Stackhouse’s 10 Weekend Thoughts

1- JETS POST MORTEM – The Winnipeg Jets are a team built around their Vezina Trophy level winning goaltender and if they don’t get that high calibre performance from him, they become an average or even a below average team. Connor Hellebuyck was just okay for 5 games and the Jets looked like they belonged nowhere near the Stanley Cup playoffs as a result. Jets fans will often tell me how great their players are and how deep their roster is but the facts say there wasn’t a single player that averaged better than a point per game and at the end of every season, if you are being honest with yourself, look at the group of forwards and if you went position by position there probably would be 20 players (or more) in the rankings before you’d get to a Jet. Yes, Kyle Connor is a pretty good goal scorer but when the games get harder later in the year he has consistently faltered. Mark Scheifele is also pretty good but would be better cast as a second line centre rather than a first liner. Finally, I hear people say Nikolaj Ehlers just needs a chance to show what he can do but he has been given plenty of chances and his career numbers in the playoffs reveal 37-games, 4-goals, 14-points. Yes, Josh Morrissey is an elite defenseman but that’s where the star power ends and if Hellebuyck is less than amazing the Jets just don’t have a chance. The time is now to bring along Cole Perfetti, Colby Barlow, Rutger McGroarty, Brad Lambert, and Ville Heinola and throw them into prominent roles. Contrary to popular belief, nobody on the Jets should be cemented or immovable when it comes to top lines, first unit powerplays, etc.

2 – BARKLEY CRITICAL – NBA player and, now, broadcast legend Charles Barkley ripped traditional media personalities earlier this week when he said a lot of them don’t do their jobs properly because they want to be friends with the players. Like most of his takes, he’s completely correct but I’d add a little bit more to that when it comes to NHL media as they not only want to be friends with the players, but also friends with the managers.  Watching the so-called insiders on Sportsnet speculate on what exactly was wrong with William Nylander and Auston Matthews was pathetic. Eventually, Elliotte Friedman threw out the possibility that Matthews wasn’t suffering from some debilitating form of the flu but rather some other issue. Brilliant. As if the average joe at home couldn’t come up with that. Make no mistake, all of them sitting on the panel know what the injuries are but in the name of maintaining credentials and relationships, they tap dance to make it seem like they are providing earth shattering news all the while revealing even less than what someone watching at home can come up with him or herself.

3 – NHL INSIDER – The last true hockey insider was Bob MacKenzie of TSN, but he’s mostly retired. I don’t watch things like trade deadline shows, but a friend of mine said to me during this year’s episode that MacKenzie came out of retirement and dropped the bomb that Tomas Hertl (who wasn’t on a trade board anywhere) would be going to the Vegas Golden Knights. And, then he sauntered back off to his cabin on Muskoka to relax for the rest of the season while the rest of the talking heads just marveled at the blockbuster from nowhere.

4 – MATT REMPE – I’m all for fighting in hockey but there is something that bothers me when it comes to Matt Rempe: here’s a player who was suspended four times in the WHL for hurting other players and yet somehow he made it all the way to the NHL with no real NHL level skill that stands out.  He’s played around 20 total games and he’s hurt a handful of NHLers during this brief period, so maybe his skill is hurting people and if that’s part of the game in the NHL, then why are we taking measures that promote player safety? The highlights of him that I see on TV are almost always illegal and while it’s great that he’s willing to drop his gloves and be accountable, I just don’t see the purpose of him being in the league. He’s also been on the wrong end of more than half of the fights I’ve happened to catch. Some say the NHL needs to step in before he suffers long term brain damage, but he’s a grown man capable of making his own decisions. If this is what he wants to do and he becomes a punching bag with debilitating health effects later in life, he can look in the mirror when blame is assigned. Nobody can say that in 2024 they are not properly informed when it comes to the dangers of fighting all the time.

5 – CHAD KELLY – It’s been interesting, to say the least, to watch how the Toronto Argos, the CFL, and the CFL media are addressing the Chad Kelly matter. There’s been no apology and both Kelly and the Argos have filed statements of defense.  For the most part, it feels as though everyone else is just wishing this away and I’m not surprised. Kelly is the league’s marquee player on a team the league is desperate to promote. I can’t help but wonder what this would look like if it were a Rider player who wasn’t nearly as important to the franchise and league’s fortunes. We’ve seen, in the fairly recent past, the Riders have been quick to apologize for anything that they may deem to be a potential stain on the organization. Some of you are tired of hearing about it, but the way Garrett Marino was bullied out of here a couple of years ago was shameful.  

6 – JIM HOPSON – On Friday, Rod Pedersen posted a photo of Weston Dressler on his social media, congratulating him on his nomination to the Canadian Football Hall Of Fame. The picture is a classic with former Riders President Jim Hopson cheering him on in the background. When Mr. Hopson passed away last month, I wasn’t writing for Rod so I didn’t get a chance to share with all of you what he meant to me, on a personal level. When I worked in the media and conducted interviews with Rider players and officials, I never once talked to Jim Hopson. After I started writing for Rod a few years ago, I would get occasional emails from him that were very encouraging and inspiring. The man epitomized class and kindness. While I never got to meet him to shake his hand and tell him how much I appreciated his support and how much I enjoyed watching the Riders during his tenure, I still shed a tear or two upon hearing of his passing. We often throw around phrases like ‘there will never be another’ but in this case, it truly applies. Organizations and teams will often take on the image of its leader and the Riders were at their peak both on and off the field when Jim Hopson was at the controls. May he truly rest in peace.  

7 – RATTLERS ADDITION – The Saskatchewan Rattlers added another curious signing this week, agreeing to terms with Bryson Williams for the upcoming season. Williams played with EJ Harkless, who was signed by the Rattlers last week, in the NBA G League with the Ontario Clippers. Both Williams and Harkless averaged in the range of 10 points per game. Former Edmonton Stingers superstar Xavier Moon was also on this team and was second on the club with a 19.5 ppg average, but Moon also averaged six more minutes per game so stands to reason there is potential here for one of Harkless or Williams to emerge as a top CEBLer this summer. Last year’s marquee player, Justin Wright-Foreman, had 15 points in a win for his Italian pro league team last Sunday. The Rattlers home opener is May 22nd against Winnipeg.

8 – UNDERVALUED STAT – Baseball is truly insane. On Saturday, the San Diego Padres acquired back-to-back batting champ Luis Arraez from the Miami Marlins. Most people are unaware Arraez has accomplished this feat because leading the league in average has been totally tossed aside as a meaningful measure of effectiveness. It’s like football deciding sacks are no longer important or basketball paying no mind to players who specialize in assists. I get into disagreements with people who say, “All baseball organizations are doing things similarly so trust them to know what they are doing more than your wild speculation.” To that I simply say, look at the entire world over the last four years.  Just because almost everyone is doing something a certain way doesn’t mean it’s the way things should be done. We are a society of monkey see-monkey do and I should emphasize the word monkey.

9 – MORE SPORTS DEATHS – I was hoping to make it through this week without mentioning a death in the sporting community, but that is not possible. Darius Morris, a 33 year old and a 4-year veteran in the NBA, passed away suddenly on Saturday.  Former Premier Lacrosse League player Callum Robinson also is no longer with us.  Robinson, his brother, and their friend were all murdered while on vacation in Mexico.

10 – LIGHTEN UP – I don’t really understand the emotional angst in some of you who read my columns. I’m not trying to force my views on anyone, I’m simply expressing how I feel. I’m good with every person living their best life and while I may think some views are ‘crazy’ I am not at all trying to get anyone to change and, in fact, I readily admit to being on the ‘losing’ side and suggest that perhaps I am the one who is ‘crazy’. The folks who attack me on a personal level struggle to put forth their real names when they criticize or call me coo-coo and that’s fine but if I’m the one who should be ashamed of my thoughts, why is it the people who are righteous are too shy to stand behind what they believe with their authentic names and contact information?  

(Mike Stackhouse is a freelance writer/broadcaster)