Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 2.25

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If an attacking player has been pushed, shoved, or fouled by a defending player so as to cause him to come in contact with the goal keeper, such contact will not be deemed contact initiated by the attacking player for the purposes of this rule, providing the attacking player has made a reasonable effort to avoid such contact. Article 69.1 under Section 9 of the Official 2006-2007 edition NHL rulebook or the part of the rulebook Kerry Fraser has not yet got around to reading.

Let’s relate this to the incident Thursday night using only fact. Ponikarovsky fighting to establish position in the goal mouth is knocked into Rick Dipietro by Islander defenseman Brendan Witt. Ponikarovsky, aware of his contact, albeit forced contact with the netminder, immediately scrambles to his feet and vacates the goal crease area. During the exchange, Ponikarovsky’s stick becomes lodged between the legs of Dipietro. He attempts to dislodge it but Dipietro keeps his legs squeezed together preventing Ponikarovsky from doing so. Seconds later the puck was fired into the net. By this time, Ponikarovsky had long since departed the goal crease save for his stick which Dipietro would not let go of.

The ruling was no goal and no penalty due to incidental, inadvertent contact with the goaltender. Taking the sequence of events and relating them to the wording of the aforementioned rule, I don’t know what Ponikarovsky could have done to further satisfy these criteria. Dipietro seemed more intent on milking this contact to draw a penalty.

To make that kind of a call in a game as important as that was for both teams is questionable unto itself. I would be less angry had Ponikarovsky been assessed a penalty. As it was, to me it seemed like Kerry Fraser just arbitrarily decided he didn’t like the goal so it won’t count. 14 years later, the Leafs were Frasered again! But hey, all that was just rigamarole.

Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 2.24

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May of this year will mark the 40th anniversary of the last time the Maple Leafs hoisted the Stanley Cup and last night, the surviving members of that championship team were honoured prior to the game. Adding to the significance was the return of Dave Keon, who made his first appearance at Air Canada Centre and first appearance at a Maple Leaf sanctioned event apart from an old timers game in the early ‘90’s since his departure from the Maple Leafs in the mid 70’s.

Much was made about Keon’s decision to relent on his standoff and finally return to the team that he great success with. Keon received a warm standing ovation and seemed to enjoy being a part of this event with his former teammates; however, after hearing him interviewed several times, I certainly did not get the impression we will see Keon lurking about the event level of ACC the way we see Johnny Bower, Darryl Sittler and so many other great Leaf alumni doing on a consistent basis. Said Keon after the ceremony, ''This is one night, one weekend, let's just leave it at that.''

There were many people around the league who poked fun at this reunion as a celebration of futility. Not surprisingly the loudest chirps came from Ottawa, a rapidly improving skill in that town. Anyone making fun of an event like this is merely jealous of the rich history and passion that we as Leaf fans hold. Our team transcends generations of families. Many young people today feel they knew guys like Bower and Sittler and Kennedy and Baun despite never seeing them play by the stories they’ve heard from their Dads. I know I feel that way. Very few teams have this ability and it’s a special feeling. Forty years of futility, I think not. It was a celebration to give a group of great champions the recognition they deserve. Hey Ottawa, when you win a Stanley Cup, sorry how about a couple of playoff series, you can come talk to me about futility. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.

Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 2.23

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It’s natural that in any professional sports league, some players will be hyped to the maximum as the league attempts to capitalize on their star power. Other players, be it because of their quiet nature, or because they are playing in the shadow of other stars, never receive that type of attention they deserve. While the National Hockey League has made Crosby and Ovechkin and Malkin the faces of the new NHL, it is Jordan Staal who has become the game’s “Quiet Star.”

When you step back though and think, it’s easy to see how things have worked out the way they have for these four young men. Crosby came up as the “next Gretzky”. Malkin had long been billed as “the best player in the world not currently in the NHL.” Ovechkin, well he’s just Ovechkin, a player who has such a pure love and passion for the game, on some nights you wonder if he would be happy playing for free.

Jordan Staal, by nature, is a quiet, reserved individual. Hey, at barely 18, perhaps he is still overwhelmed by the whole NHL way of life. His game is refined well beyond his years, you never notice him making mistakes. When he scores you notice him, but you no sooner turn around and there’s Crosby making a spinning deke to set up a goal with a pass around his back while lying on his back. All of a sudden, it’s Staal who?

He plays in the shadow of Malkin, who has grabbed attention by living up to his enormously high expectations and Crosby, who is poised to become the youngest Art Ross winner since Mr. Gretzky. He plays in the shadow of his brother Eric, Stanley Cup champion at age 22. For the better part of the first half of the season, he was used in primarily a defensive role.

Since being place on a line with Malkin around the all star break, Staal has taken off. He leads the league in SH goals and sits with 23 goals on the year. Until brother Eric scored his 24th on Saturday, thanks to Jordan’s hat trick, the two Staals saw eye to eye for a brief time. Last night for those in Toronto who came to see Sidney, Jordan Staal the show. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.

Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 2.22

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Without a doubt, the 2006-2007 NHL season has been the year of jersey retirements. As we’ve talked about so many times since this show began at the conclusion of the lockout, the NHL is in the midst of a changing of the guard. Dominant players from years gone by are slowing giving way to young, up and coming talent. In the last three years, we have seen some of the games greatest players retire. Now it is time to honour them for their truly outstanding contributions to the game of hockey. Honouring or retiring jersey numbers is a great way to acknowledge their accomplishments; however, the format that many of these retirement ceremonies are taking is one that I don’t quite agree with.

So far this year, we’ve seen ceremonies for Luc Robitaille, Steve Yzerman, and Brett Hull, curiously enough all former Red Wings; no wonder they won all those championships. The Habs honoured Ken Dryden and Serge Savard, two older stars, but let’s face it, the Habs had so many great players, there is a long waiting list to get your jersey raised at the Bell Centre. Despite the classy, emotional and moving nature of all of these ceremonies, the games themselves didn’t end up getting started until on average an hour and a half after the schedule start times and that’s where my problem with them lies.

Limit these ceremonies to a maximum of 45 minutes and start them a half hour prior to the scheduled start time. 45 minutes is plenty as most of the players being honoured are reluctant to see so much attention devoted entirely to them. This way a 7:30 game once the ice is cleared and players are afforded 25 minutes to warm up, would get underway closer to 8 o’clock. By starting at 9 o’clock as we have seen several times and not finishing until 11:30, the quality of the game suffers, the play is listless and the passion is sucked right out of the building. A great start to the evening turns into a long day at the office for the players as they struggle to match the excitement. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.