Hockey: Please Don't Change

Two teams strap on the blades and cover themselves in their protective gear as they prepare for battle on the frozen field. Back and forth they go, each struggling for an opportunity to give their team a lead while striving for a victory. Elbows rise, sticks slash, bodies are banged against an unforgiving wall but if the powers that be have their way, gone will be the one thing that truly makes the game of hockey the exciting sport it has always been.

I consider myself a hockey purist. Nothing thrills me more then seeing a team move the puck down the ice; completing the perfect passing play; finished off with a puck in the back of the net. Afterall, that is the object of the game...to score.

However, there has always been the game within the game. Teams genuinely disliking each other, players trash talking in the hopes it may give them an edge. And above all else, fighting was a part of the game. I say "was" because for some reason, the mama's boys in charge of overseeing our game have deemed fighting to be unnecessary.

I truly believe the smart people in control of the games destiny never actually played the game and can't understand why fighting should remain an important part of the sport. Honestly, when was the last time you went to a game and the fans booed because a fight broke out on the ice? I'm betting never.

Fighting has its place in hockey. As someone who has been around the game for a while, mostly at the Junior level, I have witnessed first hand how a little intimidation can turn a game or series around. Several years back a team I support was trailing in a series against a more skilled hockey club. After a bench clearing brawl took place and our team put the fear of the almighty in the opposition, they were done. They were skilled but after that they shied away from every hit and wouldn't battle for pucks in the corner. We ended up winning a championship that season.

Some would say it's a scare tactic that doesn't belong and to them I say grab your purse and spend your time watching figure skating instead.

Of course a donnybrook doesn't happen very often and I don't think it's something I'd want to see all the time. Ok, once or twice a year would be fun. No, I think every team should have two or three enforcers to get the job done. The problem is the enforcer is becoming a thing of the past because people think we need to see the smaller, faster, skilled players.

Call me crazy but I can remember watching plenty of skilled players long before the sissies took over running the show. Those players could either fight their own battles or they had teammates who would do that job.

Gordie Howe was one of the best hockey players of all time and he could take care of himself. Wayne Gretzky had Dave Semenko to protect him. Al Secord scored 30 goals and had over 300 penalty minutes in a season. Chris Nilan, Tie Domi, Tiger Williams, Dave Schultz and Tim Hunter all had high penalty numbers but still managed to contibiute on the scoresheet.

My point is, fighting and enforcers have their place in the game. It is a part of the sport I love and while I appreciate the skilled players like Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin or Joe Thornton, I still enjoy watching guys like Donald Brashear, Brad May, Chris Neil and Steve Ott drop the gloves and settle things like men.

Last thoughts...when was the last time you saw a player seriously injured from a hockey fight? Now think about how often you see players badly injured by high sticks. I ask you, what is the bigger fish to fry?

Here's a fight video I thought you might enjoy. If not, then I'll try and find some exciting curling action for you next time.

Blue Jays Memory

It's hard to believe that its been 13 years since the Toronto Blue Jays won their last World Series. It doesn't seem that long ago.

Do you remember where you were when Joe Carter hit his historic series winning homerun? I do.

I'd like to say I was at the game but that wasn't the case. I did want to be in Toronto in case they did win to take part in all of the madness in the streets.

My friend Matt Goodman and I drove up to try and watch the game in a Toronto bar but they were all full. You couldn't find a seat or table anywhere on or just off Younge Street.

So we did the next best thing, we made our way down to the HMV Music store to watch the game with thousands of other fans on their massive screen on the front of the building. We were a little ways back but we could see the game and there was a van with huge speakers broadcasting the play-by-play on the radio.

It looked hopeless until the final inning when the Jays managed to rally. The police were standing by in riot gear and on horses waiting for something to happen. The police command post was just down the road from us as well.

When Joe Carter hit the homer to end the game and the series, the streets exploded in celebration. We were hugging and kissing people we didn't even know. People were smoking maijuanna next to cops and they didn't care. Nobody tried to riot or cause distruction. It was very peaceful but insane as well. Thousands of people quickly became tens of thousands and we were shoulder to shoulder on Younge Street barely able to move. You were at the mercy of the crowd and where it moved. You had to struggle to get out of the crowd and by the time we did we were two blocks south of where we started. It was an experience of a lifetime but I'd never do it again. The noise was deafening.

People were hanging from trees and street signs and traffic lights. To this day I still can't believe that many people were jammed into the downtown core and no real trouble happened.

Big Deck

Boston Trip

I recently went on a trip to Boston with our local Junior Hockey team and had a great time.

It was my first time visiting the historic city and although I spent most of my time in hockey rinks or the hotel, we did spend one day in downtown Boston.

Here's a photo we took outside the original Cheers Pub on Beacon Street downtown and across from Boston Common Park.

I'd be lying if I said the walk to Cheers was a piece of cake because it wasn't. The bus dropped us off at Quincy Market which was filled with all kinds of stores and restaurants and another Cheers Bar that was made to look like the one on the TV show. However, that wasn't good enough for some of us. We needed to see the original bar which was called the Bull and Finch Pub and was the one the idea for the sitcom really came from.

It was probably the hottest day of the year as the temperature was a blistering 100F and I could feel the heat radiating off the sidewalks, cobblestones and pavement. I was dying before we even began. The distance one way to the bar was about 1.5 miles which isn't bad but we had to travel up and down Beacon Hill on Beacon Street in both directions. By the time we go there I was more then ready for a break and some air-conditioning.

The pub itself was quite small in the front but there was more seating upstairs and in the back. It was neat seeing the front of the building as we recognized it right away. Then we got to walk down the famous set of stairs into the bar. I could just imagine the other famous and historic people who have walked down those same steps over the years.

While there I managed to buy a couple of things for my dad and myself. We also took time to pose for a few photos to record the occasion before we started our journey back. The route also took us past the famous Boston Common Park which is quite huge and was filled with all sorts of people doing many different things. It was also interesting going by some of the old buildings and churches and seeing a couple of ancient graveyards right in the middle of the city.

The trip overall was well worth it. The visit to the city was exciting, the hockey was entertaining and the company was fun. I don't know if I'd ever go back just for a vacation but at least I can say I was there.

Bundy's New Blog Home

Sadly my previous host for the Bundy Blog has decided to call it quits, thus forcing all of us who used the service to seek shelter elsewhere.

So for the foreseeable future, this well be the new home for Bundy's Blog.

Please change any bookmarks you might have had to my previous site so you can be sure to read all my future musings.

Let me know what you think of the new look by adding a comment.

It is also my intent to move some of my previous postings from my old blog site to this one so don't be surprised to see items that look familiar.

Thanks

Bundy