The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.

Fully Loaded, Spring 2012

The Hockey News - Fully Loaded Spring 2012

<div class="byline">BY MICHAEL TRAIKOS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0036-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-011349/9694948-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GREGORY SHAMUS/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>IT ALL STARTS WITH A SONG.</b></p><p><b>SOMETHING TO GET THE BLOOD PUMPING AND THE CROWD ON ITS FEET.</b></p><p><b>NOTHING TOO OBSCURE, NOTHING TOO DATED, NOTHING TOO EXPLICIT.</b></p><p><b>A SONG EVERYONE MIGHT NOT NECESSARILY KNOW, BUT ONE THEY CAN GET INTO UPON THE FIRST LISTEN.</b></p><p><b>THIS IS HOW ANY GOOD DJ&rsquo;S MIND WORKS.</b></p><p><b>AND SO, IT&rsquo;S HOW JOFFREY LUPUL&rsquo;S MIND MUST ALSO WORK THESE DAYS.</b></p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-011310/9694941-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="2362" height="2008"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>BACK FROM THE BRINK</b></p><p>Last year, back surgery and a serious infection threatened to end Joffrey Lupul&rsquo;s career.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(CLAUS ANDERSEN/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Tired of hearing the same old arena rock standards, the Toronto Maple Leafs forward asked the Air Canada Centre&rsquo;s game-ops crew at the beginning of the regular season if he could set the playlist for the pre-game warmup. So now, instead of AC/DC and Nickelback, fans get to hear what Lupul wants to hear: The Black Keys, Arcade Fire, Kanye West and Jay-Z, and whatever else is on his iPod. &ldquo;I do all the songs,&rdquo; Lupul said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll switch them up every couple of weeks, throw something new on. It&rsquo;s not only what I like. I&rsquo;m trying to play to the different tastes in the room.&rdquo;</p><p>To an extent, of course. Lupul does not play country (the musical preference of teammate Luke Schenn) and he stays away from Eurodance and Russian hip-hop, so you won&rsquo;t be hearing Alex Ovechkin rapping at the ACC any time soon. He also avoids the kind of songs he tends to blast on his headphones when he is working out alone, but might not be considered listener-friendly (<i>Tame</i> by the Pixies is a personal favorite).</p><p>Lupul is not only setting the tunes for the Leafs. With a team-leading 52 points in 49 games, he was also setting the tone.</p><p>It is quite the accomplishment for a player who a little more than a year ago was lying on his couch, an IV sticking out of his arm, wondering if he would ever play in the NHL again after multiple back surgeries and mysterious infections threatened his career. Fifty points? When the season began, some doubted Lupul would play 50 games.</p><p>But not only has he managed to stay healthy, Lupul is having his best season, sitting tied for fifth among scoring leaders at the end of January and recently named assistant captain for his first All-Star Game. The Art Ross and Hart Trophies are in his sight. Either way, he appears to have a lock on the Masterton Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to the player who best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication. &ldquo;At the start of the year, if I said I was going to be up in that top, I probably would have not believed myself,&rdquo; Lupul said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to be looking and chasing guys like Evgeni Malkin and the Sedin brothers. I&rsquo;m just going to keep playing the same way I have been and hopefully the points keep coming.&rdquo;</p><p>The way that Lupul is playing these days is not the kind of the game you imagine a player would be able to play after spending nearly 12 months out of the sport when surgery to repair a herniated disc went horribly wrong. But aside from a three-inch foam pad that Lupul still sits on to help his posture while putting on his skates &ndash; &ldquo;the guys call it the La-Z-Boy,&rdquo; he said &ndash; you would never now he was once thought of as damaged goods.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-011199/9694934-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="1315" height="1248"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b>I DO ALL THE SONGS. IT&rsquo;S NOT ONLY WHAT I LIKE. I PLAY TO DIFFERENT TASTES</b><br><b>&ndash; JOFFREY LUPUL</b></blockquote><p>During those dark days when the then-Anaheim Ducks right winger could not skate, exercise or do much in the way of physical activity, he said he turned to music as a form of therapy. He would pick up his acoustic guitar, which he taught himself to play as a rookie eight years ago, and strum something by My Morning Jacket or the Counting Crows. Or he would go see a concert and try to lose himself in the moment, forgetting he was a seventh overall pick in 2002 who had temporarily hung up his skates.</p><p>When he eventually returned &ndash; 362 days since he had last played &ndash; it was as though he&rsquo;d awoken from a coma. Everything seemed different. He was no longer on the Ducks&rsquo; top line, but rather down in the depth chart fighting for ice time, a 27-year-old afterthought with a bloated $4.25-million salary.</p><p>It wasn&rsquo;t until he was traded to Toronto last season &ndash; the fourth time he had to pack his suitcase in five years &ndash; when things started to look up. At the time, GM Brian Burke admitted he was betting Lupul, whom he had in Anaheim, could return to the form that had netted him 53 points in 2005-06. &ldquo;I believe he has something to prove,&rdquo; Burke said.</p><p>That seems to be the case, as the 6-foot-1, 206-pound winger is back to playing a power game. He is a sponge for the dirty areas, parking himself in front of the opposing net and crashing into corners, all in the pursuit of points. It is a toll for any player, regardless of their size or injury history. But Lupul is not about to pass up this golden opportunity. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t know how often they&rsquo;re going to come by, so you want to make the most of it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I know I&rsquo;m getting a good opportunity here to play first-line minutes &ndash; 18 to 20 minutes a night &ndash; which is better than I was getting in Anaheim when I came back from injury, so it&rsquo;s something that you don&rsquo;t want to waste.&rdquo;</p><p>In Toronto, Lupul has found a home. On the ice, he has formed instant chemistry with right winger Phil Kessel (51 points in 49 games). And away from the rink, he has settled nicely in the hockey-mad urban center, spending off days record shopping in the Annex while catching concerts whenever the schedule permits. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t really know a lot about Toronto before I came here,&rdquo; said the native of Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. &ldquo;Everyone&rsquo;s been good to me here. I like the city, I like being a part of a big city. I&rsquo;m not like some people who like living out in the country and having a big yard. I like living down-town, the buzz, going out on the street and seeing people everywhere.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a really diverse city. I&rsquo;m still trying to find my way around Toronto, but I&rsquo;m always finding new areas and new restaurants. Any chance I get to see a new band or a band I have a CD of, it&rsquo;s just something I like to do. I&rsquo;d much rather do that than go to a club or a movie or something. It just seems like every band comes through here at least once.&rdquo;</p><p>Lupul has also found a home on Twitter, where his handle @JLupul has more than 103,300 followers. He says he likes tweeting, because it gives him a chance to interact with fans. And while he was pranked at last year&rsquo;s trade deadline (someone tweeted that he was being shipped to the New York Islanders) and caused a minor stir when he tweeted a picture from his Buffalo hotel room window &ndash; featuring City Hall &ndash; with the caption, &ldquo;Is there any windowless rooms?,&rdquo; he has also found it helpful.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01903/9694927-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg" title="f0040-01" width="1032" height="1215"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>CHART-TOPPER</b></p><p>Flourishing with Phil Kessel, Lupul has become a fixture at or near the top of the scoring table.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(ABELIMAGES/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b>I LIKE THE BIG CITY, THE BUZZ, GOING OUT ON THE STREET AND SEEING PEOPLE</b><br><b>&ndash; JOFFREY LUPUL</b></blockquote><p>Last year, Lupul accidentally left his iPhone in a Toronto taxi. After reaching out to his legions of followers &ndash; with Leafs tickets and a signed jersey as a reward &ndash; the phone mysteriously surfaced. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just another way to relate to the fans,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I know growing up being a fan of lots of different hockey players, you don&rsquo;t really get that chance to connect with them that much. Not like an actor, where you see them interviewed. In hockey, it just seems like we give the same boring interview day after day after the games. I mean, that&rsquo;s all good, but it&rsquo;s also nice to show fans a different side of you that they might not get to see.&rdquo;</p><p>Mostly, Lupul likes to talk music. Sometimes fans will tweet him a new band or song he should check out, which might get used in the pregame warmup.</p><p>We suggest <i>You Ain&rsquo;t Seen Nothing Yet</i> by Bachman Turner Overdrive. It&rsquo;s an oldie. But based on what Lupul has done so far this season, it seems to fit.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-02577/9694920-1-eng-US/f0040-022.jpg" title="f0040-02" width="583" height="795"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MIKE STOBE/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>31</b></h2><p><b>POINTS FOR JOFFREY LUPUL AT HOME BY THE ALL-STAR BREAK, TIED WITH THREE PLAYERS FOR THE NHL LEAD</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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IN THIS ISSUE

ALL THE right NOTES

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021784/9693617-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="487" height="601"></div><h2><b>OCCUPATION</b></h2><p>Hip hop producer/Points producer</p><h2><b>TEAM</b></h2><p>Odd Future/Pittsburgh Penguins</p><h2><b>FROM</b></h2><p>Los Angeles/Cole Harbour, N.S.</p><h2><b>FAMOUS COLLABORATOR</b></h2><p>Tyler, the Creator/Evgeni Malkin</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-031264/9693610-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="694" height="568"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SYD: TIM MOSENFELDER/GETTY IMAGES; SID: GREGORY SHAMUS/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>3.8</b></h2><p><b>PERCENTAGE OF COLLEGE HOCKEY PLAYERS</b> who admitted to using cocaine in an NCAA survey. They have a ways to go before catching lacrosse teams (9.7 percent)<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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SYD THA KID VS. SID THE KID

<div class="byline">PHOTOS BY HARRY GILS </div><div class="byline">MODELS FROM ELMER OLSEN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0046-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-02408/9695146-1-eng-US/f0046-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Colin&rsquo;s zip-up by J. Lindeberg, pants by Ben Sherman.</figcaption></div><p>ARTIFACTS FROM THE HOCKEY HALL OF FAME COLLECTION</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-01436/9695139-1-eng-US/f0048-012.jpg" title="f0048-01" width="2362" height="3225"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stephen&rsquo;s cardigan by Mitchell & Ness, pants by Sand.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-01412/9695132-1-eng-US/f0049-012.jpg" title="f0049-01" width="2345" height="3202"><figcaption class="caption-body">From left: Robert&rsquo;s shirt by Penguin, cardigan and pants by Ben Sherman. Colin&rsquo;s shirt by Red Jacket Clothing, pants by Sand. Stephen&rsquo;s cardigan by J. Lindeberg, pants by Sand.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-01399/9695125-1-eng-US/f0050-012.jpg" title="f0050-01" width="2362" height="3225"><figcaption class="caption-body">Robert&rsquo;s shirt by Red Jacket Clothing, pants by Ben Sherman.</figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote">STUDY HIM ON THE BENCH HE&rsquo;S A HOLLER GUY A WANT-TO-WIN GUY YOU DON&rsquo;T HAVE TO PUSH HIM OVER THE DASHER<br>&ndash; THN ON BOSTON&rsquo;S TOM JOHNSON IN 1964</blockquote><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-01324/9695118-1-eng-US/f0051-012.jpg" title="f0051-01" width="2362" height="3225"><figcaption class="caption-body">Colin&rsquo;s cardigan by J. Lindeberg, shirt by Ben Sherman, pants by Sand.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-01320/9695111-1-eng-US/f0052-012.jpg" title="f0052-01" width="2362" height="3225"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stephen&rsquo;s suit by J. Lindeberg, shirt by Ben Sherman. Colin&rsquo;s blazer and pants by Sand, shirt by Ben Sherman.</figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote">THE LATEST INSTRUCTIONS FROM REFEREE-IN-CHIEF CARL VOSS TO HIS NHL WHISTLE-TOOTERS ARE TO CRACK DOWN ON A FEV OF THOSE HOOKING AND HOLDING TRICKS<br>&ndash; THN 1951</blockquote><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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ORIGINAL STYLE

<p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>t was a classic French theme at Ottawa&rsquo;s Metropolitain Brasserie as THN hosted the All-Star Game&rsquo;s official closing party on Jan. 30. Edmonton&rsquo;s Jordan Eberle and future Hall of Famers Rob Blake and Brendan Shanahan were among the guests who enjoyed Parisian food. burlesque dancers and caricature artists. One lucky guest even won a trip for two to the City of Lights, while Senators enforcer Zenon Konopka launched his own wine label, ZK28</p><p>ABSOLUT&reg; Elyx brought the cocktails, Molson handled the beer and Chivas rocked the Scotch bar, while Reebok handled the gift bags. The event also served as the kickoff for THN&rsquo;s 65th anniversary, which occurs this year</p><p>The late-going party made for a rough trip back to Toronto the next morning. but it was well worth the groggy wakeup calls on Monday</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-011464/9694387-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="959" height="687"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DJ DONALD LAUTURE</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-021054/9694380-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="622" height="663"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BILL DALY AND CAROLINE ANDREWS (PUBLISHER, THE HOCKEY NEWS)</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03825/9694373-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="941" height="607"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04618/9694366-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="567" height="697"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BIRTHDAY CAKE</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-011359/9694359-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="815" height="594"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02953/9694352-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="454" height="591"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03689/9694345-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="350" height="459"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>CYRIL LEEDER (PRESIDENT, OTTAWA SENATORS)</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-07209/9694338-1-eng-US/f0027-072.jpg" title="f0027-07" width="979" height="672"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JORDAN EBERLE AND HIS BUDDIESS</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05472/9694331-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="864" height="696"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>SHAWN PARKER WINS THEI GRAND PRIZE &ndash; A TRIP TO PARIS!</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-04508/9694324-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="891" height="673"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>L-R: JAMES WATSON FROM (NHLPA), TESSA BONHOMME AND MEAGHAN MIKKELSON REID</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-05353/9694317-1-eng-US/f0027-052.jpg" title="f0027-05" width="730" height="531"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ERIKA VANDERVEER (ART DIRECTOR, THE HOCKEY NEWS)</b></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-08179/9694310-1-eng-US/f0027-082.jpg" title="f0027-08" width="1276" height="744"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>THE HOCKEY NEWS TEAMI</b></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-09148/9694303-1-eng-US/f0027-092.jpg" title="f0027-09" width="398" height="532"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>FRANK BISKUPEK (CHIVAS) AND TERRY CRISP</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-06264/9694296-1-eng-US/f0027-062.jpg" title="f0027-06" width="560" height="427"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-10130/9694289-1-eng-US/f0027-102.jpg" title="f0027-10" width="790" height="556"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(PHOTOGRAPHY: MARK HOLLERON AND GREG TECKLES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-06394/9694282-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="216" height="120"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-13145/9694275-1-eng-US/f0026-132.jpg" title="f0026-13" width="216" height="96"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-08259/9694268-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="208" height="56"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-14129/9694261-1-eng-US/f0026-142.jpg" title="f0026-14" width="304" height="152"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-09216/9694254-1-eng-US/f0026-092.jpg" title="f0026-09" width="216" height="150"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-15117/9694247-1-eng-US/f0026-152.jpg" title="f0026-15" width="224" height="112"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-10191/9694240-1-eng-US/f0026-102.jpg" title="f0026-10" width="192" height="176"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-11174/9694233-1-eng-US/f0026-112.jpg" title="f0026-11" width="200" height="152"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-16106/9694226-1-eng-US/f0026-162.jpg" title="f0026-16" width="224" height="104"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-12155/9694219-1-eng-US/f0026-122.jpg" title="f0026-12" width="208" height="56"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1791/9694212-1-eng-US/f0026-172.jpg" title="f0026-17" width="232" height="40"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-11104/9694205-1-eng-US/f0027-112.jpg" title="f0027-11" width="232" height="64"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1546/9694198-1-eng-US/f0027-152.jpg" title="f0027-15" width="176" height="168"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1280/9694191-1-eng-US/f0027-122.jpg" title="f0027-12" width="176" height="200"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1637/9694184-1-eng-US/f0027-162.jpg" title="f0027-16" width="208" height="72"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1372/9694177-1-eng-US/f0027-132.jpg" title="f0027-13" width="136" height="152"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1728/9694170-1-eng-US/f0027-172.jpg" title="f0027-17" width="257" height="41"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1460/9694163-1-eng-US/f0027-142.jpg" title="f0027-14" width="280" height="56"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1824/9694156-1-eng-US/f0027-182.jpg" title="f0027-18" width="280" height="88"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-07328/9694149-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="187" height="148"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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The Hockey News ALL STARS CLOSING NIGHT PARTY

<div class="byline">With Ryan Kennedy</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-012217/9693362-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="662" height="833"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>M</span>uch was made about the absence of Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin at the 2012 All-Star Game in Ottawa. But like the team players they are, hockey&rsquo;s other young guns stepped in to make sure the NHL put on a good show at the marquee event.</p><p>When it came to the skills competition, the names Patrick Kane, John Tavares and Corey Perry come to mind. Their combination of creativity and light-heartedness in the breakaway challenge turned around an event that looked like a clunker in past years. Kane busted out the Clark Kent glasses with a Superman cape, while Perry abruptly pulled a mini-stick out from under his gear and proceeded to stickhandle down the ice like it was the hallway of a Ramada Inn when he was 10. Tavares showed off the hands and lacrosse background that made him a phenom in his teens.</p><p>But off the ice is where the players proved themselves more than capable of handling the burden of fame. The Fully Loaded crew hit up a patented Joey &lsquo;Vendetta&rsquo; Scoleri party on the Saturday (read about the NHL&rsquo;s party monster on pg. 24) and saw half a dozen all-stars making the rounds. Tyler Seguin did his best to accommodate the near-constant stream of fans, while it&rsquo;s easy to see why they call Henrik Lundqvist &lsquo;The King.&rsquo; The Rangers star moves through a crowd with such effortless unflappability, it&rsquo;s like he actually is royalty.</p><p>Which brings us to this issue&rsquo;s cover boy, Joffrey Lupul of the Maple Leafs. As an assistant captain for Team Chara in Ottawa, the breakout player of the year in the NHL handled a lot of public speaking duties, even when he knew the Senators partisans would boo him with great relish. Lupul took that challenge on and didn&rsquo;t shrink from it. Health and in difference may have kept Sid and Ovie away from Canada&rsquo;s capital, but you certainly can&rsquo;t say the stars were dimmer in Ottawa.</p><p><b>The Fuel:</b> The fries at Toronto&rsquo;s Mastercard Centre, mini-<i>Street Fighter II</i> figures from Kid Robot and Calgary steaks.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0004-01

Good Times Had By All

<div class="byline">BY ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-012445/9693424-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="994" height="1258"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>SEANN WILLIAM SCOTT</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span>ike any kid growing up in Montreal, Jay Baruchel was a dyed-in-the-wool Canadiens fan before he could skate. But his favorite players weren&rsquo;t always the most talented Habs on the ice, because his father taught him to appreciate the skills of famous Montreal enforcers Chris Nilan and John Kordic as much as legends Guy Lafleur or Larry Robinson. And the love of tough guys is the main thing that resonates about Baruchel&rsquo;s hilarious new hockey movie, <i>Goon</i> &ndash; in this writer&rsquo;s opinion, the funniest hockey film since the iconic 1970s-era film <i>Slap Shot</i>. &ldquo;The movie is the result of a bunch of like-minded people who want to give Canadian kids the same thing &ndash; a bad-ass hockey flick they could take ownership of,&rdquo; Baruchel said of <i>Goon</i>, which opens across Canada Feb. 24 and in select U.S. markets March 30. &ldquo;Lord knows, it&rsquo;s been a while since <i>Slap Shot</i>. I made the movie and wrote this thing as a love letter to those boys &ndash; the gladiators of the sport, guys like Georges Laraque, who in my opinion, is the best pound-for-pound fighter in hockey history. It was a movie that was, for lack of a better word, pure: pure in intention, pure in execution. We did it for the right reasons.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021661/9693417-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="511" height="695"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>RECLAIMING THE GAME</b></p><p>Embarrassed by fluffy screen portrayals, Jay Baruchel wrote a story NHLers could relate to.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(BOTH: COURTESY OF ALLIANCE FILMS)</span></figcaption></div><p>Filmed in Manitoba in late 2010, <i>Goon</i> features a cameo by Laraque, as well as banner performances by leading man Seann William Scott (<i>American Pie; Dude, Where&rsquo;s My Car?</i>) and the supporting cast, including Baruchel, Liev Schreiber (<i>Scream</i> and narrator of HBO&rsquo;s <i>24/7: Road to the NHL Winter Classic</i> series) and Canadian actress Alison Pill (<i>Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Midnight In Paris</i>).</p><p>But for Baruchel &ndash; a Hollywood veteran at age 29 who has appeared in blockbuster films <i>Million Dollar Baby, Tropic Thunder</i> and <i>Knocked Up</i> &ndash; no accolade from a hockey writer or movie critic could measure up to Laraque&rsquo;s laurel-laden verdict after he saw the film&rsquo;s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. &ldquo;After the premiere in Toronto, he texted me and said &lsquo;Jay, this is honestly the best hockey movie I&rsquo;ve ever seen and I saw a lot of myself in Seann&rsquo;s character. There were moments I got goosebumps and moments where I teared up.&rsquo;&rdquo; Baruchel said. &ldquo;That just knocked the wind out of me. The house I grew up in, my knowledge of hockey came from my father, who was a hard-nosed guy and subscribed to the &lsquo;(Wayne) Gretzky is a pussy&rsquo; school of thought. So to have George say what he said, it was full circle.&rdquo;</p><p>Aside from <i>Goon&rsquo;s</i> thrilling, realistic action sequences and the plot &ndash; which is based on the real-life story of a minor league enforcer &ndash; one of the film&rsquo;s most enjoyable elements is the authenticity of the razor-sharp, humorous dressing room banter NHLers most miss when they retire. Capturing the genuinely endearing nature of the game and those who play it was paramount for Baruchel, because he had seen pathetic hockey films that went for cute rather than real. &ldquo;Whenever any of those (movies) happen, I feel the same way I feel when Habs fans used to boo the American national anthem at games &ndash; just embarrassed,&rdquo; Baruchel said. &ldquo;When I&rsquo;d mention I was making a hockey movie, people would say, &lsquo;Oh, have you seen <i>Score: A Hockey Musical</i> or <i>The Mighty Ducks?&rsquo;</i> And I&rsquo;d be like, &lsquo;No, that&rsquo;s why I&rsquo;m making <i>Goon</i>.&rsquo; I mean, is there a ballsier sport than hockey? That hasn&rsquo;t been reflected in hockey art. It comes off as precious and staid and slow and out of date, and I don&rsquo;t know what sport they&rsquo;re watching.</p><p>&ldquo;We needed to pay homage to that marriage of brutality and elegance. That&rsquo;s what makes hockey so incredible.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0006-01

Game Gets Real In ‘Goon’

<div class="byline">&#x2013; AP</div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>HE NEW HOCKEY MOVIE</b>&nbsp;<i>Goon</i> will be released in Canada and the United States over the course of the next couple months &ndash; and with it, there will be a renewed debate over the greatest hockey movies.</p><p>I&rsquo;ve seen an advanced preview of <i>Goon</i> and I can confirm the solid reviews it received on the film festival circuit. Actor and writer Jay Baruchel, the driving force behind the film, clearly loves the game and has taken great care to accurately convey the camaraderie of a pro team and the speed and action of the sport.</p><p>As a kid who grew up knowing every word of <i>Slap Shot</i> it&rsquo;d be hard for any film to top that piece of celluloid hockey history, but <i>Goon</i> is the funniest since and I&rsquo;d recommend it to all puck fans (of an adult age).</p><p>Paul Newman&rsquo;s 1970s classic will always be the yardstick for hockey movies, so let&rsquo;s go to the chart.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

THE PANTHEON

<div class="byline">BY EDWARD FRASER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-021476/9693479-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="955" height="647"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>THE RANT</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>here are five things I truly abhor: The loser point, the loser point, the loser point, the loser point&hellip;and standard-definition television.</p><p>Watching anything &ndash; especially sports, <i>especially</i> hockey &ndash; in anything less than high definition is equivalent to eating a hot dog without the wiener: Sure, you&rsquo;re satiated, but your senses have fallen asleep from boredom.</p><p>Shamefully, several members of the THN staff (I&rsquo;ll leave out their names to save them the embarrassment) continue to subject themselves to the grainy, blurry picture from days of yore. Is this 1998? Luddites. Every self-respecting fan should be rocking <i>at least</i> 40 glorious inches of 1080p. How can you even look in the mirror with anything less? Would you go to a hockey game and smear Vaseline on your eyeballs? Of course you wouldn&rsquo;t. So why do yourself the same disservice sitting on the couch?<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0007-02

Lo-Def? Dimwit

f0007-01

GOON-O-METER

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03924/9693548-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg" title="f0007-03" width="841" height="537"></div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>HEY</b>&nbsp;<b>LOOK FUNNY,</b> but athletes are buying in. Trainers with individual toes have become big lately and Adidas is now entering the fray with the Adipure, which the shoe giant claims is the first barefoot training shoe designed specifically for the gym. Calgary&rsquo;s Mike Cammalleri endorses it and muscle activation and dexterity are key selling points.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-04590/9693541-1-eng-US/f0007-042.jpg" title="f0007-04" width="735" height="588"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(ILLUSTRATION BY MEGAN LEONARD; CAMMALLERI+SHOES: COURTESY ADIDAS)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0007-03

GET A GRIP

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0008-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-012335/9693579-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ERIN PLATO</b> <span class="photo-credit">(PLATO: DOUBLE “E” PHOTOGRAPHY)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>ith the World Junior Championship having taken place in Alberta this year, Fully Loaded was in Calgary for the medal round. Canada came up short in its quest for gold, but we found a city with more than a silver lining. Thanks to a freak chinook, it wasn&rsquo;t even that cold and the cosmopolitan city is home to plenty of nice folks, including Sauce Hockey model Erin Plato. Giddyup.</p><h2><b>WATCH</b></h2><p><b>Wildfire Grill/Flames Central</b></p><p><i>219 8th Avenue SW</i></p><p>&rarr; The ultimate place to catch a hockey game in Calgary, this cavernous sports bar boasts big projection screens, a solid menu of stick-to-your-ribs goodness and a very fetching wait staff.</p><h2><b>DRINK</b></h2><p><b>Melrose Cafe and Bar</b></p><p><i>730 17th Ave. SW</i></p><p>&rarr; Recommended by Plato herself, this bar is located on the city&rsquo;s famous Red Mile and gets particularly hopping on the weekend. Good tunes, good food and plenty of sports-related events make it another great place to catch the game.</p><h2><b>EAT</b></h2><p><b>Trib Steakhouse</b></p><p><i>118 8th Ave. SW</i></p><p>&rarr; You ever had Alberta beef? If not, march yourself down to Trib and immediately order a steak. It&rsquo;s open for lunch and the quality of the beef is so top-notch it takes steak to new heights. The atmosphere is classy, the prices are reasonable and the staff is attentive. But seriously, that meat is smoother than butter.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-01

GUIDE to CALGARY

<div class="byline">BY JOSEPH PHUNG</div><p class="dropcap"><span>J</span>ust a heads up: Playing <i>The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim</i> will make you ignore the other games you own. That actually isn&rsquo;t a bad thing, as the hours you put into <i>Skyrim</i> make for a worthwhile excursion to experience one of the best games made for this generation.</p><p>For those unfamiliar with <i>Skyrim</i>, it&rsquo;s an action fantasy role-playing game that feels as epic as the <i>Lord Of The Rings</i> movies. Even though this is the fifth game in the series, you don&rsquo;t need to play through any of the previous titles to know what&rsquo;s going on since <i>Skyrim</i> features a new storyline that revolves around your created character&rsquo;s efforts to defeat the Dragon God, Alduin, who has been prophesied to destroy the world.</p><p>Fortunately, as you&rsquo;ll discover in the early part of the game, your character isn&rsquo;t just some average individual, but blessed as being Dragonborn. That allows you to absorb the souls of defeated dragons and gain new abilities to use, like spewing fire at enemies.</p><p>One neat thing with <i>Skyrim</i> is the more your character uses a particular ability, the better he/she becomes at it. So if you constantly use one-handed weapons like swords, your attacks with those weapons will be stronger and help increase your experience points to level up more quickly. Every time your character levels up, you can unlock one of the many perks available, such as increasing the chance of landing a critical strike against an enemy.</p><p>Another impressive feature with <i>Skyrim</i> is there&rsquo;s always something to do. The amount of missions in this game is just staggering and at times feels endless, as events are randomly generated while you explore the vast lands of <i>Skyrim</i>. You can literally play through the side missions and not complete any of the main quests if you choose so. That&rsquo;s the beauty with <i>Skyrim,</i> as there&rsquo;s actually no correct way to play through this game and everyone will play it differently.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-012308/9693669-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="986" height="708"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SKYRIM</b></p><p><b>SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF</b></p><p>If the devil is in the details, then <i>Skyrim</i> sins boldly with its graphic minutia.</p></figcaption></div><p><i>Skyrim</i> is one good-looking game and if you play it on the PC, the graphics are even better. Whatever platform you choose, you&rsquo;ll notice countless strokes of detail, such as seeing plants and animals in the wilderness and people in towns you can stop and speak to as they go about their everyday lives. It&rsquo;s little details like these that help make the many regions in <i>Skyrim</i> feel realistic.</p><p>It&rsquo;s no surprise <i>The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim</i> was the highest-rated video game of 2011. It features an incredibly engaging storyline, plenty of missions (with some downloadable content coming out this year) and the freedom to do whatever you want. Even though there are some minor bugs in the game, they don&rsquo;t take away from the overall experience.</p><p>Gamers out there should not miss out on playing this masterpiece. <b>Rated: 10/10</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021689/9693662-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="632" height="356"></div><h2><b>Saints Row <i>(Xbox 360, Ps3, Windows)</i></b></h2><p>&rarr; The latest entry in the <i>Saints Row</i> series still doesn&rsquo;t take itself seriously. But that&rsquo;s a good thing, as the game features plenty of over-the-top action and funny moments. Playing as the leader of the Third Street Saints gang, you will go through various story and side missions against other gangs that populate the large, fictional city of Steelport. For some extra mayhem, you will definitely want to play this game online with a friend. <b>Rated: 8.5/10</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-031088/9693655-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="633" height="356"></div><h2><b>Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 <i>(Xbox 360, Ps3, Windows)</i></b></h2><p>&rarr; Not much has changed in the latest installment of the CoD series. The campaign mode is kind of short, but at least it gives closure to the current storyline. Online multiplayer is where most gamers will spend their time, but only the hardcore players will notice the minor changes here. MW3 is still a good game, but unfortunately it doesn&rsquo;t improve the first-person shooter genre in any way. <b>Rated: 8/10</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04754/9693648-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="632" height="356"></div><h2><b>Tekken Hybrid <i>(Ps3)</i></b></h2><p>&rarr; Quite a bit of content has been packed onto the disc for <i>Tekken Hybrid</i>. Included is an HD remastered version of <i>Tekken Tag Tournament</i>, a demo for the upcoming <i>Tekken Tag Tournament 2</i>, and even a forgettable 3D movie, <i>Tekken Blood Vengeance</i>. If you already fought through <i>Tekken Tag Tournament</i> on the PlayStation 2 then there&rsquo;s really no reason to get this collection, as the extra offerings aren&rsquo;t worthwhile. <b>Rated: 7/10</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

Epically Epic Experience

<div class="byline">BY EVAN BOUDREAU</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-012252/9693707-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>f you haven&rsquo;t heard of Ironhead Clothing, you&rsquo;re not alone. For nearly two decades the company has quietly operated its manufacturing headquarters in northeastern Toronto. Despite a weak economy and a relatively non-existent advertising budget, Ironhead opened its second independent store on Toronto&rsquo;s trendy Queen Street West hoping to mimic the 12 successful years the Vancouver storefront has seen. The secret to the continued success of this somewhat unknown company rests in three fundamental components: a dedication to made-in-Canada limited-edition production values, president Mike Regan&rsquo;s stitching and, of course, the national pastime.</p><p>The story of Ironhead Clothing starts in Markham, Ont., with Regan&rsquo;s passion for hockey as a kid. &ldquo;Hockey was instrumental,&rdquo; said Regan, 44. &ldquo;I was always collecting hockey cards, looking at old jerseys, transfixed on <i>Sports Illustrated</i>.&rdquo;</p><p>Regan eventually began stitching his own custom and reproduction jerseys and by high school he&rsquo;d built a clientele around the rink &ndash; the foundation for the future. &ldquo;It was sort of a cut-and-sew in the basement,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>As a well-liked center for the Markham Millionaires (now the Markham Waxers), Regan found himself in an intriguing position to continue a career in hockey in Europe after high school thanks to the word-of-mouth system which Ironhead now relies on. &ldquo;Some colleagues who I worked with in a sports store played in Germany and this is before the advent of <a href="http://HOCKEYDB.COM">hockeydb.com</a>, so they took a person&rsquo;s word for it,&rdquo; Regan said. &ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t a bona fide junior sensation by any means.&rdquo;</p><p>Regan played in the German middle leagues in the early &rsquo;90s, but it wasn&rsquo;t long before reality set in and he realized he didn&rsquo;t belong. The dream was over and it was time to go home. After returning to Canada, Regan started Ironhead and taking what he had seen on European jerseys &ndash; bright colours, massive advertising, non-block lettering &ndash; began producing his own sweaters again. While design inspiration always came from hockey, it wasn&rsquo;t until the company began working with major NHL sponsors such as Bauer, Easton and Nike that Regan feels Ironhead became a desired brand around the league.</p><p>Regan believes it&rsquo;s more than the unique graphics that attract high-profile athletes to his brand. &ldquo;Athletes are in a neat position where they have a lot of money and a lot of doors opened for them,&rdquo; Regan said. &ldquo;We are not that pushy with them. They actually come to us. Maybe it&rsquo;s the Canadian in us, but we are a little bashful at times and we don&rsquo;t talk hockey with them.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021771/9693700-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="454" height="375"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>HARD COUTURE</b></p><p>Ironhead clothing puts out limited edition products to keep things interesting.</p></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0012-01

Ironhead Is Ahead

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-031142/9693738-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="497" height="278"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(IRONHEAD: MELISSA TEPPERMAN)</span></figcaption></div><p>&rarr; <b>It happens every night &ndash; a puck flies up and over the glass,</b> giving one lucky fan a great souvenir to take home. But for those of us who aren&rsquo;t so lucky, there&rsquo;s always these cufflinks made of NHL game-used pucks. You&rsquo;re sure to be wearing your heart on your sleeve with these sterling silver accessories by Tokens and Icons. The cufflinks come in at $149.99 on <a href="http://shop.nhl.com">shop.nhl.com</a>. The puck-cufflinks have the team&rsquo;s name engraved in the back and also come with a certificate of authenticity. Tokens and Icons is a company that focuses on repurposing sports memorabilia into usable everyday items. If cufflinks aren&rsquo;t your style, you may want to try a wallet made from an NHL game-used jersey, or a pen made of plexiglass from Madison Square Garden. Either way, you&rsquo;re bound to outdo that fan who goes home with just a lousy puck.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-03

SNAG THIS!

<div class="byline">BY MATT STEPHEN</div><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>t&rsquo;s been awhile since we&rsquo;ve seen the sweaty, breathless player-on-a-bikepost-game interview. The stationary bike had become synonymous with the training, but it&rsquo;s going the way of the wooden stick, the two-line pass and the dodo bird.</p><p>Rows of stationary bikes can be found at every one of the 30 NHL rinks and training facilities, despite there now being better alternatives. Former NHLer Gary Roberts, who&rsquo;s known for training the league&rsquo;s elite players and has been pushing back against using bikes, still sees them kicking around. &ldquo;Bikes are still being pushed in some markets,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;because often that&rsquo;s all they may have to offer.&rdquo;</p><p>Authorities like Roberts have come out against the bike in favor of anaerobic activity, which he believes is more hockey-specific. Roberts doesn&rsquo;t see the logic in using the bike after a game or workout. &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re already working hard and playing 20 minutes a game you shouldn&rsquo;t need to get on the bicycle as well,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That way you run the risk of overtraining.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-012227/9693769-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="986" height="875"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GARY ROBERTS WITH STEVEN STAMKOS</b> <span class="photo-credit">(SPTAS: PAT STONE/PAT STONE PHOTOGRAPHY)</span></figcaption></div><p>Roberts sees nothing wrong with players who have less ice time getting on the bike after a game, since they haven&rsquo;t exhausted themselves or their muscles to the same extent. But for those players who have run themselves out for 20 minutes, getting on the bike can be a bad idea as they have already exhausted many of the muscle groups used for skating and cycling, especially the quadriceps. This leads to a risk of injury and overtraining by overloading the lower body.</p><p>Stationary routines are good for endurance and cardiovascular strength, but bike circuits are not tailored for game situations where players engage in short, intense bursts of activity broken up between rest periods on the bench. Endurance doesn&rsquo;t hurt in any sport, or for any athlete, but it&rsquo;s not as fundamental to hockey. The average NHL shift is seldom longer than a minute and lasts an average of about 45 seconds. At the 2012 all-star break, the players with the longest average shift were Kris Letang and Ilya Kovalchuk at 59 seconds, so even the most &ldquo;active&rdquo; players in the league were playing less than a minute, with time to recover between shifts. Many believe this stop-and-go type of activity, a largely anaerobic workout, needs to be considered and reflected in how players train in the off-season and post-game.</p><p>The argument becomes whether hockey is a non-endurance or endurance sport. Anaerobic workouts focus on strength, speed and power that can be gained from short and intense bursts of activity. Anaerobic exercise is effective from a matter of seconds up to two minutes. Any activity after two minutes will have a larger aerobic metabolic component. Aerobic exercise is less intense and more focused on endurance and cardiovascular strength, which includes cycling.</p><p>Roberts doesn&rsquo;t completely write post-game activity off. He advocates exercises like a walking cool-down or static stretching for recovery after a game, as well as cold tubs, hot/cold therapy, recovery shakes and massage therapy. So leave the cycling for the power play, not your post-game routine.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0014-01

Get Your Butt Off The Bike

<div class="byline">&#x2013; JACQUELINE SCHIFANO</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011934/9693800-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="455" height="417"></div><p>&rarr; In the Greek legend of Achilles, the hero was defeated by a shot to his heel. By comparison, hockey today hasn&rsquo;t evolved much since the day of the toga, with numerous heroes falling victim to fateful foot injuries. Enter Spats, the new foot shields developed by Lawrence Parrott, designed to protect players&rsquo; often-overlooked but oh-so-vital feet. Parrott got the idea after a &ldquo;regular old wrist shot in a regular old game&rdquo; broke a bone in his foot, keeping him from working for weeks. Designed to bond right to the laces, Spats protect the top and inside of the foot &ndash; the areas most susceptible to injury. With pucks to the skate sidelining players such as James Neal and Devante Smith-Pelly, Parrott hopes the importance of foot protection will be brought to light. &ldquo;If you look at the Smith-Pelly injury, he was hit square on the laces,&rdquo; Parrott said. &ldquo;If he had a guard on at that time he probably wouldn&rsquo;t have missed a beat&hellip;We protect every other part of our body and it&rsquo;s about time we start thinking about how to protect our feet.&rdquo; Spats&rsquo; ability to clip right onto skates forms a more secure bond than other medical foot guards that can shift during gameplay. Spats retail at about $50 compared to the $80 price tag of other foot shields, come in a variety of colors and are also available in the virtually invisible clear plastic model.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-01

FEET FIRST

<div class="byline">BY RYAN KENNEDY</div><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>f you think playing hours of <i>NHL 12</i> will make you a better hockey player, you&rsquo;re sadly mistaken. Fortunately for Team USA&rsquo;s national team development program, there&rsquo;s a computer game that does improve on-ice acumen.</p><p>OK, the IntelliGym system is more of a training tool than a video game, but it is fun &ndash; and players are improving their sporting minds while they blast away at a &ldquo;fort&rdquo; in space.</p><p>Designed by Applied Cognitive Engineering, IntelliGym first came out as a basketball trainer, but the company worked with USA Hockey to convert to ice. Players control a spaceship and attempt to fire or pass a bomb into a fort. As the levels increase, enemies and different skills are introduced. It&rsquo;s all about response time and spatial orientation, two things that are key to success during a game. &ldquo;The brain can be trained like a muscle,&rdquo; said CEO Danny Dankner of ACE. &ldquo;Multiple things are happening, making players think faster, think about who is behind you and think about what the ice will look like three or four seconds later.&rdquo;</p><p>While the teens of the NTDP are more familiar with console video games, IntelliGym is only available on computers and must be played with a keyboard, not a controller. This is by design. Once you get going, you&rsquo;ll find yourself holding or tapping keys with both hands at once, while still looking at the monitor. It&rsquo;s no walk in the park. &ldquo;I want a certain amount of your brain controls to be focused on those control keys,&rdquo; Dankner said. &ldquo;Think about the first time a player takes the puck on the ice and skates with it, while keeping his head up to see where his teammates are. We can&rsquo;t make every player Wayne Gretzky, but we can definitely make them better.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011997/9693838-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="986" height="740"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>PROTECT THE GOAL</b></p><p>With IntelliGym, hockey players control a bomb, but enemies are there to steal it away.</p><span class="photo-credit">(INTELLIGYM: COURTESY USA HOCKEY; SKJEI: TOM SORENSEN)</span></figcaption></div><p>Defenseman Brady Skjei is slated to be a first round draft pick this summer and has high marks for IntelliGym. &ldquo;We use it twice a week,&rdquo; Skjei said. &ldquo;I can definitely see the difference in my game.&rdquo;</p><p>Results for each playing session are recorded and matched against a player&rsquo;s previous showing, so growth is measured individually and stored online. Being a competitive bunch, the NTDP kids naturally revel in their scores with each other. &ldquo;We do compare a lot,&rdquo; Skjei said. &ldquo;The lower guys don&rsquo;t talk much, though.&rdquo;</p><p>IntelliGym&rsquo;s results garnered the system the grand prize at the 2010 Brain Fitness Innovation Awards and Air Force&rsquo;s hockey team is also using the product. Clearly, the sky&rsquo;s the limit.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-021527/9693831-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="535" height="657"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0016-01

Keyboard Wizardry

<div class="byline">&#x2013; DAN RANKIN</div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>L</span>EAVE IT TO A CANADIAN</b>&nbsp;to apply the motion technology used in today&rsquo;s top-tier gaming systems to hockey. Developed by Halifax engineer Tim Burke in 2008, the hockey training software QuickStickz is specifically designed to help young players develop heads-up stickhandling.</p><p>When using traditional puck control practice off the ice, it doesn&rsquo;t take long for kids to &ldquo;get bored with it,&rdquo; said Dean Dachyshyn, vice-president and co-owner of Skillz Systems, the company that makes QuickStickz.</p><p>Their product changes all that. &ldquo;It basically takes a hockey stick and turns it into a video game controller,&rdquo; Dachyshyn said.</p><p>Someone looking to work on their stickhandling can plug the special QuickStickz USB camera into their computer, point it at the ground, and begin dribbling the system&rsquo;s special reflective ball with their own stick. A puck on screen responds to the ball&rsquo;s movement on the ground. Players can then train in one of the 18 different drills or seven different skills-based video games included with QuickStickz and compare their own scores online with members of the QuickStickz community around the world.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-031112/9693869-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="484" height="639"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>DANGLING DATA</b></p><p>Quickstickz tracks movement via a special reflective ball.</p></figcaption></div><p>According to Dachyshyn, the system is effective because it promotes muscle memory. &ldquo;If you watch kids with their game controllers, they don&rsquo;t look down at the buttons and if you watch kids nowadays text, they don&rsquo;t look at the buttons,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We can do the exact same thing with the hockey stick. Once you do something over and over and over again, especially with young kids when they&rsquo;re learning something, it just becomes natural.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0016-03

Get Stick Quick

<div class="byline">BY DANIELLE EMMANUELE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011874/9693900-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>NO BEEF WITH BISON</b></p><p>Bison meat is growing in popularity as a healthier option to the traditional beef steak.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/MONICA-PHOTO)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>ith diet having become such a critical part of a player&rsquo;s training regimen, everyone is always on the lookout for the latest trend. Thanks to trainer Ben Prentiss of Prentiss Hockey Performance, Max Pacioretty has found something to give him that extra edge: bison meat.</p><p>Pacioretty is among Prentiss&rsquo; impressive clientele, which includes Martin St-Louis, Matt Moulson and Ryan Shannon, to name a few. Prentiss runs Prentiss Hockey Performance out of Darien, Conn., and since bringing Pacioretty into the fold, he has turned him into something of a nutrition nut.</p><p>Pacioretty had to adjust his diet after being diagnosed with a dairy allergy. Further compounding his dietary complexity, he also opted to go on a gluten-free diet. The health-conscious Montreal Canadiens left winger began exploring his food options, particularly for his pre-game meals, and Prentiss introduced him to bison meat.</p><p>A typical pre-game meal for Pacioretty consisted of three major food choices: chicken, steak or fish, complemented by a carbohydrate of rice or pasta. He has now added into the mix bison, which is high in iron and leaner than beef, with fewer calories than chicken and yet is still able to satisfy the taste buds of any carnivore.</p><p>To his healthy serving of bison, Pacioretty usually adds a side of quinoa. Following his meal, he takes a brief nap then consumes a full-fat yogurt with berries or an all-natural protein bar before heading to the rink. This helps him stabilize his blood sugar and provides him with the necessary energy to play at a high intensity for an average of 17 minutes of ice time per game.</p><p>Pacioretty has already set personal bests in goals, assists and points in his breakout season with the Canadiens. He&rsquo;s showing that a change in diet and routine can further catapult a player&rsquo;s success.</p><h2><b>BISON FOR YOUR BELLY</b></h2><p><b>&rarr; HEALTHY BISON BALLS</b></p><h3><b><i>Ingredients</i></b></h3><p>- 1 lb ground buffalo<br>- 1 omega-3 egg<br>- 2 tbsp almond meal (ground almonds)<br>- 1 medium onion, diced<br>- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped<br>- 1 tbsp olive oil<br>- 1 tbsp tomato paste<br>- 2 tsp Italian dried herbs seasoning<br>- Salt and pepper</p><h3><b><i>Method</i></b></h3><p>1. Heat oven to 400&deg;</p><p>2. Heat olive oil in small skillet and add onion. Saut&eacute; for two minutes then add garlic and stir for 30 seconds.</p><p>3. Combine meat, egg, almond meal, onion and garlic, tomato paste, and seasonings in bowl and mix together until combined.</p><p>4. Combine mixture into 1 &frac12;&rdquo; balls and place on sheet.</p><p>5. Cook for 15 minutes, turn meatballs, and cook for additional 10-15 minutes until cooked through. Serve with vegetables.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-01

‘Pac’ Full Of Bison

<div class="byline">&#x2013; JACQUELINE SCHIFANO</div><p><b>&rarr; IN THE NEXT SHIFT</b> toward leaner living, chefs are turning from beef to cattle&rsquo;s cousin, bison. More and more people opt for bison&rsquo;s leaner cut and richer, sweeter taste. Most are grass-fed and come from private ranches, but are becoming more widely available in stores. Described as a dense meat with a rich flavor, bison satisfies more with a smaller portion. With high levels of Omega-3, Omega-6 and B-12, bison is higher in sodium than beef. For some, the difference isn&rsquo;t even noticeable in chili or meatloaf recipes. Others find bison dry and prefer traditional beef steak. For a burger, though, bison is the healthier option.</p><h2><b>BISON</b></h2><p><b>10oz PRIME RIB</b></p><p>&#9733;&#9733;&#9733;&#9733;&#9733;</p><p><b>Calories</b>&nbsp;<i>376</i></p><p><b>Protein</b>&nbsp;<i>59g</i></p><p><b>Carbohydrates</b>&nbsp;<i>0.2g</i></p><p><b>Fats</b>&nbsp;<i>14.2g</i></p><p><b>Sodium</b>&nbsp;<i>631mg</i></p><h2><b>BEEF</b></h2><p><b>10oz PRIME RIB</b></p><p>&#9733;&#9733;&#9733;</p><p><b>Calories</b>&nbsp;<i>1,032</i></p><p><b>Protein</b>&nbsp;<i>45g</i></p><p><b>Carbohydrates</b>&nbsp;<i>0g</i></p><p><b>Fats</b>&nbsp;<i>93.3g</i></p><p><b>Sodium</b>&nbsp;<i>150.3mg</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

BISON BESTS BEEF

<div class="byline">BY RONNIE SHUKER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0019-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-011649/9693955-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SAVE BEEFS FOR THE ICE</b></p><p>Georges Laraque cut the meat out of his diet, but his strength didn&rsquo;t suffer.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(LARAQUE: GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>hen you see Georges Laraque, you&rsquo;d doubt he&rsquo;d ever been the target of teasing. At 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds during his playing days, the former undisputed heavyweight champ of the NHL rarely had to deal with any such barbs.</p><p>But in his final year with the Montreal Canadiens, Laraque made a dramatic switch in his diet. The enforcer suddenly became a vegan and it wasn&rsquo;t long before his emboldened teammates let him have it. &ldquo;Oh man, they teased me all the time,&rdquo; Laraque said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;d say, &lsquo;We&rsquo;re going to the steakhouse. We&rsquo;ll pick up some grass along the way and give it to you.&rsquo; I heard it all.&rdquo;</p><p>In 2009-10, he came out of the abattoir and went from steaks to salads after watching <i>The Earthlings</i>, a documentary detailing the nutritional benefits of a vegan diet and the cruelty of the meat industry. &ldquo;When I watched that movie, I cried and I never ate meat again,&rdquo; Laraque said. &ldquo;I learned so much about how bad meat is for our health, the environment and about how animals suffer. For those three reasons I stopped.&rdquo;</p><p>He was still a pro athlete, however, and it was imperative for him to maintain his weight. He was lucky to have a fellow vegan in Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier, who made sure alternative meals were always available to all the players. &ldquo;Half of the menu in the dressing room, the plane, everywhere, was vegan,&rdquo; Laraque said. &ldquo;There were vegan options all over the place. I was really, really lucky.&rdquo;</p><p>Laraque suffered from high blood pressure and asthma as a meat-eater and he visited a cardiology institute to do some testing before making the change. &ldquo;Six months later when I was a vegan I did the same tests,&rdquo; Laraque said. &ldquo;It was unbelievable. My scores were off the charts. Health-wise I&rsquo;d never felt better.&rdquo;</p><p>When he switched to veganism, he discovered many stereotypes of a vegan diet, like low protein availability, were false. In fact, he found it easier to get the necessary nutrients than he did on a meat diet &ndash; particularly protein. &ldquo;All that is a myth,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t lose any muscle mass at all.&rdquo;</p><p>Laraque got the protein he needed through an assortment of beans, tofu, quinoa and especially a vegetable protein supplement (see sidebar). Some of the staples in his diet include oat bran, granola, grains, and almond milk and butter. He gets vitamin B-12 from kale, soy and nutritional yeast. A variety of green vegetables from broccoli to bok choy, most often straight out of the ground, provide enough iron to maintain a healthy body. &ldquo;Eating raw is better,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When you don&rsquo;t cook all your vegetables, you keep all the nutrients and enzymes.&rdquo;</p><p>Laraque is still a vegan today and continues to champion the diet. &ldquo;If you only tell people to change because animals are suffering, people don&rsquo;t care &ndash; they&rsquo;re used to that,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But if you tell them it&rsquo;s affecting their health, then they&rsquo;ll open up their eyes and want to do something about it.&rdquo;</p><p>Gauthier and Mike Zigomanis (with the American League&rsquo;s Toronto Marlies) are the only vegan hockey people Laraque knows. He considers his days as a carnivore simply a period of consumption to feel full and not a time when he appreciated his food. &ldquo;You start eating when you become a vegan,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When you&rsquo;re on a meat-and-potatoes diet, there&rsquo;s no nutrition in your food. There&rsquo;s nothing in there &ndash; it&rsquo;s just quantity. I remember having steaks that filled my entire plate with maybe two pieces of broccoli so I didn&rsquo;t feel guilty. How bad is that?&rdquo;</p><p>Laraque hasn&rsquo;t touched meat since he became a vegan in 2009. And he has only one regret: &ldquo;I wish I did it 20 years ago.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0019-01

Carnivore No More

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-021231/9693986-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="319" height="430"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(VEGA POWDER: SEQUELNATURALS.COM)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>&rarr; WHEN GEORGES</b> Laraque made the switch to a vegan diet in 2009, he needed to ensure no muscle made its way off his 250-pound frame &ndash; otherwise his place as the NHL&rsquo;s premier heavyweight would be at stake. Whey-based products dominate the protein-shake shelves, but those are derived from cow&rsquo;s milk, so that was out. Laraque&rsquo;s saving grace was Vega, a vegetable protein powder developed by professional Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier. It&rsquo;s 40 percent vegetable protein, sourced from hemp, yellow pea, brown rice, flax and chlorella. &ldquo;Have Vega for a week,&rdquo; Laraque said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;ll change your life. It&rsquo;ll change your body.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0019-02

WHEY AWAY

<div class="byline">STORY BY MIKE TRAIKOS </div><div class="byline">PHOTOS BY A.J. MESSIER PHOTOGRAPHY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-011627/9694073-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Model Kay de Courval&rsquo;s shorts by American Apparel; T-shirt by Gong Show.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-011311/9694066-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="388" height="645"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02846/9694059-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="388" height="645"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-03543/9694052-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="388" height="645"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-04416/9694045-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="388" height="645"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-05294/9694038-1-eng-US/f0021-052.jpg" title="f0021-05" width="388" height="645"></div><p>For hockey players, they are as essential as pre-game naps or post-game clich&eacute;s. an 82-game season.</p><p>They make road trips bearable, help a team bond and lighten the mood during</p><p>That last part is key. Hockey is supposed to be fun. And during scoring slumps or losing streaks, a well-timed prank can often do more good than a trade or a pep talk from the coach &ndash; as long as you don&rsquo;t get caught.</p><p>From hammering a teammate&rsquo;s shoes to the floor to moving his hotel room furniture into the hallway, here are some of the best:</p><h2><b>&rarr; PRE-GAME SHOWER</b></h2><p>It&rsquo;s perfectly normal to celebrate big victories by dumping some sort of liquid on a teammate or coach&rsquo;s head. Of course, this normally happens at the end of the game &ndash; not the beginning.</p><p>But when Toronto Maple Leafs forward Nazem Kadri was playing junior, he was unexpectedly showered with Gatorade as he reached up and grabbed his helmet from the top of his dressing room stall. &ldquo;Some guys had put a couple little Gatorade cups in my helmet. When I slid it off, it all got dumped over me,&rdquo; Kadri said. &ldquo;It sucks, because you have to go out on the ice and you&rsquo;re just soaked.&rdquo;</p><p>Kadri said he got even with the culprit by sticking clear tape to the bottom of his blades, making him look like Bambi taking his baby steps. &ldquo;It looked like it was his first time on skates,&rdquo; Kadri said. &ldquo;Everyone had a good laugh at that.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-06224/9694031-1-eng-US/f0021-062.jpg" title="f0021-06" width="1112" height="1754"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Nazem Kadri</b> <span class="photo-credit">(KADRI: CLAUS ANDERSEN/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-011512/9694024-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="1024" height="1313"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>CREAM WITH ENVY</b></p><p>Zip-up hoodie by Red Jacket Clothing; bodysuit by American Apparel.</p></figcaption></div><h2><b>&rarr; FISH HEAD</b></h2><p>Mark Osborne knew something was wrong. He just couldn&rsquo;t put his finger on it. Or rather, he couldn&rsquo;t put his nose on it.</p><p>As he skated around the ice during practice with the New York Rangers, the now-retired NHLer could smell something fishy. The more he sweat, the more pungent it got. It was not until practice ended and he returned to the dressing room that he found several tiny smelts hidden inside the padding in his pants and other gear. &ldquo;It stunk so bad, I&rsquo;m telling you,&rdquo; Osborne said. &ldquo;Everyone was calling me &lsquo;fish head.&rsquo; The trainer tried putting Brut aftershave on my gear, but the smell wouldn&rsquo;t go away.&rdquo;</p><p>The prank, Osborne said, was payback for when he was caught putting shaving cream on the face of a sleeping Nick Fotiu during a flight. &ldquo;Fotiu said, &lsquo;you&rsquo;re lucky,&rsquo;&rdquo; Osborne recalled. &ldquo;&lsquo;I was thinking of putting live eels in your skates.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><h2><b>&rarr; SHOE CHECK</b></h2><p>The shoe check is one of the oldest and most popular pranks. But it can take many different forms.</p><p>You can snip a teammate&rsquo;s laces. Fill the insides with shaving cream. Dump butter or some other condiment on top of them at the dinner table. Or you can literally check them like you would luggage. &ldquo;We used to fly commercial,&rdquo; Osborne said. &ldquo;On flights home from games, guys would take off their shoes because their feet would swell. Well, guys would be grabbing them all the time and you&rsquo;d have players walking off the plane with one shoe or both missing. &ldquo;The next thing you know, you&rsquo;re waiting for your luggage on the conveyer belt and a couple of shoes would drop down. It was hilarious.&rdquo;</p><p>Another time, Osborne remembers Jim Schoenfeld taking a hammer and nailing a teammate&rsquo;s shoes to the floor. &ldquo;That was the great part of being on a team,&rdquo; Osborne said. &ldquo;All the hijinks.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>&rarr; ROOM SERVICED</b></h2><p>One of the more memorable scenes during last year&rsquo;s edition of <i>HBO 24/7: Road to the NHL Winter Classic</i> was when several members of the Pittsburgh Penguins took all the furniture out of Mark Lestestu and Ben Lovejoy&rsquo;s hotel room and rearranged it out in the hallway.</p><p>When he was playing for the San Jose Sharks, Devin Setoguchi and Torrey Mitchell pulled a similar stunt on Jamie McGinn and John McCarthy. &ldquo;The trick is to grab one of the hotel room keys when you first check in,&rdquo; Setoguchi said. &ldquo;Then you excuse yourself early from dinner. Once you get going, it takes about 10 to 15 minutes.&rdquo;</p><p>For those who do not want to go through all the planning and espionage, Setoguchi suggests trapping a teammate in his hotel room by sliding a pop machine in front of his door. &ldquo;That has happened to me,&rdquo; Setoguchi said. &ldquo;I had to call down to the front desk for help.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>&rarr; SEWN SHUT</b></h2><p>Pranks are usually limited to players. But because they have unlimited access to the dressing room when the players are not around, equipment managers sometimes can&rsquo;t resist getting in on the fun.</p><p>As a rookie with the Minnesota Wild, Cal Clutterbuck remembers the time when the pockets of his pants were sewn shut. If that wasn&rsquo;t bad enough, everything was still trapped in the pockets. &ldquo;I could feel my keys and wallet, but I couldn&rsquo;t get to them,&rdquo; Clutterbuck said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know what was going on.&rdquo;</p><p>Asked if he ever got the equipment manager back, Clutterbuck shook his head. &ldquo;I would,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But I can&rsquo;t sew.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>&rarr; CAR BOMB</b></h2><p>The late Derek Boogaard was known as one of the toughest enforcers during his NHL career, a role that struck fear in his opponents. But it also gave the big prankster carte blanche to torment his teammates.</p><p>When playing for the Minnesota Wild, Boogaard once left practice early and swiped Eric Belanger&rsquo;s keys from the dressing room. He then went to the parking lot and filled Belanger&rsquo;s car with foam packing peanuts. &ldquo;It was coming out the sunroof,&rdquo; said Clutterbuck, who acted as a lookout. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll never forget Boogie running back to the room, laughing, still wearing half his equipment. Everyone thought it was hilarious.&rdquo;</p><p>Well, not everyone. &ldquo;Belanger was protective of his car and got pretty upset,&rdquo; said Clutterbuck. terbuck. &ldquo;We gave him a certificate for a free car detailing. But he was so mad at us that he threw it out without looking at it.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-021112/9694017-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="745" height="950"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>WILD TIMES</b></p><p>Cal Clutterbuck has seen some great pranks in Minnesota.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(CLUTTERBUCK: GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0020-01

PUCK PUNKINGS

<div class="byline">By adam proteau</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0024-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-011454/9694118-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg"></div><p>You might not know Joey Scoleri&rsquo;s name, but you&rsquo;d better believe just about every NHL star does</p><p>. A popular former rock radio DJ from Toronto, Scoleri has become a major behind-the-scenes mover-and-shaker in the entertainment world. That includes the hockey world, where for decades he has ingratiated himself to players thanks to his astonishing connections, deep love of music and healthy respect for the privacy valued by public figures. He is the NHL elite&rsquo;s unofficial entertainment ambassador, able to whip up a good time in a heartbeat &ndash; and stay silent about the revelry that takes place in his presence. &ldquo;Players trust me, because I&rsquo;m a firm believer there&rsquo;s a line on what you should talk about,&rdquo; said Scoleri, senior vice-president of tour marketing and promotion for entertainment monolith Live Nation. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s really none of anyone&rsquo;s business, in my opinion. What happens in the room stays in the room, and what happens in people&rsquo;s private lives stays private. At the end of the day, pro athletes are human and value their privacy.&rdquo;</p><p>The son of Italian immigrants, Scoleri rose through the radio ranks in his hometown of Toronto under the name Joey Vendetta, yet maintained a connection to the sport he adored. His first foot in the door of the hockey world came at the time Hockey Hall of Famer Doug Gilmour was traded to the Maple Leafs. Scoleri began putting together music tapes that were played in Toronto&rsquo;s dressing room and during warmups before games. He became the de facto soundtrack-maker for the Buds, and when he worked in Toronto dance clubs as a DJ, he continued cultivating ties with NHLers.</p><p>Scoleri left Canada to work in New York City for Elektra Records, coincidentally, around the time Gilmour was traded to New Jersey. But when he left Manhattan for Los Angeles (changing companies and moving to Hollywood Records) shortly thereafter, he continued as a conduit between the hockey and the entertainment industries, working with Queen, Los Lobos, the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus in his day job and building friendships with the likes of Jarome Iginla, Kiefer Sutherland, Mats Sundin, David Boreanaz and Mike Cammalleri, among many other celebrities.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-011281/9694111-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="1568" height="1083"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>Party president</p><p>Matt Duchene, Joey Scoleri, Jonas Hiller, Anze Kopitar and Jonathan Toews. Scoleri is popular among NHLers because he shows them a good time and keeps everything private for public figures &ndash; just the way the players like it.</p></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02899/9694104-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="632" height="774"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(PHOTOS: COURTESY OF JOEY SCOLERI)</span></figcaption></div><p>Players appreciate Scoleri&rsquo;s talents and are more than willing to be there for him in return. For example, he organized the 2008 Festival Cup charity game in Toronto and convinced Sundin &ndash; who at the time was back in Sweden between playing for the Leafs and Canucks &ndash; to come back to North America and participate. And before Sundin signed with Vancouver in December of the 2008-09 season, he took a six-week Los Angeles vacation and spent much of it with his wife and Scoleri.</p><p>The secret to his success is relatively simple: He isn&rsquo;t star-struck by anybody and recognizes the humanity in everyone. &ldquo;Rock stars, actors, athletes, they all have something they admire,&rdquo; said Scoleri, 46. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re great at hockey, but you wish you were a guitar player. You&rsquo;re great at baseball, but you wish you were a golfer. Johhny Depp, who I met a while ago, would totally rather be in a band. When I&rsquo;m talking to him about guitars, because I play, he&rsquo;s completely smitten. That&rsquo;s what makes them human.&rdquo;</p><p>One of Scoleri&rsquo;s biggest recent achievements was rescuing the 2011 Charlie Sheen theatre tour, which began with the notorious actor alone onstage bombing in front of audiences. Live Nation brought Scoleri in to save the show &ndash; and that&rsquo;s what he did, deciding an interviewer (himself) could provide structure and balance for Sheen&rsquo;s mercurial persona.</p><p>That&rsquo;s what Scoleri does. He makes things work. He introduced Hollywood producer Oren Koules (the man behind the <i>Saw</i> franchise) to ex-NHLer Len Barrie and the latter two went on to purchase the Tampa Bay Lightning. He still brings out his Joey Vendetta radio name occasionally &ndash; only instead of DJing at a Toronto music station, he appears on The Fan 590 sports radio channel talking to NHLers and celebrities. He&rsquo;s friends with trainers, equipment makers, team owners and just about everyone in every corner of the hockey business.</p><p>Even the notion of creating a bona-fide hockey community in Southern California hasn&rsquo;t presented a problem for Scoleri: He skates four times a week with the likes of Hollywood mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer and actor Cuba Gooding Jr. When a visiting team comes into town, he&rsquo;s usually meeting an NHLer or two and showing them around. And whenever he comes back to Toronto or Canada, he&rsquo;s inevitably freelancing in the hockey industry. During All-Star weekend, he hosted several parties in Ottawa.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><i><b>To be friends with players&hellip;I'm incredibly fortunate</b></i>.<br>&ndash;Joey Scoleri</blockquote><p>For a kid who loved nothing more than music and hockey, life doesn&rsquo;t get much better than this. &ldquo;As a kid, I used to dream of just getting to go to a Leaf game,&rdquo; Scoleri said. &ldquo;To now be friends with players and celebrities who are good people and give back, I&rsquo;m incredibly fortunate.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0024-01

mr. good Times

<div class="byline">BY DAN RANKIN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-021014/9694621-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="703" height="612"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(DUCKS: OAK CREEK GOLF CLUB)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-011442/9694628-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Anaheim Ducks</b></h2><p><b>OAK CREEK GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>Irvine, Calif.</p><p>Formerly an orange grove, this Tom Fazio-designed course boasts nearly 300 days of sunshine each year.</p><p><b><a href="http://oakcreekgolfclub.com">oakcreekgolfclub.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-04550/9694614-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="231" height="232"></div><h2><b>Buffalo Sabres</b></h2><p><b>THE PARK COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Williamsville, N.Y.</p><p>When the club was founded in 1903, the park it&rsquo;s situated within (now called Delaware Park) was known simply as The Park, lending the course its name.</p><p><b><a href="http://parkclub.org">parkclub.org</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-07315/9694607-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="231" height="232"></div><h2><b>Chicago Blackhawks</b></h2><p><b>SUNSET RIDGE COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Northfield, Ill.</p><p>In 1972, Sunset Ridge hosted the Western Open, which, until it was renamed in 2007, was the third oldest active PGA tournament after the British Open and the U.S. Open.</p><p><b><a href="http://sunsetridgecc.org">sunsetridgecc.org</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05433/9694600-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="233" height="231"></div><h2><b>Calgary Flames</b></h2><p><b>LINKS OF GLENEAGLES</b></p><p>Cochrane, Alta.</p><p>Situated in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, portions run along a cliff some 200 feet above the Bow River Valley. Was named the No. 1 course you can play in Calgary in 2011.</p><p><b><a href="http://gleneaglesgolf.com">gleneaglesgolf.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-08264/9694593-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="233" height="232"></div><h2><b>Colorado Avalanche</b></h2><p><b>THE RIDGE AT CASTLE PINES NORTH</b></p><p>Castle Pines, Colo.</p><p>Names of holes at this course derived from nearby geographic features include Pikes Peak and Devil&rsquo;s Head, summits that are visible to the west.</p><p><b><a href="http://playtheridge.com">playtheridge.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03756/9694586-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Boston Bruins</b></h2><p><b>THE INTERNATIONAL</b></p><p>Bolton, Mass.</p><p>Until it was surpassed by a course in China&rsquo;s Yunnan Province in 2001, the par-77, 8,325-yard Pines&rsquo; Course at The International was the world&rsquo;s longest.</p><p><b><a href="http://theinternational.com">theinternational.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-06377/9694579-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Carolina Hurricanes</b></h2><p><b>PRESTONWOOD COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Cary, N.C.</p><p>Prestonwood Country Club is set to host the PGA Champions Tour SAS Championship Oct. 5-7, where the pros will compete for a tidy purse of $2.1 million.</p><p><b><a href="http://prestonwoodcc.com">prestonwoodcc.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-09223/9694572-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="233" height="232"></div><h2><b>Columbus Blue Jackets</b></h2><p><b>DOUBLE EAGLE CLUB</b></p><p>Galena, Ohio</p><p>Tom Weiskopf says Double Eagle is his second favorite design (behind Loch Lamond in Scotland). The club&rsquo;s close to Ohio State University, which he attended with Jack Nicklaus.</p><p><b><a href="http://doubleeagleclub.net">doubleeagleclub.net</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-011274/9694565-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Dallas Stars</b></h2><p><b>ROYAL OAKS COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Dallas, Texas</p><p>PGA pros Harrison Frazar and Justin Leonard, roommates at the University of Texas, grew up playing at Royal Oaks. Together, they&rsquo;ve raked in more than $40 million in prize winnings.</p><p><b><a href="http://roccdallas.com">roccdallas.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04473/9694558-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Florida Panthers</b></h2><p><b>PARKLAND GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Parkland, Fla.</p><p>The layout by Greg Norman was built around cypress swamps and pine flatland habitats and awarded for commitment to conversation.</p><p><b><a href="http://parklandgcc.com">parklandgcc.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-07258/9694551-1-eng-US/f0029-072.jpg" title="f0029-07" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Nashville Predators</b></h2><p><b>VANDERBILT LEGENDS CLUB</b></p><p>Franklin, Tenn.</p><p>Singing/songwriting spouses Vince Gill and Amy Grant, famously Preds fans, have hosted numerous LPGA tournaments at this 36-hole club.</p><p><b><a href="http://legendsclub.com">legendsclub.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-10156/9694544-1-eng-US/f0029-102.jpg" title="f0029-10" width="713" height="780"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(NASHVILLE: LEGENDS CLUB)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02874/9694537-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Detroit Red Wings</b></h2><p><b>GRAND TRAVERSE RESORT</b></p><p>Traverse City, Mich.</p><p>This course gets &ldquo;lake effect snow&rdquo; and offers winter activities from dog sledding to snowmobiling.</p><p><b><a href="http://grandtraverseresort.com">grandtraverseresort.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03625/9694530-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="768" height="675"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(RED WINGS: GRAND TRAVERSE RESORT)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-05392/9694523-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="233" height="232"></div><h2><b>Los Angeles Kings</b></h2><p><b>INDUSTRY HILLS GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>City of Industry, Calif.</p><p>The club&rsquo;s two courses, affectionately known as Ike and Babe, are named after former U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower and legendary female golfer Mildred &lsquo;Babe&rsquo; Zaharias.</p><p><b><a href="http://ihgolf.com">ihgolf.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-08218/9694516-1-eng-US/f0029-082.jpg" title="f0029-08" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>New Jersey Devils</b></h2><p><b>UPPER MONTCLAIR COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Clifton, N.J.</p><p>Featuring 27 holes, Upper Montclair Country Club has hosted events won by Hall of Famers Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Nancy Lopez over the years.</p><p><b><a href="http://uppermontclaircountryclub.com">uppermontclaircountryclub.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-11132/9694509-1-eng-US/f0029-112.jpg" title="f0029-11" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Ottawa Senators</b></h2><p><b>KANATA GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Kanata, Ont.</p><p>The Senators home course hosted the 2001 Nations&rsquo; Cup, featuring teams made up from the best female professionals from Canada, the United States and Sweden.</p><p><b><a href="http://clublink.ca">clublink.ca</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-06326/9694502-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="233" height="232"></div><h2><b>Montreal Canadiens</b></h2><p><b>CLUB LAVAL-SUR-LE-LAC</b></p><p>Laval, Que.</p><p>The Blue course is being renovated by Weir Golf Design, Mike Weir and Ian Andrew&rsquo;s venture. Should be ready in 2013. You&rsquo;ll have to settle for the 6,616-yard Green course for now.</p><p><b><a href="http://clsll.ca">clsll.ca</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-09180/9694495-1-eng-US/f0029-092.jpg" title="f0029-09" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>New York Islanders</b></h2><p><b>BETHPAGE STATE PARK GOLF COURSE, RED COURSE</b></p><p>Farmingdale, N.Y.</p><p>One of five courses in a complex contained within Bethpage State Park, the Red offers 6,756 yards of play from the farthest tees for a par of 71.</p><p><b><a href="http://nysparks.com">nysparks.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-12112/9694488-1-eng-US/f0029-122.jpg" title="f0029-12" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Philadelphia Flyers</b></h2><p><b>TRUMP NATIONAL GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>Pine Hill, N.J.</p><p>One of the many courses &lsquo;The Donald&rsquo; has built worldwide. In fact, the Trumps were named 2011 Family of the Year by the Male Golf Writers Association.</p><p><b><a href="http://trumpnationalphiladelphia.com">trumpnationalphiladelphia.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-011452/9694481-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Phoenix Coyotes</b></h2><p><b>LAS SENDAS GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>Mesa, Ariz.</p><p>Nearly 1,800 feet above the desert floor, Las Sendas, opened in 1995, offers views of the Usery mountains and Phoenix&rsquo;s skyline.</p><p><b><a href="http://lassendas.com">lassendas.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-021001/9694474-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="1538" height="689"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(PHOENIX: LAS SENDAS GOLF CLUB)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03732/9694467-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Pittsburgh Penguins</b></h2><p><b>ALLEGHENY COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Sewickley, Pa.</p><p>The club hosted the quarterfinal of the International Davis Cup men&rsquo;s tennis competition in 1921, where the Australian team beat the British three matches to two.</p><p><b><a href="http://alleghenycountryclub.com">alleghenycountryclub.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-06348/9694460-1-eng-US/f0030-062.jpg" title="f0030-06" width="1545" height="688"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(TAMPA BAY: SADDLEBROOK RESORT)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-07276/9694453-1-eng-US/f0030-072.jpg" title="f0030-07" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Tampa Bay Lightning</b></h2><p><b>SADDLEBROOK RESORT</b></p><p>Wesley Chapel, Fla.</p><p>A worldwide instruction hub, the club houses the Saddlebrook Golf Academy and PGA Tour coaches Steve Bann and Dale Lynch.</p><p><b><a href="http://saddlebrook.com">saddlebrook.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-08226/9694446-1-eng-US/f0030-082.jpg" title="f0030-08" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Toronto Maple Leafs</b></h2><p><b>RATTLESNAKE POINT GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>Milton, Ont.</p><p>To get the snake theme across, the club&rsquo;s two courses are called Sidewinder and Copperhead, while the nine-hole Academy course is dubbed the Rattler.</p><p><b><a href="http://clublink.ca">clublink.ca</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04544/9694439-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>San Jose Sharks</b></h2><p><b>CLOVELLY GOLF CLUB</b></p><p>St. John&rsquo;s, Nfld.</p><p>This club in the Avalon region of &lsquo;The Rock&rsquo; hosted the Canadian Open in 2000 on its championship par-72 Osprey course. Also features a par-62 run called the Black Duck.</p><p><b><a href="http://clovellygolf.com">clovellygolf.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-09185/9694432-1-eng-US/f0030-092.jpg" title="f0030-09" width="233" height="232"></div><h2><b>Vancouver Canucks</b></h2><p><b>NORTHVIEW GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>Surrey, B.C.</p><p>Home of the PGA Tour&rsquo;s Air Canada Championship from 1996-2002, both of the club&rsquo;s 18-hole courses were designed by Arnold Palmer.</p><p><b><a href="http://northviewgolf.com">northviewgolf.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-05418/9694425-1-eng-US/f0030-052.jpg" title="f0030-05" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>St. Louis Blues</b></h2><p><b>COUNTRY CLUB OF ST. ALBANS</b></p><p>St. Albans, Mo.</p><p>Historic St. Albans lies on the path of Lewis and Clark&rsquo;s 19th-century expedition. Five preserved Civil Warera graves are located throughout the club&rsquo;s Tavern Creek course.</p><p><b><a href="http://ccstalbans.com">ccstalbans.com</a></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-10159/9694418-1-eng-US/f0030-102.jpg" title="f0030-10" width="232" height="232"></div><h2><b>Winnipeg Jets</b></h2><p><b>SOUTHWOOD GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB</b></p><p>St. Norbert, Man.</p><p>When Southwood relocated last year, a seed supplier developed special grass to survive those harsh Manitoba winters.</p><p><b><a href="http://southwood.ca">southwood.ca</a></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0028-02

Rink Links

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1466/9694743-1-eng-US/f0031-142.jpg" title="f0031-14" width="426" height="582"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-011325/9694736-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="415" height="571"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02893/9694729-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="426" height="582"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03680/9694722-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="426" height="571"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-04530/9694715-1-eng-US/f0031-042.jpg" title="f0031-04" width="426" height="582"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-05423/9694708-1-eng-US/f0031-052.jpg" title="f0031-05" width="426" height="576"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-06357/9694701-1-eng-US/f0031-062.jpg" title="f0031-06" width="426" height="582"></div><p><b>1 YEAR of The Hockey News including Future Watch, Draft Preview and the Yearbook</b></p><p><b>Daily email newsletter FREE</b></p><p><b>Full digital edition FREE</b></p><p><b>NHL<sup>&reg;</sup> team swivel key chain of your choice FREE</b></p><h2><b><i>BONUS:</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-07294/9694694-1-eng-US/f0031-072.jpg" title="f0031-07" width="334" height="456"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-08237/9694687-1-eng-US/f0031-082.jpg" title="f0031-08" width="334" height="456"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-09199/9694680-1-eng-US/f0031-092.jpg" title="f0031-09" width="334" height="448"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-10160/9694673-1-eng-US/f0031-102.jpg" title="f0031-10" width="142" height="129"></div><p><b>Find us on Facebook</b></p><p><b><a href="http://facebook.com/TheHockeyNews">facebook.com/TheHockeyNews</a></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-11127/9694666-1-eng-US/f0031-112.jpg" title="f0031-11" width="142" height="129"></div><p><b>Follow us on Twitter</b></p><p><b>@TheHockeyNews</b></p><p><b>VISIT <a href="http://TheHockeyNews.com">THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM</a> TO SUBSCRIBE NOW!</b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1297/9694659-1-eng-US/f0031-122.jpg" title="f0031-12" width="158" height="283"></div><p><b><a href="http://THN.com">THN.com</a> is now available as a FREE download on mobile devices</b></p><p><b>Download the application today at <a href="http://thn.mobi">thn.mobi</a></b></p><p>NHL and the NHL Shield are registered trademarks of the National Hockey League.</p><p>NHL and NHL team marks are the property of the NHL and its teams. &copy; NHL 2011. All Rights Reserved.</p><p><b><a href="http://THN.com">thn.com</a></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0031-14

YOUR INSIDE EDGE

<div class="byline">BY BRUCE GARRIOCH</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0032-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-011429/9694788-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>ALFREDSSON&rsquo;S OTHER HOLY GRAIL</b></p><p>Daniel Alfredsson would give his left arm for a Stanley Cup ring, but another dream of his is to break par at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club, where he&rsquo;s a member. His best score is an even-par 71. He&rsquo;s had better luck in his native Sweden, where he once shot a 68.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(ALFREDSSON: JANA CHYTILOVA/FREESTYLE PHOTOGRAPHY/OSHC)</span></figcaption></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03705/9694795-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="95" height="68"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he priorities have changed in Daniel Alfredsson&rsquo;s life since he was an innocent 22-year-old selected by the Senators in the sixth round of the 1994 NHL draft, one of the proudest picks of the late John Ferguson Sr.</p><p>Life is different these days for the Senators captain. The 39-year-old is in the twilight of his career, he married his long-time partner Birgitta Backman in July 2004 and the couple has four young sons: Hugo, Loui, Fenix and William.</p><p>The heart and soul of the Senators on the ice, Alfredsson is as busy away from the rink as he is when he&rsquo;s preparing to face the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Battle of Ontario. His children are involved in sports and he&rsquo;s pretty much like any father, driving kids to rinks and soccer practice.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02966/9694781-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="1762" height="925"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ROYAL OTTAWA GOLF CLUB</b> <span class="photo-credit">(ROCG: ROYAL OTTAWA GOLF CLUB)</span></figcaption></div><p>But it&rsquo;s not all work and no play for Alfredsson. When the snow melts and the Senators season ends, the super Swede spends time playing one of his other passions: golf. He isn&rsquo;t just a player &ndash; he loves the game and it&rsquo;s the reason he tries to hit the links five or six times a week in the off-season.</p><p>Alfredsson lives just a chip shot away from the par-5, 16<sup>th</sup> hole of Kungsbacka Golf Club &ndash; in a suburb south of Gothenberg, Sweden &ndash; and likes to slip away to play once the children are in bed. &ldquo;It stays light until about 10:30 p.m., so usually I can get in five or six holes then,&rdquo; Alfredsson said. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s nobody out there. You might run into two or three people. At that point, you&rsquo;ve basically got the course to yourself. It&rsquo;s pretty nice.</p><p>&ldquo;That par-5 is down towards the ocean. We live about a two minute walk away &ndash; that&rsquo;s my favorite part of the day almost.&rdquo;</p><p>There are no demands from anybody other than Alfredsson himself on the fairways. Nobody is looking for an autograph or photo. There aren&rsquo;t 20,000 people watching No. 11&rsquo;s every move, hoping his next shot will find the back of the net.</p><p>The course is where Alfredsson can find peace. &ldquo;You get a chance to forget about everything,&rdquo; Alfredsson said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s you and the golf ball; how many shots you have to take to get the ball in the hole. It&rsquo;s nice and peaceful with nature.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not sure it&rsquo;s an escape, but it&rsquo;s definitely a sanctuary. It&rsquo;s a nice course because it&rsquo;s got parkland, it&rsquo;s got seaside holes and there&rsquo;s some holes surrounded by trees. It offers a little bit of everything.&rdquo;</p><p>Alfredsson isn&rsquo;t just another duffer. A two handicap at Kungsbacka, he started golfing at 19 when he got his first job at a course while playing junior for Frolunda. He has developed tremendous power in his swing and a short game that kills. &ldquo;I started hitting balls on my breaks,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The pro gave me a few tips and I was hooked.&rdquo;</p><p>His best score at the 6,800-yard layout is a 4-under-par 68 on the Old Course. He is also a member at the prestigious Royal Ottawa Golf Club in Gatineau, Que., where his best score is an even-par 71 over 6,599 yards with challenging, small greens. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what bothers me the most,&rdquo; Alfredsson said. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t been able to break par at the Royal. The greens get the better of me there.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-011271/9694774-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="995" height="879"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>VALDERRAMA</b> <span class="photo-credit">(VALDERRAMA: CLUB DE GOLF VALDERRAMA)</span></figcaption></div><p>The day he shot 68 at Kungsbacka, he had an eagle and six birdies on his card. In 2004, he competed in a Ryder Cup format for the club &ndash; which includes some European Tour players &ndash; and admitted to being nervous. &ldquo;Playing for our club team was where I really got hooked on the game,&rdquo; Alfredsson said. &ldquo;Once a week we had a practice and a lot of scratch golfers. I always went to practice with them and a couple of guys were on the Tour so I was able to squeeze in as an alternate.</p><p>&ldquo;I played in a foursome. I didn&rsquo;t play in the best ball, but then I was in the singles matches the next day. That was the highlight because I was so nervous. I was playing for a team and I didn&rsquo;t want to screw up.&rdquo;</p><p>That sounds odd for a guy who took his team to the Stanley Cup final in 2007 and has always been a player with a flair for the dramatic when it comes to stepping up at big moments in Ottawa&rsquo;s franchise history.</p><p>Alfredsson has had a chance to travel the golf world thanks to his occupation. He went on an extended honeymoon in Spain during the 2004 lockout and had a chance to play in a Euro tour pro-am at the famous Valderrama layout in Spain. His pro? Scotland&rsquo;s Colin Montgomerie.</p><p>Alfredsson has also travelled to Ireland with members from the Royal Ottawa and a couple of years ago took his father Hasse to the 2008 British Open as a 60th birthday present.</p><p>Before going to Royal Birkdale (where Ireland&rsquo;s Padraig Harrington captured the trophy), Alfredsson and Hasse played some courses in Britain. If given the chance to play in a dream foursome, Alfredsson would bring Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer and, of course, Hasse. &ldquo;That would ensure I wasn&rsquo;t the worst golfer in the group,&rdquo; he said with a smile.</p><p>Alfredsson admits it&rsquo;s hard to be a busy father and play as much golf as he did in the past. Getting away for &ldquo;five hours&rdquo; just isn&rsquo;t realistic anymore. But two of his kids have taken up golf and he&rsquo;s hopeful the other two will do the same. His wife &lsquo;Bibi&rsquo; loves the game, but is just as busy as her husband. Down the road, Alfredsson hopes they&rsquo;ll play as a family.</p><p>Despite the limitations on playing, his love of the links hasn&rsquo;t changed. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just such a great game,&rdquo; Alfredsson said. &ldquo;The challenge is what I like about it.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0032-01

Alfie Goes Arnie

<div class="byline">BY MATT LARKIN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0034-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-011448/9694882-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Hottest Drivers</b></figcaption></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04649/9694889-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="95" height="68"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><h2><b>Titleist 910D3</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><i><span>G</span>olf Digest</i>&nbsp;called the D2 &ldquo;the Driver Q would have designed for James Bond.&rdquo; If the D2 was Pierce Brosnan, the D3 is Daniel Craig &ndash; bigger, better and badder. The 910D3 offers more than the sexy distance-boost golfers like showing off to their friends. Its SureFit&trade;, dual-angle hosel lets you adjust for specific loft and lie with 16 settings, maximizing accuracy off the tee. <b>$445</b></p><h2><b>Taylor Made RocketBallz Driver</b></h2><p>More distinguished golfers may not reach for Taylor Made&rsquo;s latest release, but its cheesy name alone should tell you it&rsquo;s intended for novices and fun-lovers. In a word, the RocketBallz is forgiving. Its owners claim it&rsquo;s virtually impossible to miss-hit even if they try. <b>$300</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-021009/9694875-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="570" height="426"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-011345/9694868-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="674" height="1675"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Hottest Hybrid</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>Adams Idea a12</b></h2><p>It&rsquo;s among the ugliest hybrids out there, but that shouldn&rsquo;t matter unless you prefer runways to fairways. Bottom line is the Adams Idea does what a good hybrid should: It gets you in the air &ndash; and out of trouble &ndash; in a hurry. <b>$170</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02957/9694861-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="618" height="1653"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Hottest Wedge</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>Titleist Vokey SM4 Oil Can</b></h2><p>Sorry, Cleveland, but the Vokey is &ldquo;the defining wedge of our time&rdquo; according to <i>Golf Digest</i>. Praise for a single golf club doesn&rsquo;t get more epic than that. The Oil Can&rsquo;s many worshippers love its ability to provide control even from lies that wouldn&rsquo;t traditionally allow it. Watch for its spin on flop shots and burst from the sand. <b>$130</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03794/9694854-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="528" height="1059"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Hottest Irons</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>Mizuno MP 59 irons</b></h2><p>An equipment hot list wouldn&rsquo;t be complete without Mizuno irons and the MP 59s are lauded for their elegance and results. While the steel shafts are known to pack serious wallop, novices won&rsquo;t have the clubhead speed to maximize their performance. More serious golfers will love Mizuno&rsquo;s latest, however. <b>$999</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04653/9694847-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="473" height="947"></div><h2><b>Callaway RAZR XF</b></h2><p>The RAZR XF line is easier to hit than many other high-performance irons and that&rsquo;s reflected in the set&rsquo;s steep price. According to Callaway, the RAZR XFs offer more powerful impact than any of its other iron sets, ensuring even poorly struck balls have maximum carry. <b>$1,750</b></p><h2><b>Hottest Fairway Wood</b></h2><h3><b>PING G20</b></h3><p>Mirroring the politicians attending the similarly named summit, the G20 goes about its business deliberately and methodically. It won&rsquo;t explode your ears with a piercing pop, but it all but guarantees you penetrating ball flight from the fairway. <b>$220</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03798/9694840-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="773" height="893"></div><h2><b>Hottest Putters</b></h2><h3><b>Ping Scottsdale Wolverine</b></h3><p>It&rsquo;s fitting that the most gadgety mallet-style  putter out there shares a name with a superhero. The Wolverine comes in different designs oriented around golfers&rsquo; stroking style, be it straight, strongly curved or slightly curved. It truly becomes an extension of your body, kind of like a certain famous pair of adamantium claws. <b>$170</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05556/9694833-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="625" height="373"></div><h3><b>Odyssey Metal-X #6</b></h3><p>Odyssey isn&rsquo;t going anywhere in the battle for putter supremacy. The Metal-X #6, its blade-style offering, has an aluminum, oval-dimpled face plate. Whether that jargon means anything or not, what Metal-X owners know is the ball takes off in a nice, straight line on impact. You can&rsquo;t ask for much more from a putter. <b>$150</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06502/9694826-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="616" height="408"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0034-01

Swingers Only

<h2><b>M83 <i>HURRY UP, WE&rsquo;RE DREAMING</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02800/9695007-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="195" height="195"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he sixth album from the electronic band from France landed on many alternative best-of lists, blending its trademark synthpop with a more dreamy, ambient sound. &ldquo;The single <i>Midnight City</i> is really good,&rdquo; Lupul said.</p><h2><b>MY MORNING JACKET <i>CIRCUITAL</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03631/9695000-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="195" height="195"></div><p>A long-time favourite of Lupul&rsquo;s, My Morning Jacket has been making music since 1998. Some of the songs were originally going to be used in the new Muppet film. &ldquo;Probably one of the best they&rsquo;ve ever made,&rdquo; Lupul said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always been into them. That&rsquo;s a band that if you have the opportunity to see them live, you should definitely go. You won&rsquo;t be disappointed.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>THE BLACK KEYS <i>EL CAMINO</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04529/9694993-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="195" height="195"></div><p>Building on the commercial success of its 2010 breakout album Brothers, the blues-and-soul style of The Black Keys continues with the hit single <i>Lonely Boy</i>. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve used a couple of songs already in the warmup,&rdquo; Lupul said.</p><h2><b>ARCADE FIRE <i>THE SUBURBS</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-05446/9694986-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="195" height="193"></div><p>The Canadian band, which won a Grammy for album of the year in 2011, takes a Talking Heads-like approach to pop music, featuring a violinist and an accordion player. &ldquo;I got a chance this summer &ndash; I was at a festival in San Francisco and I got to stand up on the stage when the Arcade Fire were playing,&rdquo; Lupul said. &ldquo;It was pretty cool.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>YOUTH LAGOON <i>THE YEAR OF HIBERNATION</i></b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-06371/9694979-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="195" height="195"></div><p>Youth Lagoon is the stage name of Boise, Idaho musician Trevor Powers, whose debut album was ranked 50th in Pitchfork&rsquo;s top 50 albums of 2011. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s pretty cool,&rdquo; Lupul said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s mellow, but I&rsquo;ve been listening to that.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0039-02

Lupul’s Fave Tracks to Loop

<div class="byline">BY BEN KUZMA</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0041-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01782/9695080-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-01830/9695073-1-eng-US/f0042-012.jpg" title="f0042-01" width="1951" height="1342"></div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>M</span>IKE KESLER LEARNED LONG AGO</b> that when his son puts his mind to something &ndash; or when something is away at the driven Selke Trophy winner &ndash; it&rsquo;s better to back off and give the Vancouver Canucks center time and space before offering an opinion. Even if you were his coach and remain his constant confidant, the odds have always been good that Ryan eating-Kesler is going to figure it out and stay a step ahead of the pack. &ldquo;There are times when you need to talk to him and times when it&rsquo;s best to say nothing and let it work its way out,&rdquo; said the elder Kesler. &ldquo;You know how much he wants to win and it&rsquo;s win at all costs. He could score three goals and if he loses 4-3, he&rsquo;s upset.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-02535/9695066-1-eng-US/f0042-022.jpg" title="f0042-02" width="722" height="1200"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(BOTH: JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-01811/9695059-1-eng-US/f0043-012.jpg" title="f0043-01" width="1039" height="1540"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>RK IS A-OK</b></p><p>Ryan Kesler teamed with FIRSTAR to launch RK17, his own clothing line.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(KENT KALLBERG)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>IT&rsquo;S NOT JUST ON THE ICE</b> where Ryan Kesler strives to win. Whether in his personal life or business ventures, the 27-year-old Livonia, Mich., native knows there&rsquo;s an expiration date on any professional sporting career and it&rsquo;s never too early to plan for a life away from a game that has consumed him from childhood. Whether it&rsquo;s getting married at age 19 and fathering two children, mapping out his professional path or adorning the cover of 2KSports&rsquo; video game NHL2K11 &ndash; and partnering with the Vancouver-based FIRSTAR Sports to launch the RK17 logo and collection of casual clothing and performance apparel &ndash; Kesler has always been much more than just a man in motion on the ice. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a guy who needs to stay busy,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Hockey has taken up all my life so far but after I&rsquo;m done playing, first and foremost is family and maybe being a coach for a hockey or baseball team. I don&rsquo;t want my kids to see me sitting around the house all day. I want to stay busy, but it has to be something I enjoy and I&rsquo;m fortunate enough to be able to try different things now and see what I like.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b><i>&ldquo;IF YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRANCH OFF AND TRY DIFFERENT THINGS, YOU DO IT&rdquo;</i></b><br><b><i>&ndash;RYAN KESLER</i></b></blockquote><p>&ldquo;You can only play this game for so long and if you have an opportunity to branch off and try different things, you certainly do.&rdquo;</p><p>Kesler went into partnership with FIRSTAR Nov. 1, 2010 and is the first NHL player to be involved in the company&rsquo;s FIRSTline concept, a collection of high-profile players &ndash; including charismatic goalie James Reimer of the Toronto Maple Leafs &ndash; who are working with the company to perfect its microfiber performance material. &ldquo;When they first brought some designs I liked the logo and I liked the idea and it evolved into what it is today &ndash; RK17,&rdquo; Kesler said. &ldquo;They nailed it right off the hop. It was so well thought-out and it&rsquo;s tough to compete with Under Armour and Nike, but they&rsquo;re just starting to get their name out there.&rdquo;</p><p>That&rsquo;s all well and good. But how did Kesler&rsquo;s father &ndash; a former Colorado College player consumed by the Xs and Os of coaching for 36 years &ndash; react to his son now being known for more than goals and gritty play? &ldquo;He ordered two of everything,&rdquo; Kesler laughed. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s my biggest supporter. He didn&rsquo;t believe me when I first told him about it, but he fell in love with the clothes and has probably every single piece.&rdquo;</p><p>The FIRSTAR sports brand was launched in 2004. It was the same time frame in which Kesler was starting to hit his professional stride in amassing 30 goals during the 2004-05 season, his first full campaign with the American League&rsquo;s Manitoba Moose. Six years later, off-ice opportunity knocked and Kesler answered. And being a center of attention with his play at the 2010 Winter Olympics and Selke Trophy last season has elevated his status and that of a company hoping to make significant inroads with its performance-based products and casual attire. But the heavy emphasis is on the athletes&rsquo; training and competition needs and expansion plans include a warehouse in Minnesota and signing on with hockey retailers in the U.S.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01708/9695052-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg" title="f0044-01" width="1194" height="1792"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(KENT KALLBERG)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>SO, WHY KESLER AS THE POSTER BOY?</b> He can excite and infuriate and he&rsquo;s always visible. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re local and he kind of had all the attributes of a hockey player that we wanted to represent us and we got involved before his breakout year last year,&rdquo; said FIRSTAR founder Doug Thom. &ldquo;He worked hard, has pride in what he does and is a good family man. He&rsquo;s perfect for the image we want as a company. We talk before things go to market and certain styles that he likes and we&rsquo;ll alter the clothing to what he thinks we should add to it. Having hockey players wear our product and tell us it&rsquo;s the best gives us the confidence to sell it to anybody.&rdquo;</p><p>The confidence Kesler exudes peaked last spring. Following a career-best 41-goal season, his shutting down of rival centers Jonathan Toews, Mike Fisher and Joe Thornton in succession was crucial in propelling the Canucks to their first Stanley Cup final in 17 years. And his effort to force overtime in a Game 5 Western Conference clincher against San Jose won&rsquo;t soon be forgotten. After being injured shorthanded racing to the puck with Dan Boyle, Kesler briefly went to the dressing room before returning, but he could barely skate.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-02452/9695045-1-eng-US/f0044-022.jpg" title="f0044-02" width="691" height="842"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>THE DRIVE</b></p><p>Constantly seeking improvement, Kesler has often beaten expectations.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(JAMIE SABAU/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Eventually the leg loosened up and Kesler deflected a Henrik Sedin shot home with 13.2 seconds remaining in regulation. For Mike Kesler it was almost too much to endure. &ldquo;When I saw him hobble down the tunnel, I said to [wife] Linda: &lsquo;There&rsquo;s no way he&rsquo;s coming back tonight,&rsquo;&rdquo; he recalled. &ldquo;Four or five minutes later when he did, I was flabbergasted. I was in shock.&rdquo;</p><p>Shaun Karp isn&rsquo;t shocked at these exploits. The owner of Burnaby-based Karp Health Services has trained Kesler and D-man Kevin Bieksa for years and said the teammates bring their on-ice drive to their programs. Kesler doesn&rsquo;t just have explosive speed; his strength on the puck comes from superior balance. And whether dealing with lingering soreness from off-season hip surgery or already fast-forwarding to next summer and including paddle-boarding to help strengthen his core, Kesler doesn&rsquo;t lack motivation or creativeness.</p><p>&ldquo;I watched him grind it out, I knew he had more potential,&rdquo; said Karp, who has trained athletes for 20 years. &ldquo;With really good players, they already know a lot and even though they have that confidence, when you tell them something once, they do it. That&rsquo;s the difference between a talented player and a Joe Sakic-type who has talent and the work ethic.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b><i>&ldquo;ONCE I HAVE MY MIND SET, THERE&rsquo;S NO CHANGE IN MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT. IT&rsquo;S THE SAME WAY WITH MY PLAY.&rdquo;</i></b><br><b><i>&ndash; RYAN KESLER</i></b></blockquote><p>&ldquo;Ryan is one of the rare ones. He&rsquo;s very strong-willed and determined. You could give a guy a similar program and without the determination, nothing works. He uses all different components and knows where imbalances are. A lot of guys can squat a lot of weight, but they don&rsquo;t have strong hamstrings to keep up with it. And as soon as you bring your hamstrings up to that higher level, you notice an increase in speed.&rdquo;</p><p>Venture to Walnut Lake, Mich., in the summer and you may spot Kesler running up and down a hill behind his summer home with a 40-pound vest strapped to his chest. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s for explosion and power,&rdquo; Kesler said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s about working every day to try and improve and I don&rsquo;t think I&rsquo;ll ever be happy. But the key is not to burn yourself out in the summer. I&rsquo;ve seen that from other players and 10 games into the season they&rsquo;re done.&rdquo;</p><p>When Kesler returned Oct. 18 against the New York Rangers &ndash; beating rehab projections by two weeks following the July 25 hip surgery &ndash; the center&rsquo;s rationale was he needed to see where he was at. It wasn&rsquo;t good. He had two goals in his first 15 games. His stride seemed stiff and his release wasn&rsquo;t heavy or accurate. &ldquo;Looking back at it now, I don&rsquo;t want to say it was too early, but it was a necessary step,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you&rsquo;re ever going to know when you&rsquo;re ready to come back. I don&rsquo;t think I hurt the team, but I didn&rsquo;t help it like I wanted to.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-01620/9695038-1-eng-US/f0045-012.jpg" title="f0045-01" width="934" height="842"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>PERFECT MATCH</b></p><p>Kesler married Andrea when he was just 19, and says he&rsquo;s as happy as he&rsquo;s ever been.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(ANDY MARLIN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;That was tough to swallow and the coaches were really reasonable to give me the leeway to find my game again. I respect them for that.&rdquo;</p><p>The challenge for Canucks strength and conditioning coach Roger Takahashi is to convince Kesler that sometimes less is more when rehabbing an injury. Not wanting to lose a conditioning edge, the center believes he has leveled out his hip strength but wants to keep his core muscles as strong as possible.</p><p>None of this surprises Canucks rookie Cody Hodgson. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s always one of our best players in the third period and late in shifts because he&rsquo;s in great shape,&rdquo; Hodgson said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s always pushing to get better and in the gym he&rsquo;s got different ideas to get better. You try to copy him because he&rsquo;s in amazing shape.&rdquo;</p><p>At home, Kesler finds it easier to hit the pause button. His wife, Andrea, obviously helps in that regard and the demands of his young children, daughter Makayla and son Ryker, ensure there&rsquo;s more to Kesler than his status as one of the game&rsquo;s best two-way performers. And by being driven in all aspects of his life and marrying young, he again proved nobody was going to keep him from meeting one of his many goals. &ldquo;People gave us three years and we&rsquo;re going on eight and going strong,&rdquo; Kesler said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m as happy as I&rsquo;ve ever been. When you find it, you know. I found it early and I don&rsquo;t regret a single thing. My parents were a little leery, but they supported me and know the kind of personality I have.</p><p>&ldquo;Once I have my mind set, there&rsquo;s no change in my train of thought. It&rsquo;s the same way with my play.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>41</b></h2><p>Goals for Kesler last season, a breakout number for the Canuck, who also won the Selke Trophy<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0041-01

RK FIRE

<div class="byline">BY MATT CARLSON</div><p>Easton&rsquo;s Synergy one-piece composite sticks made hockey equipment history.</p><p>Now Synergy sticks are history.</p><p>Easton will discontinue the model that led the one-piece composite revolution beginning in 1999.</p><p>A couple of one-piece composite sticks did hit the market before Synergy, but none were successful, let alone transformational.</p><p>A new stick family, Mako, will replace Synergy and debut in April. The Synergy label still will appear on Easton products in other categories, but if you want a Synergy stick, you&rsquo;ll have to settle for a close-out. &ldquo;Mako is really a new product altogether,&rdquo; said Easton&rsquo;s Mike Mountain. &ldquo;We may be discontinuing Synergy, but that doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean we&rsquo;re walking away from it forever.&rdquo;</p><p>Thanks to white-based graphics, the Mako stick series &mdash; led by an ultra-premium model that&rsquo;s called simply &lsquo;Mako&rsquo; &mdash; will certainly stand out visually. The prime Mako selling point: a light-blade feel allowing players to flick off shots quicker than ever when they&rsquo;re close to the net.</p><p>Spring, however, is the time when manufacturers concentrate on new skates, protection and goalie gear &mdash; not sticks. Plenty of that is hitting the market in early 2012 and we&rsquo;ve got it all covered.</p><h2><b>Easton Mako</b></h2><p>New Jersey Devils sniper Zach Parise provided the inspiration for Mako sticks, according to Easton&rsquo;s Mike Mountain. &ldquo;He told us he didn&rsquo;t think he had ever scored a goal outside a 10-foot radius from the net in his career,&rdquo; Mountain said. &ldquo;With this stick, we attribute speed to quick hands you need to beat goalies.&rdquo; To help, the Mako has a light blade and a higher balance point. &ldquo;It has a great feel and nice pop,&rdquo; Mountain said.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-01312/9695289-1-eng-US/f0054-012.jpg" title="f0054-01" width="469" height="2704"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-01270/9695282-1-eng-US/f0055-012.jpg" title="f0055-01" width="944" height="804"></div><h2><b>Bauer Supreme TotalOne NXG</b></h2><p>The TotalOne NXG leads Bauer&rsquo;s revamped Supreme line. The model includes a tendon guard that allows players to flex forward an additional five degrees and better get out over their skates for more fluid performance. &ldquo;When you add a total of five degrees, you get about 20 percent more range of motion and you&rsquo;re much more efficient in your stride,&rdquo; said Bauer&rsquo;s Keith Duffy.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-02177/9695275-1-eng-US/f0055-022.jpg" title="f0055-02" width="959" height="802"></div><h2><b>Reebok 20K Pump</b></h2><p>A better blend of flexibility and stiffness is the story behind Reebok&rsquo;s revised Pump skate line, topped by the 20K. A Dynamic Support System controls flexion while working with a reinforced composite quarter to maximize energy transmission. In the &ldquo;spinal zone&rdquo; of the skate, wrapped composite fibers oriented at zero and 90 degrees support and lock the heel in place. In a &ldquo;flexion zone,&rdquo; composite fibers at a 45-degree angle improve the skater&rsquo;s flexion.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-03128/9695268-1-eng-US/f0055-032.jpg" title="f0055-03" width="784" height="800"></div><h2><b>Easton Stealth RG</b></h2><p>Easton plans a stronger push into the skate market and the Stealth RS is the first step. According to Easton&rsquo;s Neil Wensley, the Stealth RS is based on player feedback on previous Easton skate models. &ldquo;The goal was to create a skate that was lighter, more responsive through the quarter panels and designed with a slightly lower profile to maximize mobility and forward flexion,&rdquo; he said.</p><h2><b>CCM U+ Crazy Light</b></h2><h3><b>1 Shoulder Pads</b></h3><p>CCM has used its proprietary U Foam to engineer its U+ Crazy Light protective line and remove more than four pounds of equipment weight from senior men&rsquo;s players. The shoulder pads deliver a &ldquo;wow&rdquo; factor: They weigh about 750 grams as opposed to 1,000-2,000 grams for other senior models, according to Reebok-CCM&rsquo;s Laura Gibson.</p><h3><b>2 Elbow Pads</b></h3><p>The three-piece construction U+ Crazy Light elbow pad is designed to move with your arm. It has a U Foam forearm and bicep with a closed-molded inner cap that fits it close. A modified neoprene strap and comfort liner help lock it in place. The pads weigh about 215 grams.</p><h3><b>3 Pants</b></h3><p>The U+ Crazy Light pants weigh less than 1,500 grams, but CCM claims they provides the same level of protection as predecessors that weigh 2,000 grams or more. The back, hips, kidneys and thigh guards include U Foam to combine improved impact absorption with weight reduction.</p><h3><b>4 Shin Guards</b></h3><p>The U+ Crazy Light shin guard shell was thinned out and reinforced with U Foam to cut bulk while still providing shot-blocking protection. CCM reduced each shin guard&rsquo;s weight to less than 550 grams (Men&rsquo;s SR 15-inch), about 250 grams less than previous models.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0056-01243/9695261-1-eng-US/f0056-012.jpg" title="f0056-01" width="1490" height="2232"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0056-02160/9695254-1-eng-US/f0056-022.jpg" title="f0056-02" width="537" height="618"></div><h2><b>Reebok KFS Hybrid Shield and Core</b></h2><p>More protective drama from Reebok-CCM: this time the Reebok brand. The KFS Hybrid blends base layer and a shoulder pad. &ldquo;The hybrid brings the best of Reebok protection and full coverage of a padded shirt in a system that is very mobile,&rdquo; said Gibson. &ldquo;The Core (padded shirt) fills in any gaps in protection while the shield (shoulder pad) provides extra protection at sensitive areas.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>Warrior Projekt Series</b></h2><p>In line with the less-is-more theme, Warrior has revamped its Projekt line of protective equipment. Warrior positions Projekt on &ldquo;three simple ideas that match the new pace of the game&rdquo; &mdash; lightweight dexterity, integrated stretch mobility and targeted protection &mdash; to promote quickness and agility. The Projekt series includes: <b>1</b> shoulder pads, <b>2</b> elbow pads, <b>3</b> shin guards and <b>4</b> tailored pants.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0057-01228/9695247-1-eng-US/f0057-012.jpg" title="f0057-01" width="1510" height="2128"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0057-02164/9695240-1-eng-US/f0057-022.jpg" title="f0057-02" width="608" height="713"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0057-03122/9695233-1-eng-US/f0057-032.jpg" title="f0057-03" width="590" height="716"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0057-04100/9695226-1-eng-US/f0057-042.jpg" title="f0057-04" width="421" height="530"></div><h2><b>Warrior Dynasty</b></h2><p>The Dynasty is the first base-layer apparel with specific versions for right- or left-handed shooters. High-count Spandex panels in the compression garments are placed &mdash; and called out in yellow &mdash; to optimize shooting and stickhandling. The models not only look cool, but also include Warrior&rsquo;s ICEFEL Cooling Technology.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0058-01245/9695219-1-eng-US/f0058-012.jpg" title="f0058-01" width="2180" height="1832"></div><h2><b>Cascade/The Messier Project M11 PRO</b></h2><p>The M11 PRO builds Cascade&rsquo;s Seven Technology and protection of its previous M11 helmet into a new, streamlined shell with a lower profile and improved liner ventilation. Seven Technology is an impact attenuation liner system that more effectively manages energy from direct impact than EPP foam, according to Cascade. The M11 PRO also has Cascade&rsquo;s Pro Fit2, a 15-point, no-tool micro-adjustment system for a 360-degree fit to maximize protection and eliminate pressure points.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0058-02164/9695212-1-eng-US/f0058-022.jpg" title="f0058-02" width="795" height="855"></div><h2><b>Warrior Krown 360</b></h2><p>The key selling point for Warrior&rsquo;s first helmet, the Krown 360, is better fit equals better protection. Warrior said the model provides a 360-degree fit and &ldquo;conveniently and effortlessly adjusts to perfectly fit the unique shape of any player&rsquo;s head&rdquo; using a 4-Play Fit System. A single dial simultaneously adjusts the shell and liner to conform to a player&rsquo;s head shape and minimize gaps between the head and three layers of protective foams &mdash; including new 3D Impax foam.</p><h2><b>Bauer RE-AKT</b></h2><p>Bauer&rsquo;s RE-AKT resembles the brand&rsquo;s best-selling 4500 helmet, but includes new technologies. A free-floating Suspend-Tech liner uses Bauers&rsquo;s Poron XRD technology and a Vertex foam liner is lighter than EPP of the same density. Bauer claims the RE-AKT offers players &ldquo;rotational force management&rdquo; on the ice. At impact, the Suspend-Tech liner stretches and moves independently from the Vertex foam liner, which helps protect the brain from excessive intra-cranial movement.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0059-01201/9695205-1-eng-US/f0059-012.jpg" title="f0059-01" width="1170" height="1542"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0059-02129/9695198-1-eng-US/f0059-022.jpg" title="f0059-02" width="897" height="1216"></div><h2><b>Easton E700</b></h2><p>The E700 is Easton&rsquo;s second rendition of a lightweight helmet with a &ldquo;monocoque&rdquo; one-piece construction. Easton claims the 340-gram E700 offers improved protection, more comfort, and superior fit and stability over its predecessor, the S19. Like the S19, the E700&rsquo;s design fuses a thin shell &mdash; just a half millimeter of polycarbonate versus about five mm in other helmets &mdash; with specially aligned protective EPP foam.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0060-01197/9695191-1-eng-US/f0060-012.jpg" title="f0060-01" width="669" height="947"></div><h2><b>7800 Vaughn V5</b></h2><p>Goalie guru Mike Vaughn tweaks technology for results that netminders notice. The 7800 V5 pads retain the style of Vaughn&rsquo;s popular Velocity line, but incorporate a design that reduces weight and stiffens the pads in key areas for a more solid blocking surface. The pads match the goaltenders&rsquo; leg motions to make them rebound-neutral. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t end up with rebounds sitting 10 to 15 feet away,&rdquo; Vaughn said.</p><h2><b>Bauer TotalOne Pads</b></h2><p>Bauer&rsquo;s updated TotalOne pads can be adjusted for stiffness using soft or hard MyFlex bars that are inserted on the outside of the pad then span the face just above and below the knee breaks. Goalies can get a customized fit at off-the-shelf prices and change the stiffness of pads without buying new ones. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t tell you how many pro goalies change their flex from one (custom) order to the next,&rdquo; said Bauer&rsquo;s Henry Breslin.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0060-02120/9695184-1-eng-US/f0060-022.jpg" title="f0060-02" width="895" height="1130"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0060-0383/9695177-1-eng-US/f0060-032.jpg" title="f0060-03" width="757" height="921"></div><h2><b>Reebok Premier 4</b></h2><p>The flat-faced Premier 4 goal pads are designed for more coverage and a solid seal to the ice when the goalie drops. &ldquo;We wanted to provide more coverage while adhering to the NHL rules and we looked at ways to change the leg channel so you can get tighter to the post when standing,&rdquo; said Reebok&rsquo;s Sonya Dibiase. &ldquo;We also wanted to provide a wider, comfortable Clarino leg channel so the pad naturally falls to the inside to create a smaller five-hole.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0054-01

Hockey’s Gear of War

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0062-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0062-01196/9695320-1-eng-US/f0062-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(ILLUSTRATION BY MEGAN LEONARD)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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SNIPE HUNT

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0063-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0063-01148/9695351-1-eng-US/f0063-012.jpg"></div><p><b>57 &ldquo;BEST&rdquo; CATEGORIES</b></p><p><b>INCLUDING: BEST PLAYER GOALIE, OWNER SHOOTER, FIGHTER COACH, REFEREE MASCOT, CHEERLEADERS JERSEY, DRESSED, ETC.</b></p><p><b>FEATURES ON WINNERS INCLUDING: CROSBY, LIDSTROM OVECHKIN, BARRY TROTZ DALLAS STARS ICE GIRLS HENRIK LUNDQVIST AND MORE!</b></p><p><b>+</b></p><p><b>WE PICK EACH FRANCHISE&rsquo;S ALL-TIME TEAM; THAT IS, THE BEST PLAYER EVER AT EACH POSITION.</b></p><p><b>NOW AVAILABLE AT <a href="http://THN.COM/BESTOF">THN.COM/BESTOF</a></b></p><p><b>Find us on Facebook</b></p><p><b><a href="http://facebook.com/TheHockeyNews">facebook.com/TheHockeyNews</a></b></p><p><b>Follow us on Twitter</b></p><p><b>@TheHockeyNews</b></p><p><b><a href="http://THN.com">thn.com</a></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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