Top 5 Goons

Just like this movie shows, fans love goons.  Goons get their team going, they get the fans mad, or excited. They hit, they fight, they sacrifice their bodies to protect the all stars of their teams.

The movie Goon.

   The goons that will be in this top 5 may not be players you know, as they are all retired now, but if you have the chance, search them up and watch some of their footage.  They are crazy. Very strong, very physical men.

Number 5. Terry (Bloody) O'Reilly. Dirty. Dangerous. Disturbed. “Bloody” O’Reilly did not follow the rules of the NHL. If he wanted to do something, he was going to do it. He spent a good chunk of this career protecting Ray Bourque while his 6 ft 1 inch, 200 pound frame racked up over 2,000 penalty minutes. In a famous 1979 post game brawl (fight), O’Reilly climbed over the glass into the crowd after a guy who somehow got a hockey stick and attempted to spear him with it. Heck of a hockey player. Heck of a goon.

Number 4. Joey Kocur. 6 feet tall, 220 pounds - One half of the very famous “Bruise Brothers,” Kocur may have had the most powerful right hand in NHL history. That right hand has broken orbital bones, noses and at least 10 hockey helmets. Expect to get injured challenging this guy as players have suffered concussions fighting Kocur with their helmets on.


Number 3. Dave Shultz. 6 ft 1 inch, 195 pounds - A key member of the “Broad Street Bullies” of the 1970’s, Shultz’s aggressiveness earned him the name “Hammer.” He holds the record for penalty minutes in a single season with 472 and was the first fighter to ever wear boxing straps in hockey fights which eventually were banned. Funny enough, he got his ego fed to him when he looked like a novice against a much smaller and older Tim Horton.


Number 2. Bob Probert. The heavyweight champion of the 1990’s, no question, Probert was the second half of the “Bruise Brothers.” Players tried to take his belt on many occasions and after losing, they would try and lose again to this 6 ft 3 inches, 230 pound goon. He has fought everyone at least once including taking on Grimson 13 times. Red Wing teammate Keith Primeau was one of the few that stood his ground against Probert during a fight at a team practice.

Probert was involved in 283 NHL fights and how many he won is very opinionated, though I am sure around 210 of them are convincing wins. He was big, mean and let his fists do all the talking.

And number 1. The biggest goon to ever live. Tiger Williams. At 5 ft, 11 inches tall and 200 pounds, Tiger Williams is our godfather of NHL goons. This guy sat in the penalty box for 4421 minutes or almost 74 hours; more than anybody else in history. Williams tallied over 300 penalty minutes in a season six times and over 250 penalty minutes, ten times. These are the penalties that the referees caught; Williams was incredibly dirty behind the scenes.

Tiger fixing his equipment after a fight.

Is Hockey a Waste of Time?

   Many will say, there is no point in playing hockey, we strongly disagree.  Kids and teenagers are taking time out of their day, their vacation time, social encounters, and even family gatherings just to train in an attempt to make it big. So what do you think? Is it a waste of time? A risk worth taking? Is hockey important enough to sacrifice your childhood?
   We say yes.  Why?  Well that is easy.  If you love hockey enough just like us, you will know that every moment you step on the ice, hit the weights, or score a goal, the satisfaction is so great, your sacrifice doesn't seem like a sacrifice.  It feels like something you want to keep doing.  That you would rather be playing hockey than be with friends, and even sometimes family.
   Yes, we love our family.  But, we also love hockey.  After the season is over, or your career has ended, then there is time to be with those special people in your life.  While you have hockey with you, your teammates are your family.  You sweat and bleed for them, you take hit, beatings, bruises, to protect them, and that is what people say a waste of time is?
   Hockey forms lifetime bonds, that will never go away.  Even after your teammates are gone, you will never forget them, and they will be with you forever.  In a way, hockey is in our blood, and we are not going to throw that away, just because someone tells us it is a waste of your childhood.
   If hockey really was a waste of time, why would so many people love it?  Sure it takes up hundreds of hours, but it is all time you enjoy spending, so no, it is not a waste of time.  People can have their own opinions, and we respect that.  But we know our opinion is correct.

Top 5 Hockey Hair

   Today's top 5 will be of the players with the nicest hockey hair ever. This includes everything, slicked back, mullet, mustache, and everything in between.

At number 5, we have Patrick Kane with his mullet.  Racing stripes on the side, short on top, and long in the back.  He plays for the Chicago Blackhawks, and is known not only for his mullet, but also for his dangles as you saw in our last top 5.

At number 4 we have Mike Commodore of the Carolina Hurricanes.  He is known as an enforcer, making huge hits every game, and his afro and beard make watching him all worth while.

Now at number 3, we have Scott Hartnell, straight out of Regina, Saskatchewan.  Known for the hair, the beard, scoring, hitting, and fighting.

Number 2.  Lanny McDonald.  An old timer.  Still rocking the mustache 15+ years after his NHL reign.  It was so good, people would go to, or watch his games, just for the stache.

And last, and certainly the best hair out there. At number 1. Jaromir Jagr.  A great player, in top 15 scoring of all time.  And still playing today.

We hope you enjoyed today's top 5.  To rap this one up, here is the biggest disaster hockey hair that should have been cut off years ago.

Top 5 Danglers

   Hello, today we are going to do our first top 5.  We will be telling you who we think the top 5 danglers are in the NHL.  Danglers are the players who have quick hands, nice moves, and put the puck where he wants it.

   5: Patrick Kane. Chicago Blackhawks #88

4. Evgeni Malkin. Pittsburgh Penguins #71

3. Sidney Crosby. Pittsburgh Penguins #87

2. Alexander Ovechkin. Washington Capitals #8

1. Pavel Datsyuk. Detroit Redwings #13

And to rap this up, just for some extra entertainment, we want to show you the greatest bench brawl of all time.

Young Hockey Body Contact

  Hockey is a contact sport.  Want kids to stay uninjured?  Put them in a different sport.  It is the only way you can keep them from getting injuries.  Without hitting, kids will not have the knowledge, the skills, the experience, and they will have less experience than others.  They are going to get hurt. That is hockey.

   There is 8 year olds playing full contact football, and hockey associations cannot think to put body contact back into 10 + year old hockey?  Why?  People who are 10 years and older are smart enough to know how to, and when make a hit.  There will be injuries, no doubt.  But there are even injuries in the professional leagues.  That is one risk when you play hockey.
   No one wants to see a player get hurt, but they need practice with body contact.  If there is no contact until bantam (13-14 year olds at the start of the year) they will not have adequate knowledge in how to hit safely, and when to make a hit.
   The Bantam draft is after the player's second year of bantam.  This is where players get drafted to the WHL.  2 years is not long enough for an individual to learn the speed, the technique to give a receive a hit, and when to make one.
   I have been talking about Regina, Saskatchewan in this blog.  There are different rules in different places, which makes it extra unfair for those living here.  Others will have more experience and more skill with it, kids from here will just be getting introduced to hitting.

An unsafe young hockey hit.

   Yes I know, "we can't have the kids getting hurt". Going through hockey, you are going to get hurt even if there is no hitting.  So why take away their chance to learn, and improve, just to make sure they do not get a couple bruieses?

Matt Cooke

   Sliced Erik Karlson's Achilles, ended Marc Savard's career with a dirty hit, has multiple suspensions for dirty plays.  Matt Cooke should not be in the NHL. People do not come to games to see this. They come to see a well played, respectful hockey game. Sure, there is going to be fights and big hits, but intentionally injuring other players is unacceptable.
   Matt Cooke plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins, born September 7th, 1978. Canadian born NHL player.  He won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in the 08-09 season. He was also a part of Team Canada for the World Championship in 2004.  He has also been a part of the Washington Capitals, and the Vancouver Canucks.
   Cooke has been known to aggravate the other teams, and their fans, from gestures, to language, to physical contact.  Some is good entertainment, but others has no place in hockey.  Should we be considering a longer suspension everytime he does something new? Or, should his career be taken from him, as he has ended others' careers?
   He has lots of talent, and deserves to be a professional, but some of his antics are not meant for the NHL. If he wants to make people bleed, he should have been in a fighting genre of sports.  There is only so far you can take fighting in hockey.  Being an enforcer, as he is, makes his job to be physical, but to also be considerate of other players' well being.
   We believe, if Matt Cooke keeps this up, his time on the ice, playing in the big leagues will be decimated.  He should not be around other talented young men, following their dream, just to have it crushed in an instant because one man only wants to hurt people.  Yes, Cooke is talented, yes it is his job to be physical, but no, he should not be in the NHL ruining others' lives.

Hockey Sticks

   Did you know, a "top notch" hockey sticks these days range from $200-300?  Also, young players as little as 3 years old are using these, and in my opinion this is a waste of money.  Of course, if you are in the big leagues, you could greatly benefit from these professionally engineered sticks, but, as young children, there is no benefit.  This is because they do not play many times per week, and they are not strong enough to use the flex of the stick.
   How do you think it feels ripping a $300 check in half?  That is what it is like breaking a good stick these days. This also happens too often.  For $300, I, and many others, would expect everything you could want in that stick.  This includes the quality of the stick.  With our modern day technology we can make better sticks that do not break, rather than the ones now that, yes, they are good, but break way too often.  For example, I have broke 3 sticks in 4 months.  I have wasted my money on this.
On average, NHL players go through 24-36 sticks per year.  That is spending as much as $10 800 each year. This is for one player only.
   These need to be made better, the problem needs to be fixed, or, they need to cost less.  Many people have this problem and it is very inconvenient.

These are top of the line hockey sticks, ranging from $250-300.