We will all Never Forget - 9-11-01 to 9-11-12

It is now 11 years since the greatest tragedy in modern history has happened. The lives that were lost are irreplaceable. But we as a free country forge on in hope that one day we can all put an end to war and mortal conflict. Until then, we hold a stoic vigilance.

Mark Bavis and Ace Bailey

Hockey lost two good men that day. We all mourn for their passing.

Hockey Bloggers Mourn One of Our Own

When senseless tragedy happens, people find ways to rationalize the irrational. So, no less than 10 hours later do we all go to the computer to check the news and read about the 12 people, dozens more wounded, who were murdered in a crowded theater. One life taken that quickly is tragedy enough, but the many people who's lives will never be the same is just immeasurable.

In the hockey blogisphere, we lost one of our own with this tragedy. Jessica Redfield was a hockey blogger and journalist who was covering the Colorado Avalanche with previous interning at the AHL's San Antonio Rampage. I was a little aware of her work, but never really got to work with her or know her directly. But as soon as the blogisphere started talking about her, the more I wished I got a chance to work with her.

So, I sent out a tweet in tribute that reads as follows

From one hockey blogger to another R.I.P @JessicaRedfield

Like I said before, just one life lost is tragic, but all the lives taken that day is just as horrific. Now, poor Jessica has become the face of this tragedy. We all must cope with the loss.

Rest In Peace, Versus Network

When Comcast first approached me to advertise for them about the new channel Versus and talk about the new forms of programming, I was elated that soon I was showing just how viable I was as a blog source and respected among the mainstream media. I was glad to help them out hopefully during that time. It was a cleverly named channel, I'd thought.
Versus, the name, was the epitome of what sports was about. It was the antagonistic competition that drove the compelling narrative story - something that the audience can follow.

In the time that Versus was a sports network that dared take a chance on a lot of new programming, it grew itself into a familiar brand of sports broadcasting that featured my favorite sport of hockey. Versus was going to position itself as an alternative channel to the established networks of familiar names. They were banking on a proportional backlash that fans thought that the snobbish "Entertainment and Sports Promotion Network" looked down on. But it wasn't the only people who looked down upon the channel. Soon, some fans would turn negatively towards versus and suggest that it really wasn't legitimate because of the difficulty finding it on the channel locater or have it on at all.

It was the re-defined OLN network that Comcast used to air the outdoor sports like hunting, fishing, cycling, and motor sports. Sure, other channels did that, but not with the Comcast budget.

But as the popularity of hockey returned after the lockout, Versus grew an audience of hardcore hockey fans. They got familiarized with Keith Jones, Brian Engblom, and of course the ever-present Bill Clement. It was slowly but surely delivering the kind of content that the fans expected. When the Comcast company finally moved it to a respectable slot on the cable dial, the "stain" of a second-rate sports network was already upon it.

And don't forget the short lived gimmick PR campaign that had some unintended backfire. "Show us your V" campaign was laughed at all over the internet.

So, it had to go. Once the NBC-Universal merger came through, it was only natural to rename the Versus channel to the more familiar multi-spectral peacock of NBC Sports branding and compete with CBS, ABC/ESPN, and FOX. Today, marks the first day of that new format, so..

RIP

VERSUS

(2006-2012)

Tragedy of KHL Team Causes Hockey World To Mourn

When I spotted the headlines as soon as I felt the emotion punch me in the gut. As if this hockey off-season has to have any more tragedy, the KHL team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (Russian: Локомотив Яросла́вль) died today in a horrible plane crash that killed 43 people. Included on that plane were many familiar names of NHL players and coach.


According to the news reports, the plane had a difficult time gaining altitude as it took off from the Yaroslavl airport clipping a tower in the process. The plane touched down 9 miles away in the Volga riverbank sending flaming debris in every direction. As if the horrific sight of a crashed plane was too much to bear, searching among the debris for survivors must have been just as taxing on a caring soul.

Among the dead were Pavol Demitra, who played for the St. Louis Blues and the Vancouver Canucks and was the Slovakian national team captain. Also killed were Czech players Josef Vasicek, Karel Rachunek and Jan Marek, Swedish goalie Stefan Liv, Latvian defenceman Karlis Skrastins and defenceman Ruslan Salei of Belarus, the Emergency Ministry said.

Looking at the biggest name on the list is Demitra. He was easily in the top 5 Slovak hockey players of all time and recently retired from the national team after the Olympics. He signed on to Yaroslavl hoping to finish his career. Will this scare off a number of veterans looking to make the jump over to the KHL? Safety issues in traveling will make more players wonder if playing for more money overseas is even worth it.

The rest of the list also included coach Brad McCrimmon who became the coach only 5 months earlier. He was a Detroit Red Wings assistant who finally got a chance to be a head coach of a pro team. He too will be missed.


A part of this tragedy is not knowing or understanding what to do next. We've looked to sports on a number of occasions to revive our own lives and relieve our mourning. But when the tragedy involves the sport and no doubt bringing it to a halt, the mind will have to search for existential answers elsewhere.



[Via: Rogers Sportsnet]

Belak Found Deceased

To say that it's becoming a disturbing trend seems more and more like an understatement to me. When the news first appeared in my e-mail inbox, I was shocked and felt disturbed knowing that the body count is now mounting this off-season. Sure, tragedies will always happen, it's a fact of life. But the commonalities between the NHL players who have lost their lives are certainly not going unnoticed.

Boogard, Rypien, and now Belak have been the muscle supporting roles in their respective careers. But mostly in Belak's case, he always seemed a likable guy that was always accessible to the media. I've always remembered Belak as a Toronto Maple Leaf. He was a defenseman that can lower the boom, but his goal scoring production was far and few between. So, rather than face another term in the AHL's Milwaukee during the 2010-11 season, Belak chose retirement. The Panthers, Predators, Avalanche and Flames would also employ him in his career. He never quite got on a team that challenged for the Stanley Cup.

Belak, the person, would give a lot of his time towards the media off the ice. In times where we needed a lot of hockey players to be personalities, Belak provided a lot of content for others as well as created his own "The Wade Belak Show". Before this tragedy, he was also going to appear on the "Battle of the Blades" show for the CBC. Wade Belak was found in his Toronto apartment on August 31st. Early reports say that the cause of death isn't suspicious and pending an autopsy, the death may be ruled as self-inflicted.

[Via: Sportsnet.ca]

Tragedy Claims Life Of Second NHL Player

With the demise of Derek Boogard still fresh in the memories of all hockey fans and players, we've learned of another passing to a current roster NHL player.

Rick Rypien, an NHL player expected to appear on the new Winnipeg Jets during the 2011-12 season, was found deceased in his apartment late Monday night. According to the article, Police say that the evidence thus collected has suggested that it's a non-suspicious death.

I've read all over as these are the times that truly drops the division between hockey fans. Twitter was the point that everyone sorrowfully expressed the sad news and mournful messages about Rypien. According to the article, I see that there were also a bunch of players that have also expressed on twitter their shock and sadness.

Rypien was a good player for the Canucks and Moose with just about equal games 119 and 116 in their respective leagues. I remember him as a 3rd liner who bounced up and down from the minors. But the most memorable thing that I can say from his career was the suspension he served from shoving a NHL linesman in Minnesota. Could his actions then be more understood, in retrospect?

In the wake of this tragedy, I would hope that the NHL comes to some agreement to start making PSAs about depression and helping those seek out alternatives to suicide. The NHL has been a true leader in the fight against cancer as well as plenty other causes. Should we see this mental illness get addressed by the Leagues' PSAs?

My good thoughts and prayers go towards the Rypien family.

[Via: New York Daily News]

Mandi Schwartz Loses Battle With Cancer

Heaven's hockey all-star team has now just become co-ed. A story that I have been following for a while has met it's sad end as Mandi Schwartz succumbed to cancer on Sunday April 3rd. She was 23 years old.

She is talked about fondly by everyone who knew her as I made the trek through the Internet websites and blogs.

"She's such an inspiration," Hughes admitted. "It's weird because people who read her story or heard her story are moved by it and those of us who were here with her and have watched over the years … it's been a journey and she's been the rock through it all. She's been the steady one, the optimistic one and because of that, she's taught us so much."

Her friend and former Yale teammate, Aleca Hughes said:

"I think Mandi should be remembered as an incredibly kind and selfless person; an extraordinary hockey player and athlete who always put others before herself. I think that was a huge part of her game while she was playing, and clearly it's going to be a huge part of her legacy long after this."

I suppose this is now the hat trick of tragedy during this current season as now this makes the 3rd hockey personality to lose their life to cancer. Coach Burns, Mr. Kelley, and now Miss Schwartz.

Mandi is survived by her loving parents and her brothers most notably, Jaden, who was just selected in the first round (#14 overall) by the St. Louis Blues in last year's 2010 entry draft.

I am certain to continue to follow this story as sources that has already mentioned a Foundation in her honor. Check back to when that gets announced.

[Via: Yale Daily News and NHL.com]

[Cross posted on Confessions of a Hockey Fanatic: Blogathon Edition]

Hall of Fame Hockey Journalist Jim Kelley Loses Battle with Cancer

During my working affiliation with CJCL-AM in Toronto, ON, I had become accustomed to listening to a fascinating broadcaster by the name of Jim Kelley opine on the direction of hockey in a diverse grouping. His specialty was that as a beat writer for the Buffalo Sabres at the The Buffalo News in 1981, but also expanded to the point where he gained such national acclaim he was awarded a spot in the Hockey Hall of fame in 2004.

His career took a long bit of a journey having worked for practically all major media sources. ESPN, FOX, Rogers, and Sports Illustrated, all featured his hockey columns. With the advent of syndication over the Internet, I listened to a guy who had a mastery of communication equally paired with a volume of endless stories in his hockey world. It was a natural pairing of Kelley to Fan590's curmudgeon McCown, to which their friendship colored their discussions. Kelley had to reel in the Canadian bias with his American perspective and provide a seasoning of hope that the game he loved was being reported accurately.

Jim Kelley was old school in the way that he would rail against the new media sources of social networks in favor of the trenches of certified fact-checking. But even if he did have misgivings about the technology, Kelley filed his last column online to Rogers Sportsnet sportsnet.ca the morning of his passing. Even in an erie twist he recently served as an eulogist most recently after the death of his friend Coach Pat Burns.

I never got to work with Jim, but for a brief time we were colleagues at Fadoo.ca. He always seemed like a great guy and now the hockey world is all the more at a loss for his passing by cancer.

[Via: Sportsnet.ca]

Pat Burns Loses Battle With Cancer

By now, most of you have already heard the tragic news that one of the familiar faces in the modern hockey era has passed away due to cancer. Pat Burns was more than a "journeyman coach" as his knowledge for the game traversed many things much like his flyer miles.

He never coached in my hometown, but I do know him through his reputation as being a great coach. So, in times like this where my own knowledge of a subject is limited, I refer to other people who are in the loop. Sportsnet columnist and former Sabres beat writer Jim Kelley has perhaps the best tribute to the late coach. He recounted the wisdom passed along to him during their last meeting.

"It's pretty much like I used to tell my players," he said. "You can't complain about the circumstances, about the hand you're dealt. You just get up every day and you deal with it. It's hard, it's hard on you and it's hard on your family, but you can't change any of that. You get up, you look in the mirror and you say 'not today, you're not going to beat me today'. Sometimes you win that day, sometimes the cancer knocks you down and takes its day, but you get up again tomorrow. You keep getting up until the day comes..."

But of the things I am comfortable talking about is the way that the disease known as cancer has gotten so bad and taken so many lives, that we must all do a part to find a way to find a better cure for it. The NHL already does a lot for charity and hope that you too can find the time to contribute.

You can check out another blog I started few years ago to highlight the worthy charities and efforts of hockey people. I cross-promoted this blog post over there as well.

Sportsnet.ca - Jim Kelley

[Cross-posted @ Confessions of a Hockey Fanatic Charities Blog]

Bob Probert Dies Near Windsor Home

When most recent players announce their retirement, I feel a little old considering that I remember when they were rookies. I remember Probert's career right around the time that I started to really get into hockey. Every team feared fighting him and playing against him.

Probert played in 935 regular-season games and amassed 3,300 penalty minutes, including 2,090 PIMs with the Red Wings, which still stands as a franchise record. He compiled 114 goals and 145 assists in Detroit.

“What that does is puts a huge impact on the other team. How were they going to react and how were they going to match-up? I think there were quite a few tough guys who made money because of Bob, where teams needed to sign somebody, or have somebody to match-up with Bob Probert.

Probert passed on near his home in Windsor, ON while working on his boat. I have been reading up on some articles all over the Internet and since his retirement, his life has been resembling a road to redemption. Probert's reputation takes on a little black mark while getting in trouble with the law and dabbling in illegal substances.

But as most eulogies do, people still tend to focus on the positives as Bob Probert did a lot for the communities he was associated with.

He once donated a “significant amount of money” so a sick young boy could fly to Los Angeles for an expensive medical procedure.

“He helped save a little boy’s life,” said Ducharme. “And he wanted to do so anonymously. He didn’t want anybody to know about it. He did that out of the goodness of his heart and because he was a good person.”

The test results for an autopsy has not been released yet, but I'd be willing to bet that it was something that was heart related. Ironic. A player who had both a good heart and bad heart.

[Via: Click on Detroit & Yahoo! Sports & Detroit Red Wings Official Page]

"Mrs. Hockey" Dies

Always the model of the supportive spouse, Colleen Howe passed away last Friday due to a long illness. While the hockey world mourns, fans are encouraged to donate to a good cause found on the Detroit News Website.

The Howe Foundation is a long standing philanthropy to help people with physical ailments. From their Website:

Colleen J. Howe, President of Power Play International and Power Play Publications, Inc. has created the Howe Foundation. Colleen's great love for people and especially children gave her the vision to create a foundation that would generate money for children of all ages in need. Her mission is to improve the quality of life through developing programs for children in physical or psychological crisis. The Howe Foundation has continued to grow through the years raising thousands of dollars.

Another interesting thing about this story is finding out that "Mr. Hockey" is Catholic.

[Via: Detroit News & The Howe Foundation]

R.I.P. "Reggie Dunlop"

It is nothing really special to know that everybody has to die, but when a truly special person dies, the reminder of our own mortality strikes us all that much harder.

Paul Newman, who's legendary acting career would be recognizable to hockey fans in the iconic role of "Reggie Dunlop". Hockey players and fans still regard the 30-year-old movie, Slapshot, as the definitive example of the game on the big screen. Newman's role of an old style player/coach was portrayed with a grizzled edge that never needs sharpening. Despite Hollywood's best efforts, few actors are able to pull off the kind of cinematic magic to let the audience believe they are athletes. Newman's acting was so great in this film, audiences could actually believe he was a professional hockey player.

But if you watched Slapshot today, most of the dialog wouldn't make it theaters. It is a movie that threw around the "locker room talk" liberally in the streets, in the home, in bed, in the locker room, or on the team bus. The player/coach role is also quite outdated today. Do kids even know that was even possible?

Steve Carlson, known to everybody in Pennsylvania as "Steve Hanson", when told of Newman's passing, had this to say,

"Truthfully, I'm very saddened. Paul Newman was a great, great man. A great man. You know, we weren't actors. We were hockey players and he took us under his wing and guided us to what we had to do. With him there, we had a fabulous time doing it. He was one of the world's best actors but with us, he was just one of the boys. We laughed and had fun and worked when we had to work. We had a really good time doing that movie."

Ultimately, this is the true measure of a man when the kinds of things like the above quote is aplicable.

Paul Newman will be missed.

[Via: FOX News & NHL.com]

R.I.P. Hockey Rants (An Obituary)

The Hockey Blogging world is a little less today as another blogger has decided to give up the updates to turn his attention to other projects.

I first came across Jes Golbez's blog when he commented on mine. I was glad to see that there was somebody else on the other North American coastline that could focus on the news from that perspective. But, the Hockey Rants did not just talk about the Vancouver area, but it also covered a lot of international sports. Jes first told me that he was an enthusiast of Slavic culture, even chatted with me some late nights about my Slovak heritage.

The Hockey Rants also from time to time did some pretty controversial things. On occasion, it sidelined the hockey talk to broader topics of politics. Hockey Rants hit the American political conservatism as well as pop culture with just as much force as it did in the sports realm.

But as the website blog grew, it took on more guest writers and regular pundits to help keep the interest in the page going. Now, Hockey Rants was a more well-rounded site, covering both Southern hockey as well as European league news. With the contacts that Hockey Rants helped built, the author-creator, Jes, went on to other more mainstream website accounts. AOL Fanhouse and Hockey's Future helped bring about more traffic and attention to his site.

Jes cited that it was time for The Hockey Rants to close because the fun had disappeared.

In Memoriam:
The Hockey Rants
2004-2008

[Via: Hockey Rants]

Canuck Killed in Motorcycle Accident

COHF extends its deepest sympathy to the Bourdon family for the tragic death of Luc in New Brunswick today. Luc's sister Eve confirmed things to the CP, but not much more is known other than a motorcycle crash.

If anything good becomes of this tragedy, then let it be a lesson to all the young kids who believe they are invincible. I hope that this accident coupled with the recent Nick Bolea and Dany Heatley tragedies, then maybe this can stop. Hockey players getting cut down in their youth in high speed accents are now among the "1 too many" stage now.

[Via: FAN 590]