Stanley Cup Playoffs Thread...

the pronger story is an interesting one...

peca also had some serious off-ice issues this year, and that was public knowledge. his wife -- the strong-willed one in that relationship -- used to be part of a morning radio show in buffalo (she was the traffic girl). she loved it in long island, where the pecas were very tight with the laviolettes, but was not thrilled about edmonton at all and peca did a piss-poor job of hiding it. one of the turning points in pecas/the oilers season was when a number of veterans read him the riot act, telling him to suck it up and play.

pronger never needed any such motivation, he was a true professional, a loyal soldier all year. however, it did not go unnoticed that his family was not seen around rexall with the others during the cup run.

 

Mr Dad,

Hey, that's my specialty, interesting stories.

YHS, etc

 

I imagine this post will get attacked, but I really wish spouses of pro athletes would just STFU and accept that sometimes the athlete has to play in a city that may not be the best case scenario but will allow the family to continue to live in the same style it has enjoyed.

This could mean the family goes wherever the player goes and makes the best of things, or the family lives in a city where the other spouse has a support system and the kids are in school, then the player comes home whenever he or she is able to do so. I mean, people who bring home a lot less money than Chris Pronger and Mike Peca make such arrangements work all the time.

Sometimes the non-athlete spouse forgets that little part in the vows that talks about "for better or for worse...till death do us part." That sounds like what may be going on here. And if Pronger's wife doesn't support him by at least showing up at the arena during the final series, that tells me there are more problems in that marriage than just Edmonton.

This of course does not excuse a guy like Jose Theodore who thinks it's okay to keep his family on the sidelines while he's out with Paris Hilton. No, players like that deserve to be put out on the street. Hell, even if he were single he should still be shot and pissed on for hanging out with Paris Fucking Hilton.

 

Here's something for all those that hate the Hurricanes and southern hockey....

They put a dent in the Holy Grail!!

From the Raleigh News and Observer:

The Cup will be at the draft Saturday and in Campbell River on Sunday, a day after Brind'Amour's charity golf tournament. After that, it's headed back to Toronto and the Hall of Fame for repairs -- equipment manager Wally Tatomir dropped it.

For now, the Hurricanes aren't letting it out of their grasp as they bask in the NHL's adulation.

"I don't know that it really sinks in for good," Brind'Amour said. "You just savor it. When you see the guys, when you run into them, it's weird -- even if you haven't seen them for just a day. It's just a good feeling, something they can't take away."

 

It's been dropped and dented before. I think I remember hearing about an incident a few years before Rocket Richard's death where he dropped it during a ceremony at the Forum.

Still, even though it's been mistreated in the past and will be again, I'd still want to cut my hands off if I ever did such a thing. Hopefully Wally Tatomir is feeling shame.

 

Yeah, but has it been dented so soon after the presentation?

I wonder if anyone has dropped it during the parade or after the deciding game?

 

Good question. I imagine it could happen right after the last game, with all the alcohol flowing and the jostling inside a crowded dressing room.

 

I can imagine someone dropping it after the deciding game considering that they showered the ice with confetti. That's gotta be a bitch to skate on.

 

Someone, I want to say Doug Weight, said he almost slipped on a piece of confetti as he was being handed the cup and dropped it.

I was very concerned what was going to happen at the parade if Mike Commodore or Chad LaRose were handed the Cup. Both looked like they might have fallen off the stage.

 

The Cup has been drop kicked down the RIdeau (sp?) Canal after Ottawa won it back in the day during their drunken post series celebration, then remembered it the next day when they woke up. It has been dented many times in celebration. Hell I believe it was Guy Lafleur who kidnapped the thing, threw it in his trunk and went to a house party with it. When the Oil won it one year in Edmonton, Mess and the boys took it to a strip joint. Millions of stories like these. The guardians of the cup are fairly new I believe, didn't come in until the 90s if I'm not mistaken.

 

I didn't say they would be back in STL. I was trying to figure out what she was thinking. To the point that it wasn't an Edmonton problem, but more a don't want to leave STL problem. I was just trying to make the point that she should get used to living elsewhere because Pronger's days as a Blue are over. That is if they don't want to work on an arrangement where he lives in another city during the season and visits when he is on the road and close, as others mentioned here.

I did know Peca had his problems in Edmonton that his family was pissed about being uprooted and so on, but hadn't heard about Pronger's problems. I do wonder if that did have much affect on Pronger's slow start, I know it affected Peca.

 

"Pronger Wants Out"

That's the main story on TSN.ca. Very interesting timing and could have a big impact on the draft. However, knowing Lowe this thing could get really, really ugly. Lowe won't be bullied by anyone and still has Pronger's rights for another four years. Either way, it's a sad week to be a fan of the Edmonton Oilers.