Jason Allison
Be sure to check out Nikhil's post-game thoughts from last night.
Tuesday night, September 21st, about 6:40 p.m. I am dancing - yes, dancing, provided you can call a kind of frenetic spasticism punctuated with finger snaps and some twirling hands "dancing" - to no music in my kitchen as I cook our pasta for dinner. I am in a rush, and I am excited, because after a long summer of legal wrangling over the Kovalchuk contract, eternal speculation about Tomas Kaberle's status and apparently endless MSM vs. blogger hissy fits, the puck is finally dropping on the preseason. Don't get me wrong, I know that the preseason sucks. I know it's not reflective or in any way predictive of how the team will do during the regular season - I've been a hockey fan long enough to know that, and last year's brilliant exhibition campaign is still fresh in my memory. Almost as fresh as the oh-and-eight start that followed it, once the games counted.
Since posting the parable of Owen the other day, and most especially since reviewing the commentary appended thereto, it has come to my attention that:
- The Tragically Hip suck or else the Tragically Hip are the very Platonic embodiment of the concept of "win".  It is not at all clear which of these two statements concerning the properties of the Tragically Hip inclines towards truth, yet the truth is said to be obvious, immutable and beyond the realm of debate;
- It is a very good idea to proofread what you have frantically typed in a guilty paroxysm of nostalgic reminiscence before hitting the "publish" button. Failure to do so may have the inattentive rookie blogger combining various teams, their nicknames and game results in a charming but utterly abstract and completely fictional goulash of confusion. In the unlikely event this is not the effect one is really attempting to achieve, this little pro tip may help you avoid embarrassment;
- It is quite possible that I am the first person on earth and in the history of ever to reference both the Three Stooges and Waiting for Godot in the same sentence. Now I've gone and done it in consecutive posts! Don't be expecting this level of achievement in every installment, kids, outstanding performances have a way of regressing to the mean;
- My theory of road trips, nascent and ill-developed though it may be, is fertile ground for graduate study. Even more startlingly, the road trip is fertile ground for reality television. How has there not been a Big Brother style reality show centred around the road trip. And no, I haven't forgotten about the Amazing Race; pay attention man, those dudes travel in pairs, not triads. As an aside, I wonder how many other areas of human endeavour are equally of interest to academics and reality TV producers?
- I somehow managed to omit from the story the fact that my buddies and I attended a cocktail mixer at the IMF. Trust me, you don't know from fun until you've partied with international debt specialists in a brightly-lit impersonal and institutional room in the middle of the afternoon; and
- At least some of you are seeing some of the same positive developments in certain Maple Leaf players that I am.
Before we get to the subject of today's post, Luke Schenn, a preliminary word if you will about the title of these entries:Â [more…]
I had the privilege of a great view from the Gold section, ten rows off the ice to witness a fairly decent game with plenty of positives. It was my first time in the lower bowl, so it was certainly an exciting and interesting experience to see how the other side lives. Impressive performances carried over from the rookie tournament by Tyler Bozak, the game's first star, and fellow collegiate rookie Viktor Stalberg. [more…]
Per the Globe and Mail: "The lineup for the Leafs’ first preseason game against the Boston Bruins at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday will contain plenty of youngsters like Nazem Kadri, Tyler Bozak, Phil Oreskovic, Jay Rosehill, Andre Deveaux as well as veterans Colton Orr, Wayne Primeau and Jason Allison, who is trying to make a comeback. Look for Allison to centre a line with Jiri Tlusty and Nikolai Kulemin on the wings. Joey MacDonald will play half of the game in goal."
[more…]
The big news of the day, which turns out to be nothing, really, was the absence of Jonas Gustavsson from practice. Ron Wilson addressed the situation, talked about the goaltending situation, Matt Stajan and hinted on lineup additions for tomorrow in the final day of training camp.
Earlier today I was able to catch up with the Leafs at their new practise facility, a day before training camps officially open. I had just arrived and pulled into a parking spot and just as I was about to step out of my car, a beast of a Cadillac Escalade pulled into the spot right beside me. I had noticed the New York plates as it drove in, and was quite pleased to see new Leaf Mike Komisarek step out. It was my first time meeting the former Hab in person and it didn't take long to figure out why he was so popular and well liked amongst his peers and fans in Montreal. He was more than willing to sign any autograph demands from his new fans, and was quite easy going. Any questions regarding his relationship with Grabovski, and if there were any ill feelings between the two can be put to rest. During skating drills and the scrimmage that followed, Grabs and Komi were often laughing it up and joking around with each other with playful jabs and hooks. If there is any animosity between the two, it was far from evident. It was a pleasure watching Komi having a good time with his new team and cleary getting comfortable and fitting in with the group.
[more…]
This must be the mantra Brian Burke is following after recent reports indicate that Jason Allison has been invited to the Leafs training camp on a tryout basis. Some of you remember Allison from his 2005-2006 season with Toronto. He was often seen losing in casual races with the young children of Timbits Hockey. At 34 years of age and having not played for full three seasons, this move probably has some Leafs fans scratching their heads and worrying that John Ferguson Jr. has somehow been reintroduced into the organization.
It’s their final exhibition matchup of the pre-tournament and Canada looks to apply the same pressure they’ve produced in their first two meetings. Sunday night’s game against Finland showed that this team can in fact change on the fly, and I’m not talking about the lines.
[more…]
