hockey
We talk pucks and objects of that kind. We yell, complain, and analyze in the language of hockey fandom. Gretzky can do no wrong.
The History of the Smythe Division
Each of the four classic divisions had a special attribute. The Adams Division had an even mix of Original Six and WHA flavor, plus there was the fact that none of the teams involved liked the Bruins. The Patrick Division struck a huge blow for pro sports in the Mid-Atlantic region. The Norris Division was quite the classic division, mainly because three of the teams were in the Original Six. All three divisions had their special features and their stories to tell.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
The Avalanche Opens on the Upswing at Brewster Ice Arena
On Sunday December 10, the Avalanche opened their hockey season at the Brewster Ice Arena versus the Rockland Rockies. With girls from John Jay, Mahopac, North Salem and Fox Lane, a downsizing of sorts has taken place since last year, which doesn’t sound like a good sign for the sport in our area. But in fact, the opposite is true.
By Rich Monetti2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 49 Recap: Preparing for the Break
The Colorado Avalanche were coming off a very big win against the Washington Capitals, where Nathan MacKinnon, well, did it again. Another four-goal game for the man leading the way in the Hart Trophy race, and five points over all in the Avs' 6-2 win. MacKinnon left that night as the points leader, but entering this night, he was behind Nikita Kucherov by one point. Seriously, this will be one hell of a race.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 48 Recap: The Natural
It's been 11 seasons, and I still can't believe we have such a superstar in Nathan MacKinnon. I remember the tail end of that shortened 2012-2013 season, and Avs fans were talking about the draft. Who would we get? Seth Jones was talked about a lot, but then this Nathan MacKinnon kid became the hot topic. So that was the name we decided to go with. We drafted MacKinnon, and he had quite the rookie year. Got his first taste of the playoffs, had 10 points. Eight of them were assists, three of them were in Game One. Back then, I thought, "We have ourselves a good one here."
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 47 Recap: Top Nate Dogg
Saturday saw the Colorado Avalanche's five game road trip come to an end. What a trip, though. Game 1 was the comeback win in Toronto. Game 2 was the heartbreaking loss in Montreal. Game 3 featured another comeback in in Ottawa, and Game 4 was a tough loss in Boston. The fifth and final game of this road trip sees the Avs in Philadelphia against a Flyers team who appears to be playoff bound.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 46 Recap: Carb Overload
It's Game Four of the Colorado Avalanche's five game road trip, and after playing three games in Eastern Canada, the boys are back stateside. This time, the Avs are in Boston facing off against the Bruins, with the game taking place on the anniversary of Willie O'Ree breaking the NHL's color barrier. This finishes off the season series, as the first meeting was a 4-3 shootout win for the Avalanche.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
A Spirit That Fears Nothing. Top Story - January 2024.
There are many sound reasons to repudiate professional sport in general and NHL hockey in particular. After all, the game has been as utterly defiled by cynical, avaricious late-stage capitalism as every other aspect of contemporary existence. The ordinary fan is incessantly encouraged by marketers and advertisers to gamble, guzzle alcoholic beverages and devour kilograms of fast food, which is a bald oxymoron if you contemplate it for a moment. Salaries are stratospherically inflated, as are ticket prices, and what passes for discourse generated by the participants in, and commentators upon, the game is so full of cliches and verbal false limbs that Orwell’s ghost will never stop screaming.
By D. J. Reddall2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 45 Recap: Still Finding a Way
Fresh off a devastating loss in Montréal, the Colorado Avalanche were off to Canada's capital, Ottawa, for the second and last meeting with the Ottawa Senators. The first meeting was a memorable one, as it saw Nathan MacKinnon score four goals in that outing. Regarding Part 2, the Avs were still looking to keep pace with the red hot Winnipeg Jets in the Central Division standings, as the loss in Montréal kept the Avs from moving past the Jets.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 44 Recap: C'est du Hockey
The second leg of the Colorado Avalanche's five-game Eastern road swing sees the team head to Montréal to face off against Les Habitants, the Canadiens. It's amazing. This used to be a provincial rivalry, as the old Quebec Nordiques battled hard against the Canadiens for sixteen seasons before the Nords moved to Denver. Even so, the teams still have a crazy connection, mainly because the Avs have taken some notable names from the Habs, and won Cups with them.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 43 Recap: The Comeback Kings
It was a day where the NFL took center stage, as this year's Super Wild Card Weekend was underway. Even so, the NHL had a stacked schedule: all 32 teams were in action. Two of them were the Colorado Avalanche and the Toronto Maple Leafs, and they faced each other. That's a marquee matchup, mainly because it pits two of the NHL's biggest stars against each other: Nathan MacKinnon and Auston Matthews. One's climbing the ladder in the points race, the other is leading the league in goals. Giddy--by God--up!
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
The History of the Norris Division
Ever since I learned about the old NHL divisions--the Adams, Patrick, Norris, and Smythe, my fascination with them has increased as time passed by. I do love reading about the Adams Division because I'm a Quebec Nordiques fan, and learning about how they fared in that division back in the day was just amazing. The Patrick Division was spectacular due to the geographical aspect, and while the Smythe Division is a story I'll delve into later, it was definitely an impactful division. The subject of this story is the Norris Division. This one was quite amazing, according to what I've read about the Norris.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
Avalanche Game 42 Recap: Impostors
Boy, does this feel good! Entering this night, I had said that the Colorado Avalanche owed the Vegas Golden Knights an ass-whipping, though it was not a few months in the making. The 7-0 drubbing that the Golden Knights gave us was just part of it. We had owed them an ass-kicking ever since the evening of June 10, 2023. What happened on that date, you ask? The Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup. Our Stanley Cup. Granted, that Cup's going to go from team to team, with some lucky teams holding it for two or three years, but still, Vegas should be thanking Seattle for that upstart upset last year.
By Clyde E. Dawkins2 years ago in Unbalanced
