The Hockey Life: Week 26

Just when I think the 2010-11 hockey-hounding campaign is coming to an end, the Tampa Bay Lightning shakes off the goal-scoring cobwebs Saturday and lights up the Pittsburgh Penguins to force a Game 6 back here in Hockey Bay.

At the least, it means another opportunity, schedule permitting, to have Gilles Meloche sign a pair of pucks. I missed him by five minutes last Wednesday morning.

Getting caught up in the spirit of the playoffs, I couldn't help myself from commenting on Saturday's game on Facebook. Among them:

~ Shhhh! Listen. It's Pittsburgh.

~ Scoring a power play goal is the best way to deter dumb penalties. Except, of course, if you're Kris Letang. Bolts 8-2.

~ Uh-oh. The Pens care coming back. The multitalented Michael Rupp scores from his butt. You gotta like players who don't give up.

~ I love the grumpy look on the blonde's face behind the Penguins bench. I've yet to see her smile all game long. She must be thinking "I paid how much for this?"

~ Lightning 5, Penguins 0. Steven Stamkos wakes up with his second goal. The rout is on. Let's go Bolts!

~ The Consol Center's lacking a little energy right now, isn't it?

Now, I don't have anything against Pittsburgh folks. I work with a few people from there. There's even a soft spot in my heart for the Pirates. It was just good to see the Lightning, a team that we've followed over our five-plus years here, respond to a challenge.

The next big test comes Monday, when we'll see if the Lightning can maintain the momentum and force a Game 7 back in Pittsburgh. If not, I'll man up and take any heat that comes my way.

What would you do?

Colin turns 10 Thursday, making it his first double-digit birthday, which, for that reason alone, makes it a pretty big deal. Though he'll get to open his birthday presents and head out to Cody's Roadhouse for his meal, we're waiting a week or so for his party.

The problem, however, is that he has a practice that night with the Pinellas P.A.L. Stars, his recreational league team. The Stars don't have any games left, but the rink owes them one more hour of ice time -- hence, the practice.

Compounding the situation, he has a two-hour travel-team practice Monday, a 90-minute skating session with me Wednesday before another hourlong travel-team practice at another rink and two travel-team games on Saturday. That's a pretty busy week, if you ask me, even without the birthday factored in.

I'm thinking, given everything else that's going on, there's no need for him to take part in the P.A.L. practice. He says he wants to attend the practice, as it's likely the last time he'll be a part of that team, one that he's served as an alternate captain this season. That appeals to the hockey dad in me. As a parent, though, I'm not so sure.

Quote of the week

"Hey, when's the last time the Sabres won a Stanley Cup?"
Colin, to me, after giving him some ribbing about the Boston Bruins falling behind early in their series against the Montreal Canadiens.

Team report: Montreal Canadiens II

There was a time, and it wasn't all that long ago, when we could put in nearly a full day of hounding for a team like the Montreal Canadiens. Thanks to a different work schedule, though, we don't get to do that too much any more.

Most of our hounding adventures these days, unless they fall on one of my days off from the paper, are limited to before a team's morning skate. So, when we get a time to hang out, we do the best we can.

After scoring 32 autographs, including 18 on Colin's team sheet, from the Canadiens, I'd say we had a pretty good morning. And given the horror show at game time, when rabid Canadiens fans rushed the bus (or so I was told), I'm glad we were nowhere near that mob scene.

Signing all four pucks we had, shown above, were:

Top row: Brian Gionta and Max Pacorietty; and
Bottom row: Carey Price and P.K. Subban.

Other items we added that morning:

Cards signed by Hal Gill, Roman Hamrlik, Tomas Plekanic and Tom Pyatt; and

more cards, signed by David Desharnais, Brent Sopel and James Wisniewski.

I have a good reason

By Colin
Hound Central 5.0 junior correspondent

When I hounded the Montreal Canadiens a couple weeks ago, I used a printed-out wallpaper image for a second time this season. Why? They're an Original Six team and the logo they use this season hasn't really changed.

So, I kinda have to choose to do a printout instead of a hand-drawn one for my team sheets. Either way, it works. With 18 autographs, I think I did pretty good. I think it looks cool as well.

I know I got Brian Gionta, Carey Price, P.K. Subban and Roman Hamrlik to sign it. My Dad says some of the other signers were Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanic, James Wisniewski, Brent Sopel and coach Jacques Martin on it, too.

The Hockey Life: Week 21

As much as we try to live a well-rounded life, we also spend a considerable amount of time, energy and money devoted to hockey. I'm not complaining, mind you, it's our choice. And, to be honest, I wouldn't change much. There are stretches, though, where we go a bit overboard.

How much? Well, here's a glimpse at our most recent run of ice time. Over the past 10 days:

~ A two-hour skating session on March 2;
~ a Pinellas P.A.L. practice on March 4;
~ two P.A.L. games (the Stars won 5-0, but then lost 3-2) on March 5;
~ another two hours of public skating last Sunday;
~ Tampa Bay Jr. Lightning tryouts on Tuesday;
~ watched the Tampa Bay Lightning beat them, 4-3, in a shootout on Wednesday;
~ another P.A.L. practice on Thursday, and;
~ watched the Ottawa Senators beat the Lightning, 2-1, on Friday.

And that doesn't including hounding trips for the Washington Capitals (Monday morning), Blackhawks (all day Wednesday) and Senators (Friday morning) or the time spent working on Hound Central 5.0 and Hockey Hounds Universe.

Again, I'm not complaining. I am looking forward, though, to the end of the NHL season, even if it extends, by some stroke of luck here in Hockey Bay, all the way to June.

Until then, though, it's time to suck it up and enjoy our favorite sport.

In extremely poor taste

I was a bit surprised by a recent commercial on NHL Network featuring Boston's Zdeno Chara, who's caught some well-deserved flak for his nasty hit on Montreal's Max Pacioretty last week.

The spot shows the Bruins' freak of nature standing still, looking ominously into the camera. In the background, a speaker says "That was a head-crunching hit."

Given the seriousness of Pacioretty's injuries, as well as the freshness of the gruesome image, one would think that the NHL Network, operated by the league itself, would show better judgment.

Quote of the week

"There goes his profit margin for the week."
One Hockey Bay hound, who shall remain nameless, about another Hockey Bay hound/dealer, who also shall remain nameless, after Chicago's Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews wouldn't sign his 16x20 team photo.

Team report: Montreal Canadiens

With Colin off on his Christmas break last week, it made perfect sense that we try to hound as many teams as we could during his two weeks off from school. It didn't hurt, either, that all three were Original Six teams. I guess that's what motivated me the most.

If you can't get up for an Original Six team like the Montreal Canadiens, no matter how many times you've hounded them, you have no business carrying a blue Sharpie. Last Thursday, I nearly burned through mine.

Much to my surprise, though, the Habs were a bit out of character. Normally a team that takes some effort, every player, including noted toughies Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez and Carey Price, worked the sizable line that formed outside the team's hotel. Once it was over, I was stunned at how easy it was.

Helping us rack up 75 autographs, which matches our season-high tag-team effort, were these players who signed the cards shown above:

Top row: Mike Cammalleri, Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez;
Middle row: Josh Gorges, Roman Hamrlik and Maxim Lapierre; and
Bottom row: Travis Moen, Tomas Plekanic and Jaroslav Spacek.

Also signing cards were:

Top row: Alex Auld, Hall Gill and Andrei Kostitsyn; and
Bottom row: Kirk Muller, Max Pacorietty and Benoit Pouliot.

Here's another instance, too, where cheap skates, what I lovingly call my homemade cards, come in handy.

Most every NHL teams, and the Canadiens were no exception, carry players who rarely have more than a handful of cards. In my case, I've run out of cards for Montreal's Mathieu Darche and Alexandre Picard.

Rather than let them pass by, though, I had them sign these two cards.

To me, it doesn't matter if a card is produced by a major card manufacturer. As long as it has room for a signature, and these cards do, there's little reason not to make them part of the collection.

Other highlights from a fruitful day of hockey hounding:

~ getting Habs goalie Carey Price to sign a McFarlane base;
~ using a different type of wallpaper image for Colin's team sheet; and
~ reinforcing a belief that it's best to catch a player early in his NHL career.

Four for four

If I've said it once, I've said it a million times. The best time to get NHL players is at the beginning of their NHL careers. Most of them, I'd dare say, are among the most willing signers, not even batting an eyelash at signing at least four cards at a time.

Last week's hockey hounding adventure for the Montreal Canadiens proves my point. Montreal's Lars Eller (from top to bottom), Tom Pyatt, P.K. Subban and Yannick Weber added 16 of the 45 cards that I got signed before and after the team's morning skate.

Getting the younger players is a good way, too, to build diversity into your autographed card collection. Not only are there NHL cards, but the American Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League and Team Canada are all represented.

Fits the bill

Because we've had decent luck with Montreal's Carey Price in the past, getting him to sign Canadiens and Tri-City Americans pucks as well as an 8x10 to Colin, it was time to branch out last week and find something else for the young goalie to sign. This McFarlane works, doesn't it?

Price also signed Colin's rock-solid team sheet.

The Hockey Life: Week 11

After hounding NHL players in person for nearly 15 years, it's easy to become jaded or lazy. Thankfully, I've had decent luck, building a substantial collection of autographed pucks, cards and assorted memorabilia that I hope someday will be passed on to future generations of my family.

Part of the process has been introducing Colin to the hobby. From his hand-drawn team sheets to cards and the occasional puck, he's quickly come up to speed. I'm proud to admit, too, that he outhounds his old man on a fairly consistent basis. After all, it's his collection, not mine.

More than any autograph, even one from Wayne Gretzky, spending quality time with Colin and gaining stories that will last a lifetime are my rewards. If nothing else, hockey and hounding bind this father and son.

Another reward is introducing others to the hobby, particularly in-person hounding where meeting and interacting NHL players is just as much fun, maybe even moreso, as getting their autographs.

For the past week, we've helped introduce two of Colin's youth hockey teammates to the world of in-person hockey hounding. They've learned how to find teams at hotels, the best times to see the players and that nonglossy cards are easier to use than glossy cards. More importantly, they've learned that 45 minutes of patience often yields five minutes of hockey-hounding bliss.

Their reward? In three trips for the Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers, one-half of the NHL's Original Six, the boys added a significant number of autographs to their growing collections. Along the way, they scored autographs from some of the NHL's biggest names -- Boston's Tim Thomas and Marc Savard. Montreal's Mike Cammalleri and Carey Price. New York's Marian Gaborik and Henrik Lundqvist.

We could be better hosts

It's not that I'm against tourists here in Florida. They're the economic lifeblood for many businesses and residents. It's even better, too, when they're hockey fans, helping to fill up the St. Pete Times Forum.

Over the past few seasons, we've had the pleasure of meeting Canadian families down here in Hockey Bay. Like us, they were hanging out near their favorite team's hotel in bids to score autographs from their hockey heroes. Because they're on holiday, they're getting some souvenirs.

Depending upon their attitudes, which quite often are far more gracious than any visitors from U.S. locales, we've been more than happy to help out by identifying players, tell them the best times to see their team as well as offer insight on other attractions.

Every so often, though, we detect an air of hockey superiority. After all, hockey is, indeed, Canada's sport. The game, too, has been played north of the border far longer than down here in Hockey Bay. Still, some fans' expectations that Canada-based teams will win long before the puck is dropped is a bit humorous.

It's poetic justice, I suppose, that the Lightning find a way to humble these fans, as well as their hometown teams, just like the Bolts did last Thursday against the Canadiens.

Awfully quiet

Speaking of the Lightning's 4-1 victory over the Canadiens last week, what did you think of Steven Stamkos' spin-o-rama penalty shot goal? Pretty sweet, wasn't it?

What I couldn't help thinking, though, and I'm not alone in this opinion, was how the goal, as well as Lightning's response, could be viewed as hypocritical. It wasn't all that long ago that the Lightning and a portion of its fan base were criticizing Edmonton rookie Linus Omark's spin-o-rama during a shootout.

In Omark's case, his nifty move was far enough away from the net that it shouldn't have bothered Tampa Bay's Dan Ellis. It did, though, and the Oilers won that game. Stamkos' move, however, came on Montreal goalie Carey Price's doorstop. Rather than being panned as a "hot dog" move, heaps of praise, and deservedly so, were showered upon Stamkos.

Like I said back then, there's nothing wrong with injecting some entertainment and derring-do in the game. In fact, it's too bad we don't see more action like that. Sitting deep in your seat, rather than on its edge, gets boring.

Going forward, though, let's hope the Lightning players and fans keep their mouths shut should it happen again to them.

No laughing matter

Two times last week, an anonmymous reader felt the need to comment, in harassing and potentially threatening manners, on Colin's hockey abilities. Sorry, young man, but I take things like that seriously. That's one of reasons why I use a website stat-tracking program. This isn't the first time it's proved useful, but I'm hoping it's the last.

As a result, I've filed complaints with the Ontario Provincial Police, the home base for Rogers Cable, the Internet service provider linked to the easily tracked user (99.251.197.122), as well as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Fredericton, New Brunswick, the origin of the IP address.

Furthermore, young man, if you feel the need to disparage a 9-year-old to make yourself feel better, it's my advice, coming only as a father, that you seek professional help. If it's true that you're a AAA midget player who's ranked for the Ontario Hockey League draft, as you claim to be, let's hope the teams, for their own sake, place as much value on character as they do skill.

And, if you don't like what I'm writing, don't bother stopping by. We'll do just fine without you.

The Hockey Life: Week 9

It's not just that Christmas is less than a week away, but these next two weeks are my favorite time of the year. Sure, it's fun watching Colin open presents (no hockey equipment this year, but another rec league season) early Christmas morning. What's more important, though, is that we get to spend more time together.

With no school until Jan. 3, we'll have more time to hang out, work on his hockey and, more importantly, get in a little hounding. Well, after he scored 47 autographs to my five from the Atlanta Thrashers last Wednesday, it's more accurate to say a lot of hounding.

Beginning tomorrow, we'll try our luck with the Carolina Hurricanes, carrying mostly cards as well as a handful of Albany River Rats pucks and a 2010 Olympic gold medalist McFarlane base for Eric Staal. After a little break, the Boston Bruins, Colin's favorite team, and the Montreal Canadiens head into Hockey Bay.

That's not to say it's all about hounding. The Missus and Colin will get to take in a couple games, too, watching the Bolts play the Hurricanes and the Bruins. We considered getting tickets for the Canadiens game, but I picked up a little OT that day at the paper.

Bottom line, we get to spend quality time together. And in this holiday season, that's the best present a Dad can ask for.

Better act fast

If you're a hockey fan, and you wouldn't be if you're stopping by here, chances are you're involved in a fantasy hockey league or some sort of poll. Every so often, though, you stumble across a contest that's simply fun to enter.

Take Drop The Gloves, a blog that focuses mostly on hockey cards. In honor of its one-year anniversary and its 100th post, it's running a contest that's based on fact after relying on randomness.

Confusing? Not really. Stop by and enter. You'll see what I mean. I did, choosing #23 for no other reason than I once wore the number in my illustrious (and penalty-filled) street hockey career and it was available.

If you'd like to enter, though, you better hurry. Entries end in just a few hours, at 5 p.m. EST today.

Quote of the week

"That's a Dennis the Menace thing to do."
Coach Mike, after Colin tried to extinguish flames on a marshmallow by wildly shaking his marshmallow roasting stick by the bonfire at last night's holiday party.

Fabric samples

One of the primary projects of our 2010-11 hockey-hounding campaign will be adding to the Threads collection. Given my luck at winning some decent-sized lots -- 22 and 14 cards in two deals -- on eBay over the summer, there will be ample opportunity to do so.

Dallas' Mike Ribeiro and Matt Niskanen added to the collection. Hat's off, too, to Ribeiro for adding his Montreal number -- 71. That MVP 2 on 2 Jerseys card that Niskanen signed, which features swatches from four NHL defensemen, is a work in progress. Besides Atlanta's Tobias Enstrom, I'll need Vancouver's Kevin Bieksa to complete it.

Poetic justice

Seeing that the Chicago Blackhawks can close out the Philadelphia Flyers tonight to claim Lord Stanley's Cup, I figured it was about time to share the results of the latest Hound Central 5.0 poll. In it, HC5.0 asked what was a bigger upset earlier in the playoffs -- the Montreal Canadiens beating the Washington Capitals or the Pittsburgh Penguins.

When it comes down to it, the results were hardly surprising.

Given the the Caps seemed destined to win the Cup, HC5.0 readers overwhelmingly picked the Habs' stunning upset as far greater than the club's follow-up act against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

I must admit that I was pulling for the Canadiens in both series, but more so against the Caps. There's a certain smugness among most of the Capitals, beginning with Alex Ovechkin down to, if you can believe this, Shaone Morrisonn, that made it very easy to root against them. I still smile at the thought of the long faces on the Caps' bench as the Habs celebrated the upset. Good stuff, I tell you, good stuff.

Bottom line? Ovie's a great player, but not the kind of guy who will win championships. It was a huge mistake, I believe, when the Capitals named him captain. He's far too selfish, and self-centered, to ever be a team guy. Maybe he'll learn that with age. I doubt it though.

Question: Bigger upset?

Habs over Capitals: 17 votes out of 24 cast (70.8 percent)
Habs over Penguins: 7 votes (29.2 percent)

Oh, yeah, before I forget. The Flyers will force a Game 7, but the Blackhawks will lift the Cup. Dustin Byfuglien scores the Cup winner, too, tossing the puck to Chris Pronger, so "Chrissy" can add add it to his collection.

10 Questions: Todd Ewen

Todd Ewen played for the St Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, Anaheim Mighty Ducks and the San Jose Sharks. He got his name on the Stanley Cup in 1993 while with the Canadiens.

These days, he's a marketing and sales executive at Remax Properties West.

In 10 Questions, Hound Central 5.0 asks NHL players -- past and present -- a few questions about their views on autographs. Former NHLer Ian Moran was the first to respond, giving us a few minutes of his time. Same with the likes of Brian Propp, Kevin Miller, David Harlock and Jeff Shevalier. We truly appreciate the opportunity provided by Ewen.

Hound Central 5.0: Did you collect cards/autographs as a kid? If so, who's your favorite autograph?
Todd Ewen: Todd McFarlane with Spawn comics ( Vancouver born)

Hound Central 5.0: Is signing autographs fun or a chore?
Todd Ewen: Always a pleasure!

Hound Central 5.0: What's the weirdest thing you've ever signed?
Todd Ewen: Never really had a weird situation in signing.

Hound Central 5.0: Best/worst cities for autograph hound/dealers?
Todd Ewen: L.A .. East Coast usually have the most dealers in the crowd, but it was growing when I retired.

Hound Central 5.0: Can you tell the difference between autograph dealers and collectors?
Todd Ewen: After over a decade in the NHL, you see the same faces, doesn’t take long to figure them out.

Hound Central 5.0: Does it really matter to you if someone is selling your autographs?
Todd Ewen: Yes and no. You want to give back to the game and make sure that you sign for the fans. Without them, there is no following.

Hound Central 5.0: Would/do you sign blank pieces of photo paper?
Todd Ewen: No!

Hound Central 5.0: Any items you won't sign?
Todd Ewen: No.

Hound Central 5.0: Most famous person to ask for your autograph? Most famous person you've asked for an autograph?
Todd Ewen: The most famous person I asked for an autograph was former President Gerald R. Ford in Anaheim.

Hound Central 5.0: Black or blue Sharpies?
Todd Ewen: Whatever is available, I will sign with a crayon if they want.

Hound Central 5.0 and its correspondents thank Ewen for his time in answering these questions. We appreciate his efforts, on and off the ice.

Full accounting

In the interest of full disclosure, and in lieu of a Hallmark card thanking him, please allow me this opportunity to show some of the items that Al, Hound Central 5.0's man in Toronto, was kind enough to send to us down here in Hockey Bay.

Among the items, and there were many, was a puck (shown above) signed by Hall of Famer and Montreal Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur, obtained by one of Al's buddies at a New Year's Eve party.

Al's goodwill package also had Team Canada pucks signed by Calvin de Haan, left, taken 12th overall in 2009 by the New York Islanders, and Boone Jenner, both of the Ontario Hockey League's Oshawa Generals.

Trading places

Just because you may think your hockey hounding might have geographical limitations, there's always one trick to try -- reach out to a like-minded individual in a different time zone.

Say you're hounding the Ontario Hockey League, just like Mike, who's shared some of his hounding hauls in eastern Canada. Using online hobby chat boards, he's found a trading partner from a Western Hockey League hound.

These show some of the items Mike's received through those exchanges, including some sweet pucks scored during the 2010 World Junior Championships in Regina:

Top row: Moncton Wildcats' Kirill Kabanov, an expected 2010 first-rounder; Moncton Wildcats' Brandon Gormley; and Moncton Wildcats' Nicola Riopel, a Philadelphia Flyers goaltending prospect; and;
Bottom row: Spokane Chiefs' Jared Cowen, a Ottawa's top pick in 2009; Kewlona Rockets' Brandon McMillan, an Anaheim Ducks prospect; and Moose Jaw Warriors Travis Harmonic, a New York Islanders prospect.

Top row: Lethbridge Hurricanes' Carter Ashton, one of Tampa Bay's two No. 1 picks in 2009; Regina Pats' Colton Teubert, Los Angeles' No. 1 pick in 2008; and Brandon Wheat Kings' Brayden Schenn, Los Angeles' No. 1 pick in 2009; and
Bottom row: a pair of pucks from Regina Pats' Jordan Weal.

Top row: World Juniors teammates Luke Adam, Gabriel Bourque and Marco Scandella; and
Bottom row: Montreal Canadiens legend Henri Richard; Jordan Eberle, who captained Canada's WJC championship squad, and another Canadiens legend Yvan Cournoyer.

Custom work

Editor's note: Please allow Hound Central 5.0 to introduce Brett, one of the blog's most faithful readers and commenters, a very talented custom card maker (they look better than those produced by major companies, don't you think?) and owner of My Hockey Card Obsession blog.

Here, Brett, who hails from Alberta, shares his passion for the hobby as well as his talent for designing cards:

Brett's custom cards

I absolutely love custom cards. I enjoy making them and I enjoy seeing what other people come up with.

For me, custom card making started probably five years ago. I was a regular on the "Beckett boards" and noticed one guy constantly posting custom cards. My mind just started racing from there. One day, this guy decided to hold a custom card making contest for fun. People would make a card and we would go head-to-head with another designer (kind of like the playoffs). The other board members would vote for a winner and a few rounds later -- we had a champion.

At first, my skills were pretty slim, but with each card I made, I saw improvement. Eventually, I won a couple rounds. One time, I even won the whole contest.

I delved into the "retro" cards. Taking an old OPC design and putting a current player into it. I've seen many people try it, but only a few were at a level that I thought "this looks bang on ... you can't tell that it's a custom." I'm happy with the ones I have made, but the retros never really quenched my thirst for customs.

One of the other advantages to customs is you can make your own sets. The ideas and concepts were (and still are) aplenty. I started with the "Ultimate Masks" set as I am a huge fan of the goalie mask (especially the old fibreglass ones). Eventually, I'd like to send some off through the mail as I think they would make a great-looking card.

I've also developed a "Flashback Autographs" set or "FA Authentic" as I like to call them. I want it to span not just hockey or sports, but pop culture in the 1980s. Along with this Curly Neal card, I've made a Mr. T card and a Marc Singer (star of the 80s miniseries V). I'm excited to send those off as well.

At the start of this season, I tried making a set featuring a card for every day of the regular season. A hectic work schedule and the holidays have put me too far back and I'm going to have to abandon the set. I'm hoping to do something along the same lines during the playoffs.

Most recently, I have been working on a set that I have wanted to do for over a year now. I was lucky enough to be at the game where Trevor Linden's jersey was retired. I thought it would be cool to create a set of cards commemorating his career. There will be 16 cards in the set (his jersey number). I'm about half done with the fronts, but am hoping to upgrade on some of the photos.

Recently, I have had a couple people ask if I could do some cards for them. One person even sent me some autographs he got when he was a kid. The big one was Maurice "The Rocket" Richard (shown at top). I've finished a couple, including this one of Jean-Guy Talbot , and have got them printed and cut.

I'm really happy with the way they turned out and am excited to continue on with them. This guy also had a ticket stub from one of The Beatles' final concerts ever. As you can see, I created a card that enshrines the ticket stub.

As you can see, I love making custom cards. For me, for others. ... I've even got my 11-year old niece into it. We've designed a template for some Twilight cards (her favorite movie). We're hoping to get some cards out in the mail this year and hopefully we can snag some autos.

Moody's Olympics Gold: Team Slovakia

Team Slovakia has never won a gold medal and finished fifth at the last Olympiad held in Torino, Italy. In Vancouver, Slovakia just knocked Team Sweden out of competition.

Cards signed by some of Team Slovakia's players:

Top row: Spartak's Branko Radivojevic, Boston's Miroslav Satan, Barys Astana's Josef Stumpel and Los Angeles' Lubomir Visnovsky; and
Bottom row: Locomotiv's Richard Zednik, New York Rangers' Marian Gaborik, Los Angeles' Michal Handzus and Chicago's Marian Hossa.

More cards signed by Team Slovakia players:

Top row: Spartak's Martin Cibak and Colorado's Peter Budaj; and
Bottom row: Tampa Bay's Andrej Meszaros, Chicago's Tomas Kopecky, Boston's Zdeno Chara and HK 36's Ziggy Palffy.

Montreal's Jaroslav Halak

Buffalo's Andrej Sekara

Tampa Bay's Andrej Meszaros on a Ottawa Senators wallpaper.

Most of these items have been signed over the past two seasons, either in Hockey Bay or South Florida.

Moody's Olympics Gold: Team Russia

Team Russia Last won gold in 1992, but finished fourth at the last Olympiad held in Torino, Italy. Of the 23-man roster, I've managed to get 13 players from the partially NHL-filled squad.

Cards signed by some of Team Russia's players:

Top row: Montreal's Andrei Markov and San Jose's Evgeni Nabokov; and
Bottom row: Pittsburgh's Sergei Gonchar, Washington's Alex Semin, and Ottawa's Anton Volchenkov

More cards signed by Team Russia's players:

Top row: Russian Federation President Vladimir Tretiak, Columbus' Fedor Tyutin, Phoenix's Ilya Bryzgalov and Salavat's Victor Kozlov; and
Bottom row: Washington's Semyon Varlamov, Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin, Edmonton's Denis Grebeshkov and Salavat's Dmitri Kalinin.

Atlanta's Max Afinogenov.

New Jersey's Ilya Kovalchuk

Most of these items have been signed over the past two seasons, either in Hockey Bay, Atlanta or South Florida.

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.

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.

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.