Backhand Shelf

For those of you who missed Backhand Shelf’s introduction to the concept of “beerability,” you can find out everything you need to know by checking out the lists of the 10 players and 10 coaches who have the most (and you can find the thorough definition of the term there too).

Basically, the more you’d like to sit at a pub over pints with a guy and bullshit, the more beerability he has.

The funny thing with beerability is, the more you get to know about someone, the more their beerability changes. And, it can go in either direction. I’m sure there’s been plenty of athletes and celebrities that made you think “hey, he seems like a pretty cool dude,” that also made you think “what a tool” the second you heard him talk.

Well, here’s the first of our weekly updates on who’s moving up the list, and who’s free-falling down it.

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In today’s episode of the Backhand Shelf podcast Pizzo and I start with Sam Gagner’s historic eight point performance last night, move on to our latest segment of “beerability” with Derek Snider, and end up discussing Dean Lombardi’s explanation for the clock malfunction. And, we got Professor Frink from The Simpsons to help us out!

You can listen to it here:

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If you missed it on Wednesday, I compiled my personal list of “5 teams that make me want to flip channels.” That was one was fairly easy to write, but this one’s a little harder – hell, I like watching a lot of teams play. But, I felt like I should write the positive side of things after being such a Negative Nancy.

Lists aren’t fun if you aren’t definitive, so here goes nothing: I shall attempt to order up my top five.

Remember, I’m not listing the five best teams in the NHL – this is the list of five I most like to watch play and why.

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Apparently, the clock in Los Angeles does have a nasty habit of sticking late in the third period at the STAPLES Center.

This doesn’t help us determine if it’s clock error or timekeeper-related, but it does help us know this: that wasn’t the first time the clock found itself “sticky” late in the game. Verrrrry interesting.

Stick-tap to @Majupra and redditor thebluefork (Reddit post here).

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This dude would be a way better GM than Pierre Maguire

In the season of the trade deadline, the fancies of hockey fans invariably turn to thoughts of general management. Not that general management is ever very far from our thoughts (we are an anxious folk), but for much of the season we are far more occupied with discussions of players- their achievements, their failures, their comical Youtube videos- than we are with the doings of front office personnel. It is only on the three High Holidays of General Management that we give sustained, obsessive attention to GMs, and of those, only the trade deadline falls within the season proper.

So now we are all busily engaged in speculating about what this or that GM might or might not do, and what he should or should not do, and what he’s done in the past, and in and amongst all of this there is a lot of discussion of the skills of general management. Among these are commonly listed trading, cap management, contract negotiation, player evaluation, and prospect development; all precious and important gifts of the modern hockey manager. But there is one essential skill of general management that is tragically, sadly, embarrassingly underappreciated: the ability to do nothing.

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Alternate title: Gee, I wonder what the hockey blogosphere will be talking about today?

“Sam Gagner has just tied a record, with eight points in a game, the franchise mark he now shares with Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey!”
-Gord Miller, TSN, with the unlikely call

In case you’ve missed it, the Edmonton Oilers’ young winger, skating on a line with Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, recorded four goals and four assists last night against the Chicago Blackhawks, earning Edmonton an 8-4 victory in a fashion reminiscent of the 1980s.

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By now I’m sure you have read numerous things about Sam Gagner’s amazing game last night. It’s not often a player puts up 8 points (hasn’t happened since Mario Lemieux did it in 1988), so he is getting all the attention he deserves. When I woke up this morning I was trying to think of a way to write about Gagner without saying the same thing everyone else was saying, and to be honest, I was stumped. He just put himself in a category with Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey! Enter the man who stood next to me as best man at my wedding with a text message:

You have to do a blog on who holds the record for most points in a game by every team after Sam Gagner’s performance.

Excellent suggestion Ryan.

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A hunter gets ready to strike

Alright millionaire, how good does it feel to have put money down on SAM GAGNER of the EDMONTON OILERS having EIGHT POINTS against the CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS? What? Nobody had picked SAM GAGNER to finish the night with EIGHT POINTS against the CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS and tie WAYNE GRETZKY and PAUL COFFEY’S franchise record? Go figure.

On a serious note, that is really, really special. It has only happened 16 times in NHL history to 13 different players. You may recognize a few of the names on the list: Maurice Richard, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux. Only one guy has scored more than eight points in a game and that was Darryl Sittler in 1976 when he potted 10 points against the Boston Bruins. It hasn’t been done in the NHL since 1989 when Super Mario did it. Let’s also not forget this list is more or less a compilation of guys who are in the Hall of Fame (a few exceptions) because you have to be spectacular to pull it off.

Basically I’m giving you this history lesson because what Gagner did is SUPER COOL. The Blackhawks part is also a cool twist. Why?

#Oilers Sam Gagner is the 1st player to have 8 PTS in a game vs #Blackhawks since Bert Olmstead on Jan 9, 1954

— theScoreTicker (@theScoreTicker) February 3, 2012

Here’s a cool picture that sums this all up perfectly.

Basically Sam Gagner has now immortalized his name with some of the greatest people to ever wear a pair of skates or a jersey regardless of the context of his season or career.

Here are his four goals and record tying point. Read the rest of this entry »

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Aside: Not his finest mask

The year was 2003 and J.S. Giguere was about to embark on the most outrageous playoff run I’ve ever seen from a goaltender – last year’s Tim Thomas effort included – which included the most outrageous series I’ve ever seen from a goaltender. Against the Minnesota Wild, Giguere almost single-handedly swept the Wild as the Ducks continued their Cinderella run which eventually ended against the New Jersey Devils in the Cup finals. I say almost single-handedly because he didn’t score any goals. Had he scored goals, he would have single-handedly topped the Wild because Giguere only allowed one goal FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES. This included roughly 218 straight minutes of shutout hockey. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.

Basically the Minnesota Wild ought to hate Giguere. Sure, he hasn’t been invincible against them, but he adds enough ludicrousness to his resume with the Wild as the opposition of record to make them really, really mad about it. He added to that CV tonight with this really impressive glove save against Cal Clutterbuck.

Check it out. Read the rest of this entry »

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That looks comfortable

In the short time I’ve been lucky enough to contribute to this blog, I’ve gotten to profile a lot of seriously dirty hits. However, we’ve gotten the odd gem as well. The good ole fashioned clean open ice hit which gives you sympathy pains for a week. This is one of those hits.

In today’s Canadiens/Devils game, P.K. Subban absolutely destroys Adam Larsson crossing the blueline with the game tied at three in the third period. No elbow, no headshot, no nothing. Just your standard body-to-body hit that people don’t want to lose from the game.

It’s unfortunate that Larsson got hurt on the play when he slid into the boards awkwardly, but it was no fault of Subban. According to Pete DeBoer, the injury “looks like a bruise” and Larsson should be okay going forward. The hit was the second time Larsson had a rough time in the game after he took a shot from Mathieu Darche earlier in the game.

As far as DeBoer is concerned, that’s just Larsson’s game: Read the rest of this entry »

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