Tag: Hockey

Why in the world would you expect a Canadian blogger not to have a hockey tag?

An Epic Night and Journey to the Epic

An Epic Night and Journey to the Epic

Following the subway ride, I ended up on good old St. Andrew Station in Downtown Toronto on a Just above freezing evening. I was a bit hungry so as I wandered Downtown I was looking for somewhere no but ended up going to Hooters on John St.. The meal was good I had the Steak Spice Quesadilla and it was really good. There was a hockey game on so, I enjoyed the meal and a beer, game, and people watching until about 1 am. After that, I left and continued to wander down John to Queen West and then stopped at the McDonald’s at Spadina. Since I had time to kill, I stayed at the McDonald’s for just over an hour to charge my phone and people watch with a coffee and a muffin. This area in the daytime is high class, in the evening it is just high. I sat up on the second floor and there was a guy at the end of the booths that kept being woken up by security, it looked like he was very impaired. Then going in and out of the washroom was an uncomfortable assortment of people. Prior to leaving I needed…

The banged up emotions, banged up car, and big boom finale

As we left off the quest, I was on the back roads of southern Ontario, with the Spotify music pumped. I was taking the back roads partly because it was taking everything to keep myself together, and partly because the 410, 407, and 401 scare the hell out of me. It was at this point, I decided that seeing Niagara Falls wasn’t going to happen with the gloomy dark cloud of depression. It was also raining and cloudy too. After close to 2 hours, I arrived in Kitchener and the sun came out there. I managed to find a convenient little parking spot and walked down Festival street. I have written before about Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest but there is something about this festival that in its own special way brings it over the top. There seems to even be a much higher percentage of people in a traditional dress than you even see in Munich. The Rogers Hometown hockey was there and there was a beautiful smell in the air that brought nostalgia back. Like most things, however, the second time is just not the same and the depression came back. I grabbed a sausage and water and then went to…

Off To The Death Camps

Off To The Death Camps

Sundays are typically good quiet days to reflect on the week that has passed. It is now September 18th. We are leaving Vienna, and for the first time in weeks, I am not hung over. After a decent but shorter ride we arrive at Olympia Olomouc mall in the Czech Republic and there is a TV in the middle playing a Canada vs Czech Republic game from a tournament being held in Canada. Canada was of course winning. Go Team Canada! However, it was thee lunch stop and since we were at a food court I had to try local food… I at at this local place that serves fried chicken in wraps called KFC. Back on the bus and we arrived at the Birkenau concentration camp. It had gotten really foggy, dark, and cool as we arrived there with spots of rain. It was very spooky. I went in two of the buildings and there was lots of Jewish groups having guided tours. I didn’t read most of the plaques or go in most of the buildings, the place just hit me with sorrow and I just wandered around the paths. Next we went across the street to the…

The QMJHL finals come to Saint John & Moncton

Last night I was at Harbour Station for the game 6 of the QMJHL semi-finals which the Sea Dogs took a 7-1 victory to end the series 4-2. Despite this, I really think this could cost them dearly. They should have done it in 4. Taking so long well proves that they may not have the steam left that Moncton clearly has in them. This next series will be much more than interesting as the Sea Dogs will give it everything they have left and will not go quietly in the dark. My prediction is that the Moncton Wildcats take the finals in Game 7.

QMJHL Semi-finals Game 2

QMJHL Semi-finals Game 2

Tonight I decided to go see a Sea Dogs game at Harbour Station. If it goes poorly this could be the last game of the year at Harbour Station. Perhaps with all the hockey I’ve done recently on Rogers TV, this is rehab. Even Christina Rogers was here. The game is starting out very tense, there should be some penalties soon. Although there are slot of people here there are many empty seats. Yeap, there was a tripping penalty and the Tigres have a power play heading into the 2nd Half of the first period. Now the Tigre have a penalty and the Sea Dogs will get a power play in a minute.

What a year this has been!

I started writing this on December 29th but researching the links has taken some time, in fact much longer than I thought to find all the links. I have defiantly accomplished a lot this year, looking back this has been the best year in a while. Of the things that stand out as my holy crap moment of the year was standing at the window in the Vancouver airport with the setting sun breaking a bit through the clouds. That was the moment it rang true to me that mountains were more than just really big hills. One of the biggest events that kicked off the year was the 2009 Atlantic Major Midget Regionals at the LBR. This one event not only was my first time writing for sports, but I also learned what makes up a shot on goal in a hockey game was. In addition, actually pulling off the live feed was amazing. That and meeting Don Mabee for the first time. The next moment of this year, happened when I attended to Faces of Fusion dinner in May. That is where I ran into Ian Finley from East Coast Connected. It was from that meeting that I…

All the photos taken for the website are now on Flickr

We have taken over a thousand photos over the four days. Instead of choosing the best I am posting all the “in focus” photos for the weekend on flicker. If you see a photo, you like and want the original high resolution .jpg file for free you may e-mail me at c@cefm.ca. Be sure to comment on the photos as well so everyone can know what you think if the photos. Photos on Flicker

Moncton takes Cornwall 5-4 in Finals Action

Moncton takes Cornwall 5-4 in Finals Action

After a long weekend here at the Lord Beaverbrook Rink here in Saint John NB, the Moncton Mark’s Work Wearhouse Flyers are on their way to Selkirk MB for the Telus Cup after the most intense battle of the tournament. In first period action, Moncton’s Gino Goguen comes out with an early hooking penalty that Cornwall’s Darcy Ashley took advantage of for the period’s only goal at 1:00 this period featured lots of physical action with few shots on goal. The second period started out like the first with an early penalty by Alex Saulnier leading to Cornwall’s Brent Andrews landing a power-play goal at 1:33. That goal released Alex Saulnier from the box who thirty-two seconds later at 2:03 scored on Cornwall goaltender Devon Cudmore. Later a 6:46 Moncton’s Jean-Marc Leger ties up the game with Flyers second goal. Then the Flyers lay two more goals on with Curtis Leet #18 and Alex Saulnier #21 at 11:54. However, Cornwall not wanting to go quietly in the night respond at 13:46 with their third goal by Brandon Carter #16. The third period was filled with eight penalties and a goal apiece for Cornwall’s star Jordan Costello (11:09) and Moncton’s Gino…

Game 10: Moncton 3 @ Cornwall 6

This game featured a warm-up for the final gold medal game slated for Sunday at 1:00 pm. As many times as these two teams play there is always something to play for. Both teams played a hard fought battle showing no backing off in saving energy for Sunday. These two teams proved that Sunday’s gold medal game will no doubt be a high-intensity hard-hitting affair. Shots on goal for this final round-robin game were 22-17 favouring HPEI’s Cornwall Thunder. Play resumes Sunday at 1 pm with the finals featuring Moncton (HNB) vs. Cornwall (HPEI) at the Lord Beaverbrook Rink in Saint John NB. Home Team: Cornwall Thunder (HPEI) Away Team: Moncton Flyers (HNB) Start Time: 3:30pm Arena: Lord Beaverbrook Rink Referee: TBD Linesmen: TBD Goals 1 2 3 OT SO Total HPEI 2 3 1 0 0 6 HNB 2 1 0 0 0 3 Shots on Goal 1 2 3 OT SO Total HPEI 5 9 8 0 0 22 HNB 5 8 4 0 0 17 Goals First Period 8:41 HNB- Allain Saunier #19 Assist- Pierre Durepos #23 13:39 HPEI- Brody McDonald #18 Assist- Devin Cudmore #29 and Brent Andrews #9 PPG 17:52 HPEI- Jason Smallman #28 Assist- Matt Myers #22 and Brody McDonald #18 PPG…

Game 9: Saint John 1 vs. Cole Harbour 5

In first period action in what many at the rink hoped would be the shoe-in for the Vito’s in tomorrow’s finals proved to not be the case as in the first period Cole Harbour nets a 3-0 lead with goals from 5:36 Christopher Riguse #11, 16:42 Michael Clarke 19#, and 19:04 Brandon Duke #20. The second period was fast with six penalties but the scoring did not resume until the third period when Saint John’s Jared Hicks broke the 2 period goose egg at 8:31. That however did not deter Cole Harbour from responding with Michael Crowley (10:42) and Mitchell Maynard (18:26) each scoring a goal to finish off the game with a 5-1 victory, dashing Saint John’s chances for a finals berth. Home Team: Cole Harbour McCains (HNS) Away Team: Saint John Vito’s (Host) Start Time: 12:30pm Arena: Lord Beaverbrook Rink Referee: TBD Linesmen: TBD Goals   1 2 3 OT SO Total HNS 3 0 2 0 0 5 Host 0 0 1 0 0 1 Shots on Goal   1 2 3 OT SO Total HNS 8 11 8 0 0 27 Host 3 8 8 0 0 19 Goals First Period 5:36 HNS- Christopher Riguse #11  Assist- Jordon Mock #8 16:42 HNS-…

Game 8: St. John’s 2 @ Cornwall 4

Play resumed this morning at the LBR. So far in the first period action HPEI’s Cornwall Thunder have taken an early lead with a 2-0 score. Cornwall’s Darcy Ashley started off the games scoring at 5:01. The second goal came at 14:27 by Jordan Costello taking advantage of a power play resulting from a roughing call. The other notable aspect of this period is that Cornwall received 3 penalties all for interference. After a second period of intense action the moral of this game is staying out of the penalty box as the periods seven penalties have led to two of the periods three goal. With 5 on 3 action Cornwall sunk the periods first goal at 3:10 by Matt Myers. Then at 6:07 St. John’s started a comeback with a goal by Ryan Walsh. Then to finish off the period at 17:55 Fog Devils forward Andrew Ryan completed a power play goal. Finishing off the third period was one more final goal from PEI’s Brandon Carter early in the period at 4:15. Then at 7:04 Fog Devils key player Jacob Pitcher was removed with a game misconduct for hitting from behind.The final score was 4-2 for Cornwall eliminating the…

Game 7 Moncton (HNB) 3 vs. Saint John (Host) 3

Game 7 Moncton (HNB) 3 vs. Saint John (Host) 3

In the first period of play, the first half was rather uneventful until the eight-minute mark that set off a string of penalties until Vito’s #4 Jamie Bishop scored a power-play goal at 14:05. The shots were fairly even with an 8-7 lead for Moncton at the end of the period. The second-period action went well for the Vito’s as they manage to take two goals twenty seconds apart with Matt Bursey at 5:42 and Jordan Bruce at 6:02. The latter causing the Flyers to switch goaltenders and Aaron Hamilton #31 took over from Scott Cale #29. The third-period action definitely changed the face or this game as the Moncton Flyers came back with a goal early in the period at 0:27 by Pierre Durepos, followed shortly after by Alex Saulnier at 3:58. Then following a hard fought game just as Vito’s fans were starting to enjoy their victory when at 19:58 Allain Saulnier scored the final goal leaving this the only tied game so far at 3-3. The final shots on goal were 21-17 favouring Moncton. Action will resume with the final 3 round-robin games starting with Cornwall at St. John’s at 9 am then at 12:30 pm Saint…

Game 6: Cole Harbour (HNS) 2 @ St. John’s (HNL) 5

Early in the first period it did not take the Fog Devils long to show the direction the game was going to take. Upon 0:23 into the game Zach O’Brian sunk the games first goal against McCains goaltender Ben Clark. Although Clark’s attempt should not dissmissed as he protected the net from 10 more shots as the Fog Devils only managed to get one more past him as Ryan Walsh #4 scored the periods second and Final goal. The second period was definitely a “Featuring the Fog Devils” kind of period as all the goals and penalties featured the Fog Devils. St. John’s sunk 3 goals past the McCains starting with Michael Cole’s at the 0:13 second mark, followed by Zach O’Brien’s second game goal at 7:35 and the final from Andrew Ryan at 13:24. However all the penalties resulted in a 12-8 reversal for Cole Harbour in the shots on goal numbers. Third period play was very even in shots on goal and penalties however Cole Harbour attempted to make a comeback with two close together goals midway through the period. The goals were by Christopher Riguse #11 at 9:15 and Tyler Doyle #14 at 10:48. Shots on goal…

Game 5: Saint John (Host) 2 @ Cornwall (HPEI) 1

Game 5: Saint John (Host) 2 @ Cornwall (HPEI) 1

Although the first period was played very disciplined by the Vito’s the period’s action began before the puck even dropped as Cornwall’s Dylan McGuigan #19 received an Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalty. The game was played very fast albeit very light on the shots on goal with 4 a piece and none successful. It did not take much however in the second period for the Vito’s Matt Bursey to land the only goal of the second period at 0:36. The true hero of the period was Vito’s goaltender Matthew Murphy who covered 8 amazing saves, many from point-blank range. Through out the third period, the Vito’s had a difficult time staying out of the penaly box resulting in the final goal at the end of the period to break the shout-out by Cornwall’s Darcy Ashley at 19:53. the Vito’s had just taken a 2-0 lead prior to that goal by #22 Aidan Kelly at 18:32, which unfortunately resulted in Matt Bursey heading to the dressing room with an injury after providing an assist to the Kelly goal.  The saving graces for the Vito’s in this game seemed to be Matthew Murphy at goal after an inspirational turnaround based on his tough playoff…

Game 4: Cole Harbour 1 vs. Moncton 4

Game 4: Cole Harbour 1 vs. Moncton 4

Late in the first-period, the Moncton Flyers (HNB) took on an early first-period lead with a goal by Allain Saulnier. There was solid goaltending at both ends and was definitely a fast and physical first period. In the second period , the heavy physical play continued resulting in 5 penalties the most notable coming late in the period when Moncton’s Nick Smith was removed from the game and issued a game misconduct for hitting from behind. Then Cole Harbour’s Michael Crowley took advantage of this by 1:27 later sinking a power-play goal at 17:48. The third-period action was not disappointing for Moncton (HNB) as the period started with Cole Harbour’s Jarett Johns being removed from the game for Hitting from Behind. Then later Moncton’s Tyrone Sock took advantage of a 4 on 4 to sink the tie-breaking goal at 11:47, resulting in a power play in which he sunk a power-play goal at 12:15. Then near the end of the game, Cole Harbour’s Jordon Mock was ejected for High Sticking (2:00), Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00), and a Game Misconduct (10:00). Moncton’s Allain Saulnier took advantage of this to sink his second goal of the game during the power play at 19:43.…

Game 3: St. John’s 5 @ Saint John 2

Game 3: St. John’s 5 @ Saint John 2

If an image could say a thousand words than all you need is this first picture to describe this 1st period here tonight at the Lord Beaverbrook Rink. The Fog Devils coming from their tired first game loss, left Saint John behind with a 3-1 score at the end of the 1st period St. John’s goals were by Michael Cole (x2) and Robert Cale with one goal by Vito’s Greg Edgecome. In the second period action the Fog Devils (Gillard) and Vito’s (Carter) end the period one goal a peace. However the Fog Devils were out-shot. (8-6) Will this mean the Fog Devils have run out of steam to keep their 4-2 lead? Only the 3rd period will tell. Despite being almost 2-1 out-shot in the third period the Fog Devils not only managed to hold on to their lead, but increased it with a final fifth goal (Bussey) late in the 5th period. Play continues tomorrow starting with Cole Harbour (HNS) vs. Moncton (HNB) at 10am, followed by Saint John (Host) vs. Cornwall (HPEI) at 1:30pm, then Cole Harbour returns at 5pm to take on St. John’s (HNL). Finishing off the evening will be the “Battle of New Brunswick”…

Game 2: HPEI 3 @ HNS 2

Game 2: HPEI 3 @ HNS 2

After the first period of play the Cole Harbour McCains have a 2-0 lead over the Cornwall Thunder. The goals were scored by Dillman and Mock. Cornwall seamed to be hindered by heavy penalties. During the second period the tables turned as Cole Harbour started receiving the penalties and Cornwall coming back with two goals from Costello and Smallman tied the game up 2-2. The game was quickly decided in the first 30 seconds of the third period with a game misconduct penalty by Cole Harbour’s Matthew English for checking from behind. Foiled immediately by the tie-breaking goal at 0:30 in the third period by Brody McDonald. The shots on goal for the game were 24-23 for Cole Harbour. Coming up at 7:30pm here at the LBR will be the opening ceremonies at 7:30pm followed by at 8pm the play resumes with the Fog Devils facing the Host team Saint John Vito’s. Home Team: Cole Harbour McCains (HNS) Away Team: Cornwall Superior Sanitation Thunder (HPEI) Start Time: 4pm Arena: Lord Beaverbrook Rink Referee: TBD Linesmen: TBD Goals 1 2 3 OT SO Total HNS 2 0 0 0 0 2 HPEI 0 2 1 0 0 3 Shots on Goal 1 2 3 OT SO Total…

Game 1 HNL 3 at HNB 4

After the first period of play, the Moncton Flyers have a 1-0 lead over the St. John’s Fog Devils. The first goal (pictured below) was by Alex Saulnier assisted by Allain Saulnier at 15:28. The second period was full of action as the scoring at the end of the period the Flyers have a single goal lead with a 4-3 score tied up at 3 goals apiece.  The goals this period were score by HNL- Michael Cole #16 Assist- Alex Powell # 5 and Zach O’Brien #9, HNB- Alex Saulnier #21 Assist- Gino Goguen #12 (Photo Below), HNB- Pierre Durepos #23 Assist- Gino Goguen #12 (Power Play Goal), HNL- Andrew Ryan #19 Assist- Zach O’Brien #9 and John Bursey #2, HNL-  Andrew Sullivan #24 Assist- Brandon Bussey #27, and HNB- Allain Saulnier #19 Assist- Alex Saulnier #21 Gino Gouen #12 (Power Play Goal). The third-period action resulted in no goals. The final scores for the game were 4-3 Moncton giving the Flyers a two-point lead in the round robin standings. The shots on goal for the game were 24-20 for the St. John’s Fog Devils. Coming up at 4 pm here at the LBR will be HPEI’s Cornwall Thunder at…