Well, that was different

Thanks to Vancouver's Darcy Hordichuk and Mason Raymond, a handful of Hockey Bay hounds witnessed one of the funniest attempts to discourage us Wednesday. As you can see, however, it didn't work.

Hordichuk and Raymond were headed to practice, walking along the Riverwalk in Tampa, when they noticed us mobilizing our forces, so to speak, before asking for their autographs. Rather than simply keep walking, the pair sat down on a bench, side by side, and Hordichuk threw his arm across Raymond's shoulders.

After a few moments, they got up and started walking again. We didn't fall for the ruse. We knew who they were. Much to our bewilderment, though, they did it again, stopping at the next bench and sitting down. Hordichuk again threw an arm across Raymond's shoulders.

They soon realized that we weren't going away. "We thought you wouldn't think we were hockey players." Hordichuk told us, drawing a laugh and a few comments from the crowd.

Sorry, guys, but it didn't work, as I added 40 signatures over two hounding adventures from the Canucks. But it did make for a good story, didn't it?

Among those signing pucks, shown above, were:

Top row: Steve Bernier, Alex Burrows (a strict one-per, if you can imagine that) and Alexander Edler; and
Bottom row: Shane O'Brien, Mason Raymond and Henrik Sedin.

Those signing Canucks cards were:

Top row: Steve Bernier, Alexander Edler and Jannik Hansen; and
Bottom row: Mason Raymond, Sami Salo and Kyle Wellwood.

Also signing cards were:

Top row: Christian Ehrhoff, Ryan Johnson and Shane O'Brien; and
Bottom row: Andrew Raycroft, Rick Rypien and Mikael Samuelsson.

Shane O'Brien, our favorite Portland Pirates player, signed the work-in-progress Pirates practice jersey, too.

The other highlights of the two hounding adventures:

~ Goalie Roberto Luongo on a Canucks big logo puck;
~ Twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin on Sweden souvenir pucks; and
~ Forward Ryan Kesler on a U.S.A. souvenir puck.

Rained out

Before Thursday's morning skate, Vancouver's Roberto Luongo told Hockey Bay hounds, including myself, that he'd sign on his way back to the tam's hotel. Unfortunately, a steady rain kept the Canucks goalie from keeping his word.

I'm especially thankful, then, that he signed this puck Wednesday, before the team held an afternoon practice at the St. Pete Times Forum.

He's a big star now

It wasn't all that long ago, that Vancouver's Ryan Kesler didn't bat an eyelash at signing more than one item. A lot, I have to say, has changed since then.

Like Canucks teammate Kyle Wellwood, Kesler took part in the 2005 American Hockey League All Star Classic in Manchester, N.H.

Over the course of the two-day event, Kesler signed a trio of pucks and a game program as his folks, who flew into town for the weekend, watched with big, warm smiles.

On Wednesday, I was happy to have him sign this U.S.A. souvenir puck for me. Earlier today, though, I was left wondering why he wouldn't sign a single autograph for anyone, saying that he'd already signed for everyone.

Excuse me, young man, but that wasn't the case. There were a few people who, indeed, didn't make it out Wednesday. The majority, too, weren't dealers. Hard to believe, isn't it, that he couldn't spare 60 seconds to sign maybe a dozen more autographs?

Good sport

The last time we saw Vancouver's Kyle Wellwood, he was standing in a Manchester, N.H., hotel lobby, checking in the day before the 2005 American Hockey League All Star Classic.

The Missus, God love her, was kidding him about his spiky hair, giving him a little grief about the amount of gel had had in it.

Nearly five years later, I caught up with him Wednesday, during the first of two trips to hound the Canucks during their stay in Hockey Bay. His hair, beyond being a bit shorter, hadn't changed much.

After sharing the story of our first meeting, I couldn't resist this: "You're lucky my wife isn't here," I told him. "She'd likely give you the same hard time she gave you back in Manchester."

He laughed, just like he did five years ago.

Three on one

After Vancouver's Sami Salo signed this puck earlier today (the signature on the far left), I realized there was ample room to add a few more signatures. Within minutes, fellow Canucks' defensemen Christian Ehrhoff (top) and Alexander Edler completed the hat trick.

This better be easy

Can you guess what pair of Swedish twins signed this pair of pucks earlier today before Vancouver Canucks practiced at the St. Pete Times Forum? See, I told you it was easy.

Season 2 has begun

If you checked out today's Sunday morning homily, you likely read that Colin started his second season of recreational hockey with a pair of games down in Ellenton, Fla. Though they lost their opener, 1-0, the Pinellas Police Athletic League Stars earned a 3-3 tie in the second game of the day.

As any doting daddy would, I captured a few videos from the games and have posted them at Colin's hockey channel at YouTube:

~ His first shift of his second season;
~ Remembering to stay onsides during an offensive threat; and
~ Lugging the puck up ice during a fairly lengthy shift.

Though those videos show positive moments within his games, there were three unfortunate (and unpenalized) incidents, I believe, that jeopardized the safety of Colin and one of his teammates:

~ An instance where an opponent's stick comes dangerously close to Colin's head;
~ A check that sends Colin nearly head-first into the boards; and
~ One of his teammates being slew footed.

Though I fully understand the physicality of hockey, and was a more-than-willing participant of that particular aspect in my glory days, there is no checking allowed in this league.

With the season's goal to have some fun, it's a shame something like this happened at the beginning of the season.

Sunday morning homily XIX

Had an interesting conversation take place last week regarding the practice of "double-dipping."

Al, Hound Central 5.0's man in Toronto, wrote that after new Leafs goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere said he would be signing only one-per for everyone, Al looped around, got in line again and scored a second 8x10 from the goalie.

Not long after the post went up, a reader from New Jersey filed an anonymous comment asking why, if Giguere said only one-per, did Al get a second autograph, possibly ruining it for others. A fair question, I believed. I must admit, too, that I wondered whether that specific passage would draw a comment.

Al's response makes perfect sense. One, he's not a dealer, so it's not like he made an extra $5 or so on his return trip. Two, if Giguere most likely recognized Al and truly had a problem with it, he could have said "no." One would think that the ability to focus on a blazing blip of rubber correlates to the ability remember the same face in a manner of seconds or, say, a minute, especially given Al's mug (Sorry, sir).

You'll also note that Al got different pictures signed, including one of Giguere accepting the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2003.

Furthermore, I've yet to meet any hound -- save for one prissy fellow who often brings his mother along on hounding trips -- who hasn't double-dipped on a favorite player, superstar or highly touted rookie. I know I have. I'm sure most of you have as well.

To me, it's not a big deal. In a way, hockey-hounding is like as smorgasbord. If you didn't get a full belly on your first trip through the line, you make another trip for a second plate. Part of Hound Central 5.0's mission is the sharing of information. That's why the "intel" tag appears on so many posts.

Season 2

After a two-week delay, Colin begins his second rec hockey league season today in Ellenton, Fla. We're hoping, too, that the extra skating he's done over the past month -- including marathon 2 1/2 hour sessions (of his own choosing) -- will pay off in improved play.

Sure, he's still having trouble stopping on both sides, but he's much better doing clockwise crossovers -- forward and backward. His stickhandling and passing can only get better, too. But, at 8 years old, he's taken great strides since his first skating lessons in 2007.

That's why I can't wait for today's games. Yes, I'd like to see him employ some of the defensive strategies we've practiced and remember to watch the referee's fingers, not just his hand movements, on faceoffs. More than anything, though, it's about him having more fun this season. Win or lose, that's why he plays the game.

In case you missed it ...

I should have given this post much more airtime before burying it under an avalanche of Islanders' hounding reports, but there's a line within the 2005 collective bargaining agreement between the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players' Association that should be of interest to hounds.

5 Big Sigs

Big doings this week with the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins headed down here to Hockey Bay. Seeing that it's the Bruins' second trip of the season, and I missed Vancouver's last trip to Florida, we'll concentrate our efforts on the Canucks:

~ Vancouver's Daniel and Henrik Sedin on Canucks and Sweden souvenir pucks;
~ Vancouver's Roberto Luongo on a couple of different Canucks pucks;
~ Vancouver's Shane O'Brien on the Portland Pirates practice jersey;
~ Boston's Marco Sturm on a 2010 Winter Classic and Germany souvenir pucks; and
~ Boston's Mark Recchi and Steve Begin on NHL practice pucks they flipped to Colin during warm-ups when they played the Tampa Bay Lightning in December.

This won't take long

If this post takes you any longer than three minutes to read, I suggest you immediately head to your local education facility and enroll in a remedial reading course. Why, you ask? That's simple. We got only a dozen autographs, including eight on Colin's team sheet, during a work-induced, abbreviated hour of hounding the Calgary Flames this afternoon.

Those three cards shown above, all signed by Eric Nystrom? That's it for blue Sharpies on cardboard.

This puck? Well, Jay Bouwmeester was nice enough to sign for the Colin's Pucks project. After that, nothing else. Those three pucks I had for Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff will be used elsewhere.

I'd heard the Flames were much more accommodating before the team's morning skate. Too bad, I suppose, I was at the office. Game time, however, was a different story. Most of the team paraded to the bus only minutes before it left the Marriott Waterside for a quarter-mile ride to the St. Pete Times Forum.

Oh, well, we can't win them all. And, as always, 11 more than one is better than none.

Momma helped

Any way you look at it, the Calgary Flames flaming horse logo isn't the easiest to draw, especially if you're an 8-year-old. That's why The Missus helped Colin draw the outline of the logo. He applied the colors and the stylized name on this team sheet.

Even though only eight members of the Flames organization took the time to sign, it's one of my favorites of the 2009-10 hockey-hounding campaign.

After getting shot down by Calgary's Robyn Regehr, the following players and coaches honored Colin's request, from left, Jarome Iginla, Brent Sutter, Darryl Sutter, Ian White, Cory Sarich, Jay Bouwmeester (I got that for him), Adam Pardy and Eric Nystrom.

Stress relief

In all honesty, I never should have gotten a single autograph Thursday from the New York Islanders. Instead, I came home with another 28. You see, the Houndmobile, nearing the end of its long run, threw a belt as I made my way to Tampa.

After nursing it into a parking space, I came to the realization it couldn't be fixed there. I called AAA and arranged for it to be towed back to my mechanic in St. Petersburg. And then Moody, Hound Central 5.0's senior correspondent, agreed to drive me back home.

I figured what the heck, might as well get some autographs. What was I going to do? Sit around and stew about a car repair. That didn't sound like a whole lot of fun. So, Moody and I headed over to the team's hotel, albeit a bit later than normal.

But even that worked out. As we walked across a bridge, who did we run into? How about the Islanders' John Tavares, Jeff Tambellini and Matt Moulson? Needless to say, we put our private signing session to good use.

Among the 21 cards signed yesterday:

Top row: Blake Comeau, Bruno Gervais and Andrew MacDonald;
Middle row: Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo and Richard Park; and
Bottom row: Dwayne Roloson, Rob Schremp and Jeff Tambellini.

The other highlight of the day? Getting Doug Weight to sign a couple career highlight cards.

Oh, yeah. the car repair? It was $230, plus a $95 tow. Who says hockey hounding isn't an expensive hobby?

It's not that hard to spell

Far be it from me to complain after the Islanders' John Tavares signed this puck Thursday, but it's another example of an NHL player misspelling Colin's name.

In Tavares' case, he made it out to "C-O-L-I-O-N" even after I slowly spelled it for him, letter-by-letter, after hearing he tends to do that with certain items.

Makes you wonder just how much did the 2009 No. 1 overall draft pick pay attention in school. Then again, when you know you'll be a millionaire by 18, life skills like spelling are probably not too important.

Oh, well, it's still an autographed Tavares puck. We're happy to have it.

Try this

Granted, this isn't brain surgery, but showing cards depicting a player in a positive moment of his career certainly increases your chances of getting an autograph. I applied this principle Thursday in getting the Islanders' Doug Weight to sign these two cards.

Growing Monarchy

We've had a bit of a run on the AHL Manchester Monarchs practice jersey. Less than a week after getting Anaheim's George Parros to sign it, New York Islanders players Jeff Tambellini (far left) and Matt Moulson (bottom right) added to the work-in-progress project Thursday.

Parros' signature is above one from Los Angeles' Dustin Brown.

For the rest of the season, we can hope to add the Rangers' Brian Boyle, Carolina's Joe Corvo and Tim Gleason, Phoenix's Jason Labarbera and Buffalo's Adam Mair.

Better than none

As the 2009-10 hockey hounding campaign wears on, I keep revisiting our stash of jersey swatch cards to pluck at least one for every team that travels to Hockey Bay for the season-long Threads project.

In the case of the New York Islanders, I had four, but managed to get only these two signed Thursday by goalie coach Mike Dunham, above, and winger Jeff Tambellini.

I also had cards for goalies Rick Dipietro and Martin Biron. Dipietro, however, arranged private transportation between the Westin Tampa Harbour Island hotel and the St. Pete Times Forum. And, Biron, who's no stranger to Sharpies, was sent down to AHL Bridgeport on a conditioning assignment.

Exhibit 14, No. 11

I certainly won't take credit for finding this gem, that belongs to Hockey Bay Hound Scott S., but I'm sure most hockey hounds will appreciate gaining this knowledge, tucked deep within the current collective bargaining agreement (page 299 of the .pdf) between the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players' Association:

The next time an NHL player snottily shoots down your request for an autograph within the vicinity of club facilities, remind him that he's contractually obligated to fulfill your reasonable request.

Catching up with Jiggy

Al, Hound Central 5.0's Toronto-based correspondent, went out Wednesday morning with a plan of cherry-picking two of the newest Maple Leafs -- Jean-Sebastien Giguere, above, and Dion Phaneuf.

Let's just say, as Al reports, he had mixed results:

"Funny thing is they came together in Giguere's VW SUV, had the California plates on it. They must be staying in the same hotel and are now carpooling.

"When they pulled into the practice rink's parking lot, it was full, thanks to all the hounds taking the overflow spots. So, Giguere drove to the entrance for the players. The two of them got out and a security guard parked it when a spot became available.

"I got all my autos before practice, except for Giguere, who came out by himself after practice and signed the two photos for me.

"He was telling everyone he was going to be one-per. However, I looped around and got the second one done.

"Phaneuf never came out after practice. Rumor was that he got picked up by a cab in the front of the arena to go downtown to do a radio interview.

"As I told my buddies, 'There's still a lot of practices to be had and sooner or later we will get him.' "

Here are those two 8x10s that Jiggy signed for Al:

It wasn't all that long ago that he was signing photos like this down in Hockey Bay.

A sweet item, but have you ever seen a more-conflicted Conn Smythe Trophy winner?

You've got to be kidding

Of all the nearly 50 Hound Central polls conducted over the past three seasons, there has never been an instance where so many people and the ultimate outcome proved to be flat-out wrong, showing only a dreadful absence of hockey knowledge, not an informed opinion.

Risking alienation and damnation from every reader under the age of, say, 12, I have one question: What in the name of Gordie Howe were you kids thinking?

There is no way, as far as I'm concerned, that The Mighty Ducks is the best hockey movie ever. First, it's a Disney product, so we all know the ending (the good guys win) before the movie even begins. Secondly, a stiff-legged Emilio Estevez, as Gordon Bombay, couldn't skate more than a straight line. Finally, it spawned the silliest ever logo for any NHL team.

Sure, it may have funny moments, but, really, just how realistic is it?

Any hockey fan, hound or player worth his or her salt -- or at least born before the 1990s -- knows that Slap Shot is the best hockey movie made. So what if there's some spicy language, unmitigated violence and politically incorrect scenes? It's a true portrayal of hockey's grittier side and darker days. Besides, where else would we come up with Ogie Ogilthorpe? And let's not forget about the Hanson Brothers, shall we?

I am so disappointed. The future, I'm afraid, has forgotten its past. And that, dear children, is a shame.

Question: Best hockey movie?

The Mighty Ducks: 30 votes out of 67 cast (44.8 percent)
Slap Shot: 24 votes (35.8 percent)
Miracle: 10 votes (14.9 percent)
Mystery, Alaska: 3 votes (4.5 percent)

My bad

Thanks to Moody, Hound Central 5.0's senior correspondent, for noticing that Russia wasn't included in the HC5.0 poll asking which nation would win the hockey gold medal at the Olympics in Vancouver.

That oversight, certainly not an intended slight to a talented squad based on residual feelings from the Cold War, has been rectified.

Not that bad, I'd say

I'd heard earlier this season to expect a rough time when the Anaheim Ducks came to town. In fact, "rude and crude" was a term used to describe one's hound's perception of the team. As a result, I went into the two-day hounding adventure with lowered expectations.

After dealing with the Ducks last week, though, I'm guessing that specific hound, who caught up with Anaheim in New Jersey, was unfortunate enough to witness the team on a bad day. Now, I won't say we all gathered around a campfire, roasted marshmallows and sang Kumbaya, but every player signed at least once for Colin and me.

When all was said and done, meaning four sessions over 32 hours, we added 78 autographs (two away from tying our season best) and a variety of items for our efforts. Know, too, that I passed on several more opportunities to add to the haul, being satisfied with the items we'd gotten signed.

Signing pucks Friday, shown above, were Saku Koivu, left, and Scott Niedermayer, on the Canada souvenir and Ducks 2007 Stanley Cup Champions pucks. On Thursday, Colin snagged Teemu Selanne, as well as a funny exchange, on a puck.

Among the bigger names signing cards were, from left, Jean-Sebastien Giguere (now with the Toronto Maple Leafs), Jonas Hiller, Bobby Ryan and Teemu Selanne.

Among those also signing cards were:

Top row: Evgeny Artyukhin, Matt Beleskey and Troy Bodie;
Middle row: Mike Brown, Ryan Carter and Kyle Chipchura; and
Bottom row: Todd Marchant, Ryan Whitney and James Wisnieswki.

Other highlights from the Ducks:

~ Getting Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Bobby Ryan and Steve Eminger on an AHL Portland Pirates practice jersey;
~ Tough guy George Parros signing an AHL Manchester Monarchs practice jersey;
~ Adding Jonas Hiller to the right-handed goalie glove;
~ Colin loading up a Mighty Ducks jersey and running out of ink on a team sheet;
~ Scott Niedermayer, Saku Koivu and Nick Boynton adding to the Threads project; and
~ Dan Sexton signing the first North American Hockey League puck of the collection.

On one hand

Every so often, I remember one of Hound Central's ongoing projects -- the right-handed goalie glove. Maybe it's because there are so few in the NHL. It was put to good use Friday when Anaheim's Jonas Hiller (far left) became the latest goalie to sign it.

With any luck, I'll get the Islanders' Rick Dipietro to add to it this Thursday and Washington's Jose Theodore, if he isn't dealt before the trade deadline, when the Capitals come back in March.

Random sample

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Anaheim's George Parros, one of the NHL's premier tough guys, is a highly sought-after autograph. I suppose, then, that's why he was shooting down some requests before Friday's morning skate.

I must have been one of the lucky ones, though, using a bit of name-dropping when I asked if he'd sign this AHL Manchester Monarchs practice jersey, a team he played for when he was in the Los Angeles Kings organization.

"A Monarchs' jersey?" he asked. "Sure."

For the record, another former Monarchs player, Denis Grebeshkov, signed the jersey when Edmonton visited Hockey Bay in December.

A mighty effort

Colin may have had some trouble working a team sheet for the Anaheim ducks, but he absolutely nailed his old Anaheim Mighty Ducks jersey before Friday's game, getting 22 members of the organization to sign it. Not a single player or coach he asked, including Randy Carlyle, Ryan Getzlaf, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Saku Koivu and Corey Perry -- didn't take the time to honor his request.

The only big name he missed was Teemu Selanne, but I believe Colin didn't mind all that much.

Bit of bad luck

When it comes to paint pens, it's usually me, not Colin, who's had some issues this season. But his latest team season, worked Thursday for the Anaheim Ducks, shows the ink issues can happen to the best of us. Not quite sure what happened -- it was either a low ink supply or the lack of priming the pen.

You'll have to take our word for it that these nine players honored Colin's request: Troy Bodie, Ryan Carter, Kyle Chipchura, Brett Festerling, Ryan Getzlaf, Jonas Hiller, Petteri Nokelainen, George Parros and Dan Sexton.

Only Nokelainen's and Hiller's signatures are truly legible, despite my best efforts to enhance the image after it was scanned.

Three out of five

Though I carried five jersey memorabilia cards for members of the Anaheim Ducks, I only added these three to the Threads project: Scott Niedermayer, Nick Boynton and Saku Koivu.

Please, accept my apologies for missing out on Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. I suppose I'll have to wait until the Ducks come back to Hockey Bay to add them.

Still, though, three out of five isn't bad, is it? To borrow a phrase, that's batting .600 -- a figure that should get me into the hall of fame.

It's also funny, isn't it, that not a one shows the players with the Ducks. The cards I have for Getzlaf and Perry, however, do, but both are from the Ducks days in purple, teal and white.

They know Salty Pete

Because the AHL's Portland Pirates have been affiliated with three NHL organizations over the past few years -- the Washington Capitals, Anaheim Ducks and Buffalo Sabres -- there's quite a few former players who can sign this practice jersey depicting the club's mascot, Salty Pete.

Last Friday, with the Anaheim Ducks in town, four former Pirates signed it, from left, Ryan Getzlaf, Bobby Ryan (on the red glove), Steve Eminger and Corey Perry (the faint scribble).

Sunday morning homily XVIII

I know arguments can be made that this weekend's Hockey Weekend Across America is nothing more than a rip-off of Hockey Day in Canada. But, you know, so what if it is? The idea behind both events, even if one is purely a made-for-TV event, is that it celebrates the sport of hockey.

Too bad, then, that wasn't the case for our young hockey player. Though his second season of rec hockey with the Pinellas Police Athletic League Stars was supposed to begin last weekend, it's been pushed back to next weekend. Had the season started on schedule, as we believed it would when we made our payment, he could have been a part of the U.S. initiative by actually playing a game.

At the most, we celebrate Hockey Weekend Across America by having Colin work on his skating during a public session later today.

Now, this isn't a condemnation of the P.A.L. organization or its coaches. They work very hard teaching their young charges how to play the game and, more importantly, how to approach life. I'm sure, too, his P.A.L. Stars teammates all wish they were actively participating in Hockey Weekend Across America.

But, no, that isn't the case.

In what's becoming something of a sad realization, the hockey director at his home ice arena in Clearwater has had difficulties putting together a schedule. This isn't the first time, too. Last fall, we overloaded Colin's schedule, signing him up for fall baseball because we hadn't heard there would be a season. At the last moment, one was cobbled together. Earlier last year, a fee we paid for a season of pee-wee hockey that never materialized was used for more Hockey 101 and 201 classes.

I can't say with certainty why these delays keep happening, but I have a hypothesis. Because the travel teams don't seem to have this problem, it's my guess that the fact they pay considerably more -- upwards of $2,000 a season per player plus travel costs -- is a driving force behind their ease in scheduling. Sure, I wish we could afford such expenses, but I'd rather have Colin's skills and effort, not an ability to fork over huge sums of cash, earn him a spot on one of those "elite" squads.

A couple of weeks ago, as I ran Colin through some skating drills at a rink inside a shopping mall, I was approached by another father wanting to know how long Colin had been skating. Our conversation soon turned to learn-to-skate programs, intro-to-hockey sessions and rec hockey leagues for his 5-year-old son. I had the opportunity to steer the father toward Colin's home ice arena in Clearwater, but I didn't. Instead, I suggested he try another of the three rinks here in Hockey Bay, either in Oldsmar, Brandon or Ellenton.

After this season, I'm thinking it's time to follow my own advice.

Maybe he remembered

A few weeks ago, when the Montreal Canadiens were in town, Scott Gomez snubbed most every request to sign an autograph before the team's morning skate. Afterwards, as he was getting a ride back to the hotel from the Lightning's security staff (What's up with that?), he busied himself by reading a newspaper as, once again, he denied autograph requests made by others.

I couldn't help myself: "Hey, Gomer," I shouted. "That word you can't figure out? It's 'the.' "

Last week, with the Canadiens back in Hockey Bay, Gomez had an apparent change in heart over his signing habits. Except for me, that is. After asking if he had time to sign a Canadiens puck, he looked up me, said "No," and then signed for another couple of hounds.

As I relayed the exchange to Moody, Hound Central 5.0's senior correspondent, he said it would have been funny had Gomez responded with "That word I'm having trouble with is 'No.' "

If he had, and I wished he would have, I was ready with my retort: "Okay, Gomer," I told Moody, "but can you spell it?"

5 Big Sigs

Another two-team week awaits, so here's what we're hoping to add:

~ New York's Rick Dipietro on the right-handed goalie glove;
~ New York's Jeff Tambellini and Mike Dunham to the Threads project;
~ New York's Dwayne Roloson on his 2004-05 UD Hockey All-World Edition card;
~ Calgary's Jarome Iginla on Flames and Canada pucks; and
~ Calgary's Jay Bouwmeester on a Flames puck.

Top Shelf: Teemu Selanne

This puck earns Hound Central 5.0's coveted Top Shelf status not so much that Anaheim's Teemu Selanne signed it for Colin on Thursday, but the funny story behind it.

Last summer, when Colin was playing his first season ever of organized hockey, I told him he could mimic Selanne's iconic duck-hunting celebration after scoring the record-setting 54th goal of his 1992-93 rookie NHL season (he scored 76 that season), if and when he scored his first hat trick.

Lo and behold, about two weeks later, Colin scored three goals in game and, for one of the few times in his young life, remembered something I told him. Unfortunately, not everyone was as excited as Colin, who got a lecture about showboating after returning to the bench.

Now, fast forward to Thursday, when Colin met Selanne down here in Hockey Bay:

Colin to Teemu: "Did you know I got in trouble for celebrating my first hat trick like you did with your world record goal?"

Teemu to Colin: "You mean when I threw my glove up in the air?"

Colin: "Yeah, that's what I did. I got in trouble for that."

Teemu, grinning from ear-to-ear: "Yeah, I can imagine."

We need more like Teemu

Anaheim's Teemu Selanne is living proof that living NHL legends can be friendly toward fans and hounds. At a time when he's coming back from a broken jaw and trying to get ready to represent Finland at the upcoming Olympics, it would have been very easy to understand if he passed on requests to sign autographs Thursday afternoon.

Selanne, one of the nicest players in the NHL, had none of that, taking the time to sign for everyone, including this 2008-09 Victory jumbo card, as he walked back to the team's hotel following the Ducks' practice at the St. Pete Times Forum.

One for the collection

It's not all that often that I get a North American Hockey League puck signed by an NHL player. But that's what happened Thursday when Anaheim winger Dan Sexton signed these two pucks, including the one from the Wichita Falls (Texas) Wildcats.

Drew Pelto, an old hockey-hounding buddy from Beantown who now performs a multitude of media-related tasks for the Wildcats, sent me the Wildcats puck for Sexton to sign. In return, I'll send him the Ducks puck that Sexton signed.

A fair trade, I'd say.

Positive spin

There are times over the course of a hockey-hounding campaign when it's best to measure your success under different terms. On days when you add a bunch of pucks to a stack of cards, it's easy to tout quantity over quality. There are the times, too, when low numbers are the intentional result of pure, unadulterated cherry-picking.

And then you have days like Wednesday, when the Montreal Canadiens were in town to play the Tampa Bay Lightning. Though I added only 20 items from 12 players and an assistant coach, I didn't walk away disappointed. Even better, I finally got Habs goalie Carey Price to sign a McFarlane base for Al, Hound Central 5.0's man in Toronto.

Had I carried items for every player, the numbers would have been higher. But, I had no more items for such players as Tomas Plekanic, Maxim Lapierre, Marc-Andre Bergeron, Benoit Pouliot, Glen Metropolit, Ryan O'Byrne and Mathieu Darche.

In fact, the only two players I missed were Paul Mara, who I never saw before or after the morning skate, and Scott Gomez, who apparently has a good memory (I'll have more about that Sunday).

The numbers may not be that impressive, but to snag 13 players (present and past) out of the 15 who I had items for certainly made the trip well worth the time.

Signing pucks, shown above, were Brian Gionta (Montreal Canadiens and U.S.A. souvenir) and Andrei Markov (Quebec Citadelles and Russia souvenir).

Among those signing cards, shown above, were:

Top row: Josh Gorges, Jaroslav Halak, Roman Hamrlik and Sergei Kostitsyn; and
Bottom row: Ben Maxwell, Travis Moen, Kirk Muller and Jaroslav Spacek.

For the record, and to have the numbers add up, Hal Gill also signed a couple of cards.

Though I'm grateful that Montreal's Mike Cammalleri added to the autographed puck collection, I believe the young man could use a lesson in manners.

Why be so smug, Mike?

I'd like to think that being paid millions of dollars to play a game would do wonders for one's manners. Let's not forget, either, the first-class travel, five-star hotels and, for the most part, adoring fans in a hotbed of hockey.

Top-of-the-world stuff, don't you think?

Sadly, that point seems to be lost on Montreal's Mike Cammalleri.

It wasn't so much that he offered up this scribble Wednesday before the Canadiens' morning skate. No, instead, it was his witnessing his snotty attitude toward a handful of hounds on the walk back to the team's Harbour Island hotel.

Now, it's one thing for a player to politely say "no" to a request for another autograph. We've all heard it a thousand times. Chances are, we'll hear it again. But when the denial comes framed in a snotty "I took care of you guys this morning" shoot-down, with a smirk growing across his face, it left me shaking my head in wonder.

I don't believe his Momma would've been too proud of him.

Sunday morning homily XVII

In a sense, knowledgeable hockey fans are one, big fraternity. It doesn't matter what colors we wear, where we're from or where we sit, we all pledge our allegiance to understanding the sport of hockey. This point was never so clear last Thursday when Colin and I attended, on the spur of a moment, the Toronto Maple Leafs-Tampa Bay Lightning game down here in Hockey Bay.

It's well documented that I'm not the biggest fan of the Loafs. Growing up a Sabres fan in Western New York, (specifically, south of Buffalo, in tiny Machias), where the Loafs are as welcome as 12 feet of snow, saw to that. Nor am I able to, mainly because of my allegiance to the Sabres, completely wrap my arms around our current hometown Bolts.

It was the game, certainly not the teams, that prompted my decision to spring for a 10-ticket flex pack and, subsequently, use two to attend the Loafs-Bolts game. Simply, it was as close as we'll ever get to a game at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. I wanted us to experience the flavor of a Loafs game, no matter its location, seeing that the team's reach stretches far beyond Canada's border. There's something, I believe, to hearing "Go Leafs Go!" shouted by the faithful at least once in one's hockey life.

As fate would have it, we ended up sitting next to a family of Loafs fans. Nice people, too. Colin and the youngest son hit it off well, talking hockey and even sharing a $4 giant peanut-butter cookie. The parents were more than pleasant, sharing their experiences of attending games at the ACC (one ticket there was more expensive than the five they bought in Tampa, they said) and that, unlike here in Hockey Bay, home games are shown on a premium cable TV channel.

Even though the Bolts won an increasingly exciting game with less than 10 seconds in overtime, I found myself somewhat disappointed. It was one of the most enjoyable nights I've ever had at a hockey game down here in Hockey Bay, finally getting the chance to talk with knowledgeable fans who truly understand the game while taking in one of the NHL's most storied Original Six franchises. I didn't want it to end.

Really, it didn't matter who we were rooting for. All that mattered was that it was a hockey game with real hockey fans, those who don't need a bubblehead emcee, dance teams, mascots and scoreboard prompts to "Make Some Noise" to make it an entertaining night out.

And that, my friends, is what being a member of the hockey fraternity is all about. It's the game, not the nonsense, that drives us. Sadly, not everyone, nor every team, gets this point.

Final (grumpy) request

After two installments for Your Turn, contributions have dropped off. Really, I can't understand the reason behind this. For four-plus seasons, I've shared many, many hounding adventures with readers. All I'm asking, and it's a reasonable request, is for you to now return the favor.

If I don't get any, this will be yet another feature -- just like Name that Logo, Hockey Quiz and What's This? -- that has run its course because of limited submissions or the lack of participation.

Responses to these requests go a long way toward deciding to continue with this blog. Lord knows there are better uses of my time. As it stands, Hound Central 5.0 will be my last hockey-hounding blog. Simply put, the returns fall far short the efforts put in by myself and others.

5 Big Sigs

It'll be an interesting week down here in Hockey Bay, with the Montreal Canadiens making their second and final trip of the season and the Anaheim Ducks swinging through the Sunshine State. We didn't have the best of luck with the Habs less than a month ago and, from what I've heard, the Ducks can be a tad tough.

Still, here's what we're hoping to add:

~ Montreal's Mike Cammalleri on a Canadiens puck and the Manchester Monarchs practice jersey;
~ Montreal's Andrei Markov on Russia souvenir and Quebec Citadelles pucks;
~ Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Bobby Ryan and Steve Eminger on the Portland Pirates practice jersey;
~ Anaheim's Saku Koivu on a Ducks puck; and
~ Anaheim's Dan Sexton on a Wichita Falls Wildcats (North American Hockey League) puck.