So a comment on my sister's fb wall got a little out of hand the other day.. and it was my fault. We were quoting Han Solo, and I said "hoCkey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid."... and didn't even realize, till later, that I said hockey and not hokey. WHOOPS!
However, it led to some silly comparisons of NHL-folks to SW folks.. and since I am both a Star Wars nerd and a hockey (Sabres) fan, I thought I should take it one step further and start assigning some characters. It's a work in progress, and if you think of any other fellas from around the League, feel free to contribute. (or if you're a fan of another team and want to give me YOUR version, once again, feel free to comment here or e-mail me. )
C-3PO- so worried about doing everything correctly that he can't think straight and so messes things up- Thomas Vanek
R2-D2- the brains of the operation- Ryan Miller
Princess Leia- They are all boys, I can't do that!
Darth Vader- The big baddie- he takes no prisoners- Lindy Ruff
Random Rebel Fighter who dies in the first scene- Jochen Hecht (alas, we hardly knew ye!)
Jawas- take all sorts of junk and make it work- Matt Ellis
Tuscan Raiders-nasty bad guys- The Philadelphia Flyers
Uncle Owen- barely even qualifies as a character because he's only on screen for a few minutes, but has a purpose in the plot- Any of the 1 or 2-game Amerks call-ups
Luke Skywalker- kid with a DESTINY and a famous name, but turns out to be pretty dargonne badass- Marcus Foligno
Old Obi-Wan Kenobi- crusty old Jedi Master who is still awesome- Teppo Numminen
Han Solo- the most brilliant captain in the universe with the best ship- Ted Black (he did restore hot water to the restrooms! and set up blogger summits. He's pretty great)
Chewbacca- fiercely loyal to his buddies, big and strong- Tyler Myers
Greedo- the bounty hunter who's too slow on the draw- (anyone who faces off against Goose)
Random Cantina Patron with 2 seconds of screen time- Mike Weber
Grand Moff Tarkin- The only one who can call Vader to heel- Darcy Regier
Wedge Antilles- The guy who is always there on your wing when you need him- Jason Pominville
Biggs Darklighter- helps out in the fight against the Death Star but doesn't last long- Brad Boyes
Admiral Ozzel- So bad he gets force-choked through the video-screen- Ville Leino
Captain Needa- couldn't get the job done so Vader took him out- Derek Roy "Apology accepted, Captain Needa" (you're next)
Emperor Palpatine- The one who is really running the show- Terry Pegula
Snow Monster- nearly destroyed the hope of the future- Milan Lucic
Dak- one of the revolving door of Luke's wingmen- Corey Tropp
Rogue 2- the guy who finds and rescues Luke when he's lost in the snow- Tyler Ennis
Yoda- Jedi Master man with the plan- James Patrick
Boba Fett- kicking ass and taking names, literally- Robyn Regehr
Lando Calrissian- Kinda slimy but usually a good guy- when it works for him- Drew Stafford
Denziens of Jabba's Palace- a disgusting mix of the universe's worst thugs- Boston Bruins
Nien Nubb- random co-pilot who shows up at the most important time- Alexander Sulzer
Wicket- the cute furry awesome little guy- Nathan Gerbe
Storm Troopers- the guys who do Vader's dirty work for him- Patrick Kaleta and Cody McCormick
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And just to have enough characters for all the players, I'll get into the new movies too, even though I find them to be not NEARLY as good.
Teenage Anakin-lots of potential, lacks some discipline- Andrej Sekera
Qui-Gon Jinn- good but not around long enough to make much difference- Cody Hodgson
Young Obi-Wan Kenobi- smart, powerful, will go far- Christian Ehrhoff
Jango Fett- smart guy but operates behind the scenes- Jordan Leopold
Mace Windu - good but not quite good enough for top billing- Jonas Enroth
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And there ya have it. The Sabres, complete with Coaches, GM, Owner, President and some rivals. What do you think? Ready to set it up for your team? :)
Showing posts with label buffalo sabres. Show all posts
Showing posts with label buffalo sabres. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Thursday, June 30, 2011
BOOOO!
The Sabres traded Montador's negotiating rights to the Blackhawks. While I like the Hawks, they are not Buffalo and I will miss my boy. :(
Free Agency starts tomorrow.. who will end up where? There has already been a lot of action in advance, which seems kind of odd. Usually teams kind of hold off on the trading and whatnot until they can sign some free agents.. but everybody seems keen to keep moving. Interesting stuff.
The Sabres are definitely buyers. There are rumors that they will try for Brad Richards. He's a stud, and could definitely help us at center, where we are already weak (and please for the love of anything, DON'T re-sign Connolly) and will be missing another piece without Timmay. But Richards is a bit expensive.. though maybe they can talk him down a bit...
Tomorrow will tell.
Free Agency starts tomorrow.. who will end up where? There has already been a lot of action in advance, which seems kind of odd. Usually teams kind of hold off on the trading and whatnot until they can sign some free agents.. but everybody seems keen to keep moving. Interesting stuff.
The Sabres are definitely buyers. There are rumors that they will try for Brad Richards. He's a stud, and could definitely help us at center, where we are already weak (and please for the love of anything, DON'T re-sign Connolly) and will be missing another piece without Timmay. But Richards is a bit expensive.. though maybe they can talk him down a bit...
Tomorrow will tell.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
this is it
Game 7- someone goes on, someone goes home.
I'm ready.
Are the Sabres ready?
Guess we'll see.
DEREK ROY IS READY!!! So no matter what else happens tonight, I will get to see my main man play at least one more game this year.. first time since December! YAAAAAYYY!
Will he be the difference maker?
Is this the year?
I don't want to see or hear anything more about Danny Effing Briere after tonight. (and I don't want too much tonight either, get it?)
I want Tyler Myers to stay mean.
I want Tyler Ennis to be all smiles after the game.
I want Derek Roy to step in and step up and be the hero.
I want Mike Weber to beat someone's face.
I want Rob Niedermayer to continue to show just why the Sabres picked him up.. THIS is why!
I want Brad Boyes to show up.... is he still on the team?
I want Drew Stafford to return to mid-season form.
I want Thomas Vanek to continue to shine.
I want Gaustad to own all comers in the faceoff circle.
I want to yell "The Butler Did it!"
I want to scream Let's Go BUFF-A-LO at the end of a game 7 win!
I want more SABRES hockey after tonight.
That's not too much to ask, is it?
I'm ready.
Are the Sabres ready?
Guess we'll see.
DEREK ROY IS READY!!! So no matter what else happens tonight, I will get to see my main man play at least one more game this year.. first time since December! YAAAAAYYY!
Will he be the difference maker?
Is this the year?
I don't want to see or hear anything more about Danny Effing Briere after tonight. (and I don't want too much tonight either, get it?)
I want Tyler Myers to stay mean.
I want Tyler Ennis to be all smiles after the game.
I want Derek Roy to step in and step up and be the hero.
I want Mike Weber to beat someone's face.
I want Rob Niedermayer to continue to show just why the Sabres picked him up.. THIS is why!
I want Brad Boyes to show up.... is he still on the team?
I want Drew Stafford to return to mid-season form.
I want Thomas Vanek to continue to shine.
I want Gaustad to own all comers in the faceoff circle.
I want to yell "The Butler Did it!"
I want to scream Let's Go BUFF-A-LO at the end of a game 7 win!
I want more SABRES hockey after tonight.
That's not too much to ask, is it?
Friday, March 18, 2011
hockey history
I have been thinking about this post for several days now.. not wanting to write it until it "felt right" and I could say the words that have been tumbling around in head and get them across in the way that means what I want them to mean. I don't know if now is the time, but I'm going to try.
I've been pondering the term "hockey history" and what that means to different people. With the sudden passing of Rick Martin, hockey fans in Buffalo (and elsewhere I'm sure) seemed to be not only saddened, but wounded by his death. I say "wounded" because the feelings and emotions being talked about were very personal- not just public recognition of his worth as a hockey player, but personal attachment of his value as a human being and a member of society. You don't always find that personal attachment when it comes to a "public figure". But Rick Martin must have been different. Buffalo is different.
For a lot of people (I might even venture to say a majority of people), they are born, grow up, and then move out of their parents' house-- but often not too far from "home". They get a job in a neighboring town, or a few hours away in the same state and keep up familial relations with parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, etc. They have large, local family gatherings and everyone knows what's going on with everyone else and people regularly visit their cousins. I would say this is reasonably regular behavior.
But for some people it's different. You move around a few times before settling 2,000 miles from any extended family. It's okay because the nuclear family is a big one so there's no shortage of companionship. But there is something missing- a bigger picture of grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Sure, those people exist, but they are seen in 3-to-5 year intervals and not known well at all. There is no resentment for this, it's normal. But then you realize it's actually not the "norm" and that many people do have personal relationships with family outside of parents and siblings. It's a little depressing but life goes on. Then you move away even further-- 400 miles from the place that YOU grew up and the cycle continues.
You wonder sometimes about your parents- when they die (hopefully MANY MANY years from now), will they be buried in Ohio, the place where they spent their adult lives, or in Louisiana- the place they came from and where the family still lives? You wonder about yourself- will you stay in Western NY or go back to Ohio- where you "came from" or somewhere else entirely? There's a sense of missing "history" and you wonder what kind of attachment your children (if you ever have any) will feel to a place. You don't really feel any attachment to one place so you sometimes find it hard to see how people can.
Then you meet Buffalo. You meet the folks who were born and raised in Buffalo and Western NY. They are proud of where they come from (most people are) and they stayed here and worked hard, just like their parents did. And they grew up watching the Buffalo Sabres and sharing the heartbreak of being a Sabres fan. They remember games at the Aud and the "French Connection" Line and all of the good ole days. They feel a love for their city and their TEAM and a sense of belonging to both of those entities- for they are tied together very strongly. Hockey is a part of Buffalo's history and if they were lucky enough to grow up in a household that cared about hockey (which is quite a few folks around these parts) then hockey is a part of their history as well.
But hockey was not a part of your history. It's not a part of your family's history. You had to come to it on your own. As a result, you don't have a history of attachment to any particular team. You move in and out of teams and players based on geography and favorites. You create your own hockey history, and as circumstances would have it, this history only goes back to 1994. That's when it all began. And you were never lucky enough to live in the same town as your favorites- not in Vancouver to see Trevor Linden or Pavel Bure, not in Detroit for Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan or Newark for Marty Brodeur. You've never met any of these men, and likely never will. But they are a part of your hockey history- you remember seeing them play and the emotion of that will stay with you forever. They made an impact on your life and you will never be quite the same as you were before your hockey odyssey.
And that is what I think that Rick Martin meant to the people of Buffalo. He came here to play hockey-- and he did that very well, from all accounts (I wasn't around to see it but the tape and the numbers don't lie.) He stayed around to make a life, but never forgot his hockey roots. Everyone spoke of him as very friendly and funny and a good person to have in Buffalo. A great ambassador for the city and the sport. A true part of Buffalo's hockey history. A shared history for anyone who was around to see it and know it and live it. And that shared history made the shared sorrow so profound. It was like losing a member of the family. Someone they all knew and loved and they will never be the same having known him (even if only on the ice) and lost him.
Rest in Peace, Rick Martin. You are not a part of my hockey history, but you are a part of where I live, and what I love about Buffalo. You will always be a part of Buffalo.
Thank you for being a part of Buffalo's Hockey History.
I've been pondering the term "hockey history" and what that means to different people. With the sudden passing of Rick Martin, hockey fans in Buffalo (and elsewhere I'm sure) seemed to be not only saddened, but wounded by his death. I say "wounded" because the feelings and emotions being talked about were very personal- not just public recognition of his worth as a hockey player, but personal attachment of his value as a human being and a member of society. You don't always find that personal attachment when it comes to a "public figure". But Rick Martin must have been different. Buffalo is different.
For a lot of people (I might even venture to say a majority of people), they are born, grow up, and then move out of their parents' house-- but often not too far from "home". They get a job in a neighboring town, or a few hours away in the same state and keep up familial relations with parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, etc. They have large, local family gatherings and everyone knows what's going on with everyone else and people regularly visit their cousins. I would say this is reasonably regular behavior.
But for some people it's different. You move around a few times before settling 2,000 miles from any extended family. It's okay because the nuclear family is a big one so there's no shortage of companionship. But there is something missing- a bigger picture of grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Sure, those people exist, but they are seen in 3-to-5 year intervals and not known well at all. There is no resentment for this, it's normal. But then you realize it's actually not the "norm" and that many people do have personal relationships with family outside of parents and siblings. It's a little depressing but life goes on. Then you move away even further-- 400 miles from the place that YOU grew up and the cycle continues.
You wonder sometimes about your parents- when they die (hopefully MANY MANY years from now), will they be buried in Ohio, the place where they spent their adult lives, or in Louisiana- the place they came from and where the family still lives? You wonder about yourself- will you stay in Western NY or go back to Ohio- where you "came from" or somewhere else entirely? There's a sense of missing "history" and you wonder what kind of attachment your children (if you ever have any) will feel to a place. You don't really feel any attachment to one place so you sometimes find it hard to see how people can.
Then you meet Buffalo. You meet the folks who were born and raised in Buffalo and Western NY. They are proud of where they come from (most people are) and they stayed here and worked hard, just like their parents did. And they grew up watching the Buffalo Sabres and sharing the heartbreak of being a Sabres fan. They remember games at the Aud and the "French Connection" Line and all of the good ole days. They feel a love for their city and their TEAM and a sense of belonging to both of those entities- for they are tied together very strongly. Hockey is a part of Buffalo's history and if they were lucky enough to grow up in a household that cared about hockey (which is quite a few folks around these parts) then hockey is a part of their history as well.
But hockey was not a part of your history. It's not a part of your family's history. You had to come to it on your own. As a result, you don't have a history of attachment to any particular team. You move in and out of teams and players based on geography and favorites. You create your own hockey history, and as circumstances would have it, this history only goes back to 1994. That's when it all began. And you were never lucky enough to live in the same town as your favorites- not in Vancouver to see Trevor Linden or Pavel Bure, not in Detroit for Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan or Newark for Marty Brodeur. You've never met any of these men, and likely never will. But they are a part of your hockey history- you remember seeing them play and the emotion of that will stay with you forever. They made an impact on your life and you will never be quite the same as you were before your hockey odyssey.
And that is what I think that Rick Martin meant to the people of Buffalo. He came here to play hockey-- and he did that very well, from all accounts (I wasn't around to see it but the tape and the numbers don't lie.) He stayed around to make a life, but never forgot his hockey roots. Everyone spoke of him as very friendly and funny and a good person to have in Buffalo. A great ambassador for the city and the sport. A true part of Buffalo's hockey history. A shared history for anyone who was around to see it and know it and live it. And that shared history made the shared sorrow so profound. It was like losing a member of the family. Someone they all knew and loved and they will never be the same having known him (even if only on the ice) and lost him.
Rest in Peace, Rick Martin. You are not a part of my hockey history, but you are a part of where I live, and what I love about Buffalo. You will always be a part of Buffalo.
Thank you for being a part of Buffalo's Hockey History.
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