MONDAY COMMENTARY – A DAY LIKE THIS
(Listen daily for the Rod Pedersen Commentary on Cat Country 98 FM & Rock 98.5 FM)
YOU NEVER HAVE TO LOOK TOO FAR TO SEE SASKATCHEWAN’S IMPACT ON THE NHL.
HERE IN SUNNY AND STEAMY SOUTH FLORIDA, THE PANTHERS HOSTED THE NASHVILLE PREDATORS SUNDAY IN A NOVEL PRESEASON DOUBLEHEADER.
THAT’S A LOT OF HOCKEY, EVEN FOR THE DIEHARDS.
A QUICK SCAN OF THE ROSTERS SHOWED IMPERIAL, SASK’S CONNOR INGRAM STARTING IN GOAL FOR NASHVILLE WHILE OXBOW’S TANNER JEANNOT WAS DRESSED FOR THE PREDS AS WELL, WEARING AN “A”.
BOTH PLAYERS SHONE. JEANNOT SCORED TWICE IN GAME ONE, AND WAS NAMED THE THIRD STAR IN A 5-4 OT LOSS WHILE INGRAM STOPPED ALL 11 SHOTS HE FACED IN PERIOD ONE OF GAME ONE. I’M STILL TRYING TO FIND OUT WHY HE WAS LIFTED AFTER 20 MINUTES. THE FORMER KAMLOOPS BLAZER AND TEAM CANADA NETMINDER SAT AT THE END OF THE BENCH WEARING A BALLCAP FOR THE FINAL TWO PERIODS, SO CLEARLY HE WASN’T HURT.
I RECALL A FEW YEARS AGO, A PRO SCOUT CALLED AND ASKED FOR MY THOUGHTS ON JEANNOT. I ANSWERED, “A HARD-NOSED, HONEST PLAYER. HE CAN SCORE A BIT TOO.”
TANNER’S LIVED UP TO THAT ASSESSMENT, AND THEN SOME.
CALLING THOSE INTERMITTENT PATS GAMES ON TV OVER THE YEARS HAS REALLY ALLOWED ME TO KEEP MY HAND IN THE GAME.
ANYWAY SITTING IN MY PRESS BOX SEAT ON SUNDAY AT THE NEWLY-NAMED FLA LIVE ARENA, I COULDN’T HELP BUT THINK ABOUT ALL THE BUZZ OUTSIDE THE RINK BEING ABOUT THE NFL, AND THE FACT THE DOLPHINS AND BUCCANEERS WERE BOTH PLAYING ON THIS DAY.
BUT INSIDE THE ARENA, IT WAS ALL ABOUT HOCKEY. AS I SAID THE GAMES WERE GOOD AND THE 5,860 IN ATTENDANCE WERE HAVING A BLAST. (A LOT OF THEM WERE LOCAL MINOR HOCKEY TEAMS)
SAM BENNETT SCORED THE OT WINNER FOR FLORIDA IN GAME 1, WHICH PROBABLY WOULD COME AS A SURPRISE TO CALGARY FLAMES FANS. MEANWHILE MY NEW FAVOURITE PLAYER MAY BE FLORIDA FORWARD FRANK VATRANO, WHO NOTCHED A HATTRICK, BUT WHOSE NAME SOUNDS MUCH MORE LIKE A MOBSTER THAN A HOCKEY PLAYER. (BY THE WAY, 42-YEAR OLD JOE THORNTON’S SIGNING WITH THE PANTHERS HAS BEEN REALLY BIG NEWS DOWN HERE, BUT HE DIDN’T DRESS FOR EITHER OF SUNDAY’S GAMES).
WITH THAT, THE 28TH SEASON OF FLORIDA PANTHERS HOCKEY BASICALLY GOT UNDERWAY AND WHEN THE LONG DAY WAS OVER, FANS LEFT THE ARENA WITH A SMILE AS THEY HEADED OFF INTO THE HUMID FLORIDA NIGHT.
I NEEDED A DAY LIKE THIS. MORE TO COME.
THAT’S TODAY’S ROD PEDERSEN COMMENTARY
