When it comes to late-season hounding, one has to expect that the players are well past tired of signing. Still, like the games that await, they trudge on, dutifully following the hundreds before them, fulfilling their sense of obligations toward the game's fans.And while I was hardly prepared for the team's late-season call-ups from Albany, N.Y., it was the team's big-name stars who came through for a handful of us Saturday afternoon as the team boarded its bus to the St. Pete Times Forum. Eric Staal, Cam Ward, Erik Cole and, to a lesser degree, newcomer Sergei Samsonov made sure we didn't go home emptyhanded.
In our fourth time of hounding the Hurricanes this season, it was just those four players who helped us add another 16 autographs, including five pucks, to the collection. Yes, I suppose, we were doing a little cherry-picking.
I had a couple of pucks for Tuomo Ruutu, but missed him while waiting for Staal to sign some items, including a puck commemorating his MVP performance at the 2008 NHL All Star Game. For good measure, too, he added to one 
of Colin's work-in-progress teams sheets.Ward, one of our favorite players, certainly didn't disappoint, inking an 8x10 and three cards. And, not only did Cole sign four cards for Colin, but this Hurricanes Stanley Cup Champions puck as well.
Samsonov, who, like Ruutu, joined the Hurricanes from the Blackhawks, turned in a pleasantly surprising performance, breaking away from what was his norm during his days in Beantown.
Cards, shown above, are:
Top row: Erik Cole, Eric Staal and Cam Ward; and
Bottom row: Erik Cole, Eric Staal and Cam Ward
2 comments:
Congrats on getting the Canes signatures. Cole, Ward, and Staal up here are surprisingly becoming the hardest to get. They'll stop outside of RBC practices but lately at the Rec Zone, the local practice facility, they'll slip out a different door. When they do sign though they're always more than willing.
I'm surprised Sergei stopped, he's great at the RecZone but when he's at the RBC he'll head out quickly. He's always really quiet but has signed an olympic, world cup, hurricanes logo, and all star puck for me since coming here (different times).
Thanks, Grae.
Up until Saturday, Sergei had always been a strict, but consistent, one-per signer.
Good luck during the playoffs. I've started following the Rays.
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