Luck of the Irish

It all started, innocently enough, with my desire to get fitted for a pair of skates. It ended up, though, turning into a great hockey day.

As Colin and I drove to the Lightning's practice facility in Brandon on Monday, I figured we'd be able to watch the team practice and, if we were lucky, snag some autographs before they flew north to Toronto.

Well, we did watch the Lightning practice. Colin was excited to see his favorite Lightning players -- Vinny Lecavalier and Marty St. Louis -- skate through fast-paced drills. He even got three errant practice pucks, too.

The big thrill, though, came from the Notre Dame hockey team. We stumbled upon the Irish, in Florida for an extra day following a third-place finish in a holiday tournament, as they waited for their turn on the ice.

One of the players, Ryan Thang, felt that one of his sticks wouldn't last the practice and tossed it into a garbage can. Colin, sensing an opportunity and summoning the courage, asked if he could have it. How could they say no? Soon enough, he was the proud owner of a game-used Easton Synergy stick.

Though Colin was stoked to get the stick, the adventure went far beyond that. When I told Irish coach Jeff Jackson that he had a tryout, he asked why Colin wasn't suited up. The Irish, he said, needed someone to play the slot on the power play. All Colin could do was look up at me, asking where was his equipment.

Jackson, I believe, laughed the loudest at Colin's question.

After talking with some of the team staff during the practice, we figured it would be easy to get Thang to sign the stick. What we didn't expect, however, was that the Irish, to a man, would also follow suit. In fact, the players couldn't get off the ice unless they signed Colin's stick.

As I stood back, taking in the moment, I had a hard time figuring out who was enjoying the moment the most -- Colin or the players. Smiles came easy, hair was tousled and memories were made.

Looking back, it would have been easy enough to head home after the Lightning practice. I'm glad we didn't. Once again, hockey provided the backdrop for another father-son bonding moment. And the Irish, one of the nation's top-ranked college teams, gained a couple of fans.

It was, indeed, a great hockey day.

Headed to overtime

In the latest Hound Central 3.0 poll, we asked who was going to win today's NHL Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium in snowy Orchard Park, N.Y.

At the conclusion of voting, timed to end as the game started, we found ourselves in a tie. Of the 18 votes cast, the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins each received nine votes.

My vote, the last cast in the poll, went to my hometown Sabres.

So, who's going to win? We'll have to wait to see. I'm hoping that home-snow advantage plays a role. As an added bonus, Buffalo's Brian Campbell nets the game-winner.

Update (1/2/08): Even though it's disappointing that the Sabres lost 2-1 in a shootout, it was wonderful to see hockey played outdoors. I hope the NHL does this every year.

What's This? 2.5

Don't mean to scare you at all, but this image shows the extremes that some fans will go to support their favorite teams.

This installment, like last week's, features a bit of a twist: Can you tell what team this fan is rooting for?

It seems that last week's item was a tad difficult. The hockey scene, which did not depict my short-lived stint as a goalie during street hockey games on the tennis courts at Broadbay Circle in Lime Lake, was on an antique pitcher, not an ornament.

Sorry, but there will be no awarding of eagle-eye wahoos this week.

As always, answers -- right or wrong -- can be left in a comment.

TTM: Round 3

Maybe it's because of the holiday season, but there's been a noticeable slowdown in the number of returns over the past month in Hound Central 3.0's TTM project.

Only San Jose's Steve Bernier, a member of the second round of mailings, found the time to sign and return his cards. It's too bad, though, that three of the four signatures were smudged.

Despite this delay in returns, Hound Central 3.0 won't let a little thing like that keep us from sending the third installment of the season-long project.

December's requests, mailed late on the last day of 2007, were:

~ Chicago's Patrick Sharp;
~ Dallas' Antti Miettinen;
~ Los Angeles' Patrick O'Sullivan;
~ Phoenix's Zbynek Michalek; and
~ St. Louis' Lee Stempniak.

Hounding 2007: Year in review

In all honesty, this was supposed to be a slow year. Really. And, in a sense, it has been. I've made a point of being more patient, more observant and, whenever the opportunity presents itself, practicing some serious and shameless cherry-picking.

While past years were more intent on amassing a collection, this past year focused on enhancing the quality. For the most part, it's been a fun year. The biggest lesson? Taking breaks are a good thing. The most fun? Watching Colin with the players. He loves being first.

Looking back, these events made for a memorable year:

~ For the calendar year, another 307 pucks, according to preliminary calculations, were added to the collection. As of today, the total stands at 1,450 pucks.

~ I finally got my act together and showed off the Team Canada goalie mask. Now, I'm working on an American-born goalie stick.

~ Once again, we meet an old friend on the Boston Bruins.

~ The first of three milestones of the year, Florida's Olli Jokinen signed puck No. 1,200.

~ Getting one from The Great One. Enough said.

~ Martin St. Louis, the soul of the Tampa Bay Lightning, helped provide a nice reward for a good kid.

~ I finally get around to displaying a signed set of New Jersey's Martin Brodeur replica goalie gloves.

~ In a momentary diversion from hockey, Colin gets to meet one of his baseball heroes, former Red Sox star Trot Nixon, when the Cleveland Indians come to St. Petersburg.

~ Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin provided the best pull in a somewhat disappointing year of hockey card releases.

~ Ending, for once and for all, the debate between card prep work: An eraser is better than baby powder.

~ One humble hockey hound's opinion of which NHL players are worthy of an autographed puck.

~ Training camp makes for a fun family day with the Lightning.

~ Sometimes, though, these stars can get grumpy.

~ To some, getting Tampa Bay's Kyle Wanvig to sign the 1,300th puck of the collection was a lapse in judgment. I beg to differ.

~ Given his propensity to make and find messes, we're a bit reluctant to let Colin wear this to too many Lightning games. Chocolate milk, I've learned, is a difficult stain.

~ When it comes to dealers and collectors, Vinny Lecavalier, the heart of the Tampa Bay Lightning, knows the difference.

~ Every so often, the planets align over Tampa Bay.

~ Like I didn't already have enough hounding to do, Hound Central 3.0 begins a monthly TTM project.

~ Buffalo's Ryan Miller lives up to his reputation as a willing signer, even in the presence of big crowd.

~ New Jersey's Martin Brodeur slaps down a letter-perfect (for Brodeur, that is) autograph on a jersey. Too bad, though, he can't spell Colin's name.

~ It took less than an hour to complete an Atlanta Thrashers team helmet. Granted, it still needs Marian Hossa and Kari Lehtonen on it, but it does have some other recognizable names.

~ Like everyone else, we prayed for Boston's Patrice Bergeron.

~ I'm surprised that there isn't a line of people waiting for Hall of Famer Phil Esposito after every Lightning home game.

~ When it comes to hounding Ottawa, there's no shortage of stars to pick. Some days, though, are better than others.

~ A long way from Orono, Maine, I find a couple of Black Bears.

~ Carolina's Andrew Ladd signs puck No. 1,400. It's the third milestone puck of the year.

~ Simple math: 5x4=20.

~ The Calgary Flames, who took the Lightning to seven games for the 2004 Stanley Cup, provided one of the best days ever of across-the-board hounding.

~ Becoming infatuated with wallpapers

~ Witnessing a change in attitude by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sabres fans can rest assured, however, that the Loafs are still my least favorite team.

~ Watching Carolina goalie coach Tom Barrasso sign an autograph left me not just in shock, but in complete awe as well.

~ In the last NHL hounding trip of the year, I scored a nifty 50 out of the Montreal Canadiens.

Now, if you've read this far, please accept my most sincere appreciation. There's more than 30 entries. For every one that is here, there are another two that didn't make it.

Sunday morning homily XIV

If every other columnist/blogger -- from the small-town sage to the big-city blowhard -- can offer up resolutions and/or predictions for 2008, it's probably acceptable, within some circles, to tender these for your hockey-hounding consideration:

2008 resolutions

1.) Continue to remember that hounding is a hobby. A fun one, too. My work is within journalism, especially making the jump to multimedia efforts. Who knows? Maybe I'll do a video report on hounding for the paper. That's a good objective, isn't it?

2.) Continue to improve upon the breadth and quality of the collection. It's been a real hoot putting together signed sticks, especially the American-born goalie stick; team helmets, including the 1999 All Star Game helmet; and jerseys. Diversity is important.

3.) After skating for the first time in 14 years, and suffering no indignity or injury greater than a wet butt (I was using dull rental skates), I'll make it a more regular occurrence (twice a month, perhaps?). It was, and will be, a joy to skate with Colin.

2008 predictions

1.) We'll finish the 2007-08 season with more than 1,525 pucks. With a little effort, and some more cooperation from the Washington Capitals (and it's not just Ovie, either), closing out with 1,550 is within the realm of possibility.

2.) The 1,500th puck of the collection will be signed by a Vancouver Canucks player. Roberto Luongo, Markus Naslund or either of the Sedins would be nice, wouldn't it?

3.) The Lightning are toast. They won't even contend for the playoffs. So are Jay Feaster and John Tortorella. But I first said that in April. Tampa Bay thanks them, though, for the Cup.

300-plus pucks in a year

In researching Hound Central 3.0's review of 2007's hounding efforts, preliminary calculations show that 307 autographed pucks were added to the collection. I guess it was a good year. You can read more about it tomorrow.

5 Big Sigs

With the Dolts on the road until Jan. 10, when Sid and the Penguins come to Tampa, I'll be enjoying a little break from hounding.

It'll be a time to put away some pucks, update the files and get ready for Pittsburgh. And Colorado. And Edmonton.

Please know, too, that I'll start linking to any, and all, successes within this feature. In time, past installments, where applicable, will be linked.

Hockey Word Association 2.2

Among the shiny foil hats, penny-a-piece noisemakers and the overpriced bubbly, I'm sure you can find the time in the year's waning days to play along with this week's player-centric installment.

All you have to do is jot down the first word(s)/phrase that pops into your mind for the following players:

1.) Sidney Crosby =
2.) Thomas Vanek =
3.) Vinny Lecavalier =
4.) Carey Price =
5.) Jason Spezza =

Hitting 50

Within the game of hockey, there's something magical about the number 50. It represents a watershed mark for goal scorers, a number than clearly defines the difference between an awesome season and one that's merely great.

That philosophy, I believe, can be extended to hounding. To get 50 autographs in a single outing, let alone an entire day, is pretty remarkable. But that's what I was able to do Thursday when the Montreal Canadiens, in town to play the Lightning, headed to, and back from, the team's morning skate.

What really stands out, though, is the diversity of the additions to our collection:

~ Thirty cards with 31 signatures, including a Generations card featuring talented Canadiens past and present;
~ Nine pucks, including those shown above, as well as a pair from a promising rookie goalie;
~ Five cheap skate cards;
~ Three signatures from Montreal legends on a Canadiens replica jersey; and
~ Two wallpaper 8x10s signed by Saku Koivu and Alex Kovalev.

Pucks, shown above:
Top row: Kyle Chipchura and Cristobal Huet
Bottom row: Andrei Kostitsyn and Michael Ryder

Cards, shown below:
Top row: Francis Bouillon, Chris Higgins, Mike Komisarek and Andrei Kostitsyn
Bottom row: Maxim Lapierre, Guillaume Latendresse, Andrei Markov and Tomas Plekanic.

Get him now

It should come as no surprise that Montreal rookie goalie Carey Price drew a ton of attention Thursday as he made his way to and from the team's morning skate.

From glowing reports that he's the next Patrick Roy (we''ll see, I suppose) to the fact that his Young Guns card is fetching princely sums, I took advantage of the opportunity to have him sign a few items.

Despite this good fortune, I'm looking forward to Montreal's next trip to Tampa. Hopefully, I'll have tracked down a 8x10 for the young netminder.

Remember, the sooner you get young players like Price, the better off you'll be. Sometimes, their success goes to their head. Maybe Price will be different, but I won't be taking any chances.

Meatloaf was right

After getting Montreal's Saku Koivu and Andrei Kostitsyn to sign this Generations card, plucked from a pack of 2007-08 NHL FLeer Ultra, it's easy to see why two out of three ain't bad. Now, all I have to do is get Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur to complete the card.

Something for everyone

One of the nice things about using my so-called cheap skates cards, besides their uniqueness, is that they provide something for rookies or minor-league call-ups to sign.

Yesterday, with Montreal in town and its roster spotted with players lacking a significant number of cards, I was able to get, from top, Kyle Chipchura, a No. 1 pick; Maxim Lapierre and Ryan O'Byrne to sign these cards.

They may not be pretty, but they're certainly worth the effort. Bottom line, they serve a useful purpose.

Fish sticks, anyone?

Sure, it may be the ugliest logo ever to appear in the NHL, but I'm glad that Montreal assistant coach Kirk Muller signed this New York Islanders' infamous Gorton's fisherman logo puck.

I was a bit surprised, too, that Muller, a fairly chatty person, offered no commentary.

Some things, I suppose, are better left unsaid.

Returning the favor

A couple days ago, a friend of ours in New Hampshire was lamenting my ability to hound the Montreal Canadiens earlier today. It seems inclement weather, a balky clutch and a little gumption kept him from making the ride down to Beantown when the Habs were in town.

Not to worry, Johnny Boy. This wallpaper, signed by Montreal captain Saku Koivu, will soon get put in the mail, bound for a certain New Hampshire address, as a token of our appreciation for getting Hall of Famer Ray Bourque to sign a Bruins jersey for us.

Ten minutes is all it takes

And here's yet another instance where five minutes at Montreal's Web site, three minutes in a printer and two minutes waiting for the Canadiens' Alex Kovalev to sign this wallpaper adds up to one sweet autographed piece.

Top shelf

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that having Montreal's Bob Gainey, Guy Carbonneau and Doug Jarvis sign this Canadiens jersey certainly adds to the quality of the collection.

Bad boys

I suppose when your name makes the headlines only because you tried to hurt someone, there's a really good chance that Santa won't be smiling at you. Just ask Chris Simon, the New York Islanders forward who recently got dope-slapped with a 30-game suspension.

It seems that Simon, fresh off a 25-game sidelining for two-handing the Rangers' Ryan Hollweg last season, didn't learn his lesson -- attempting to injure Pittsburgh's Jarkko Ruutu by stepping on his skate. Pretty scary, in both instances.

Now, we all know hockey is a hard-hitting game. To some, myself included, there's little that's more exciting that a well-placed, legal hit that doesn't injure an opponent. However, Simon's recent actions, as well as those delivered by the other players listed, have no business in the game.

Let's hope that all players, not just Simon and the NHL's motley crew of thugs, goons and knuckle-draggers, get the message.

For the record, here are the results:

Question: Who's getting a lump of coal from Santa?

NYI's Chris Simon: 9 out of 14 votes cast (64.3 percent)
All of the above: 3 out of 14 (21.4 percent)
Philly's Randy Jones: 2 out of 14 (14.3 percent)
Philly's Jesse Boulerice: 0 votes
Phily's Steve Downie: 0 votes
Vancouver's Mattias Ohlund: 0 votes

Name this logo XVIII

If you don't know what or who this is, you really shouldn't look in your stocking tomorrow morning.

Ribbons and bows (sorry, guys) go out to Drew and Brett, for knowing that last week's logo belonged to the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League.

Remember, all answers must be left in the form of a comment.

Happy holidays!

Three and out

Once a team comes to town for the third time in a season, you really ought to be tying up the loose ends of your hounding efforts. In a sense, that's what we did Saturday with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Using mostly items downloaded from the team's Web site, something that has become somewhat of a preoccupation of mine, we focused on team items, adding another 27 autographs to the collection. And, as usual, he scored the most using team sheets, snagging 16 autographs from Rod Brind'Amour, Cam Ward, Ray Whitney and long-time toughie Tom Barrasso, the 'Canes new goalie coach.

Apparently, I was simply along for the ride, getting only one puck, this Team USA from Erik Cole. To my credit, I did get a couple cards each from John Grahame and Ladd.

For the second trip in a row, we missed out on Eric Staal. We saw him take his bags to the bus, but then he walked back into the hotel. It seems he's become fond of taking a back way out of the hotel. It's too bad, too, as they were only six of us waiting at game time.

Suffice it to say, barring any major trade that brings a big name to Tobacco Road, we're done with the Hurricanes for the year.

Easier than breathing

Yes, I've officially jumped aboard the wallpaper bandwagon. Especially after Carolina's Rod Brind'Amour was one of four Hurricanes to sign this image, availableat the team's Web site. Others signing were Cory Stillman, Andrew Ladd and Eric Cole.

Cam came through

It certainly made Colin's day when Carolina's Cam Ward signed this calendar-based wallpaper from the Hurricanes' Web site. The day only got better when Ward, one of the Goofy dude's favorite goalies, signed a team sheet and Colin's old Hurricanes jersey.