Originally published in Eishockey News in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Rexall Place offers superb skating conditions, but has also seen some great hockey history, courtesy of CHL products.
Historically, NHL players have hailed the ice in Edmonton as the league’s best. Since the 2007 debut of the expansion Edmonton Oil Kings, WHLers have also gotten the chance to […]

Originally published in Prospects Hockey in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Caring host families make a huge difference for young WHLers
When New York Rangers forward Scott Gomez was interviewed between periods on a recent Hockey Night in Canada telecast, the former Tri-City American made a point of saying hi to his billet family from his junior days.
This two-time […]

Originally published in Prospects Hockey in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
The Kitchener Rangers, the host team for the 2008 Memorial Cup, have produced too many notable NHLers to name. Here are 15 of the best.
Bill Barber: He scored 20-plus goals in each of his 11 NHL seasons and earned two Stanley Cups with the Philadelphia Flyers […]

Originally published in Prospects Hockey in 2008
By Lucas Aykroyd
Seven players have scored sudden-death Memorial Cup-winning goals, and it’s been their greatest hockey feat.
The only thing sweeter than winning a championship is doing it in overtime. Who can forget the image of Bobby Orr soaring through the air after scoring the OT winner for his Boston […]

Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts
By Gare Joyce
Published by Doubleday Canada
Hardcover, 336 pages
Release Date: November 20, 2007
Gare Joyce is gradually becoming Canada’s answer to George Plimpton. No, the prolific Toronto-based hockey scribe hasn’t strapped on equipment and competed against pro athletes to garner first-hand material for his […]

OK, rivalling Sidney Crosby is probably a longshot. But playing versus men at age 15 in a national league is an achievement, even if it’s in New Zealand. Not to mention being a native-trained top prospect for national teams in multiple age groups.
So nice work, Jordan Challis (who’s also a former member of the Markham […]

Normally, the Edmonton Oilers hate to be following their top NHL rival, the Calgary Flames. But clearly, the success story of the Western Hockey League’s Calgary Hitmen, who belong to the Flames, influenced Edmonton ownership to go out and acquire its own major junior expansion franchise. Reintroducing the name of the Edmonton Oil Kings harkens […]

I had the pleasure of covering Game Eight of the Canada/Russia Super Series for HockeyCanada.ca last night at GM Place. It pretty much encapsulated the entire course of the series (6-1 compared to seven wins and one tie).
A colleague of mine who attended the games in Winnipeg, Saskatoon, and Red Deer told me that the […]

When the Russians flopped with a tenth-place finish at the 2004 IIHF World Championship in the Czech Republic, head coach Viktor Tikhonov blamed it on “the mistakes of the players” and “the lack of time” to prepare for the tournament.
Tikhonov, predictably, refused to acknowledge that his 1984-style methods just hadn’t worked, and that his troops […]

Originally published in Full Tilt in 2006
By Lucas Aykroyd
Vancouver has changed drastically over the last 10 years. Back in 1995, there was only one Skytrain line, no giant Future Shop downtown, and no wireless Internet access at Blenz. Nobody had heard of Nickelback, leading restaurants like West and Feenie’s didn’t exist, about 50,000 fewer people […]