It's in the Blood -- Wear the Heart on the Sleeve

As I sit here and watch USA vs. Canada at the Under 18 World Championships, I am proud of the USA team and the accomplishments they have done since the inception of the National Development Program (6 medals since 1999 - 3 Golds, 2 Silvers, 1 bronze - AND - 1 Gold and 1 Bronze in World Jr.'s). I also like the fact that USA hockey on the international scene is on the upswing. I see a new tradition and culture developing around the teams.

However...

This is about Canada.

I honestly have to admit there is something special about watching a Canadian hockey team. I mean a team that wears the Maple Leaf for it's nation. I have had the fortunate opportunity to see three Canadian teams up-front-and-close:

1. 2005 World Jr. Team (Sidney Crosby, Dion Phaneuf, Ryan Getzlaff, etc.)
2. 2007 World University Team
3. 2009 U18 Team

There was a tangible aspect to (A) how hard they work, (B) their pride in their job, and (C) how they sacrifice for the team. I have read a few articles that sum up this mindset the best. I found one here from 1999.

Here's a snipet:

There is no analogue in the U.S. for the almost chromosomal role hockey plays in Canada's national life. It is omnipresent--everywhere and in everyone--at such a molecular level that even Canadians who hate the game (and there are a few) understand its nuances. In a nation with so much winter and so much ice, hockey is an inevitability; it is as inexorable as the weather. In Canada hockey is the manufacturer of good character. It is myth and science. It is a kind of national dream state. Baseball, the only fitting point of comparison in America, has always been optional, no matter what George Will says. Hockey is to Canada what capitalism is to America: a functioning ideology.

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UltimateOfficials.com is going after that mindset. I am proud to say our SWAT Team is starting that pride, honor, and tradition that hockey officiating deserves.

If you haven't signed up yet for the SWAT Team, your missing out on a truly elite and special group of officials. If you really want more, want to be something special, play/work with the pride that Canada displays whenever they pull over the Maple Leaf Sweater, then get ahold of me ASAP.

I've posted this before, but I think it is so impressive that it warrants watching over and over again:

Linkorama: Got Grit? Check It Out Right Now!

I was surfing along the great world wide web when I came across [this piece] on the first round of the playoffs. Without being able to speak as eloquently as Justin Bourne (this is a hockey player, not a movie guy...I remember reffing him when he played for U. of Anchorage Alaska), he sums up my feelings about the first couple rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

I see the grit on the players' faces. I see the heroism in sacrificing your body for the team. I see the will to do anything to win. I see the same characteristics I see in those who are now a part of the [Ultimate Officials SWAT Team]. I am very, very proud of these men and women (see below).

Here's a snippet from the Bourne Blog on the Hockey News:

Following these 16 teams’ epic quest is like watching Lord of the Rings: it’s one chaotic thing after the next; the odds of succeeding look thinner all the time and they both take forever to reach the end. But to get to the fires of Mordor (OK, dropping the analogy) – aka, to get to the final – is a journey unlike any other. The NBA isn't as physical; the NFL playoffs are four games total; and at the peak of the biggest moments, in the biggest games in baseball, 95 percent of the team can be seen eating sunflower seeds. The Stanley Cup is clearly the hardest trophy to win.

Game ON!

The Real Season Begins -- Work for the Puck/Angles

Game 1 - Rangers at Capitals

Those who accepted my offer for homework will understand some of the comments I will make. Those who haven't accepted the homework offered in the previous post can still get in on the action.

Here are a few observations:

1. Ovechkin is one great player. Body checks, goals, assists...take away his goofy behavior and persona and I say he is just like an old school player.

2. Watch the referees...watch the linesmen...see how they work for the puck, get an angle, get in position to best see the play, stay out of play, and give them the best opportunity for success. [[Video on this coming soon -- Tell me, "I want to work for the puck!"]]

3. Just listen to the crowd -- this is hockey AT IT'S BEST!

Officiating Crew:
Referees - #3 Mike Leggo and #20 Tim Peel
Linesmen - #97 Jean Morin and #71 Brad Kovachik


email me -- info@ultimateofficials.com -"I want to work for the puck"

You've Got Homework!

Ever listened to Dan "the Common Man" Cole on KFAN? If so, you then understand the youtube clip I have posted below.

It is the Most Wonderful Time of the Year! It's Stanley Cup Playoff time. I am going to be doing my homework by charting work to rest ratios, exertion graphs, and transition movements of the officials working the best and most intense hockey in the entire world.

You need to watch the games to help bring yourself to a new level. Don't believe it's true? Then you'd better not respond by email, saying, "I really want homework". You will get a response that gives you more detail on how watching other hockey will help your game. Don't want that??? Don't respond!

email: info@ultimateofficials.com

ask "I really want homework"

MN Boy, Ballard, Smokes Malkin & Crosby

Keith Ballard, from Lake of the Woods, throws a hip check on Gene Malkin, and then gets a few good pops on Crosby on Sunday April 5 action.

Ref Crew:

Referees - Paul Devorski (#10) and Dean Morton (#36)
Linesmen - Scott Cherey (#50) and Our Local MN BOY, Brian Mach (#78)

This is Just Plain Stupid

I have seen this a number of times this past week. I just had to put it up, from a pure hockey fan perspective (and I always like seeing hometown boys do well):