The light at the end of the tunnel

Yesterday was what we came to Ottawa for. What we paid a bunch of money for tickets, food, and accommodations for. In the end it didn't matter how much money was spent (easy to say coming from someone with a free ride), because the feeling of pride we felt as they hoisted the trophy was all worth it. The SBP became a home last night, and all of the Canadians inside became a family. Though we didn't skate any shifts throughout the tournament, score any game-winning goals, throw any bodychecks or fight through any pain, we felt connected to the 21 teenage boys standing on the ice as our national anthem played through the loudspeakers. At that moment it didn't matter which NHL team you rooted for or what race or religion you belonged to, we were all simply CANADIANS.

That being said, had the game not been for the gold medal, it would have been regarded as pedestrian, similar to the game against the Czechs. There were three-goal comebacks, nor last second tying goals, nor overtime shootouts, but considering the setting, it was just as exciting. Dustin Tokarski recovered from some shaky play earlier in the tournament to be a brick wall, allowing just one goal on 40 Swedish chances. He deservedly earned the Canadian player of the game, though a floppy Markstrom questionably won goalie of the tournament. (Anyone who watched more than just Canadian games knew that this title should have belonged to Jaraslav Janus of the Slovaks.) But the result of this game was never in doubt. The Canadians potted a power-play goal less than two minutes into the game, and they never looked back. The atmosphere in the arena was always electric, whether it was booing Markstrom whenever he played the puck, or going nuts when the Canadians scored a goal or threw a bodycheck. The "drive for five" was destined to happen from the moment those boys stepped foot on the ice.

Windsor native Ryan Ellis recieved a regular offensive shift from head coach Pat Quinn, and used this opportunity to grab an assist on the third goal of the game. He ended the tournament with seven points and a plus six rating, not bad for a kid the size of my girlfriend.

In the end though, the individual stats didn't matter. It didn't matter that Tavares likely solidified himself as the number one pick in this years NHL draft (while Hedman made a strong showing for a fifth or sixth), and it didn't matter who was named MVP of what games, all that mattered is that for three hours, we were united.

GOld Canada GOld!!!!!!!!!!

Kyle (as always these weeks) has said it best.

Official celebrity sightings in the concourse include, Darryl Sutter, Steve Yzerman, Ken Holland, Brian Burke, Stephen Harper (with no visible security) buying ice cream for his daughter, Tyler Stewart among the many we could recognize.

I will leave everyone with a couple of thoughts and some pictures of that golden night, and our trip in general. This tournament should never be held off of North American soil period.
If I never eat another slice of Pizza Pizza again, it will be too soon. Brenny is a gaseous fellow.
Being here the entire time, doing two a days got to be grueling.
Ottawa is the most fit city in Canada, an overweight person here is a tourist, these people are jogging on icy sidewalks, along the canal and it is -30.

I love Ottawa.

Anyone know how to get to Regina?

Cheers, from Tmoney Viktor Bubby and Brenny.

Medal day in Ottawa

Our last morning in the nation's capital broke overcast and snowy, everyone was up early (most everyone that is) in anticipation of the day ahead, plus Ottawa has the loudest garbage trucks ever. We cleaned out the van and packed last night so that this morning could be a relaxing time chatting about our past 11 days and all the highlights of this memorable trip. A day or two from now will find us back in Essex County slightly poorer in cash, but rich in experience and memories.
This will be our last blog until we wrap it up from 9 Lyle. To all of our followers, and those who have read, and or commented on our little vanity site here, thank you. This hopefully was a great way for those who cared, to travel along with us and share in our vacation.
Thanks to our I.T. guy and principal wordsmith Bubby, who managed most of these entries and assisted those slightly computer challenged, with the finer points of opening E-Mail (guess who Kimmy).
From Victor, Terry, Bubby and Brenny to Kim, Carly, Roxy, Lori, Jessy and Tiny oh and as Brendan says, Coouurrttney, THANK YOU for indulging us in our somewhat pricey, somewhat extended vacation, we cannot wait to get home and share photos, memories and lots of hugs.

GOLD CANADA GOLD!!!!!!

Foreign soil

The only WJC games on today were relagation games and the 5th place game, so (previously planned) we got two tickets from the Molson guy (thank you Ken Campbell) and bought two (via eBay) for the Montreal Canadiens game today at the Bell Centre in Montreal Quebec.

The atmosphere was absolutely electric, and we couldn't understand a word of it. The place was about as loud as SBP was when Canada won in a shootout, and it was a regular season game against a bottom-feeder! The Francophones were accounted for 100%, and listening to the French around us bickering about calls and goals was about as entertaining as the game itself. Our seats were better than we could have hoped for, and gave us an appreciation for the true speed of the game. The Bell Centre boasts the largest Jumbo-tron in the entire league, and this thing is HUGE. The screen is 25 by 40 FEET of hi-def replays and gameplay, and since we need a new TV, we'll be inquiring about prices.
The game was great though, and we saw our second shootout in as many games, with the home team winning to the chorus of Ole's!

The only other news is that the gold medal game is tomorrow, and I hope that all of those reading will be tuning their TV's to TSN at 7:30 to watch their country drive for five. If you think we looked stupid before, you ain't seen nothin' yet. Tomorrow we will be looking extra-ridiculous (we finally found a barber shop). We are sitting behind all of the Swedish parents, so if you see a shot of a group of Swedes, (not that they'll have anything to celebrate) look behind them to see four stupid Canadians supporting their boys.

Tomorrow is our swan song, let's hope it's the best of the tourney. GO CANADA!

How About That!

We just got home from THE best hockey game any one of us has ever seen. We were up, we were down, and then we were higher than we've ever been. 5.4 seconds left to go in the game, down by a goal, it just doesn't get much more clutch, heart clutching that is. To watch the clock tick down on our gold medal dream, to think we may have to qualify this long trip by saying things like "it was a good effort" and "the guys worked hard" but still not see OUR Canadian team, our flag, our boys in the finals, disappointed and unfulfilled do not do it justice. Then the hockey gods shone down once again on our, dare I say destiny team? Mrs. Eberle's son decided to take this team, this country, and carry them somewhere we have become accustomed to, and somewhat arrogantly come to believe is our birthright. GOLD MEDAL GAME!
Screw that this our game and our birthright
The rink was electric and the the outcome was never in doubt once this game got to overtime. The Russians were a team becalmed, the wind was gone from the sails and Canada simply turned on the jet drive and motored to that spectacular finish.
Here are some pics from the game and one with our new friends Tomislav (yeah, we know it's your real name Tommy) and Jay, down for the night and so happy to have picked these games to attend.
Tomorrow is Montreal and preparation for the medal games on Monday and dare I say, a return home which is being favourably contemplated by all.

God Bless Slovakia

Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, it did. Since the Americans lost to Canada yesterday in pool play, they were forced to play in a quarterfinal game today. Their opponents were the Slovaks, who had been crushed by both Sweden and Russia. Easy cruise into the semi-finals right? Wrong. Somehow, in his heart of hearts, the big man upstairs found it inside himself to break the hearts of the Americans once again and lead the Slovaks to victory 5 - 3. The anti-American (ABA anybody but America) crowd at Scotiabank Place serenaded the Americans with the familiar "na na na, hey hey hey, goodbye", and the good old US of A will leave the tournament medal-less for the fourth year out of the last five.

Earlier in the day, Victor, Brendan and I went down to the Rideau for our second skate (dad did laundry), and we could only stand the cold for an hour before retiring back to the apartment for warmth. Some evergreen trees were added around the picnic table area as a windbreak, and along with the layer of snow, they made the canal more beautiful than ever.


Back to the Canadian team, Windsor's Ryan Ellis is getting mad publicity up here in Ottawa. There have been features on him in every paper, and we just watched a 10 minute report on TSN about how much he has shone in 09 tournament. Hopefully soon they will talking about the dynamic duo of Tavares and Ellis on the Spitfires powerplay.

The evening held Russia v. The Czech republic, and, as expected, the Russians beat up on the Czechs 5 - 1.
Up tomorrow is both semi final games where Canada gets Russia and Slovakia gets Sweden, hopefully we have two good games to watch before our roadtrip to Montreal on Sunday.

Happy Birthday to Dad and a Canada gold would be the perfect gift.

The Rideau

We went skating on the Rideau Canal today, and after being informed that we weren't allowed sticks and pucks (how anti-Canadian!), we skated from one end to the other and enjoyed the crisp winter air. The view was gorgeous.

Sweet, sweet victory

Today was a great day. A fantastic day even. But before I get to the climax of the night, i'll review the entire day.

We started our day later than usual, not waking up until 11. After a breakfast wrap, Brendan suggested Wendy's, and of course I obliged. So Vic, Brendan and I drove a few blocks to the nearest Wendy's for some brunch while Terry took care of the three S'. After our meal, we came back to the apartment for a short while before making our way out to the civic centre for (what we thought would be) the first of two great games: Russia v. Sweden. We decided to drive instead of taking a taxi today, and after parking about six miles from the arena, we were ready for the game.

At this time i'd like to give honourable mention to faithful follower Rich White, and the good luck he gave us. He threw Victor a call as we were walking into the Civic centre, freezing his fingertips, but giving us good luck for the game later on in the night. (Thanks Rich, we now expect a call the afternoon of every Canada game.)

The Civic centre was overrun with Swedes today, and the scoreboard seemed to favour them as well. They dominated the Russians in every facet of the game, cruising to a 5 - 0 victory, ensuring them a berth in the semifinals. The first period was exciting, but it slowed down significantly into the second and third, so we ducked out early to beat the rush.
After the battle of Europe, the crew moved to Heroes of the Game, a very popular spot in Kanata with great food and great-looking waitresses. Our new best friend Trevor, whom we gave a few unusable tickets, paid for our food and drinks (for a second time), and still had time to grab a picture with us. Our thanks go out to Trevor for the food and the hospitality.
After our pit stop at HotG, we made our way to Scotiabank Place for the main event: USA v. Canada; the battle of North America. This game was for all the marbles. Though the loser still had a chance to win the gold, they may not recover from the blow to their morale if they lost this rivalry game. The house was packed to the brim with Canadian fans, and they were INTO it. The rink was rocking, and the crowd was ready for a big can of whoop-ass to be opened on the Americans. This however, would be delayed.

After the Americans sniped three quick goals on nine shots, hope looked bleak for the Canadians: the crowd was losing interest, the team was looking uninspired, and Canadas goaltending was looking shaky. Then, there was Tavares. John Tavares (soon to be Spitfire) took the team on his back, scoring two goals in under a minute to get his team back into the game. When the Canadians tied it a few minutes later, they never looked back. They would not trail again after the first period, and though it was tight, they came out with a 7 - 3 victory over their southern rivals. Did I mention that Tavares had a game? Well he had a GAME. He scored a hat trick and was named the Canadian player of the game, and could be considered the catalyst for Canadas comeback.

Victory tastes as sweet as I imagined it would, and it will only get sweeter. We have the day off to skate on the Rideau Canal tomorrow, and we will watch some quarterfinal action before going to Montreal to see the Habs take on Florida.

Everyone have a safe and happy New Year, don't overconsume (ha ha ha), and may your next year be the best one yet!