By Phil Hecken (with a glove save and a beut by Teebz)
A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by a reader who asked me about goalie numbers. Being that I’m not really a hockey guy, I forwarded that request to Hockey Wing President Teebz, suggesting to the reader that Teebz could probably answer the questions off the top of his head. Sure enough, he did, and I suggested we should put together a piece on that for Uni Watch. Unfortunately for me, by that time, Teebz had already turned it into a fantastic story for his own blog. Undeterred, I approached Teebz to assist me with something even more interesting than the goalie number: the goalie mask. There’s quite a history behind this invention-out-of-necessity. Below, we’ll examine it’s origins and humble beginnings, taking it from its roots to the beginning of its modern form (which I expect we will explore further at another time). Before we begin, a quick word from Teebz.
When Phil and I originally discussed this idea, I had grandiose visions of a complete history of the goaltender’s mask from its humble starts to the various paint jobs seen today. However, when I really began investigating the mask, it became apparent that it has evolved more than any other piece of equipment in hockey. And, for those of you who think this is just a hockey article, there is information about how hockey intertwined with baseball and fencing. Who knew these sports were related?
When one considers dangerous professions, several come to mind: policeman, fireman, tight-rope walker, trapeze performer. But rarely do we consider hockey goaltenders as a dangerous profession. With the modifications in equipment and advancements in technology, today’s goaltenders are more like the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man than “masked men”. But it’s that very piece of equipment that has changed the way the game has played, and how the goalie mask got started is an interesting look at the history of the sport.
The first recorded instance of a mask being worn in a hockey game by a goaltender came in the late-1920s. There is some debate as to who was first, but we’ll start with the first instance as recorded by the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Hall features an unidentified North American goaltender protecting the net in Switzerland wearing a baseball catcher’s mask. However, there is a photo from 1927 of Elizabeth Graham donning a fencer’s mask in a game for Queen’s University. As to which was first, there is no certainty, but the late-1920s was definitely the first era to have goalies were primitive masks.
The catcher’s mask used in Switzerland was similar to the first mask introduced in baseball by Fred Thayer. Thayer was the player-manager for Harvard’s Baseball Club in the 1870s, and couldn’t find anyone to play catcher for his team. Players weren’t too keen on catching foul balls in the face as they crouched behind home plate. Thayer went about designing a mask for catcher with strong metal bars spaced far apart for better vision than a fencing mask. The finished mask was debuted in spring of 1877, and the first mask was sold in 1878 for $3.
The first mask seen in the NHL was worn by Montreal Maroons goaltender Clint Benedict in 1930. Benedict dropped to make a save on Montreal Canadiens’ star Howie Morenz when he was struck in the face, knocking him unconscious. He awoke in the Montreal hospital with a badly broken nose and a shattered cheekbone. Six weeks later, on February 22, Benedict returned with a mask to protect his still-healing face. It was made of leather supported by wire, and protected the forehead, nose, and mouth, but not the eyes. The nosepiece obstructed Benedict’s view, and he ditched the mask several days later after the first game. Unfortunately, Benedict’s career ended on March 4, 1930 when he was hit in the throat by Howie Morenz. His injury forced him to hang up the skates for good.
The next major mask innovations came about because of another piece of face equipment ”“ eyeglasses. Japanese goaltender Teiji Honma wore his historical cage at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany to protect his eyeglasses. The mask has been modified to protect the frames of his glasses. Ironically, Roy Musgrove wore a half-mask used for field lacrosse while playing for the Wembley Lions of the British National Hockey League in 1936 ”“ coached by none other than Clint Benedict! Musgrove donned the half-mask to protect his glasses while he tended to the twine.
The NHL, though, didn’t see another mask worn until a gentleman named Delbert Louch from St. Mary’s. Ontario sent all six goaltenders a clear, plastic, full-face shield in 1954 that was a precursor to visors seen in the NHL. There were complaints of it fogging up, causing glare, and being too warm for goalies to wear, but it was endorsed by Detroit goalie Terry Sawchuk and Toronto goalie Johnny Bower. However, it was never worn in a game.
November 1, 1958 changed the way fans saw the game forever. Andy Bathgate, who just had his number retired by the New York Rangers, fired a high backhand on net that caught Montreal Canadiens’ goaltender Jacques Plante in the face. The resulting cut on Plante’s face sent him to the trainer’s room, causing a 45 minutes delay in the game. When he returned from getting stitched up, his face was dramatically different ”“ he was wearing a mask!
Bill Burchmore had witnessed Plante getting hit in the forehead with a puck, resulting in a 45 minute delay in the game while he was being stitched up. While at work the next day, Burchmore was looking at a fibreglass mannequin head when he realized the he could design a contoured, lightweight fibreglass mask that would fit the goalie’s face like a protective second skin. Burchmore gave Plante his idea, and Plante was persuaded by his trainers to give it a try. A mold was taken of Plante’s face by putting a woman’s stocking over his head, covering his face with Vaseline, and allowing him to breath through a straws stuck in both nostrils while his head was covered with plaster. Burchmore layered sheets of fibreglass cloth saturated with polyester resin on top of the mold. The result was the flesh-toned 0.125 in (52 mm) thick mask that weighed only 14 oz (397 g).
Despite Toe Blake’s resistance to allowing Plante on the ice with the mask after he recovered from his injury, Plante donned the mask for the rest of the season. Burchmore finally built up the courage to write to Plante with his molded fibreglass mask idea in the spring of 1959, and convinced Plante to have his face covered in fibreglass. Plante began wearing his new formed mask at the start of the 1959-60 season, and showed a renewed courage in standing up to blasts.
Burchmore’s mask wasn’t three months old when he came up with a new mask design. This new design was made of fibreglass yarn instead of sheets of fibreglass. This allowed for better ventilation as the yarn could be fashioned into “bars” much like the baseball catchers’ masks of yesteryear. The first design that Burchmore gave to Plante resembled that of a twisted pretzel, and the “pretzel mask” was born. Due to the design of the bars, however, this mask weighed a tiny 10.3 oz. The pretzel mask, with its improved ventilation and light weight, was worn by NHL stars such as Cesar Maniago and Charlie Hodge into the 1960s.
Detroit Red Wings trainer, Ross “Lefty” Wilson, came up with another design in the early-1960s after Terry Sawchuk went down with another facial injury, infuriating Red Wings’ GM Jack Adams. Wilson’s primitive mask design was accepted by the Leatherface-looking Sawchuk, and he donned it permanently by October, 1962. Wilson began making masks for a large number of goalies throughout the NHL who wore them in games and practices, charging a mere $35 for his creations.
Roy Weatherbee advanced the pretzel mask again by furthering the protectiveness of the mask by studying the tensile properties of fibreglass, and his improved design was worn by a large number of older goaltenders as we entered the 1967 Expansion age. However, a large number of the up-and-coming netminders were already wearing the next mask design at this time.
In 1962, a young netminder named Neil Higgins was complaining to his father, Ernie Higgins, about the store-bought mask he was wearing while at Boston College. It didn’t fit properly, but it was all the younger Higgins could wear. Ernie Higgins went about designing a new mask for his son, and, after five years, had perfected his design and mask-making technique.
After the design that Neil Higgins was wearing made it into the Boston Gardens’ home team dressing room, Ernie Higgins was invited to meet with Ernie Johnston and Gerry Cheevers about his design. Cheevers wasn’t fond of the flat Wilson mask as he found it to slide around on his face while he played. Higgins recognized the need for a more curved mask to hug the face, and went about getting a mask ready for Cheevers that wouldn’t move. In 1968, Cheevers debuted a model that had a few recognizable Higgins traits: the ventilation slits across the forehead formed a T-shape, and the cheek ventilation holes were triangular for maximum ventilation.
By 1969, Higgins was a full-time mask maker, retiring from his first profession of plumbing. He continued to tinker with his design, adding the back plate to secure the mask tightly to the head, and extending the sides to protect more of the goaltender’s head and face. In the mid-1970s, the helmets worn by Doug Favell and Gary Smith were essentially the precursor to the masks seen today. As an aside, Higgins work in masks led him to designing prosthetic devices and casts for injured athletes and accident victims, most notably for the leg of Boston Red Sox slugger Ken Harrelson.
Jacques Plante returned to the mask scene in 1970 when he founded a company called Fibrosport in Magog, Quebec. Fibrosport made masks of fibreglass and an epoxy resin that featured ridges to deflect pucks away from the face, preventing the full impact of the puck from being absorbed by the goalie’s face. The price for a Fibrosport mask ranged from $12 to $150, and was worn by a large majority of goaltenders until 1979 when masks changed significantly.
Mask designers got a huge shock from the Summit Series in 1972 when the Canadian NHL All-Stars squared off against the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). It was here that everyone first witnessed the peculiar “birdcage” mask worn by Vladislav Tretiak. Tretiak’s mask allowed for good ventilation and an excellent field of vision, resulting in better play compared to his Canadian counterparts. This new cage would be the next major piece in the evolution of the mask. The “birdcage”-style of facial protection wouldn’t make it to the NHL, though, until 1976.
Greg Harrison and Michel Lefebvre added to the Fibrosport design by extending the chin downward to cover the throat. Harrison added a hinge to his throat protection for better movement, but the large extension downward was cumbersome for goaltenders who needed to be able to look from shoulder-to-shoulder.
In 1976, New York Rangers’ goaltender Gilles Gratton donned a helmet with a cage, looking a lot like Tretiak’s mask seen four years earlier. It wasn’t long before Buffalo Sabres’ goaltender Don Edwards followed suit, and the “birdcage” began to catch on as the mask of choice. Fibreglass masks appeared to be heading the way of the dodo.
Additionally, 1977 saw Buffalo’s Gerry Desjardins suffered a horrific injury when a puck caught the eyehole in his fibreglass mask, putting his vision in serious jeopardy. It caused him to retire prematurely, and, in 1978, the Canadian Standards Association banned the use of fibreglass masks for minor hockey. Bernie Parent’s eye injury the following year forced a large number of goaltenders to abandon their fibreglass masks for the birdcage design.
In 1979, the fibreglass mask was nearly dead. However, change was already on the way. Veteran goaltender Dave Dryden and designer Greg Harrison met in 1977. Dryden was convinced that the cage was the safest facial protection for goalies, but wanted the tight fit to the head that the fibreglass mask provided. Harrison mocked up a design that incorporated both the cage and the tight fit. What was born was the “hybrid mask”. Phil Myre was the first to adopt the hybrid, wearing it for the Philadelphia Flyers in 1981.
The hybrid mask is what is worn by the majority of goaltenders today (Chris Osgood not included). It is secured by a back plate to allow for movement of the head, and features a large cage for good ventilation and vision. The chin protection helps to protect the throat, and it provides the most protection while being lightweight.
Clearly, the innovation and evolution of the goalie mask is a large story. 70 years of changes saw the mask evolve from baseball catchers’ masks and fencing masks to intricately-designed pieces of artwork.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Japanese baseball expert Jeremy Brahm sends along a picture of the pennant from the first Japan Series in 1950 … also from Jeremy: this Yokohama Bay Stars’ jersey, interesting because of their putting a notch on their sleeves (Jeremy also suggests calling this a “Hama-notch” and adding it to the ever-expanding “Glossary of Uni Watch terms” … Daren Stoltzfus writes that “As Sports Director for the student television network, I have been on the floor filming the games and observing Wayne Chism’s sock flair throughout the season. Last night against Mississippi State he took it to a new level. It appears he has taken two shooting sleeves with the padded elbows and used them as socks.” … Johnny Okray notes that the Brewers All-Star RF, Corey Hart is sporting a new tattoo on his right forearm … Reader Kenneth Guckenberger passes along this nugget about a Denver team who got new unis, and yes, it’s a “throwback look” … A bit of serendipity at Spring Training, as Andrew Tucker notes that Brew Crew skip Ken Macha was sporting stirrups … Todd Fisher points out that someone at Yoplait must read Uni Watch … Dan Cichalski from MLB.com reports that Luis Castillo is rocking the “Pedro Porthole” … Interesting little site found by Tom Adjemian which is a cool way to take a look at the myriad signs that litter our roadways. Also, Tom is “pretty sure that website is responsible for the seizure I just had…let it be said, though, that it was a fashionable seizure.” … Aaron Steele weighed in with this: “This didn’t actually happen, but LaRussa was close to using Orioles pitchers to pitch against their own team. Too bad it didn’t happen no? uni choice would have been nice to see.” … Aaron also notes that only in spring training do you get to see the Cardinals with their gray away uni’s and home red hats … Dan Merker notes that not one, but two Royals prospects are in camp with stirrups and double-earflapped helmets. He’s not sure who they are, but notes it’s a “good sign nonetheless.” Agreed … Good Lord: Matt Harris found out why Jeets is wearing the “real” cap and not the BP one: it’s got a giant patch on it! (you can read more here and here) … Chuck Allen read Paul’s Latest ESPN column and sent along this photo of Alex Rodruguez he took during Seattle Mariners’ July 18, 1998 Turn Ahead The Clock promotion. You can read all about it here … We wouldn’t want to reopen the Apostrophe Catastrophe debate again would we? Gabe Kleinfeld found this little article from The Washington Post in which the author feels the apostrophe gets no love …
Reprinted from yesterday’s comments: James Huening brought to our attention the sad passing of Norm Van Lier, the AP ran this story shortly after the news broke … Following up on yesterday’s “Lance a lot” piece, Mark Fightmaster has provided us with all of the new Livestrong helmets, and he likes the look actually … Jeff Landset thought we’d find this thread interesting, which contains outtakes from a commercial for FSN and the Angels … Richie Rich from Home Run Derby sends us this “throwback” news story of the time Michael Jordan tried to play baseball … also from the last night’s comments: Michael Jordan wearing #35 with the Scottsdale Scorpions … shockingly, Teebz has found 5 reasons why the NHL is better than the NBA … also from Teebz: here’s Ryan Whitney in his shiny new Ducks uni … Trevor Williams points out one of spring training’s unique uni-matchups — not only is it “color on color,” but it’s blue on blue … Pittsburgh UW correspondent Doug Keklak checks in with the following: “Saw this story linked to the PA Helmet project page. Don’t recall seeing it referenced in UW but they give UW and Paul a shout out.” … also from Doug: From the White Sox cards blog — Zisk was traded from the Pirates, (love the pillbox sans the “P” — airbrushed logos all around due to licensing issues no doubt) … and this: Awesome old-uni footage here in celebration of Edmonton being award the 2010 Grey Cup (thanks, Douggie) … Reprinted from last night’s comments: looks like the Angels may have added a patch but only Vlad is wearing it.
This and That: When you make $27 million per season and are no longer on the ‘juice,’ sometimes you need a little help applying your own eyeblack … well, that didn’t last long … congratulations philly fans, you earned it (but it will look better next year in Citi Taxpayer Field) … you just gotta see Ronnie Paulino’s levitating ball trick in person … not all teams wear those ridiculous BP jerseys and caps — now THIS is a classic look … that’s gonna leave a mark … still strange to see him bend it like that for A.C. Milan … when did they let the refs play soccer? … MLBers aren’t the only ones who had their portraits taken recently … spring is in the air — that means it is time to get used to softball guy again … How’s your wife and my kids? … I has a trophy — it matches my logo … Tropical Storms’ goalie Cam Ward celebrates an OT victory … Welcome back, Marty … Vector on the bucket, wordmark on the breezers and a fist to the face … “Enjoy your trip to Hartford…you suck!” … Baseball players are getting smaller — either that or their unis are getting bigger … More new women’s soccer league jerseys are released … and can a Brasilian star save the WPS?
At last nights Caps-Thrashers game, the second period intermission featured a two teams of 60-70 year old playing a short game. The Geri-Hat-Tricks, as they are known, skated around and played pretty well for their age. The goaltender for one team had what looked like a leather facemask, with a weird leather halo-looking device to hold it on. Anyone get a picture?
Reprinted from last night’s comments: looks like the Angels may have added a but only Vlad is wearing it.
I think you are missing a word here.
[quote comment=”316468″]At last nights Caps-Thrashers game, the second period intermission featured a two teams of 60-70 year old playing a short game. The Geri-Hat-Tricks, as they are known, skated around and played pretty well for their age. The goaltender for one team had what looked like a leather facemask, with a weird leather halo-looking device to hold it on. Anyone get a picture?[/quote]
Didn’t see that, but Joe B and Craig Laughlin were talking on the telecast about Neuvirth’s half Hershey Bears, half Washington Caps paint job for his goalie mask.
[quote comment=”316469″]Reprinted from last night’s comments: looks like the Angels may have added a but only Vlad is wearing it.
I think you are missing a word here.[/quote]
thanks. fixed
Nice article of the history of the mask. The Hockey News put out a good magazine a few months ago with the history, and some good articles showcasing Greg Harrison and others work.
Here are my buckets… I rarely wear the Osgood replica, Im a huge fan of his so I decided to make a similar combo to have on display. The combo he wears is a Cooper Helmet (SK2000) and a Cooper HM30 Cage. Tim Thomas is the only other guy left in the league wearing a combo, but his is a much safer mask made by “Sportmask”, his model is called “The Mage”
My main helmet is made by Eddy Masks, guys like Vernon used to wear Eddy, but there are few left wearing that company in the NHL, if any. Mine came in standard black with chrome cage, but I painted it myself last year to match my other gear. The end result came out looking pretty well.
link
It will be interesting to see if the Bulls honor Norm Van Lier and Johnny “Red” Kerr with one memorial patch or two.
link
One final “full circle” comment: the first goalie mask was a baseball catcher’s mask; now many baseball catchers wear hockey goalie-type masks.
when did they let the refs play soccer?
i’m guessing thats either siena or udinese from serie a. apparently the italians love their (insert color) and black stripes.
inter milan
ac milan
juventus
siena
udinese
and i’m probably forgetting some
I know there’s some sentiment for the Cardinals to use their red caps for away games, but this is one instance when two caps work. Keep the navy. That said, I’m ambivalent about the navy bird-on-the-bat Sunday cap. It works, but generally I’m opposed to so many caps. The fewer, the simpler the better.
(Boo to the Yankees if they insist on using the Yankee Stadium patch on their caps. Makes Yankee-haters almost wish they’d make the World Series where they’d get that dopey World Series patch splashed on the side of their cap. It makes a mockery of the Yankee simplicity.)
“More new women’s soccer league jerseys are released … ”
Nope, same ones.
“…and can a Brasilian star save the WPS?”
Not “the WPS,” just “WPS.”
Yesterday it was sure to fold before it played its first game. Now it needs saving? Man. Life in a microwave.
I have to applaud Teebz and Phil once again.
Your tireless efforts and devotion to UW are phenomenal.
Teebz, your knowledge of hockey is truly astounding.
““Enjoy your trip to Hartford…you suck!” ”
Wow, did anyone else instantly see a Swoosh formed by the sweater of the fan right next to the coach’s head?
How is a team with declining attendance and facing a poor economy to cope? Roll out a stimulus package with an accompanying logo.
link
Story here.
link
looks like whitney is still wearing his penguins gloves
Great work Phil.
Two nitpicks:
1)”wore his historical cage” You mean wore his “historic” cage. “Historical” means of or relating to history. “Historic” means famous in history or having importance in history. (Sorry. This misuse, which is prevalent, bugs me like the bad apostrophe bugs Paul.)
2) Golden High in CO. The article says that they are in only their fourth building, not that they are wearing only their fourth Uni. My high school was built in the 1930s, so I don’t see why bragging about a fourth building over 110 years is a big deal. But the unis are sweet.
Speaking, or reading, of goalie masks, here is something for your coffeetable.
link
… the time link
I had successfully purged that from my memory. Now I have to wonderif the Bulls would have had 8 Championships if Jordan hadn’t done that baseball gig.
Atalanta of the Italian League also wear stripes (black and blue, like Inter)
Hey Phil,
“…and a beut by Teebz.”
I don’t know if beut is a english word but if you meant to write goal in french, it’s but. :)
Vincent
a french canadian member of the Hockey Wing. :)
Obviously the bulls mourn Norm Van Lier and Johnny “Red” Kerr.
While we wait for potential memorial bands/patches, the Bulls visited the White House yesterday and provided President Obama with a 44 jersey. Somewhere, Adrian Griffin weeps.
link
Why is the MLB logo on the Phillies on-deck circle maroon and orange…? According to link it should be blue and red. Is the maroon and orange the color it was in the World Series logo design…? It doesnt look right.
Okay so I just answered my own question. According to this it was maroon and green…weird.
Okay lets try that again, according to this…
So don’t know why the link isn’t working so just copy and past if you want to see it…
link
Re the Denver high school unis, the article didn’t say it was the school’s 4th set of unis it said it was the school’s 4th digs. That means the 4th physical place the school has resided. The Ticker should be fixed.
[quote comment=”316483″]Great work Phil.
1)”wore his historical cage” You mean wore his “historic” cage. “Historical” means of or relating to history. “Historic” means famous in history or having importance in history. (Sorry. This misuse, which is prevalent, bugs me like the bad apostrophe bugs Paul.)[/quote]
That’d be me. Good catch.
Writes and rewrites suck when I miss stuff like that as the editor as well. LOL
[quote comment=”316488″]Hey Phil,
“…and a beut by Teebz.”
I don’t know if beut is a english word but if you meant to write goal in french, it’s but. :)
Vincent
a french canadian member of the Hockey Wing. :)[/quote]
I’m thinking he meant “beaut” as in “beauty save”. English colloquialism. ;o)
Phil — I know there are a lot of Phils out on Strong Island, but do you post as “Phil from LI” on Neil Best’s blog?
[quote comment=”316498″]Phil — I know there are a lot of Phils out on Strong Island, but do you post as “Phil from LI” on Neil Best’s blog?[/quote]
no
[quote comment=”316495″]Re the Denver high school unis, the article didn’t say it was the school’s 4th set of unis it said it was the school’s 4th digs. That means the 4th physical place the school has resided. The Ticker should be fixed.[/quote]
fixed
Alrighty then!
:: sheepishly leaves the room ::
[quote comment=”316497″][quote comment=”316488″]Hey Phil,
“…and a beut by Teebz.”
I don’t know if beut is a english word but if you meant to write goal in french, it’s but. :)
Vincent
a french canadian member of the Hockey Wing. :)[/quote]
I’m thinking he meant “beaut” as in “beauty save”. English colloquialism. ;o)[/quote]
definitely short for “beauty eh?!?!” lol!
[quote comment=”316502″][quote comment=”316497″][quote comment=”316488″]Hey Phil,
“…and a beut by Teebz.”
I don’t know if beut is a english word but if you meant to write goal in french, it’s but. :)
Vincent
a french canadian member of the Hockey Wing. :)[/quote]
I’m thinking he meant “beaut” as in “beauty save”. English colloquialism. ;o)[/quote]
definitely short for “beauty eh?!?!” lol![/quote]
Learning something new everyday. :) hihihi
Re: possible Bulls memorials for Red and Norm.
In addition to whatever memorial patch(es) they go with, one thing I think would be cool is for them to wear their red unis for every single game, home and road, for the rest of the season.
I know it’s not the point of this entry at all, but as a sidenote I found it very interesting that they use the British spelling of “fiberglass/fibreglass” in Canada. I learned something today. Ha.
[quote comment=”316476″]when did they let the refs play soccer?
i’m guessing thats either siena or udinese from serie a. apparently the italians love their (insert color) and black stripes.
inter milan
ac milan
juventus
siena
udinese
and i’m probably forgetting some[/quote]
Black and white stripes never really caught on in England. There are a couple dozen teams which wear blue and white or red and white stripes, but very few in black and white. Admittedly, one of those is a relatively major club – link.
Then there’s link, the oldest extant professional club, currently toiling in the lowest rung of the English football league, but once upon a time inspired Juventus (and perhaps even the rest of Italian football?) to adopt the colors.
[quote comment=”316473″]It will be interesting to see if the Bulls honor Norm Van Lier and Johnny “Red” Kerr with one memorial patch or two.[/quote]
I was thinking the same thing. Why not do both? First they need to retire Norm’s #2.
Rest in Peace gentlemen…they don’t make classy guys like you anymore.
[quote comment=”316476″]when did they let the refs play soccer?
i’m guessing thats either siena or udinese from serie a. apparently the italians love their (insert color) and black stripes.
inter milan
ac milan
juventus
siena
udinese
and i’m probably forgetting some[/quote]
Don’t forget Newcastle from the English Premiership
Re goalie masks: Eddie Johnston, not Ernie Johnston. And an innovation between fibreglas and cage masks that was missed was the small piece of cage that Tony Esposito had attached over the eye holes in his fibreglas mask.
[quote comment=”316505″]I know it’s not the point of this entry at all, but as a sidenote I found it very interesting that they use the British spelling of “fiberglass/fibreglass” in Canada. I learned something today. Ha.[/quote]
We’re still a Commonwealth country.
Neighbour is another one we commonly use. Colour and color, for me, are almost interchangeable.
[quote comment=”316509″]Re goalie masks: Eddie Johnston, not Ernie Johnston. And an innovation between fibreglas and cage masks that was missed was the small piece of cage that Tony Esposito had attached over the eye holes in his fibreglas mask.[/quote]
link
Have the Mets planned on using this logo:
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Or is it replacing the Dominos version?
[quote comment=”316509″]Re goalie masks: Eddie Johnston, not Ernie Johnston. And an innovation between fibreglas and cage masks that was missed was the small piece of cage that Tony Esposito had attached over the eye holes in his fibreglas mask.[/quote]
That was not an innovation per se. That was a response to protecting his new eyewear. It had already been done by Honma and Musgrove.
It was discovered when he was ten years old that he couldn’t see very well as he allowed two goals on long shots from beyond the center ice line. His brother, Phil, had called him a “blind jerk”, prompting their father to take him in to get his eyes tested. Sure enough, he needed glasses.
Esposito used a catcher’s mask while playing in junior before hitting the big leagues. When he arrived, his mask wasn’t suitable for any sort of puck-stopping while wearing glasses, so he went to the fibreglass mask. Unfortunately do to the tight fit, he couldn’t play with glasses on. Trainers in Chicago added the caged portion before the 1971 season to protect his eyes.
RE Angels Patch:
MLB Shop has had an Angels jersey with that patch on it for sale for about a month now. Maybe Vlad is the only one who is wearing an ’09 jersey for his photo.
[quote comment=”316509″]Re goalie masks: Eddie Johnston, not Ernie Johnston. And an innovation between fibreglas and cage masks that was missed was the small piece of cage that Tony Esposito had attached over the eye holes in his fibreglas mask.[/quote]
Absolutely correct re: Johnston. Apparently I’m flaking out since Johnston played a huge role in the NHL after he retired as well.
[quote comment=”316513″][quote comment=”316509″]Re goalie masks: Eddie Johnston, not Ernie Johnston. And an innovation between fibreglas and cage masks that was missed was the small piece of cage that Tony Esposito had attached over the eye holes in his fibreglas mask.[/quote]
That was not an innovation per se. That was a response to protecting his new eyewear. It had already been done by Honma and Musgrove.
It was discovered when he was ten years old that he couldn’t see very well as he allowed two goals on long shots from beyond the center ice line. His brother, Phil, had called him a “blind jerk”, prompting their father to take him in to get his eyes tested. Sure enough, he needed glasses.
Esposito used a catcher’s mask while playing in junior before hitting the big leagues. When he arrived, his mask wasn’t suitable for any sort of puck-stopping while wearing glasses, so he went to the fibreglass mask. Unfortunately due to the tight fit, he couldn’t play with glasses on. Trainers in Chicago added the caged portion before the 1971 season to protect his eyes.[/quote]
Wow… I need about another 10 hours of sleep.
[quote comment=”316491″]Why is the MLB logo on the Phillies on-deck circle maroon and orange…? According to link it should be blue and red. Is the maroon and orange the color it was in the World Series logo design…? It doesnt look right.[/quote]
As a Phillies fan and Virginia Tech alumnus, I think its awesome…
Doug Favell was a friend of the family, so I followed his career pretty closely – so what follows is just from memory.
Doug Favell was the first goalie to put a backplate on the mask. The first fibreglass masks just had the webbing around the back –
link
In a game in Colorado, Favell got pushed back into the goalpost and hurt the back of his head pretty badly. When he came back, he had a backplate designed for the mask to protect against the same injury happening.
Like I said, I can’t find proof for this, but here’s a picture of Favell’s Colorado mask
link
Favell was also the first goalie to wear a fully-painted mask – the trainer in Philadephia painted his mask orange one hallowe’en. Prior to that, it had just been Gerry Cheevers and his stitches.
[quote comment=”316507″]First they need to retire Norm’s #2.[/quote]
Agreed. Norm jokingly said that he put a curse on the number.
After link changed his number link when link was acquired to back up Luc Longley (Brown wore #0 in the preseason — woulda been great to see #0 and #00 on the court together when the games counted), Van Lier said that he’d lift the curse for Brown if he wanted to change to #2 the following season. He stuck with #1.
Judging by the performances of the guys who’ve worn the number since Norm did (Rory Sparrow, Dennis Hopson, Eddy Curry, Thabo Sefolosha), I’m not so sure it was a joke.
Heads up, link…
…and who could forget the distinguished careers of the other Bulls to wear #2?
Mark Bryant, Khalid El-Amin and Brad Sellers. (I’m not 100% positive about Sellers. He wore #6 for most of his Bulls career, but I seem to remember him also wearing #2 for a while.)
He’s not listed link, though.
I can’t get enough of the Spring Training photos…
sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko
[quote comment=”316508″][quote comment=”316476″]when did they let the refs play soccer?
i’m guessing thats either siena or udinese from serie a. apparently the italians love their (insert color) and black stripes.
inter milan
ac milan
juventus
siena
udinese
and i’m probably forgetting some[/quote]
Don’t forget Newcastle from the English Premiership[/quote]
i know there’s plenty of others, i was just commenting about how many teams in italy wear them. including atalanta thats 6 teams with black stripes, and 3 more with other colors. so almost 50% of the teams wear stripes. if i counted half-shirts or horizontal stripes i think it’d be all but 4 teams.
here’s pictures for those that care
Atalanta: link
Bologna: link
Catania: link
Inter: link
Juventus: link
Lecce: link
AC Milan: link
Siena: link
Udinese: link
[quote comment=”316520″]…and who could forget the distinguished careers of the other Bulls to wear #2?
Mark Bryant, Khalid El-Amin and Brad Sellers. (I’m not 100% positive about Sellers. He wore #6 for most of his Bulls career, but I seem to remember him also wearing #2 for a while.)
He’s not listed link, though.[/quote]
I am almost postive that Brad Sellers did wear #2 at one point with the Bulls.
Great story about the masks but I have one quibble. Baseball catchers did not start squatting behind the batter with regularity until the 1890’s.
[quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
It would be nice if one of these athletes turn, let’s say, 10% of their salary back to the team to keep staff working, but no….
Is it me, or does the new Angels patch resemble this:
link
Sounds like someone ran out of ideas…
Thank you for today’s article. I was never a fan of the “birdcage” look, mainly because you couldn’t give the mask (or goalie) a personality.
Now with the hybird, the beauty of Mask Art is back. While looking for some examples I found
link
Showing off their beauty.
When I was in college one of the teams we played was the Chieftans and thier goalie’s mask was painted like a chief’s headdress. I don’t have any picutes but in talking with him he said he just expanded on link
And as mentioned in Post #4 the mask worn by Caps Goalie Neuvirth’s half Hershey Bears, half Washington Caps paint job was one nice looking mask. link
The Life archives has some good pictures of Plante from November 1959.
link he is in net. (Image is reversed.)
link he’s holding a mask.
link he is in his street clothes but with two masks hanging behind him.
What about Jason Voorhees?
He just wore a pillow case with one eye hole before he got a real mask.
[quote comment=”316485″]… the time link
I had successfully purged that from my memory. Now I have to wonderif the Bulls would have had 8 Championships if Jordan hadn’t done that baseball gig.[/quote]
Ya wonder? Look who won those two while Michael was pursuing baseball.
That said, I applauded Jordan’s effort. It also showed why baseball is such a complex, enjoyable sport.
[quote comment=”316525″]Great story about the masks but I have one quibble. Baseball catchers did not start squatting behind the batter with regularity until the 1890’s.[/quote]
A few crouched previous to that. However, most preferred to stand simply due to taking foul tips off the noggin.
Fred Thayer changed that.
Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link
does anyone want to guess starbury’s celtics number for tonight?
[quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Nothing new here – the year after the stock market crash of 29, Babe Ruth negotiated a huge new contract with the Yankees.
More than the President, but then again, the Babe had a better year.
[quote comment=”316484″]Speaking, or reading, of goalie masks, here is something for your coffeetable.
link
I got this for Christmas, and the book is phenomenal. A lot of the photos linked in this article are in there, plus many, many more. I thought I knew a lot about masks and the history thereof, and this book taught me a couple of things! (I was the kid that, every time Jacques Plante’s name was brought up, whined back with “Clint Benedict, you dolts!”)
BTW, fantastic job on the article guys! A perfect primer for the uninitiated.
[quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow!
[quote comment=”316537″][quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow![/quote]
I should also add that Life is right, but the guys who went maskless did often have scars that looked like something out of a horror movie. LOL
[quote comment=”316535″][quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Nothing new here – the year after the stock market crash of 29, Babe Ruth negotiated a huge new contract with the Yankees.
More than the President, but then again, the Babe had a better year.[/quote]
Yup, but the typical ballplayer didn’t make all that much more than those who came out to the ballpark. Players appreciated the fans a lot more, I think. Now days, it’s more like, “Bet you’re honored that we let you pay to see us play, huh.”
I imagining this wonderful scenario…
FAN (to owners and players): “You’ re all billionaires and millionaires, what do you need with my crummy 20 bucks for a mezzanine seat?”
OWNERS AND PLAYERS (to fan): “Oh, no, it’s your interest, your watching on TV, your purchase of merchandise, etc., etc. that keeps us going.”
FAN: (pauses) “Well, now, see, that’s EXACTLY what I’d like you to remember.”
—Ricko
[quote comment=”316539″][quote comment=”316535″][quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Nothing new here – the year after the stock market crash of 29, Babe Ruth negotiated a huge new contract with the Yankees.
More than the President, but then again, the Babe had a better year.[/quote]
Yup, but the typical ballplayer didn’t make all that much more than those who came out to the ballpark. Players appreciated the fans a lot more, I think. Now days, it’s more like, “Bet you’re honored that we let you pay to see us play, huh.”
I imagining this wonderful scenario…
FAN (to owners and players): “You’ re all billionaires and millionaires, what do you need with my crummy 20 bucks for a mezzanine seat?”
OWNERS AND PLAYERS (to fan): “Oh, no, it’s your interest, your watching on TV, your purchase of merchandise, etc., etc. that keeps us going.”
FAN: (pauses) “Well, now, see, that’s EXACTLY what I’d like you to remember.”
—Ricko[/quote]
been re-watching ken burns’s baseball (which just concluded this past tuesday), but in one of the episodes, may have been the last, they compared players’ salaries then (like, the babe’s time) to now…
the top player earned something like 9 times the average working mans’ salary then…now…like 250 times that
/and they wonder why there’s a certain disconnect nowadays
[quote comment=”316536″][quote comment=”316484″]Speaking, or reading, of goalie masks, here is something for your coffeetable.
link
I got this for Christmas, and the book is phenomenal. A lot of the photos linked in this article are in there, plus many, many more. I thought I knew a lot about masks and the history thereof, and this book taught me a couple of things! (I was the kid that, every time Jacques Plante’s name was brought up, whined back with “Clint Benedict, you dolts!”)
BTW, fantastic job on the article guys! A perfect primer for the uninitiated.[/quote]
who is the goalie pictured on the bottom right of the cover???
Still no sign of the two-tone cool-flo helmets for the Rangers, link I don’t recall Jarrod Saltalamacchia’s NOB arching this low, though. (Pic 1 in album.) BTW, a good shot of jersey with the Rangers and with the Braves would be perfect for the Radical and Vertical arching entries in the glossary.
[quote comment=”316541″][quote comment=”316536″][quote comment=”316484″]Speaking, or reading, of goalie masks, here is something for your coffeetable.
link
I got this for Christmas, and the book is phenomenal. A lot of the photos linked in this article are in there, plus many, many more. I thought I knew a lot about masks and the history thereof, and this book taught me a couple of things! (I was the kid that, every time Jacques Plante’s name was brought up, whined back with “Clint Benedict, you dolts!”)
BTW, fantastic job on the article guys! A perfect primer for the uninitiated.[/quote]
who is the goalie pictured on the bottom right of the cover???[/quote]
Evgeni Nabokov, SJ Sharks
[quote comment=”316534″]does anyone want to guess starbury’s celtics number for tonight?[/quote]
The Celts tend to re-use numbers (0, 4, 7, 9, 11, 12 and 13 the prime examples) unless a player requests something different. That said, Starbury has only worn 3 and 33 in his career (both, obviously not available in Boston) so I’m going to guess he goes with 30- although I would prefer the team gets an exemption from the league and puts 666 on his back instead…
… and I was wrong
link
They must be channeling all that Antoine Walker championship karma-
link
[quote comment=”316544″][quote comment=”316534″]does anyone want to guess starbury’s celtics number for tonight?[/quote]
The Celts tend to re-use numbers (0, 4, 7, 9, 11, 12 and 13 the prime examples) unless a player requests something different. That said, Starbury has only worn 3 and 33 in his career (both, obviously not available in Boston) so I’m going to guess he goes with 30- although I would prefer the team gets an exemption from the league and puts 666 on his back instead…[/quote]
Have the Celtics issued #7 after Al Jefferson?
Might be appropriate for Marbury to get #7. Tie-in to former Georgia Tech teammate Kenny Anderson. Plus Starbury–>lucky star–>lucky seven…yeah, it’s a stretch, but so is any “rational” reason why Stephon’s the missing piece to a championship puzzle…
They just gave #7 to Mikki Morre- and his dreads
[quote comment=”316538″][quote comment=”316537″][quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow![/quote]
I should also add that Life is right, but the guys who went maskless did often have scars that looked like something out of a horror movie. LOL[/quote]
And I added an unnecessary ‘c’ to his name.
link
link What’s with that eyebrow?
[quote comment=”316548″][quote comment=”316538″][quote comment=”316537″][quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow![/quote]
I should also add that Life is right, but the guys who went maskless did often have scars that looked like something out of a horror movie. LOL[/quote]
And I added an unnecessary ‘c’ to his name.
link
link What’s with that eyebrow?[/quote]
That’s not Terry Sawchuk. That’s a lefty in the photograph.
The Red Wings did have a relatively famous southpaw goalie who wore #1. His name was Roger Crozier. (One of five Conn Smythe winners without a Stanley Cup in the same year.) Though I’m not as old as Teebz, I think I’m enough of a hockey fan to confidently guess that that is who is pictured.
[quote comment=”316548″][quote comment=”316538″][quote comment=”316537″][quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow![/quote]
I should also add that Life is right, but the guys who went maskless did often have scars that looked like something out of a horror movie. LOL[/quote]
And I added an unnecessary ‘c’ to his name.
link
link What’s with that eyebrow?[/quote]
That first picture of Sawchuk was printed backwards by Life – blocker on the left hand, logo is backwards.
[quote comment=”316550″][quote comment=”316548″][quote comment=”316538″][quote comment=”316537″][quote comment=”316533″]Some other odds and ends from Life
Life’s tag says link was wearing special effects make-up to simulate a career’s worth of injuries.
Here’s Cheevers (?) with an improved link and a link
link[/quote]
Great pics! Wow![/quote]
I should also add that Life is right, but the guys who went maskless did often have scars that looked like something out of a horror movie. LOL[/quote]
And I added an unnecessary ‘c’ to his name.
link
link What’s with that eyebrow?[/quote]
That first picture of Sawchuk was printed backwards by Life – blocker on the left hand, logo is backwards.[/quote]
Good eye. (Damn!)
From the Baltimore Sun:
The Orioles broke out their spring road uniforms today and for the first time in a very long time, they have Baltimore on the front of their jerseys.
“It’s beautiful,” said third baseman Melvin Mora.
The spring road version is not the same as the regular season jersey, which is gray. The spring tops are black with orange script and will also be the road batting practice jerseys during the regular season.
[quote comment=\”316542\”]Still no sign of the two-tone cool-flo helmets for the Rangers, link I don\’t recall Jarrod Saltalamacchia\’s NOB arching this low, though. (Pic 1 in album.)[/quote]
Probably due to the new font being used for the NOBs. Larger and matching the style of the TEXAS font on the fronts.
[quote comment=”316549″]Though I’m not as old as Teebz, I think I’m enough of a hockey fan to confidently guess that that is who is pictured.[/quote]
Whoa… what does that mean? I’m not even in my 30s! LOL
Pretty nice tribute link today.
Speaking of baseball players getting smaller:
link
[quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
True story here:
I have a friend who is a law student at the University of Wisconsin, and his boss at his internship got tickets to the corporate NBC box to the Super Bowl this year. An NBC executive asked him if he had money on the game. After replying ‘no’ the NBC guy said, “Yeah, I don’t have much money on this game. I just bought 5 squares this year in the pool. They were only 25k apiece this year. I won it a few years ago and made 3.1 million.”
So this schmuck has 125K just to throw around at an ‘office pool’? What recession? Ridiculous.
[quote comment=”316554″][quote comment=”316549″]Though I’m not as old as Teebz, I think I’m enough of a hockey fan to confidently guess that that is who is pictured.[/quote]
Whoa… what does that mean? I’m not even in my 30s! LOL[/quote]
Means absolutely nothing. Except that compared to me, everybody’s Ricko. (I’m 20.)
Are there any other current undergrads in the UW community aside from The Hemogoblin and myself?
link
Any effort toward this without green jerseys is an epic fail.
Has this been covered????
link
[quote comment=”316560″]Has this been covered????
link
in the ticker
Tim Thomas of the Boston Bruins weres a “Mage” type mask it is half mask half cage pictures here.
link
link
What’s wrong with Cam Ward?
[quote comment=”316563″]What’s wrong with Cam Ward?[/quote]
The flag on his chest. The black jersey. NHL hockey in North Carolina. His play this season.
Need I go on? LOL
[quote comment=”316558″][quote comment=”316554″][quote comment=”316549″]Though I’m not as old as Teebz, I think I’m enough of a hockey fan to confidently guess that that is who is pictured.[/quote]
Whoa… what does that mean? I’m not even in my 30s! LOL[/quote]
Means absolutely nothing. Except that compared to me, everybody’s Ricko. (I’m 20.)
Are there any other current undergrads in the UW community aside from The Hemogoblin and myself?[/quote]
Represent.
I’ve got a trusted insdie sorce that has not been wrong yet in regards to NBA info – and he shares with me that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for Boston.
I’ve got a trusted inside source in regards to NBA info (he has not been wrong yet) and he said that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for the Celtics this season.
[quote comment=”316567″]I’ve got a trusted inside source in regards to NBA info (he has not been wrong yet) and he said that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for the Celtics this season.[/quote]
Why would he wear number 18???
I found the most amazing thing in my Economics textbook. I just need to find someone with a scanner so I can give it to Paul… it’s a pretty epic fuck-up on the part of the Lions… and it involves velcro.
[quote comment=”316568″][quote comment=”316567″]I’ve got a trusted inside source in regards to NBA info (he has not been wrong yet) and he said that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for the Celtics this season.[/quote]
Why would he wear number 18???[/quote]
Think of it this way:
3- his favorite number
x
1- his position (point guard)
—
3- the number on his jersey
3- his favorite number
x
6- his new position (sixth man)
—
18- his new number
He wants to be on the team that wins teh 18th championship in team history.
Cancer, I mean Marbury is going to wear #8
link
I’m going with Marbury (I refuse to call him “Starbury”) wearing 99…that crazy Manny number!
[quote comment=”316568″][quote comment=”316567″]I’ve got a trusted inside source in regards to NBA info (he has not been wrong yet) and he said that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for the Celtics this season.[/quote]
Why would he wear number 18???[/quote]
“Loscy” and Dave Cowens both beg to differ.
#8 is more like it. It was linked to in a previous post, from the Celtics’ official site.
Earlier today, I suggested #7 for Marbury without knowing that that is Mikki Moore’s new number. With #7 out of the question, #8 would look good on Marbury without looking strange. After all, #8 is #3 with the gaps filled in.
Not at UW but living in Madison. Also have seats directly behind the Badger bench for the Friday night hockey games.
Plain black band on the Bulls jerseys in tonight’s game.
Mike, you can’t be a college student… you’re on Myspace.
[quote comment=”316564″][quote comment=”316563″]What’s wrong with Cam Ward?[/quote]
The flag on his chest. The black jersey. NHL hockey in North Carolina. His play this season.
Need I go on? LOL[/quote]
Is he wearing another new mask?
I swore he just switched to this a few months back.
link
I haven’t left a comment in a long time but i need some help, probably from Mr. Brahm. My son went to the WGC Match play here in Marana on tuesday and Japanese teen golfer Ryo Ishikawa gave him a ball and the Japanese media following him took their picture. I can’t find the picture online and possibly it wasn’t published. But I can’t navigate around the Japanese websites either. If you cor anyone could do a quick search, i would be most appreciative.
Thank you in advance.
[quote comment=”316579″]Mike, you can’t be a college student… you’re on Myspace.[/quote]
For music networking. Notice I have tracks, and not a multitude of stupid surveys.
Speaking of surveys, anybody have nominations for “worst uni match-ups” tonight? (Had to segue back.)
What an appropriate day to bring this up.
(No pic) – Flyers vs. Habs game.
Flyers goalie Antero Niittymaki has a problem with his mask (I had seen him fidgeting with it a lot) and goes to the bench to get it repaired. Almost immediately he is given an “old school” mask – the announcers title for it. Plain white, nothing on it. Pretty interesting to see, especially with the Flyers 3rd Orange jerseys – true old school look!
On the subject of goalie masks, I’m watching the Habs and Flyers, and Flyers goalie Antero Nittymaki is now wearing his plain white back-up mask, after he took a shot to the head and something was damaged on his regular mask.
[quote comment=”316583″]What an appropriate day to bring this up.
(No pic) – Flyers vs. Habs game.
Flyers goalie Antero Niittymaki has a problem with his mask (I had seen him fidgeting with it a lot) and goes to the bench to get it repaired. Almost immediately he is given an “old school” mask – the announcers title for it. Plain white, nothing on it. Pretty interesting to see, especially with the Flyers 3rd Orange jerseys – true old school look![/quote]
His normal mask is back for the OT Period. Not sure what was wrong.
[quote comment=”316584″]On the subject of goalie masks, I’m watching the Habs and Flyers, and Flyers goalie Antero Nittymaki is now wearing his plain white back-up mask, after he took a shot to the head and something was damaged on his regular mask.[/quote]
NVM. There’s your answer. Thanks Dan, I missed the shot off the mask apparently.
[quote comment=”316582″][quote comment=”316579″]Mike, you can’t be a college student… you’re on Myspace.[/quote]
For music networking. Notice I have tracks, and not a multitude of stupid surveys.
Speaking of surveys, anybody have nominations for “worst uni match-ups” tonight? (Had to segue back.)[/quote]
To do my own segue, the Minnesota Timberwolves underarm trim is gorgeous.
A little Buck on Buc violence in the NBA tonight. Hornets are playing in their ABA throwbacks.
[quote comment=”316570″][quote comment=”316568″][quote comment=”316567″]I’ve got a trusted inside source in regards to NBA info (he has not been wrong yet) and he said that Marbury will be wearing the #18 for the Celtics this season.[/quote]
Why would he wear number 18???[/quote]
Think of it this way:
3- his favorite number
x
1- his position (point guard)
—
3- the number on his jersey
3- his favorite number
x
6- his new position (sixth man)
—
18- his new number[/quote]
I think the inside source needs to check this website.
link
It’s been retired for 28 years.
[quote comment=”316588″]A little Buck on Buc violence in the NBA tonight. Hornets are playing in their ABA throwbacks.[/quote]
Speaking of which, I was wondering…
The Bucs’ reproductions (as seen on the Hornets) have a three-stripe pattern down the sides of the jerseys, but on the shorts, it’s just two to make way for a BUCS wordmark. Are the three stripes on the jerseys accurate, or a nefarious Adidas ad?
(No, I don’t take anything for granted on throwbacks anymore. Not after Reebok took the 49ers throwbacks and threw a vector in the middle of the sleeve stripes. Evil!)
[quote comment=”316590″][quote comment=”316588″]A little Buck on Buc violence in the NBA tonight. Hornets are playing in their ABA throwbacks.[/quote]
Speaking of which, I was wondering…
The Bucs’ reproductions (as seen on the Hornets) have a three-stripe pattern down the sides of the jerseys, but on the shorts, it’s just two to make way for a BUCS wordmark. Are the three stripes on the jerseys accurate, or a nefarious Adidas ad?
(No, I don’t take anything for granted on throwbacks anymore. Not after Reebok took the 49ers throwbacks and threw a vector in the middle of the sleeve stripes. Evil!)[/quote]
i noticed that earlier this year, particularly on the cavalliers throwbacks…the blue version also has way too many “3 stripes” for my liking
[quote comment=”316540″][quote comment=”316539″][quote comment=”316535″][quote comment=”316522″]sigh.
League front offices are laying off personnel.
But the Redskins pop for $100 mil for defensive lineman,
and Manny turns down $45 mil for two years from the Dodgers.
Probably too much to ask for some owner to say, “I’m not going to have people lose their jobs just you you can make $100 million instead of $95 million.”
Getting really tired of these self-absorbed bastards (owners, players, agents) who just continue to prove a basic truth: the Haves just plain don’t give a damn about the Have Nots. Never have. Never will.
Enough already. Maybe it time for us to stop paying so much attention to people who don’t deserve it.
—Ricko[/quote]
Nothing new here – the year after the stock market crash of 29, Babe Ruth negotiated a huge new contract with the Yankees.
More than the President, but then again, the Babe had a better year.[/quote]
Yup, but the typical ballplayer didn’t make all that much more than those who came out to the ballpark. Players appreciated the fans a lot more, I think. Now days, it’s more like, “Bet you’re honored that we let you pay to see us play, huh.”
I imagining this wonderful scenario…
FAN (to owners and players): “You’ re all billionaires and millionaires, what do you need with my crummy 20 bucks for a mezzanine seat?”
OWNERS AND PLAYERS (to fan): “Oh, no, it’s your interest, your watching on TV, your purchase of merchandise, etc., etc. that keeps us going.”
FAN: (pauses) “Well, now, see, that’s EXACTLY what I’d like you to remember.”
—Ricko[/quote]
been re-watching ken burns’s baseball (which just concluded this past tuesday), but in one of the episodes, may have been the last, they compared players’ salaries then (like, the babe’s time) to now…
the top player earned something like 9 times the average working mans’ salary then…now…like 250 times that
/and they wonder why there’s a certain disconnect nowadays[/quote]
Way of the world. You can say the same about the separation between your average CEO and his employee.
link.
Ok, I take some issue with everyone making a big deal about the Mets CitiField sponsorship.
Yeah CitiGroup was bailed out.As was…
Yeah CitiGroup was bailed out. The US Government has also bailed out:
Chase (Chase Field, Arizona)
Wells Fargo (Wells Fargo Arena)
General Motors (General Motors Place; Ford Field)
PNC (PNC Park, Pittsburgh)
FifthThird (FifthThird Park/Stadium in Dayton and Toledo)
M&T (M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore)
Comeria (Comerica Park)
Citizens (Citizens Bank Park, Philly)
United Airlines (United Center, Chicago)
American Airlines (AA Arena, Phoeniz; AAC, Dallas)
Not to mention all the money that all the automakers dump into NASCAR and other racing sports sponsorships.