Jes Golbez Posts

Brandon "Sugar" Sugden is hardly a household name among NHL fans, but he is a notorious figure in hockey circles for a lifetime ban he received, back in 2000, from the ECHL for throwing a stick at a female fan in the stands.

After official retiring from the game during the 06-07 season, Sugden got an invite from the New York Islanders to attend training camp and beat people up while pretending to play hockey. Unfortunately for Sugden, there is a rule stating that he has to wait a year before unretiring, and 4 NHL GM's weren't willing to waive it for his case. Call it a form of "blacklisting", if you will.

Now, the Isles have made many questionable moves in my lifetime, and I wonder why the hell they'd want to touch Sugden with a 10-foot pole. Not only does he lack any semblance of NHL hockey skills, but he has a row of baggage a mile long.

Oh, but there is a sob story involved, believe you me.

First, we were given a deadline of August 1st for Mats Sundin to make a decision ... nothing. Not that I mind that he takes his time to make up his mind on his playing future, but you wonder how long it takes him to choose a pair of socks in the morning.

Now? The Swedish troll won't even make up his mind until the start of the regular season, putting him behind the eight ball when and if he decides to sign.
While this puts the screws on the teams that hoped to sign him, it makes perfect sense for Sundin to keep waiting. Why not wait until it is clear which teams are contenders and which are pretenders? Why not keep healthy and mitigate the physical effects that a long season has on the human body? Then again, it appears that there is a far different reason for Sundin's dithering ... A new career as a Poker player (?).

Yes, it seems the gambling bug has bitten the Swedish Troll, and he's signed on to be the latest celebrity shill for PokerStars.

Playing online as "MatsSundin," the 37-year-old Olympic champion plans frequent appearances playing on PokerStars.net and at live tournaments on the PokerStars' global poker tour circuit. This includes the PokerStars European Poker Tour which starts its fifth season next week in Barcelona.

"MatsSundin"? Would you really think a guy called "MarioLemieux66" or "CarolAltsBoytoy" would be the real thing? How to tell the impostors from the real thing ... oh, my!

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Barry Melrose, aka "The Mullet", can always be counted on to give a great interview and speak his mind on any subject. As a former enforcer-type, himself, you know Melrose values toughness more than most coaches would, and wouldn't put up with a Valeri Bure type on his team for very long.

In an interview with the St. Petersburg Times, Melrose laments the lack of physicality in today's game, and why the league should embrace fighting.

How do you feel about the league's long-term crackdown on fighting?

I think toughness is leaving our game, and I hope people realize it's wrong. I hate to mention this, but the fastest-growing sport in the world is ultimate fighting. We've got that as part of our game. To act ashamed of that has been wrong of the NHL for a lot of years. You can say you don't like fighting or you love fighting, but it creates conversation. It creates energy and excitement.

And, as you see it, perhaps a strategic advantage.

It's a useful part of the game. It's a tool, and that's how coaches use fighting. It can change the mood of a game. It's like a big hit or a power-play goal or anything else.

The real effect of a fighting and hitting on a team has been debated and analyzed, and I can't recall anyone proving that being overly physical actually helps increase scoring in the short term. Does having your player win a fight really translate into a momentum change as Melrose thinks?

Melrose is certainly right about fighting creating entertainment value, but one has to wonder if his coaching tactics will involve bashing faces in an attempt to give Lecavalier more ice to work with. If I were a Bolts fan, I'd sure hope Melrose doesn't have his club take unnecessary penalties just to be physical.

Jeremy Roenick has been one of the game's greatest characters throughout his stories career, so is it any surprise that he'd want to continue being a character after his playing days are done?

While I think Roenick would be awesome as a color commentator or studio guy, it seems that he's got his mind on other outlets for his need for public adoration: Professional Acting.

After previous bit appearances on Hack and Ghost Whisperer, Roenick will continue to develop his thespian skills with a small role in a new series called Leverage.

"Leverage," which debuts in December, stars Academy Award-winner Timothy Hutton as he leads a highly-skilled team of thieves, hackers and grifters who act as modern-day Robin Hoods.

"I'm pretty proud that's [Roenick's scene] the first scene of the series opener," Roenick said. "I play a security guard who gets duped by a woman. I have five, six or seven lines."

"I'm not nervous at all," Roenick said. "The tricky part is finding the right roles and to look natural. You've got to get the mannerisms and facial expressions down. If you're too stiff, you're not believable. The best actors are the most believable. They completely change their personality. My role is smaller, but it's still difficult."

Yes, it helps to have friends in high places, and Roenick has "leveraged" his connections to get him these roles.

And if the acting career doesn't take off, perhaps JR ought to try out for Dancing With the Stars!

Late last summer, we brought you the story of Leafs (and ex-Sharks) winger Mark Bell, the young man who was foolish enough to drive around town after a long night of quaffing beers at the bar.

As you might expect with a drunk driver, Bell roared around Silicon Valley at very high speed, rear-ended an unsuspecting sap and causing serious upper body injuries. Thanks to his semi-celebrity status, Bell managed to avoid serious jail time and settled his case out-of-court.

Still, Bell had to pay some price and learn his lesson. In addition to the token NHL suspension, Bell had to perform 440 hours of community service (eight hours a day, five days a week for 11 weeks) of "professional landscaping".

"I don't consider myself an alcoholic and I never will consider myself an alcoholic. But I got in trouble because of alcohol and, to me, that's a problem. I had to change things in my life so I changed them," he said.

"I was ashamed of what I did when it first happened. And embarrassed, all the emotions that came along with it. But you know what? It happened. I made a mistake. At the same time, I've been through a lot and I've overcome a lot. I'm actually very proud of myself for what I've overcome."

Perhaps this humbling experience of forced manual labor really did give Bell enough time to reflect on what he did and where he was going in life. Bell was fortunate that he didn't cause the death of the victim, and now has the opportunity to get his hockey career back on track. Many other drunk drivers aren't quite so fortunate.

As for Bell's hockey career, it's very hard to project just how he'll do and how much he'll play. For all of his career, Bell has not put up the offensive numbers that many expects were expecting, and his last two seasons in the NHL were among his worst. I think 30+ points would be a pleasant surprise.

This has certainly been THE summer for NHL celebrity romances. Not long after we got word that MILF Hunter Jarret Stoll is going to get hitched to Rachel Hunter, and Dan Hinote getting engaged to a Playboy "playmate", we get word that Hilary Duff and Mike Comrie are getting ready to take their relationship to the next level.

From Hollyscoop.com, it seems the paparazzi scoped out the happy couple and caught Duff sporting with what looks like an engagement ring.

Hilary Duff has sparked engagement rumors after she was photographed leaving Hollywood hotspot Il Sole sporting a ring on her wedding finger Friday night.

Duff, who has been dating her hockey player beau Mike Comrie for a little over a year, wasn't trying hard to hide the ring. As soon as she saw the paps snap her photo, she casually flashed the ring while pretending to fix her hair.

Of course, Hilary Duff is a pro at the celeb hounding game and knows that she can keep her name in the media hungry by throwing them a bone or two, but leaving them guessing.

While it might look like Comrie would benefit from the fame and fortune of Hilary Duff's family-friendly entertainment empire, keep in mind that Comrie is heir to a large furniture chain. I'd say Duff did well for herself.

The Alexander Radulov scandal has certainly given us something interesting to talk about during a rather slow off-season. While we can understand why a semi-washed up Jaromir Jagr might want to play in the new KHL, it's hard to fathom why a guy like Radulov, with his best years yet to come, would want to flee the NHL early to join a league that has yet to play an actual game that counts.

Over at Russianprospects.com, Alexander opens up on his feelings about the whole matter in a very telling interview. This quote, regarding his possible suspension by the IIHF, certainly jumps up and smacks one in the face.

I can understand both sides. But the position of the Continental Hockey League has significantly more weight: NHL for 15 years brought young players from Europe, first and foremost from Russia. I think that it is time to end this. Simply put: time to stop robbing us!

Oh, the big bad EVIL NHL has been robbing poor Mother Russia blind like a highway robber! A single tear rolls down my cheek.

Radulov should very well understand the concept of PERSONAL CHOICE. Yes, those Russians playing in the NHL made a very personal choice to leave their home country and play in the NHL. Nobody forced Alexander Radulov to play with the Preds in the first place, or play in the Canadian Hockey League as a prospect. Nobody dragged Pavel Bure on a ball and chain to play with the Canucks, right? In fact, I distinctly recall Bure fleeing Russia because it was such a bad place to live and play.

I don't mind that Radulov wants to play at home, but spare us the Cold War rhetoric. kthx!

Most NHL players would probably tell you that while Training Camp(!) fills them with some excitement of the season to come, the grueling two-a-day workouts, bag skates, and defensive drills are about as fun as driving through rush hour traffic. Just get the games going!

Canucks players will be happy to know, then, that their training camp will be a nice, compact TWO days long. Sure, there are still practices to be had between meaningless pre-season games, but the Canucks' vets won't have to put up with too many monotonous workouts before getting some in-game action.

Is this coach Alain Vigneault being nice? Nope, it's the CBA.

According to the CBA, training camp (preseason) can be no longer than 20 days for veteran players. Still, the Canucks are returning to Whistler for their NHL training camp this year, but the on-ice portion there will be two days -- down from three last year at Bear Mountain Resort, near Victoria.

"That's just the way it is," said Vigneault. "In those 20 days we have to get the team ready for the regular season. We have 12 days to practice and we play seven (preseason) games."

Quite honestly, I've never understood why the preseason has to be as long as it is. Today's players, with the exception of a few Kyle Wellwood-types, are in peak condition thanks to grueling off-season training regimens. Do the players really need to spend almost a month playing meaningless pre-season games and practicing the same stuff they've been doing for decades?

Given how short the off-season is for some clubs, especially those teams that go deep into the playoffs, I'm sure many players would appreciate an even shorter preseason. Scrap a couple of exhibition games, especially the ones where it's mostly prospects that won't even make the opening night lineup, and start the actual season a bit sooner.

Of course, that just makes TOO much sense for the NHL to consider, and we can't have them losing precious preseason ticket revenue, can we?

The US Hockey Hall of Fame (yes, one does exist) is going to be inducting a very strong group of players this year: Brett Hull, Brian Leetch, Mike Richter, and ... Cammi Granato?

Yes, the USHHOF inducted its first ever female into its ranks, with the formal inductions to take place on October 10th. Quite a feat for a women's hockey player to be joining the likes of Hull and Leetch.

"The Class of 2008 is one of the most accomplished groups that's ever been inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame," said Ron DeGregorio, president of USA Hockey. "It is indeed with great pleasure that we welcome them to the group of hockey immortals in our country."

I can already hear the poo-pooing of uncomfortable alpha-male jocks who think inducting Granato is purely a bunch of political correctness. To them, I say "Suck it up!"

I certainly have no problem with including Granato with the other boys, especially since the IIHF did the same back in May, and the fact she's already won a Lester Patrick Trophy for her contributions to hockey in the US of A.

Granato is right behind Hayley Wickenheiser in terms of impact, skill, and promotion of women's hockey in the world, and deserves recognition for her efforts to promote and grow the game.

Now, I can just imagine the arguments she'll have with husband Ray Ferraro over household chores.

Ray: Honey, I don't want to do the dishes again!
Cammi: Yeah, well I don't see YOU in the Hall of Fame, do I? Get scrubbin!
Ray: *fumes*

While the Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup this past June, it certainly hasn't been the best few months for re-retired goalie Dominik Hasek. Not only was the old crank demoted to being Chris Osgood's towel boy for the Cup Finals, but now his "Dominator" clothing line, which he started up in 1998, is losing money in a big way.

In an interview with The Prague Post, the former goalkeeper noted "The company was losing about 30,000 K? [$1,955] per day, and I've already put in some 90 million K? [over $5.8 million] over its 10-year presence on the market."

Mr Hasek's operation was far larger than those of his fellow Czech [Sporting Stars], operating both in Europe and the United States. Now, he has decided to close down the European wing, while keeping the US business afloat.

To understand why Hasek's business failed so badly in his homeland, one must remember that the purchasing power of the Czech Crown [Koruny] is far below the US dollar. The average Czech sports fan cannot easily afford to plunk down the equivalent of US$40 for a fancy "Dominator" t-shirt, or as much as $60 for a golf shirt. My Czech friends confirm that even the most basic "Dominator" shirts are twice as expensive as ye olde regular clothing.

This all makes me wonder if Hasek's comeback was purely financially motivated. Obviously, he needed to do something to boost sales, and what is better PR than playing with the Red Wings? If Hasek was losing money, then earning some sweet NHL bucks would be the best way to soften the pain, wouldn't it?