in January, eh? OT and a shootout? I was shocked...SHOCKED, I say, that NBC stuck with the Winter Classic. I mean, it ran 30 minutes past its scheduled time and they didn't pull the plug. I wonder why. Oh yeah, cuz Sid was playing.

In what have must have been Gary Bettman and the NHL's dream come true, Sidney Crosby scored the game winning shoot out goal in today's Winter Classic. It couldn't have been scripted better if they tried. As much as I can't stand Crybaby, the Kid comes through when it matters. Ya gotta respect that.

I loved that it was snowing for the game. I did not love that they had to stop every 5 minutes to patch up or otherwise service the ice.

In other NHL news (wait, there were other games today? I thought all the NHL players had to be in Buffalo to watch the game...), the 28th place Capitals continue to OWN the 2nd place Sens. Now that you really gotta love!

Happy New Year everyone!

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Fantasy Hockey Update Week Seven...this is starting to get ugly!

Okay ladies, another shortened version this week, as I worked 60+ hours last week and I am on my way to work yet another crazy shift. I promise these will get back to the long version after the holidays.

First, the big news: Elly is back!! That's right, no more rogue team for us to beat up on and rack up goaltending stats! In her debut, she kicked Steph's ass, 8-2, with poor Steph only taking goals and wins. Oh well. Good luck to Leanne, who plays Murphys this week!

In other crushing blows, Kirsten finally dropped Toskala. The next night, he went and got a shutout. Damn you Vesa!!! Teka beat Kirsten 7-3 this week, thanks in part to Vinny's 4 goal week and Jussi's 4 goals (who?). Hey Teka, wanna trade Vinny for pretty Ricky? Please?

kms2 was back to her dominating ways. She beat Sherry 7-2. When I say dominated, I mean it...there wasn't really a category that was even close! I think it was because Sherry dropped Langkow like a hot potato when she heard about his concussion. I tried to pick him up, but capschick had a higher waiver priority!

capschick had a good week, beating jordi even without having Langkow on the roster for the full week. It was a pretty close matchup, and most categories were up for grabs here.

Bethany beat the snot out of Tracy this week. (I thought they were supposed to be friends!!!) Bethany's 7-2 drubbing of Tracy was helped by her total dominance in the goaltending stats, including 5 wins for the week (she only has 2 goaltenders folks...) and a minuscule 1.52 GAA. Yikes!

And lastly, leanne kicked my ass. The first part of the week was particularly bad...it was 8-0 though Wednesday. My previously stellar goaltending (Leclaire and Thomas) finally came back to earth and totally screwed me for the week. In the end, I was able to tie her in enough categories to not be embarrassed, and she ended up beating me 5-4. Phew!

That's all for now...

Matchup to watch this week: Kirsten vs capschick

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Gator gets 1000...

Well okay, so we all know he has way more than that, but since blocked shots are one of the least tracked stats, we'll have to settle with 1000 for now. That's a lot of bruises!

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Fantasy Hockey Update Week Six: The short version

Ladies, I apologize for my tardiness and the shortness of this post. I am on the way out the door to meet up with Nadine for tonight's game. I will post the long version after I get back. In the meantime, feel free to complain about last week's dismal results in the comments!

The short version:

Tracy has the upset of the season so far, SWEEPING kms2 7-0

I beat Murphys (thank god) on the minimum games rule.

Over all, the top four teams from last week stayed in the top four, we just all switched positions. Pretty much the same for the bottom four.

Matchup to watch this week: The Love Match...CBJ Love vs. Coyote Love. Can Tracy upset another top team?

More after the game...

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Fantasy Hockey Update Week Five: All bow down to kms2....

Well last week's matchup to watch was a close one, but kms2 continues to roll. She took all the goaltending stats and killed Kirsten in assists, and poor Kirsten just hung on to pick up the scraps in the other categories. Vesa is really dragging Kirsten down, yet she keeps him on the roster...and plays him!! Hey Kirsten, I'll give you Miller for Hemsky...cmon...you know you want him!

Leanne's new additions are already paying off, as Mike Richards and Patrick Kane added 3 goals and 2 assists between them to help her take those categories. Tracy took the goaltending stats as Brodeur started to get back on track this week.

Having that Crosby kid is finally starting to pay off for Bethany...she beat Jordi in G,A and PPP thanks to Crosby and Gaborik. Jordi also lost in goaltending since Biron had a rough week. She somehow managed to squeak two wins out of Khabibulin, in spite of his horrible GAA and SV%. Hey Jordi, do you want Miller?

capschick's team took offense (no pun intended) at me saying they only scored 3 goals last week...so they went out and scored 5 goals this week! If it weren't forOvie she would have only had 2 goals this week! (erm, uh, I can't really throw stones here, I only had 3 goals this week...) capschick beat teka 7-1, as teka fell victim to the "minimum games played" goaltending rule. At least teka won in PIM!!!

Sherry was able to come up with a decisive 9-2 win over our rogue team, although I am sure it has to be frustrating to lose to murphys in any category. However, elly's team does have kovalchuk and heatley, who scored 3421 goals this week...it's hard to compete against that!

Oh, remember last week when I said kms2, sherry, and Kirsten were my predictions for taking whole enchilada? I forgot to mention Steph in that group, and her team made me pay for it this week. At one point, she lead 10-0 and I was just praying that nobody on her team got aSHP so I could avoid being completely swept. Luckily, my goaltending came through on the last day and I was able to tie her up in W and SHO. I would also like to report my earth shattering -17...for this week. (I guess that is what happens when you have 42 Sabres on your team and the Sabres start sucking...)

Overall, it was a great week with a lot of teams headed in the right direction.

Matchup to watch this week: leanne vs. sherry. These two teams are really starting to roll, and it should be a close one.

Note: kms2 has proposed a change to the max number of moves (drops, adds, trades). She would like to change it from 20 to unlimited. Let her know how you feel about this either in the comments or on the league message board...

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Fantasy Hockey Update Week Three...Winning on a technicality...

So Sherry totally kicked my ass this week. She has a fantastic team, including Langkow, Spezza, Whitney and Cammalleri. She leads the league in assists and is tied for second with kms2 for goals. If I had to guess, I would say she or kms2 win the whole enchilada.

At one point early in the week, I was down 8-1. I gained a little momentum when my goalies started to play, and it looked like I was going to finish the week 5-4. (Brind'Amour's hat trick pushed me ahead in the goals category.) (That despite the fact that Pretty Ricky totally effed my SV% and GAA!!!!!!)

But then a strange thing happened...I ended up winning 8-2. Sitting in front of my computer at 3 am and waiting for the stats to update, I was shocked to see my amazing come from behind victory, even though none of my guys played on Sunday. When I dug a little deeper though, I was more shocked. My crappy SV% and GAA beat hers! WTF?

And then I remembered the minimum game rule: combined, your goalies must play at least 3 games during the week. Hers only played two games! Sweeeeeeet!! Victory is mine!!!

Other than my exciting victory, here is the lowdown:

kms2 continues to dominate: she beat the snot out of Jordi, and 4 of her players had game winning goals...this week! She has a league high 8 GWG. Damn!

Kirsten crushed Leanne, and now that I think of it, is definitely one of the other teams that could take the whole enchilada. She has a league high +/- of 27, and nobody else is even close! Don't worry though Leanne, once Gagne comes back you'll be fine. Plus you picked up a lot of great players this weekend, including Patrick Kane...who knew he was still a free agent?

I am happy to report that Tracy swept Murphys, which is a good thing, since I think this is elly's team and she hasn't even logged in since before the draft.

Teka and Steph had a good battle, although at one point Teka was up 9-0. It's a good thing Vinny had 21 PIM, or Steph would have beat the self proclaimed PIM queen in that category. (psst, teka, you are actually 5th in PIM right now.)

And then there is Bethany and capschick. Both teams had an underwhelming week, with a combined 9 goals and a - 9 for the week. With stats like that, it's a wonder either of them won any category at all...but they ended the week nicely 4-3 in Bethany's favor.

Matchup to watch this week: kms2 vs. kirsten. It's gonna be a tough one! Make sure your goalies get their minimum games in!!!

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Fantasy Update Week Three...How many centers can one team carry?

Another great week in the NON-suck league.

kms2 continues to dominate, like really dominate. she only lost in one freaking category this week (+/-) and she only lost that by three lousy points. damn girl, I think you may have done this before.

Bethany had a good week, bolstered mostly by Guerin's hat trick. Sure, she had a few assists from Sid, but overall that guy is bringing her down.

Jordi and her man Marty continue to roll in the shutouts and wins, and thanks to Marty, her week didn't totally suck.

Steph continues to be quietly consistent, not flashy with any 8-1 wins, but holding firmly in second place. Steph is head to head with Teka this week, so any hope of winning PIM is gone. Teka is owning that category. Too bad it is the only category she owns...well that and she is currently owning the basement. (Teka, you are behind Murphys..they haven't even logged in since August 29th....)

PIM is one category I can't win, and can barely get a freaking point in. I had 22 PIM this week, and I think that is more than my total PIM so far. I added 75 new centers to my lineup, just to make things interesting. My opponent this week is Sherry, and I fully expect to lose since her team is 95 percent Sens and Wild. I don't stand a chance.

Tracy was having a rough week, where at some point she was down 9-1, but she managed to win 3 categories after a great Saturday. Stupid Saturday games, they get me every time.

That's all for now...off to catch the boys at practice!

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Fantasy Hockey Update: Week Two and already I am a junkie!!

Wow, what a week. I was head to head with Kirsten (damn, it is hard to type Kirsten when your name is Kristin) and we had a great week of trash talking.

My team started off strong with about a thousand assists from Brian Campbell, and aided by the total drubbing of Vesa Toskala. At one point, I was killing her 8-1, but she had a strong finish on Sunday while Beauchemin and Preissing killed me with their combined minus 8000 for Sunday.

I would really like to thank Vesa for such a crappy week (game, actually)...Kirsten's team actually had two shutouts this week, and my lame ass goalies still came up with a better GAA and SV% thanks to Vesa.

Now, a confession. Yahoo updates their stats every night at 2:30 am EST. I know this because I wait up to see if I kicked any ass. This is gonna be a problem.

Up next....Tracy. Get yer trash talk ready!

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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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Oh Danny boy!

Thanks to Teka for posting this in the Cbox, but really, I needed to make sure everyone had a chance to see it.

Click here to see the weirdest commercial ever.

I am worried for Briere in this commercial...he looks like he is lost in a bad part of town. And what is up with the dog? And why is he calling his shots like Vincent in The Color of Money? And really, he should never try to make a mean face, it just makes me laugh.

But it does get me pumped for the start of the season (after I stop laughing of course).

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Do we have to call him "the reamer"?

Well, we picked our guy. I have a few concerns:

1) He had trouble putting his jersey on. Now I'm no expert at putting on a hockey jersey, but to me, you put one arm in, the other arm in, and then pop your head through the head hole. This character tried to put it on all at once and ended up all tangled up and gangly looking. Sheesh. Put it on like you've done it before buddy!

2) I heard one news organization call him "the reamer". Um, sorry, but I am pretty sure that nickname is taken by a porn star. Choose again.

3) He is from New Jersey, and is a Devils fan. Can he be trusted?

4) Not entirely related, but does Flyers' GM Paul Holmgren have a pulse? I'm down with the poker face guy, but cmon, get a little excited about stuff! (Great job in the off season so far, btw!)

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I'm no marketing expert, but...

So there is a huge Stanley Cup Playoffs on Versus ad featuring Sidney Crosby...on the back cover of this week's issue of The Hockey News. Now call me crazy, but if I get The Hockey News, I already know that the playoffs are underway. A similar television campaign featuring Cindy and the boys is airing during the playoff games. Again, if I am watching a playoff game, you probably don't need to tell me that it is NHL playoff time.

Shouldn't these ads be in a non-hockey related media? I checked my latest issue of ESPN the Magazine (sorry to kill so many trees, but I got this sub as a freebie last year) hoping maybe there would at least be a Crosby ad in there, but nope, no such luck.

At first I was annoyed that the NHL was focusing on Cindy and the Penguins as though they are in the Finals already, but I understand that getting the Cindy name out there is critical to opening up the sport to new fans. But if you are going to promote Cindy and the boys, wouldn't it be a better idea to do it in some non-hockey related media?

Just saying....

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He did it!

Sorry ladies, Marty is going to be a Flyer for real now!

Jordi, I didn't buy my jersey in time to jinx it!

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All Aboard!

Gosh, jumping on the bandwagon. You make it sound like a bad thing!

Last year, I was on the Oilers bandwagon. I got into hockey late in the season, just in time to watch Roloson and the Oilers play Detroit in the first game of their series. Sure, the Oilers lost in double overtime, but Roli was amazing and I jumped on the bandwagon. At the time, I didn't know it was a bandwagon, or know that it was a bandwagon that would go so far, but what a ride. My boyfriend loves former Flyer Rod Brind’Amour, so he jumped on the Carolina bandwagon. We had ourselves a friendly little rivalry that carried us all the way to the Finals. It would have been a boring end to the season without the bandwagons!


(Picture of last year's bandwagon. And yes, that is a Phillies blanket made for me by my Aunt...you know you're jealous!)

If you watch a lot of hockey (and I think most of us here do), it is natural to pick one team over the other. For example, last night I was watching the Rangers/Pens game, and for some reason, I was rooting for the Penguins. I was incensed at the Rangers second goal and was yelling obscenities at the refs. “Why did you not blow the whistle? You can’t see the puck, there should have been a whistle! You can’t decide it is a goal after the goalie gets up and you see where the puck is!!!"

But I digress.

If you watch a lot of hockey, you are going to see some teams you like and some you don’t. At a minimum, you can have one Western and one Eastern Conference team. My team is the Flyers, but I also love the Ducks. I watch a good amount of Ducks games, and although I don’t follow them as closely as the Flyers, I would consider them my other team. So, yes, I will be jumping on that bandwagon soon.

*goes to NHL.com to order Ducks gear*

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Pick a player, any player!

This year, the Flyers have had a record number of transactions. They have called up nearly every player from the Phantoms, and sent down a few surprises (hello Petr Nedved!). At one point, they had so many guys going back and forth, I was sure that I would see Forsberg playing for the Phantoms.

As a minor league season ticket holder, I was looking forward to 40 games with Ben Eager. He played October 15th vs Binghamton, and I thought to myself, “wow, he looks a lot faster and sharper than the other guys.” That was the first and last time I saw him as a Phantom this year. He has spent the rest of the season as a Flyer. He frustrates me a lot as a Flyer...his puck handling skills could use some work. During the Detroit game (or was it Toronto?) he had a clear cut opportunity to score, and opted to pass the puck instead. Argh. His skills as an enforcer and instigator and his energy are what makes him a good addition to the Flyers at this point.

Eager is currently out with an ankle injury, and the Flyers have called up my boy Darren Reid to fill his skates. Why do they have to keep taking my favorites? Reid is fantastic as a Phantom: he works hard every shift, always put himself in scoring position and gets good goals. Prior to being called up, he was our top scorer. His downside is that he is a bit of a puck hog and one trick pony…he sorta scores the same way every time. He is also a mess defensively and when he gets stuck in the defensive zone I have a little panic attack because we are likely to get scored on. I think he will be back once Eager is all better. (edit: Eager was back last night and Reid was sent down)

Two other players have been bounced back and forth a lot this year: Stefan Ruzicka and Ryan Potulny. Both of these guys have been good up with the big club, but there has been so much transition and playing around with the lines that neither has really had an opportunity to find their niche. (edit: Ruzicka earned first star honors in last night’s win over Atlanta with a goal and two assists.)

All this calling up and sending down can drive a girl crazy. I am happy to see the guys get their chance in the NHL. Usually though, this means that they were performing really well on the Phantoms, and that now the Phantoms chemistry will be a little off. Also, I worry that getting sent back down is a huge blow to their self esteem. I know I would be anxiety ridden if my boss couldn't make up his mind on where he wanted me to be!

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le petit briere

Yup, he is the one I secretly cheer for. I'm pretty sure it's because I wish he played for us, but even when his team is kicking our arse, I kinda hope for him to score. And with 3 goals (2 gwg) and 4 assists in three games vs. the Flyers, he does like to score against us.

I think I like the fact that he makes Esche look so bad too. Eschy has got to go and Briere can only help make that departure happen faster.

Oh my god, why am I telling you this? I am such a traitor...I feel so guilty!

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See ya later alligator!

As the resident Flyers hlogger, I would be remiss in my duties if I didn't blog a bit about today's trade of Peter Forsberg.

First off, let me say that I am not a huge fan of Forsberg. I realize that he is a great player and playmaker, but he is not the reason I watch the Flyers. In fact, for most of the season, I routinely bad mouthed him and demanded to the hockey gods that he be traded. I drooled over all the awesome players we could get and who else we could buy with the money we'd be saving.

Well, a funny thing happened over the last few weeks. Forsberg's foot problems disappeared and he played like he was supposed to. He played like he wanted to be traded. And his level of play brought the Flyers level of play up a bit. They played like a team. And I was happy for a few fleeting days (hours?).

So today, basking in the glow of two wins in a row, I came to the realization that he was going to be traded. Yes, that's right...I was getting in my car after work and the realization hit me.

After work, I watched Daily News Live (local sports news show) and they mentioned that he had a meeting today but did not comment on the outcome. No big deal...he has had countless meetings about his contract over the past few weeks. But still, I had a nagging worry at the back of my brain.

I got to the game a few minutes late so I missed the scratches. When they announced the starting lineup, Mike Richards was in instead of Forsberg. I got an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Then the guys came out, and they played like crap. Really. A completely different team then the last two games, which I happened to be at in person. I text messaged my first row ticket buddy because I saw that he was not in his seats. He wrote back that he was in the bar and that Forsberg had been traded to Nashville.

Whoa.

I turned to Rod to give him the news, and then the strangest thing happened to me: I started crying. Tears welled up in my eyes and I had to fight to keep it together. I felt sad for the guys down on the ice. All the hard work and challenges that the guys had overcome now seemed meaningless. They lost their captain and team mate and friend, and now they had to play like things were still the same.

I realize that this season is a total loss anyhow and that we have a lot of rebuilding to do, but it doesn't make it hurt any less when you lose an integral part of the team...

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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!

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I'd like to thank the Academy...

I really wanted to title this "hellz yeah" but at the risk of alienating everyone I thought I'd try to class it up a bit.

Hi, my name is Kristin and I am a hockey addict...

I am fairly certain that my addiction to hockey will someday cost me my job, but what the heck it's worth it.

So, without further ado, here are my answers to the questions:

1. Where you're from, what you do - basic things.
I am a Philly girl...not by birth thank god because that would mean I like the Eagles and said “wuhder” when I wanted water. I am a cheese-monger, which means I am a cheesecutter/retail slave but cheese-monger is more sinister and makes it sound like I have skillz.

2. Your team and why you like them.
My team is the Philadelphia Flyers, and I would like to take credit for their worst season ever...whatever team I choose seems to suck! I like them because they are the parent team of my real favorite team...the Philadelphia Phantoms. This year, with all the transactions, it’s like they are one and the same. It seems like the only players I haven’t seen on the Phantoms are Forsberg and Gagne. And with the way Forsberg has been playing, I figure it’s only a matter of time before I see him as a Phantom!

3. Your least favourite team and why?
I will watch any team, any game, any time. I should hate Buffalo for the humiliation they pile upon the Flyers, but they are just so amazing to watch. I guess I would have to say the Devils because they keep beating us in the shootout.

4. Your favourite player of all time & now?
Since I have only been a hockey addict/fan for a year now, my all time and now are pretty much one and the same: Ben Eager. Who? Yeah I know, no big names here and not even that great a player, but he stirs things up and gets that crazy look in his eyes after a fight. Love it!

5. If you had to punch one hockey player or member of the NHL
organisation, who and why?
Olli Jokinen of the Florida Panthers...mostly because he scares me with that big forehead of his, but also because he had the game winning goal on October 20th, which I believe sent the Flyers on their downward spiral this season. The Flyers beat the Panthers at home the last 10 times they played, and this blow to their ego shattered their self image. Also, his forehead.

6 What you'll be looking forward in this group blog.
I look forward to the challenge of keeping up with the rest of ladies. Everyone here is so passionate about hockey and writes so intelligently that I hope my passion and intelligence will be able to keep up.

7. What you don't like in general?
I hate when people sneeze. I hate stupid people. I am not a fan of children. Really, there is so much more I could write about what I don’t like, but I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot here.

8. What role do female fans play in keeping the game alive?
Female hockey fans, with their passion for the sport, are the ones spreading the word. Telling someone you are a hockey fan can open up new lines of communication. There is nothing better than finding another hockey fan or creating a new one. This season alone I have converted two people already. I am working on turning a basketball fan into a hockey fan. All he needs is one game on the ice with a good hit right in front of him...

9. What role do female fans play in picking heroes for the community?
I have tried and tried to answer this question but I just don’t have an answer. I don’t know that heroes are chosen, they just “become” so I don’t see female or male fans having a part of that. Maybe I am just naive..

10. Hockey just isn't the same without…
Fighting!

11. If you were on a deserted island, which player would you pick to
stay with you?
I am having trouble choosing one player and writing a PG rated answer.

12. Crosby, Ovechkin or Phaneuf (hey he tried!)?
Phaneuf because Crosby and Ovechkin kill me when they play the Flyers.

13. The player you'd like to take for a grand night out/a movie/a boring event?
Boring event: Robert Esche because I could talk to him about getting some glasses so he can stop some shots.
A movie: I hate going to the movies...I guess I’d take Ben Eager so when people are talking and making too much noise, he can set them straight
grand night out: Peter Forsberg because he cleans up nice and cmon, he’s Peter Forsberg

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?
The players would have to meet a strict age limit...between the ages of 19-24 and would all have to be a minimum of 6 foot 2. For some reason, I want to call them the Ice Hogs, or something equally goofy like the River Rats. I just love stupid team names like that! 3 good scrums per game would be required, with at least one fight taking place near my seats.

So yeah, that's it for now...

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