What's Up, Ya Sieve

Last night, my hockey/lumberjack boyfriend scored his 300th NHL goal.

Rick Nash was all…

And I was all…

Then Rick Nash scored his 301st career goal.

He was all…

And I was all…

Flyers did managed to score two goals – including one that one off of Jake Voracek’s face – but alas it was not enough.

As expected, Nashty got the Broadway Hat.  Just me or is that hat looking a little worse for wear?

Also, I LOVE the way he always just glances back at the camera as if to say “Hey Chuck.  I see you there.” His eyes stare into my soul.

In other game notes…

• John Tortorella is a winner.  Not only did he get his 400th NHL win but he also re-energized the Rangers’ offence with a little Cupid Shuffle.  Torts moved Derek Stepan in center with Nash and Ryan Gosling Carl Hagelin on the wings.  The result? Four of the five Rangers goals.
• Nash might have got the milestone goal but Stepan was by far the Rangers’ best player on the ice.  He was everywhere and all up in the game like Pooh up in the honey pot.
• Inigo better get it together.  And soon.  Judging from the in-game interview that Tortorella gave during the 2nd period, I get the distinct feeling that the Fonz is not particularly pleased with the way that Brian Boyle has been playing.  Then they cut to Boyle looking all sad panda on the bench. Could a healthy scratch be coming soon?
• Taylor Pyatt is still foxy.

• Wayne Simmons is one tough BAMF.  Not only did he take a puck to face earlier in the game that required stitches, but then in the 3rd, he got clipped AGAIN in the face by Brian Boyle’s errant stick.  Wayne Simmons was all….

At 16-13-3, the Rangers have 35 points, but are still languishing toward the bottom of the Eastern Conference (two points ahead of the ninth-place New York Islanders.)  Perhaps these new line combinations will reinvigorate the streaky Rangers’ offense. The Rangers will visit the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

For the Flyers, the outlook looks bleak.  The loss, combined with the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 2-0 win against the Buffalo Sabres, dropped the Flyers (13-17-2) into 14th place in the East. With Briere out with a concussion and Bryzgalov’s inconsistency, the malaise that has plagued the Flyers all season does not look to be going away any time soon. The Flyers host the Islanders, Boston Bruins and Washington Capitals later this week.

When someone talks to me about Steven Stamkos scoring goals:

And Stammer never lets a girl down.  Last night he scored his 200th career goal in the Lightning win over the Flyers.  Bonus yay.

Alone in my car with Game Center Live radio playing on my phone, I yelled, “Hey girl, I’m Steven Stamkos!”

Not the 200th goal.

Stammer is the 4th youngest player to reach the 200 mark (Gretzky, Lemieux and Hawerchuck were younger).  It’s really impressive… now please stop reminding me that he’s 23.  Steven split the Rocket Richard trophy with Crosby in ’10 and won it himself last season.  He could be on his way to another with a League-leading 21 goals.

The Rocket Richard Trophy has only been around since ’99 [link], and no one has won three.  (Selanne got 1 and Bure had 2 – both would have won 3 each if it had been introduced earlier).  Among active players, Iginla and Ovechkin have each won it twice.

Did I mention #200 was an empty-netter?  Who cares?

You could celebrate by buying this limited edition Tissot Steven Stamkos watch in Lightning blue for $460.

Or spend $460 and get tickets to every Lightning game for a year (probably).

This morning, take a moment to applaud Stamkos’ achievement.  And the achievement of the girl who took this picture.

photo by misharoux.tumblr.com

The only way I’d manage this is if “pushing button on camera” were a reflex that still operated after death.

The last couple of days have been crazy.  Slammed at work. Prepping huge event. Plus 6-day work trip to Seattle.

Just when I think that it is all too much, I see this photo and feel instantly better.

photo courtesy of boston.com & Jessica Deitsch

Thanks, Tyler Seguin, for just being you.

We appreciate you so very very much.

Read the full story about this most awesome of photo bombs [here].

Mullets.  Eyebrows.  Fights.

Three things we love and post about probably more often than is normal.  But we can’t help it.

And when you have all three AT THE SAME TIME – well, we’re just smitten.  We must honor you with our most prestigious award.

This week’s Foxy Friday is Adam McQuaid of the Boston Bruins

This 6’5″ defencemen from Prince Edward Island might not be known to many outside of Boston but we’re out to change all that.

He’s so adorably Canadian, using words like “o-fence” and “eh”.  With eyebrows like his and a full mane of luxurious hair, all the world shall know the name “McQuaid.”

McQuaid is perhaps most famous for his hair, a riotous accumulation of dark curls like no other. It just won’t quit.

Seriously, it’s amazing.  I’m obsessed with it.

And apparently so is Adam.

Even in mullet form, his coif is pretty spectacular, while at the same time delightfully hilarious.

It takes a very special, confident man to wear this hair.  His hair alone is worthy of this Foxy Friday honor.

 In addition to the hair, he has also got some sweet eyebrows.  Look out, Zach Bogosian and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Molly Ringwald.  You’ve been put on notice.

McQuaid is a classic defencemen – big, physical, and not afraid to mix it up when needed.  Like when he beat down Raffi Torres.

And Inigo Montoya.

Or this Canuck.

Now one must keep in top physical form in order to beat opposing players to a pulp.  Also, when Zdeno Chara freak of nature is your team mate, you best be hitting that gym wicked hahd. (God Bless the interweb and tumblr)

Squats.

Crazy legs.

Arms.

Walking.

Running.

Only adding to his legend is his nickname – Darth Quaider.  It might be one of the best EVER.  For Star Wars nerds like us, this is just beyond perfect!

from daysofyorr.com

If you’re ever find yourself lost in the woods with only a bag full of hockey sticks, some inner tubes, and a plank of wood, he’s a good friend to have.  You might even survive.

Besides all of these things, he’s just really freaking adorable.

Hope you enjoyed this week’s Foxy Friday, Mr. Adam McQuaid.  I know we certainly have.

“Oh what’s that you say?  You want to take me out on a date?”

Well, if you insist.

No secret that Pants and I appreciated a good beard, especially come playoff time.

So you can imagine my utter delight when I saw this while watching the Stars vs. Avalanche game last night.

GREAT ODIN’S RAVEN!

Now that is a beard!

It redefines the term “Fear the Beard”.  With the helmet on, this thing is perfectly symmetrically.  His head becomes this oblong portrait of masculinity, sport, and ridiculousness.

And it’s GINGER!

Now some may say the beard is overcompensation for Zanon’s bald pate.   I like to think that the hairs on his head realized where the real party was at.

I, for one, am glad to know that if his hockey career doesn’t work out, he can find work as any one of the following:

• an extra in a Civil War epic
• an extra in a movie about the impending Zombie Apocalypse
• a home for baby birds and small woodland creatures
• a competitor in the World Beard and Moustache Championships
• a Viking
• a bad guy on the latest season of “Game of Thrones”

Best of all, the Beard’s has its own twitter handle - @ZanonsBeard.  Sadly, it only has 560 followers.

Clearly, this is not nearly enough.

I, along with all of you, our faithful WUYS readers, must take it upon ourselves to spread the word of the Beard. 

Facebook it.

Twitter it.

Hashtag it. (#BeardofZanon)

A wondrous thing such as this needs to be celebrated and heralded by all the hockey world.

All the world must know about the tremendous, awesome, and spectacular fluffiness of the Beard of Zanon.

Thanks to our friends at Puck Daddy, you can learn more about this beauty here.

January 31, 2013.

The day we’ve all been waiting patiently for.

The day we’ll all feel slightly less creepy staring at photos of men 10+ years younger than us.

Today is Tyler Seguin’s birthday.

And not just any birthday, but his 21st birthday.

Shots of Patron for everybody!

Oh lord, help us all.

People of Boston and the world…you have been warned.

Today, as we pause to celebrate Mr. Seguin and his inescapable charm , let us reflect on all the good times he’s had…

Like that time he won a Stanley Cup in his 1st NHL season…

Like that time he got that sleeve tattoo and raised his BAMF rating with a 7 (out of 10)…

Like that time he finally passed his road test…

Like that time he perfecting his imitation of a sad, disappointed baby…

Like that time he scored a salty shootout goal despite a flying hot dog…

and then scored another salty goal on the re-d0…LIKE A BOSS. 

Like that time he wore a scarf…

Like that time he officially joined Red Sox Nation…

Like that time when he learned to talk to girls…

 Like that time he found his two new spirit guides…

Like that time he actually went out in public with this haird0…

Like that time he went to Europe and fell in love…

Like that time when he spent some quality time with his sister…

Like that time he got really bored on a road trip…

Like that time he got really mad at this wall…

Like that time he got a puppy and completely obliterated our ovaries…

It’s no big secret that I’ve been a Seguinista since day 1.  Pants has finally come to her senses and joined me on the dark side.

Today, you can too.

Today is the day that you can finally come out of the closet and admit your love.

It’s okay.

We’ll be here to support you.

As a hockey blog, we would be remissed if we didn’t give a big, huge birthday shout out to the one…the only…the greatest of all time (aka the GOAT)…

Mr. Wayne Gretzky

The Great One turns 52 years  young today!  Born January 26, 1961 in Brantford, Ontario, Gretzky is without a doubt the best player to ever play the game.  The numbers that he complied in his 20-year professional career are simply staggering.

894 goals.  1,963 assists.  2,857 career points.

In the 1981-1982 season, Gretzky had 212 points.   212 points, people.  92 of those were goals.

I just can’t even comprehend.

18-time NHL All-Star. 10 Art Ross Trophies.  9 Hart Trophies.  5 Lady Byngs.  4 Stanley Cups.  4 Lester B. Pearsons. 2 Conn Smythes.

All this coming from a man who by any hockey standards, especially today’s, was not built for hockey.

Wayne Gretzky is what you might refer to as a….

His size, strength, and basic athletic ability were nothing exceptional.  As an 18-year-old rookie in 1979, he weight all of 160 lbs.  And I’m pretty sure that was soaking wet, holding the Stanley Cup while wearing all of hockey equipment.

Then he ate some sandwiches and got his weight up to manly 185 lbs.  By his own admission, he always finished dead last peripheral vision, flexibility, and strength during team testing.  Apparently, he could only bench press 140 lbs.

So how did this guy become the greatest hockey player of all time?

Simple.

He’s an alien.

Okay, so not really, but some have accused him of having some sort of extrasensory perception when it comes to hockey – “eyes in the back of his head” they called it.   In reality, Gretzky’s intelligence and his ability to read the game was unparalleled.

He had an almost superhuman ability to anticipate the puck and where it would be on the ice.  He was a creative player, an improviser able to make split second decisions on the ice and completely confuse his opponents.

He was an ellusive player.  Denis Potvin once remarked that trying to hit Gretzky was like “wrapping your arms around fog.”  Gretzky even has an area of the ice named for him. Forever more, the area behind the net will be referred to as “Gretzky’s Office.”  (Which I also happen to think is an excellent name for a hockey bar.)

He had great flow, before flow was a “thing”.

He scored 50 goals in 39 games. 

He inspires deep thoughts from movie man Kevin Smith.

Since retiring from the game in 1999, the Great One was immediately inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the only player to ever have this honor.  His infamous #99 jersey was retired league-wide.

Gretzky has kept busy as a coach, businessman, husband, father, and of all things, a wine maker.

So, we here at WUYS raise a glass of Wayne Gretzky Estates 2008 Pinot Nior to #99 and wish him a very happy birthday!

Everybody’s talking about Nail Yakupov‘s goal-scoring celebration last night, when he tied the game vs. Los Angeles.

.gif by www.sbnation.com

Most people love it.  There are some complaints that it’s too much, too showy, that goal scorers should “act like you’ve been here before.”

Guess which side I’m on?

LOOK HOW EXCITED HE IS!!  He’s 19 years old, has played 3 NHL games and this was his second-ever goal.  He tied a super-tight, messy game with under 5 seconds left to send his team to overtime.  Which they won.  GO CRAZY!

Afterward, he Tweeted this:

The Oilers website got in on the fun, with a nod to Yakupov’s exuberant overuse of social media parenthetical smiley-face emoticons:

You can see them at @Nail10_1993, or just take Taylor Hall’s word for it:

Based on Twitter, we should have anticipated this kind of overjoyed meltdown.

Yakopov was the first overall selection at the 2012 draft.  Yes, that means the last three #1 draft picks all play for the Oilers.  My future children will be watching these guys someday, and I can tell stories like this while they ignore me and fly around on hovercraft sneakers.

More pumped than everyone else combined.

To detractors, I say: Last night I was at the Caps 4-1 loss to Montreal.  It was like after-school detention on the nicest day of the year.  The team was atrocious, the crowd anemic.  Booing started halfway through and no announcer or music crew could stem the tide.  I would have given my nachos for a single rush with Yakupov’s energy or a single player with his spirit.

I am Nail-excited about the return of hockey.  I am Nail-excited about amazing plays, my team having heart and never giving up.  This isn’t unsportsmanlike conduct or excessive celebration.  It’s just the kind of buzzer-beating, heart-stopping, throw your popcorn in the air thing we were missing all along.

Last night, the Bruins squared off against the Rangers for the 2nd time this young season. Unfortunately, the Bruins lost (or fortunately, the Rangers won, depending on how you look at it) in OT.

This game had it all.  A hat trick. Saves. Blocked shots. A geek fight. And a boy named Dougie.

Thing #1 – A hat trick for Marion Gaborik

Gaborik was salty last night and gathered up his first hat trick of the season.  He’s partnered with Rick Nash and Brad Richards on the Rangers’ first line.  With that combination  I’m thinking that there are going to plenty more of these to come.

Especially impressive was the hand/eye coordination on his OT winner.

Not impressive was my failure to put him in my fantasy hockey line up last night.

Thing #2 – Tuukka Time

Two Us. Two Ks. All saves.  Tuukka Rask played an exceptional game last night, thwarting a number of Rangers’ chances that looked like sure things.

Like this one. And this one.

But especially this one…

Thing #3 – Block It Like It’s Hot

The New York Rangers blocked 5,157 shots. Okay so maybe wasn’t nearly that many, but this aspect of the game is something the Rangers defensemen (and the forwards, to some extent) have on LOCK. They are not afraid to sacrifice their bodies to prevent pucks from getting to Lundqvist.

It is frustrating as an opponent, exciting as a fan, and surprisingly kinda sexy.

Thing #4 –   Darth Quaider vs. Inigo Montoya

We like Brian Boyle.  He seems like an affable, goofy guy and we appreciate that. But damn is he annoying.  He’s like Brad Marchand…if you exposed Marchand to intrastellar radiation resulting in a genetic mutation, comic book-style.  Boyle is not shy about getting right up in there, getting under your skin, and taking some shots to frustrate you.

Be careful, Inigo. The force is strong with this one.

And Thing #5 – Welcome to the NHL, Dougie Hamilton!

Everyone, all together now!  DOUGIE, TEACH ME HOW TO DOUGIE!

You’re all  still dancing right now, aren’t you?

That’s cool.

We’ll wait.

……..

All set? Got it out of your system? Okay, let’s move on.

Dougie is our newest member of the HFC – the Hockey Fetus Club.  He is only 19, which is just “inconceivable”  and in three games this season has proven himself to be a poised, controlled presence on the Bruins’ back line.  As our friend Pez from Days of Y’Orr said “Dougie is wearing big boy pants now”.  And they fit him quite nicely.

Hamilton moves the puck well and has apparently impressed Coach Claude enough to earn some time on the PP and PK units. Best part of the night – his first NHL point. DH27 had an assist on Brad Marchand’s  power play goal.    The potential with this kid is scary good.  I predict an influx of Hamilton 27 jerseys in the TD Garden stands very soon.

It is not entirely out of the realm of possibility that these two teams could meet in the Eastern Conference Finals.  This game had an incredible playoff-like intensity from start to unfortunate finish. It was on like Donkey Kong from the moment they dropped the puck.  Rangers dominated in the 1st and then the ice tilted to favor the Bruins in the 2nd. The pace of the 3rd evened out as both teams looked to control the play and secure the win.

Although the Bruins lost in OT, they did get a point, bringing them to 5 and first in the Eastern Conference standings.    The teams will face off again on February 12th in their final meeting of the 2013 season.

I’m swamped today, but there’s always time for this!

Claude Giroux named Captain of the Flyers

Of course, you know that already [Press Release].  Personally I would have gone with Briere (shocking).  Can our Flyer fan friends weigh on Claude’s locker room leadership type?  It’s certainly good marketing sense to make your highest profile player captain – see Crosby, Toews, Landeskog.

I hope someone pranks him by putting a G on his jersey Saturday.  G for Giroux and C for Crosby… this is going to be The Perfect Game.

Here’s The Ginge with his short hair covered by a hat.  What do we think?

More importantly, what is this girl thinking?

Yup, same thing we are.  She even gets a question in… complete with the half blush/smile that G would earn from anyone with two X chromosomes. [video]

This girl rules.  Smart, hockey oriented, not impervious to masculinity.  We want to be friends with her.  She can keep us informed on Claude and the Flyers while we spend the whole time mumbling curses and boiling bats wings in the office basement.

Update: You guys are quick.  That is Sarah Baicker, who covers the Flyers for Comcast Sportsnet.  You can follow her at @sbaickerCSN.  We suggest you do.

Until Saturday, capitaine…

Oh, you read all the way to the bottom and thought I might not mention Jordan Eberle!  Mwahahaha.  I got my Ebs shirt in the mail yesterday… and Ebs got the A in Edmonton.  He’ll be the Oilers full-time alternate captain, while Taylor Hall and Nick Schultz share the other one.  [Interview Video]

That’s my boy! #TeamEbs 

You #TeamHall folks can submit a question here, for Taylor’s “Ask an Oiler” feature tomorrow.  Someone ask for his all-time clumsiest moment, it must be a whopper.