Oiler Nation roars into Winnipeg

You can put the earplugs away for now Winnipeg — Jesse Martin is taking the night off.

The self-proclaimed “ultimate Oilers fan” is primed and ready to watch his team from Edmonton take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.  The two teams face off tonight in an NHL exhibition match at Winnipeg’s MTS Centre.

It’s the only “home game” for this die hard follower.  The rest of the year, the 23-year-old musician has to settle for watching his favourite NHL team on the tube.  He’s found a way to make the most of it.

At first glance, his Oilers Room might seem like that of any passionate fan with some extra cash to spend: logoed merchandise abounds.  Besides the obligatory jersey and hat, there’s an Oilers barstool for sitting on and watching games — a little rickety, but it still does the job.  Within arms reach is a giant, inflatible replica of hockey’s top trophy, with some Oilers stickers added for good measure.  A fragile figurine of defenceman Sheldon Souray sits on the night stand.  The bed is covered with an Oilers blanket, kept perfectly straight and wrinkle-free by the ever-watchful Martin, whose reflexes rival those of the Stanley Cup’s guardians.

Baby, you ain’t seen nothin, yet.

The game is on.  The announcer’s voice, and the roar of the crowd, pour in through 15 speakers and three subs.  It’s 2006, and Stanley Cup fever has a firm grip on the Alberta capital.  The commentator screams to be heard over the constant din at Rexall Place.

The action is beaming into Martin’s East Kildonan home, more than 1300 kilometres away.

“Here come the Oilers forechecking, they go wide.”

Georges Laraque flattens his man in the corner.

“Yeah! Yeah!” Martin roars his approval.

The puck squirts loose along the boards.  Rem Murray jumps on it, sending it to the front of the net.  Laraque is there again — he scores!

“Wooooooo!”

Martin is on his feet, vigourously waving his shiny, silver pompom — known as a Stanley shaker to Oilers faithful — in time with the Oilers home crowd on the screen.

A red goal light comes to life.  A spotlight pulses from under the bed, lighting up an enormous banner marked with every year the Oilers have won the cup.  A rainbow of colours dance across the wall above the TV screen, shining against a custom-made banner, which screams to visitors, in case they hadn’t noticed:

“You’re in Oilers country.”

The goal horn you hear — piercing through the already teeth-rattling noise — isn’t coming from the TV.  It’s an authentic recording of what the Oilers use, with Gary Glitter’s Rock n Roll Part 2 spliced in by Martin.

The celebration peaks at over 100 decibels.  It’s as loud as standing next to a jet engine.  And just as loud as being at the game.

“The whole city knows they score when I’m here.”

Some of Martin’s neighbours aren’t amused.

“The cops came nine times during the cup run,” he recalls.  All were noise complaints.

Such is life for a superfan.  Even Martin’s hallowed Oilers gear wasn’t immune to errant limbs during post-goal cheers.

“I almost broke my light on that goal.”

The light is, you guessed it, a mock-up of an Oilers scoreboard.  Regrettably, it’s not the newest model.

“I went back to the store the other day, and they have one that’s more rounded at the bottom — and I just got this one!  Now I want the new one so bad!”

The one-man arena experience has set Martin back about $2,000.  He’s still looking to make some upgrades.

“Oh my God, I have about 100 things on my list.  I can’t even afford it all.”

Even the most subtle additions find their way into Martin’s collection.

“I don’t even smoke, I have nothing to do with lighters, but I have an Oilers lighter,” he says, gesturing to the dresser.

Tonight, Martin’s room will be dark and strangely silent, as he takes his act downtown.  With anywhere up to 15,000 fans joining him in the stands, he promises to be a bit more subdued.

“It’s only preseason,” he reasons.

And while Rem Murray and Georges Laraque have moved on, there should be some familiar faces present for the Oilers.

Dustin Penner, Ethan Moreau, Steve Staios, Sam Gagner, Zack Stortini, Jordan Eberle and Tom Gilbert
are all expected to suit up for the blue and cooper.

Meanwhile, the Lightning’s Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos have all been “guaranteed” to be in the lineup.  Mattias Ohlund may see some action as well.

For those Winnipeggers who normally depend on Jesse Martin’s arena-style celebrations to know when the Oilers have scored, take heart, you may still have a chance to join him in the crowd — about 1400 tickets were still up for grabs this morning.

Balsillie lawyer wanted Senators in Hamilton: owner

Touches on NHL’s possible return to Winnipeg on radio show

A prominent lawyer for Jim Balsillie offered to purchase the Ottawa Senators out of bankruptcy and move them to Hamilton, says the team’s owner.

Sens’ owner Eugene Melnyk told a Toronto radio station last night that “the same cast of characters” trying to outbid the NHL for the Phoenix Coyotes made a similar offer for his team in 2003.  He specifically named lawyer Richard Rodier, who was also a major player in Balsillie’s failed 2006 and 2007 bids for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators.

“It took me 48 hours to think about it, and then I said, ‘No, this is not the way you bust into a party,'” he told The Fan 590.

Melnyk, who purchased the bankrupt NHL team and its arena in August 2003, said that Jim Balsillie was not mentioned by the group proposing the Hamilton move.  Melnyk told the radio station he had met with Balsillie more recently — having taken him to dinner and a Maple Leafs game two or three years ago — but Balsillie never asked for pointers on how to put a team in Hamilton.

Melnyk appeared confident the Steel City could have landed an NHL franchise by negotiating through the right channels.

“I would have given him a ton of advice on how to do it properly, and one of them is not taking a bulldozer and going through the door.  It would have been so easy.  But, you know, mistakes are made, and now everybody’s gotta live with it.”

He made reference to the city that lost its NHL team to Phoenix in 1996.

“If somebody came and said, you know, Winnipeg — I’d love to buy a franchise and start a team up in Winnipeg.  You know what?  They’d listen.

“They’d say: ‘Okay, what are we gonna do about the stadium?  It’s only 15,000 seats.  Can we expand it?  Can we do this?’

“You work the problem that you may have, and you have to have the financial wherewithal.  You definitely have a fanbase out there.”

The Manitoba capital made headlines in May, when the Globe and Mail reported that True North Sports and Entertainment Ltd. — which owns the American Hockey League’s Manitoba Moose, and a downtown arena constructed since the Jets departure — were in talks with the NHL about getting a team.

“We take a wholly opposite approach to Mr. Balsillie,” communications director Scott Brown told the newspaper. “We’re pretty sure it’s the right approach.”

The following week, an internal league memo seemed to confirm that notion.  Among the mountain of court documents submitted as part of the Coyotes’ bankruptcy hearing was an email sent by league commissioner Gary Bettman.  He wrote:

“If this team had to move, it should first be offered to Winnipeg.”

The intended recipients of that message were NHL vice president Bill Daly and David Zimmerman, a lawyer with the league.

Then came June rumours from ESPN and the Montreal Gazette that a Winnipeg group was looking into relocating the Thrashers.

As far as Hamilton’s NHL hopes are concerned, Melnyk would not speculate on how the city might have landed a team without stepping into bankruptcy court.

“Money talks, I can tell you that.

“There’s a lot of cash that is thrown around.  You don’t know where it could have gone.”

RDS: Kessel traded to, signs with Leafs

Phil Kessel has been traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for draft picks, according to RDS.  The French language sports network reported on its website that Kessel immediately signed a 5-year, $27 million contract with his new club.  The news was also announced during its broadcast of the Senators-Canadiens preseason game.

Damien Cox (Toronto Star) reports the draft picks are two first rounders and a second rounder.

Then again…

Here’s a treat from Habs Inside Out.

Read the first sentence of this article, then take a look at the picture.

Oops.

If that’s not bad enough, the gaffe, published Thursday, still hasn’t been caught by editors in Orange County.  It was brought to our attention Friday around 3:30pm Pacific time.  Hockey fans north of the border have been chuckling over the mixup since this morning, when it was noticed by someone at the Montreal Gazette.  The newspaper publishes the Habs Inside Out blog.  In the event the picture eventually gets corrected, or pulled altogether, here’s a screenshot captured by Habs Inside Out.

Quick Hits from Terrace: Canucks 2, Islanders 1

Vancouver’s Nolan Baumgartner left the game in the third period and did not return.  No information was made available on his condition during the game.

Sergei Shirokov showed off some soft hands, netting both Canucks goals.  The young Russian rookie popped in a couple rebounds from the same spot on the ice, in deep on the left wing — one on the forehand, one on the backhand.  His initial goal was the result of a hard-working play.  Shirokov hit his man along the side boards, resulting in an Islander turnover.  Following some nifty passing, the puck found its way back to Shirokov off a rebound.

The powerplay units for both clubs looked particularly sharp, with some solid passing catching the defence out of position.

Rick Rypien is making a case for more ice time with the big club this season.  He had a couple of big bodychecks to add to a pair of good fights.  His second tilt of the night was an all-out battle with Andy Sutton.  Rypien came flying into the Islanders zone late in the game, and gave goalie Nathan Lawson enough of a bump to knock him over.  Rather than waiting for a reaction, Rypien immediately dropped the gloves with Sutton, sending him to the ice quickly.

The best brawl of the night was between Rypien and Jeremy Reich.  The two put on a slugfest, exchanging both rights and lefts with under 30 seconds to go in the 2nd period.  Give Reich credit for sticking in there.

Andrew Raycroft looked every bit as stellar as his career season from 2003/04 with the Bruins.  His first highlight save came off a Matt Moulson wrap around.  He then robbed Jeff Tambellini, who let one rip from the faceoff circle, and bailed out the Canucks as they appeared to be caught looking for an offside call.  Speaking of Tambellini, he showed great speed and confidence in his play-making abilities.  Could this be the year he stays up with the big club?  Hard to believe he’s a projected third-liner.

Similarly, Jon Sim‘s play may keep him away from Bridgeport if he keeps up the hard work in the offensive zone.  He had a nice feed to Tim Jackman in front of the net, who wasn’t able to tip it past Cory Schneider.  With six seconds left on an Islanders powerplay, Jon Sim found himself on the receiving end of a gift, which he got by hanging around the Canucks net.  Capitalizing on a failed clearing attempt by Mario Bliznak, Sim tied the game up near the midway point.

As expected, both teams changed goalies at that point, and the game was stopped to provide each netminder with a few warm-up shots — technically against the rules, but hey, it’s the preseason.

Cory Schneider put on quite a show — demonstrating the same goaltending prowess he used to help backstop the Manitoba Moose to the franchise’s most successful season last year.  He loves to use his long legs to his advantage, getting them flat down on the ice, and leaving the shooter with next to no open space along the goal line.  He was perfect in his half of the game.

In the third, sloppy play seemed to take over for a while, on both sides.  Canucks defenceman Shane O’Brien dumped the puck in from the wrong side of centre, but the Canucks were able to touch it first and avoid the icing call.  Not long after, Islanders’ goalie Nathan Lawson put the puck dangerously up the middle.  Fortunately for him, it went the length of the ice untouched.

After the game, 40 fans chosen at random were invited on to the ice, where each person was presented with an autographed Canucks or Islanders jersey, personalized with “Hockeyville” and the number 09 on the back.  The Islanders raised their sticks in salute to the crowd as the two teams exited the ice surface.  Both teams were scheduled to leave Terrace immediately following the game.

Midnight madness for NHL 10

Canadian hockey fans, prepare to be torn tonight — there’s more than one way to get your fix.

Apart from the NHL’s preseason debut being made widely available on TV and online, select stores across the country are gearing up for a special midnight release of NHL 10 — the 18th game in the EA Sports franchise.

One Future Shop location in each of Toronto and Vancouver will be staying open until 1 a.m.  Game systems loaded with NHL 10 will be on hand, allowing hockey’s hardcore followers to practice their moves on one another as they count down to midnight.

At Yonge and Dundas the party is already underway.  Ian White is scheduled to be signing autographs until 11pm ET.  Wendel Clark should be on hand to do the same from 10:00 to 11:45 p.m. ET.  In Vancouver, Trevor Linden will be signing autographs from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. PT at the Robson and Granville location.  Linden announced at an earlier launch party today that he’s been invited to carry the Olympic torch for Vancouver’s 2010 Winter Games.  The former Canucks captain did not know what leg of the tour he would be taking part in.

Microplay stores across the country will also release the game at midnight.

New features for NHL 10 include new first-person fighting, meaning when the fists start to fly, your opponent’s nuckles look like they’re going to shatter your TV screen.  Taking out your furstrations with hits after the whistle can now lead to scrums.  Going after another team’s star player in his own building will draw the ire of local fans.  Likewise, the enforcers you go up against can now instigate fights.  Look for the towel-waving ritual come playoff time.  And as always, you’ll have to find new ways to score, as the goalies come equipped with hundreds of different looks, including second and third save attempts.  Gamers will also be able to head straight for the Stanley Cup Finals and duke it out in a one-, three-, five- or seven-game series.

It’s preseason for broadcast crews too

It’s not just the players who have to shake a little rust off after a summer of being away from the rink.

Monday night’s broadcast of the first NHL preseason game of the year had its share of glitches over the airwaves, too — and not in ways you might expect.

The Rogers Sportsnet commentators, who clocked over 1,000 kilometers just to get to Terrace, eased in nicely from their regular duties as Canucks’ regional broadcasters and providing an interesting, impartial insight into the game.  The normally local feed ran on the NHL Network both north and south of the border, and MSG+ in New York.

Things didn’t run so smoothly for the crew behind the scenes.  The Canucks.com online broadcast was inadvertently blacked out in parts of North America to start the game, despite still being available in some parts of Europe.  The game also appeared to come off of its 30-minute delay at one point, as the action quickly switched away to a feature which should have run at intermission.  Then, late in the third period with the Canucks clinging to a one-goal lead, the game flipped over to commercials before a stoppage in play.  Good thing this one was on tape.

Some fans on the island may have taken offense to their suggestion that the Islanders were holding only neutral site preseason games, save for one preseason game at Uniondale, to try to boost their bottom line.  But seeing as the team ranked dead last in attendance in 2008/09, averaging under 14,000 fans a game, there’s merit to that statement.

Also of interest was the mention that a large number of kids skipped school for the day to take in the morning skates both clubs held in Terrace.  That’s not unexpected.  However, by playing hooky, some kids may have actually missed out, as Willie Mitchell and Kevin Bieksa didn’t dress for the Canucks, but spent the day touring schools.

On the ugly side of things, a boorish Hockeyville logo — complete with the contest’s corporate sponsor — dominated the on-screen scoreboard, taking up what seemed like one-third of the graphic.  They don’t even make network logos that big!

Preseason pushes off in Terrace tonight

It’s not John Tavares versus Cody Hodgson, but a three-month hockey drought comes to an end tonight on the west coast.

The Vancouver Canucks and the New York Islanders travel to Terrace, B.C. — the lastest Canadian community to be crowned Hockeyville — in the NHL’s preseason opener.  The puck drops at 7 p.m. Pacific time.  The game will be broadcast on NHL Network in both Canada and the U.S., and regionally on Sportsnet Pacific and MSG+.  The game is also being streamed on the Canucks website.  Due to programming conflicts, all broadcasts of the game, online included, will be delayed by 30 minutes.

Despite all the widespread hype and coverage, the lineups for the two teams are expected to reflect the fact that this is the first game of the preseason.

The Islanders have sent their “Group 1” players to Terrace, according to the team’s website.  They skated together Sunday using these lines:

Forwards
Trevor Smith – Greg Moore – Jeremy Reich
Matt Moulson – Greg Mauldin – Jon Sim
Jeff Tambellini – Josh Bailey – Blake Comeau
Sean Bentivoglio – Nate Thompson – Tim Jackman

Defence
Andy Sutton – Freddy Meyer
Jack Hillen – Andrew MacDonald
Dustin Kohn – Mark Flood

Goalies
Scott Munroe
Nathan Lawson

Similarly, it will be “Group A” for Vancouver.

Forwards
Michael Grabner – Kyle Wellwood – Guillaume Desbiens
Alexandre Bolduc – Dave Scratchard – Jannik Hansen
Michael Grabner – Kyle Wellwood – Guillame Desbiens
Sergei Shirokov – Mario Bliznak – Ronald Petrovicky

Defence
Brad Lukowich – Nolan Baumgartner
Michael Funk – Lawrence Nycholat
Evan Oberg – Shane O’Brien

Goalies
Andrew Raycroft
Cory Schnieder

The Canucks used defencemen Willie Mitchell and Kevin Bieksa as their top pair with this group during their first day of training camp.  Both are in Terrace, but are not expected to play.  They were, however, slated to make apperances at several local schools, along with Islanders Jeff Tambellini and Tim Jackman.

The Islanders have set up camp in Saskatoon this preseason.  Tonight is their first of four games in six days.  They will travel to Edmonton and Calgary before hosting the two teams in the Saskatchewan city.

Kessel heading north?

Trade embers sparked by the recent Phil Kessel rumours are on the verge of becoming a five-alarm blaze.

The extra gallons of gas necessary to light the fire came in the form of a Boston Globe article published this morning.  The newspaper maintains that Wade Arnott, Kessel’s agent, has stopped negotiating with the Boston Bruins.  Both Arnott and Kessel refuted that idea last week — a move the paper says was designed simply to deflect any Heatley-like criticism away from the young star.

Toronto is reported to be Kessel’s new team of choice, and agent Arnott has apparently been meeting with Maple Leafs brass on both sides of the border in an effort to reach a deal.  Toronto GM Brian Burke was reportedly spotted talking to Arnott in Boston two weeks ago.  Yesterday, Arnott took in the Maple Leafs workout — this time chatting up Dave Nonis.

Various media, including TSN and ESPN have said that the Leafs seem to be set on giving up three draft picks (two first-rounders and a second-rounder) to land Kessel, who turns 22 October 2.  The Globe reports that the Leafs would also like to see Boston throw in a third-round pick.

Should the two sides not come to an agreement, Toronto can also table an offer sheet for the restricted free agent.  At Kessel’s suspected asking price of $5-million, that move would cost the Leafs a first, second and third round pick in exchange.  Toronto made such a manoeuver possible by reacquiring their own second round pick from Chicago earlier this month.  (Under the NHL’s collective bargaining rules, the draft picks you give up via an offer sheet must be your own).

Both sides have publicly admitted that tabling an offer sheet route remains a possibility.  Burke — who fumed two summers ago when he lost Dustin Penner to the Oilers via an offer sheet signing — told TSN last week that this situation is different, however, because he has been engaged in talks with Bruins’ GM Peter Chiarelli.

As a restricted free agent, Phil Kessel must sign with an NHL team by December 1, or miss the entire season.