Nitzy's Hockey Den

                             Bylaw 27.12 "any playoff game that is unfinished...for any cause beyond the control of the clubs...shall be replayed in it's entirety at the end of the series, if necessary, and it shall be played in the rink in which the unfinished game occurred." Not only did the power go out at the old Boston Garden just as Edmonton's goal by Craig Simpson was being announced, but there was also the issue of the fog. Five times during the second period, referee Denis Morel had the teams empty their benches to skate around in attempt to clear the fog.   After  NHL president John Ziegler met with officials for 30 minutes, he decided to not continue play even though power had been restored. At 10:07pm the lights were back on without the help of a generator and several players returned to the ice but 95 percent of the...

The 2013 Memorial Cup is in full swing and just loaded with stars. Halifax's Nathan MacKinnon has already recorded a hat-trick which brought the question to mind...what's the Memorial Cup record for most goals in one game? The answer is Bruce Boudreau of the Toronto Marlboros. On May 9, 1975 in Kitchener, Ontario Boudreau fired not only 5 goals in a 10-4 win over the Sherbrooke Castors, but they were ALL on the power play as well. "I guess this will make me sleep better tonight," he said after he ended his own personal scoring drought.  After scoring 68 goals in 69 regular season games, Boudreau had dipped slightly to 12 in 22 playoff matches. He could not be blamed for his struggles however as near the end of the regular season he suffered a freak injury. He fell on coach George Armstrong's skate and required 16 stitches. Boudreau saved 3 of his 5 goals in this game until the third period, all five were scored on Sherbrooke's Nick Sanza. The victory se...

 Here's a few more rarely seen photos from the archive of the Boston Public Library.    Syl Apps, Conn Smythe, Coach Dick Irvin, Gord Drillon pictured in the late 1930's Great shot of Drillon and Apps, young stars of the Leafs in the late 30's and early 40's. A young and pudgy Turk Broda A dapper looking Conn Smythe longing in a Boston hotel. Note his characteristic spats that he always wore over his shoes      

Second Round. New York Rangers. Home Ice Advantage. Which of my eight Leaf jerseys do I wear to work tomorrow in celebration? These were thoughts running through my mind at about 6:15 PM Pacific Standard Time on Monday, May 13, 2013. Well, they weren't actually "running" through my mind, as opposed to trying to break down the locked front door and prying open the shuttered windows of my mind. I did not want these thoughts, there were still fourteen and a half minutes left in game seven. Sure, my Leafs were up 4-1 on Boston after the goal by Nazem Kadri, but too much time remained for me to give in to the thoughts trying to creep into my head. It was this point that Twitter exploded with assertions that this game was over, and not from just average fans but from professional and well-respected hockey writers. An example of the Tweets I was seeing at this point in time: Adam Proteau, Hockey News              ...

Isles overwhelmed from the start... Hounded to the brink of an imposed summer, the young New York Islanders know that even though their hockey season has faded to perhaps it's final days, they came achingly close to spinning this series toward the unthinkable. They could have and they did outwork the Penguins for long stretches. They could have and they did dictate tempo to their precise advantage throughout the first four games. But all that time, they knew there was one element that if it became critical they could be lethally vulnerable, and it became critical last night. The Islanders just don't have - can't have- the kind of maturity necessary to deal with bursts of Penguins brilliance. The Penguins thus have taken the upper hand in this series, but it is far from over. Once the Islanders got through the Penguins strong start last night, they showed the tenacity and resilience that have enabled them to win two games against an opponent with a serious in tale...

Clever, right? I'm not really sure what it is. If I knew, I would share. Perhaps it's just a collection of feelings and beliefs I have. But the fact remains, almost as much as I love the Toronto Maple Leafs...I really do enjoy seeing the Vancouver Canucks lose. I know, that sounds juvenile, even callous but it's the truth. This week was the first playoff game for the Leafs in nine (9) years and they lost, handily. I quickly remembered what it's like to have your team in the playoffs, the fact that despite all the hope and promise it rarely turns out well. I was slightly depressed after the loss but honestly I cannot expect a Cup win this year. It's a process and this is one step of it. On my way to my spring beer league hockey game an hour later, listening to the Canuck's first game on the radio I found myself giving a fist-pump to San Jose's tying goal. Later during a stoppage in play in my own game, our ref shared the fact that the Canucks had l...