Hartley Miller's Slap-Shots Sept. 22nd Edition

By Hartley Miller

There is a good news-bad news scenario for the Prince George Cougars as they get set to launch the 2006/07 WHL season.

The Cougars should not have any difficulty in securing a playoff spot in a much weaker BC Division. However, with defending champion Vancouver in their division, and a very strong Everett team in the Western Conference, the outlook is bleak, at best, in reaching the league final. In other words, expect the banner drought at the CN Centre to continue.

In the past few years, the Cougars goal was to avoid the cellar, something they barely accomplished last season, unlike the three previous years. However, the “balance of power” has changed, and therefore, the Cats should move up in the standings. 

The Cougars placed 5^th in 04/05, 4^th in 05/06, so based on these results, it is logical to predict that they should finish 3^rd in the division in 06/07. However, barring unusual circumstances (remember these are the not so lovable Cougars we are talking about) anything less than 2^nd place and a first round playoff victory would be considered another bust of a season, something that PG hockey fans are used to. If the Cats don’t enjoy moderate success, then this family run business should make changes at the top (don’t hold your breath on that one).

Why should the Cougars have lofty expectations this season? Let’s examine their main opponents. The Kootenay Ice club is out of the division, replaced by the expansion Chilliwack Bruins. The perennial power Kelowna Rockets lost many key players, and the Kamloops Blazers have done little to improve from last season’s bottom place finish.

Now, this leaves Vancouver, and Prince George. Although the Memorial Cup hosting Giants may have lost Gilbert Brule, and a few others, they still have enough firepower, and are deep enough in talent to remain the class of the division, if not the league.

So, why should the Cougars remain optimistic?  They have more experienced players than most
teams, and their roster, which won’t be finalized until January, will include an established starting goalie, several veteran defencemen, and a group of older forwards that should provide scoring from
more than one line.

The BC Division looks relatively easy to predict, with Vancouver 1^st, PG 2^nd, Kelowna and Kamloops battling for 3^rd and 4^th and in the cellar, Chilliwack. So, 72 games per team and six months later, we will look back to see if what looked a certainty on paper turned into reality on the ice.

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It’s long overdue, but the Cougars and the PG Spruce Kings have finally reached the (pardon the pun) “times” and are going with 7pm starts this season. This should go over well with most hockey fans, especially when they arrive home half an hour earlier.

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Everett Silvertips coach Kevin Constantine may be a very astute and respected hockey man, but there is no defending his recent bonehead actions. Earlier this month, in an exhibition contest, the visiting Silvertips were beaten 5-0 by Tri-City, so Constantine had his players remain in their gear for a post-game meal, and the four-hour bus ride back to Everett. Needless to say, the WHL wasn’t amused, and fined him $5,000 and issued a four game suspension.  I don’t care how well Constantine has done as a coach, but this stunt lacked class, and respect. And when you lose this, does one have any dignity left?

From the quote rack:

“Jay Stokes of Yuma, AZ, celebrated his 50th birthday by jumping from an airplane 640 times in a 24-hour period, an average of one jump every two minutes and fifteen seconds. When he was finished, I heard they were finally able to get the plane’s engine started.”

Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California 

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"I see where some savvy opportunists are planning to unveil the World Series of Strip Poker.  Who’s going to televise it, ESPNudes?"

Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post

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“At the World Series of Strip Poker, do the players call each other’s buff?

Ted Wyman of the Winnipeg Sun
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"The World Series of Strip Poker in Vegas has been cancelled. What a shame because it would have been the perfect way to play Texas Hold’em."

Jerry Greene of the Orlando Sentinel

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"A store owner in Chicago had to give away $300,000 in free furniture after promising to do so if his beloved Bears shut out the Green Bay Packers, which they did. Here’s hoping Brett Favre got some of the free stuff because right about now he looks like he’d make a great armchair quarterback."

Ted Wyman

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"Just like we figured, the guy has gone bananas."

Bill Lankhof of the Toronto Sun, after Oakland Raiders receiver Randy Moss opened a fruit-juice bar in his hometown of Charleston, W.Va.

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"There is a website -- printedtp.com -- where you can purchase custom toilet paper. Order a few rolls with the image of a certain San Francisco Giants slugger, and you can finally put the Barry Bonds controversy behind you.’’

Brooks Melchior of sportsbybrooks.com

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And in case you missed it:

Major League Baseball has raised the price of the top World Series tickets to $250 each – which is an increase of about 35 percent.

And how was your week? 

Hartley Miller is the sports director for radio stations 94X and the Wolf@97fm. He also writes for the
PG Free Press. Send along a quote, note or anecdote to hmiller@94xfm.com

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