On February 21st, we’ll see a return of some of our favourite blue and white Leafs players come out of retirement and take to the streets with members of red Maple Leafs of the Canadian Forces who serve us so very well around the world. For me, I’m not going to pick sides when I watch the game. I know that with both teams, that we, as proud Canadians and Torontonians, are winners no matter which team wins!
There has been a lot said about the Canadian Forces over the past few years. Do we continue to fight in Afghanistan? Should we have gone to Iraq? On a personal note, I cross the 401 every day on my way to and home from work and I have seen the flags drapped over the overpass and the convoys of our fallen soldiers return home one last time from their completed mission along the Highway of Heroes. I choose not to get involved in the politics of it all, I just choose to support the Canadians who volunteer to put themselves in harm’s way because they are doing what they think is the right to do. I grieve with their families when they return home along the Highway of Heroes and I rejoice when they return to their families and friends to what could only be described as joyfully open arms awaiting them at the doorstep.
A few short months ago, I got to say “see you later” to a DDP member. It was in a Royal Canadian Legion hall while he was surrounded by family and friends before he reported to the base to await the order to ship out to Afghanistan. What surprised me most about it was that it is a celebration of his life and willingness to serve, not filled with sadness at his departure. He knows no more than I do whether we shall meet once again at a pub, or on my way home at an overpass along the Highway of Heroes. That is why he, along with all those who play in Saturday’s ball hockey game are HEROES.
Canadian Forces Day is not a day for politics. It is a day to remember why we are Canadian. What separates us from all others is that we are prepared to stand between opposing forces in the cause of PEACE and when called upon, like generations of us Canucks before them, our troops prepared to answer the call. That is why you should wear a yellow ribbon today and always. That is why you should add your signature to the hundreds of others that will be added today to DDP’s Support our Troops banner.
The Maple Leaf Forever!
P.S. Get Well Soon River Rats!!!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
17 – 13 = 24 x 1
I have always been bad at math. In fact, every math teacher I’ve ever had agreed to give me the sympathy 50% on condition that I promised never to take math again! That’s probably why when I think and talk about hockey, the stats don’t matter……its how I’m left feeling at the end of the game that does.
At the start of the season, I commented that the key to the Marlies playing well this year would be their ability to come together a team. With lots of new faces on the roster and the possibility of big changes that would impact the Marlies over the course of the season, it seemed pretty obvious to me that gelling as a team would be critical to the their success. Wirh a 1-1 record this weekend and another win on Wednesday, we learned something important:
17 Marlies goals
– 13 opponent goals
----------------------------
24 players playing as 1 team
The Marlies are starting to play as a team, act like a team, be a team!. Whether it is playing on the ice after the team practice, the guys hanging out together at the Hockey Hall of Fame during the season seat holders meet and greet, or players like Jiri Tlusty and Jaime Sifers with multiple assists that helped Andre Deveaux and Tim Stapleton get hat tricks during Sunday’s thrashing of the Griffins. Even Alex Foster (who scored 2 goals in the 10-5 win over Grand Rapids), when asked about how it felt to score 2 and not be one of the 3 stars recognized that it doesn’t matter. What matters isn’t your +/- percentage or what others rank your worth as player to be. Accepting the responsibility to come out onto the ice prepared to play as a team is what wins you games and at the end of the day, that’s what is most important. The Marlies players understand this and are living it out each day. You can feel the “team spirit” permeating through the walls, the ice, the bench, and the players themselves!
If there is one thing that you can count on this season, it is that the Marlies are not out of the race for the Calder Cup. As we get closer and closer to the playoffs, the Marlies are going to be a force to be reckoned with! Brian Burke said two weeks ago to the season seat holder base at the Ricoh Coliseum that he believed that winning is a trait that can be learned and it is so very true. There is an underground movement afoot that is being led by the Marlies players who not only want to play, but more importantly they want to win; the players themselves can see the light at the end of the tunnel; that if they play well in the AHL and win Calder Cup titles, sipping champagne from Lord Stanley’s mug (as a Toronto Maple Leaf of course) isn’t that far off in the distance!
Strap on your seatbelts because we’re in for an exciting couple of months, particularly as we head towards the NHL trade deadline. It will certainly be a season to remember!
At the start of the season, I commented that the key to the Marlies playing well this year would be their ability to come together a team. With lots of new faces on the roster and the possibility of big changes that would impact the Marlies over the course of the season, it seemed pretty obvious to me that gelling as a team would be critical to the their success. Wirh a 1-1 record this weekend and another win on Wednesday, we learned something important:
17 Marlies goals
– 13 opponent goals
----------------------------
24 players playing as 1 team
The Marlies are starting to play as a team, act like a team, be a team!. Whether it is playing on the ice after the team practice, the guys hanging out together at the Hockey Hall of Fame during the season seat holders meet and greet, or players like Jiri Tlusty and Jaime Sifers with multiple assists that helped Andre Deveaux and Tim Stapleton get hat tricks during Sunday’s thrashing of the Griffins. Even Alex Foster (who scored 2 goals in the 10-5 win over Grand Rapids), when asked about how it felt to score 2 and not be one of the 3 stars recognized that it doesn’t matter. What matters isn’t your +/- percentage or what others rank your worth as player to be. Accepting the responsibility to come out onto the ice prepared to play as a team is what wins you games and at the end of the day, that’s what is most important. The Marlies players understand this and are living it out each day. You can feel the “team spirit” permeating through the walls, the ice, the bench, and the players themselves!
If there is one thing that you can count on this season, it is that the Marlies are not out of the race for the Calder Cup. As we get closer and closer to the playoffs, the Marlies are going to be a force to be reckoned with! Brian Burke said two weeks ago to the season seat holder base at the Ricoh Coliseum that he believed that winning is a trait that can be learned and it is so very true. There is an underground movement afoot that is being led by the Marlies players who not only want to play, but more importantly they want to win; the players themselves can see the light at the end of the tunnel; that if they play well in the AHL and win Calder Cup titles, sipping champagne from Lord Stanley’s mug (as a Toronto Maple Leaf of course) isn’t that far off in the distance!
Strap on your seatbelts because we’re in for an exciting couple of months, particularly as we head towards the NHL trade deadline. It will certainly be a season to remember!
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