Commentary: And They’re Off!

(Listen daily for the RP Commentary on the All New Hits 98 CKHD & LTD Radio)

This morning I heard someone call it “The four best days in sports.”

They were referring to the opening round of the March Madness NCAA Mens Basketball tournament but I didn’t take the bait.

It’s exciting – no doubt – and I’ll be following along with the rest of North American sports fans but I won’t be filling out a bracket for 20 bucks (US).

That’s 30 dollars Canadian! I might as well light it on fire. Besides, that’s a week’s worth of coffees.

Everyday I thank my parents for teaching me the value of a dollar. Some day I’ll tell you how they did it.

Besides, there are over 23-million bracket entries at ESPN alone, yet there has never been one perfect prediction in the tournament’s history! I doubt a farmkid from Milestone, SK would be the first.

No, I’m actually far more interested in the story of Calgary Hitmen goalie Daniel Hauser becoming the WHL’s career wins leader Wednesday night with a 5-1 victory at Red Deer.

I’ve always been a fan of the kid, and called his games when he was with the Winnipeg ICE in the WHL bubble during Covid.

HE’S THE WINNINGEST GOALIE IN WHL HISTORY!

Last night the Chestermere, AB product surpassed former Blade Nolan Maier of Yorkton for #1 all-time in the Dub with 123 victories.

So this morning I went down the rabbit hole of WHL goalie wins and the names were a beautiful trip down memory lane.

#4 is Corey Hirsch, #7 is Carter Hart, #16 is Dustin Wolf, #20 is Stuart Skinner, #29 is Mark Fitzpatrick while #34 is Joey Perricone.

You want oddities? Former Regina Pat Linden Rowat (some nights we nicknamed him “Linden Blow-it”) is #38, with one more win than current Oilers back-up Calvin Pickard, who’s #39.

It’s the beautiful thing about sports; we can be into whatever the heck we want to be into.

Sometimes, the more obscure the better.

That’s today’s Rod Pedersen Commentary.

(The Rod Pedersen Show airs daily at 12 pm & 4 pm ET on Game+TV, Podcast & YouTube Live)