The Hockey Goddesses » Alex Ovechkin

RIP Dynamo Moscow

kaatiya — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 07:56:58 +0000

The names of team's legends hang in the rafters at Dynamo's arena in Moscow .

I know nothing is certain in life. The same is true of pro sports. I learned this early when my hometown NFL team — the one I grew up loving and cheering for and singing along to the cheesy “Luv Ya Blue!” song and dressing like a Derrick Doll for Halloween (don’t ask!) moved to Nashville, Tennessee. (RIP Houston Oilers.)

I know Hartford Whalers’ fans felt the same way. The Montreal Expos’ fans. Los Angeles Rams’ fans. Even fans of teams that haven’t even moved yet, but are in jeopardy probably feel this sadness and trepidation. I won’t even mention the Winnipeg Jets fans, who seem to think they are entitled to have the Thrashers or the Coyotes because they allegedly have better fans — that’s an argument for another day. (But suffice it to say, it takes more than a few years to grow a fan base. And these locales have the corporate support that other cities probably don’t and won’t. I know, I know, bring on the hate.)

Maxim Afinogenov in Dynamo colors.

But I must say it is with some shock and surprise to hear HC Moscow Dynamo, former team of such stars as Alex Ovechkin, Maxim Afinogenov, Alexei Yashin, and Alexei Kovalev, is ceasing to exist. Reports indicate the venerable Russian team, founded in 1946, will be merging with another in the Kontinental Hockey League — HC MVD.

The embattled Jiri Hudler (still property of the Detroit Red Wings) has apparently already been released from the second year of his contract and could return to the National Hockey League next year.

When we were in Moscow in January, Goddess Sasha and I took in a meeting of Dynamo Moscow and Atlant Moscow Oblast (itself a remade team from the remnants of Khimik Voskresensk — the former club of my favorite player, Slava Kozlov). Looking back now, we were lucky to see the game at Dynamo’s home area — an old, somewhat decrepit looking building with lots of charm. I can still hear the “DYNAMO! DYNAMO!” chants in my head. The crowds and arenas, compared with most NHL teams are small, but boy are they loud. They put NHL fans to shame. Such passion. NHL cheers may as well be golf claps by comparison.

Russian fans cheer: “Dynamo! Dynamo!”

Dynamo’s implosion (or going away — whatever you chose), hits me where it hurts. Being a fan of a team on the brink, so to speak, it frightens me. If it can happen to them, it can happen to anyone. Particularly a team like the Atlanta Thrashers whose fanbase has been alienated and led on for years now. Atlanta could be — nay, should be — a fantastic hockey city. The people are there, the owners are out to lunch or just don’t give a damn. Oh! That’s right they have spent years in litigation fighting over a team they seem to care nothing about, just having pissing contests while they piss the team away.

Two of the many they let get away.

Heatley had to leave. I understand he had to run away (no judgement meant or implied, though he’s still running). But squandering years of Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa, Marc Savard, Kozlov (obviously!), even a brief twirl with the great Peter Bondra. It makes me sick the talent that has slipped through our (yes our) fingers.

I don’t want the Thrashers to be the next Dynamo. Or Montreal Expos. Los Angeles Rams. Or Houston Oilers. Or even the Minnesota North Stars. I’m just not sure what we, the little guys — particularly the die-hard fans — can do to stop it.

Goddesses Square Off

admin — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 07:50:13 +0000

The Hockey Goddesses have thrown their hats into the ring, dropped the gloves, gone mano-a-mano … er, well, something like that, to bring you our Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey predictions. (We’d have done women’s hockey too, but were a little late in starting and they’ve already played too many games — given us a bit too much of a preview.)

So, herewith, and without consulting one another are our picks — a few bold ones in there. We’ve also picked our tournament MVP and a players we expect to surprise you — maybe for good or bad. Amy selected two possible MVPs — we’ll let her get away with that, but just this once. She also selected a second set of winners — BEEP — not gonna happen. You gotta go with your gut. So for the purposes of this table, it’s first instincts. For the record, Goddess Amy said her table would look different if the goalies wigged and stunk. For the purposes of our exercise, we are assuming everyone is firing on all cylinders. Maybe we’ll do the all-oops team picks tomorrow. Ha ha!

Anyway, let’s see who comes closest … and see if you agree with our picks. If not, tell us why.

	Gold	Silver	Bronze	MVP	Surprise
Amy	Russia	Canada	Sweden	Jarome Iginla or Alex Ovechkin	Bobby Ryan
Kaat	Canada	Russia	U.S.A.	Canadian fans	Ryan Miller
Sasha	Sweden	Canada	Russia	Peter Forsberg	Loui Eriksson
Savvy	Russia	Canada	Czech	Evgeni Nabakov	David Krejci
** It should be noted all picks were in before the men’s tournament began.
** Kaat selected the people of Canada as MVPs. Not only being a proud kid of a Canadian mom, but also she thinks they will push the Canadian team past the Red Machine. Selecting a player, she’d go with Sidney Crosby. How Cliché !

“If You’re Not Cheating, You’re Not Trying.”

sasha — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 22:38:06 +0000

As I watched past films of the NHL back in the 70s and 80s, the words a wise man closely tied to the NHL once told me suddenly rang in my ears. Yes, the game as major-league sport was in its infancy, but the intensity and tenacity of these players once they hit the playoffs was incredible.

We’ve seen it this year in some of the teams, and we’ve seen it completely lacking in others. We’ve seen it expressed in the wrong ways, which to me is probably the most disappointing. Cheap shots to the head were almost unheard of back in the days of helmetless players. Players had some level of respect.

But I digress. What I really wanted to expound upon is the fact that there are teams out there that don’t know how to play in the playoffs. Washington? Look at the talent on that team! They brought excitement to their fans every game this year. We “ooohed” and “ahhhed” at Alexander Ovechkin’s exuberant tenacity, at Alexander Semin’s incredible hands and Mike Green’s brilliant slapshots. What have they brought us in the playoffs thus far? Nothing but frustration.

Beauty isn’t going to get you very far in the playoffs. Neither is clean play. And let’s face it, hooks and frustrated cross-checks aren’t going to get you anywhere but the box. Look at teams that historically have had great success in the playoffs. They have grit, brawn, and yes, some sneaky, chippy, and sometimes cheap play.

Ironically, it’s one of the players that is the most despised in the league that is playing an old style of nasty, grinding, playoff hockey. Say what you will about Sean Avery, but no one can deny the impact he has had on the Capitals-Rangers series: Getting under the skin of opponents, distracting them on the ice and giving the goalies a whack here and there to throw them off.

Washington? Where is their Sean Avery? Where is their forward camped out in front of Henrik Lundqvist, smacking his stick when the refs aren’t looking, giving him that extra little bump? Give the goalie too much respect and you’re going to end up with a big goose egg in your goal column.

Don’t like the Sean Avery adulation? How about Detroit, who has at least three — maybe even more — pests in their entourage, with Chris Draper and Tomas Holmstrom leading the pack. Take a look at any team leading their series and you’ll find they have at least one or two guys who play that role and another one to two who will join their ranks in the playoffs.

And that, my friends, is what brings intensity and fans to playoff hockey.

Because if you’re not cheating, you’re not trying.

Avery, Ovechkin and Other NHL Muzzlings.

sasha — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 20:36:49 +0000

Yesterday, Sean Avery scored 2 goals and received 1st star of the game. He also had 5 hits, and a goalie interference penalty. Clearly, the Rangers are as good for Avery as he is for them. Has he “rehabbed?” One can only hope not too much. His personality is part of what makes him the player he is. And in a sport that his struggling for US viewership, is his controversial personality really *that* bad of a thing?

But it doesn’t stop at Avery. Last night’s Coaches Corner’s Don Cherry effused at the fact that Ovechkin has toned down his over-exuberant goal celebrations (all the while taking credit for being the one leading to it after his anti-Ovechkin-celebration Coaches Corner a couple of weeks back). While many of us think there is an awful lot of Ovechkin Overload going on right now, to muzzle him and his celebrations is detrimental to the game. HIs celebrations (of not just his goals, but of teammates as well) get the rest of the team excited, which in turn gets the crowd excited and creates new hockey fans that happen to see what kind of excitement hockey can bring.

Ilya Kovalchuk pointing at Sidney Crosby in the penalty box after scoring a power-play goal a couple years back was pricesless, as was Slava Kozlov chirping at Ulf Sammuelson after scoring a shootout goal against Phoenix, sending coach Wayne Gretzky into fits of rage. Let’s face it. American’s like drama. We like scandal. The world would be a boring place if we just all got along and sent each other flowers after hockey games.

Now I know some hockey elitists are going to argue that such celebrations and taunting are the “gateway drug” to further misbehavior such as illegal gun-toting and off-ice violence (and yes, I have heard this argument many times) and that hockey will lose it’s appeal to the intellectuals who can look past the fighting and actually enjoy the game. I argue that competitive sports bring out primitive instincts in people, and we really should be worrying more about ridding the game of head shots, cheap shots and abusive stick fouls rather than who said what about whose girlfriend and what the appropriate level of celebration of a goal is.

On a personal note, I played in my own high-level, intensity filled game. A rivalry quickly developed between two former Division I NCAA players. A bit of smack talking on the ice led to a penalty and one of my teammates scoring and immediately skating by the other teams bench, mocking them and the penalty. The fans were soon in an uproar, and the opposing coach nearly blew a gasket. The rest of the game was nasty, but never lost it’s intensity and we won by a single-goal margin. Let me tell you, nothing compares to the energy that brings. No harm, no foul.