Monday, December 26, 2005
WJC: Day One Thoughts from the Perch.
Canada got off to a great start with a 5-1 victory over the feisty, but overmatched, Finnish squad. Canada looked a bit nervous early on, but really pounded the Finnish players like the object of the game was to get the most hits. Finland was never really in the game as the Canadian forecheck was relentless and effective. My Eurohockey.net recap can be found here.
Anyway, this game was the first I have ever covered as a member of the press, and it was an interesting experience, to say the least.
I was taken to my seat by walking the catwalk that runs over the ice, right under the roof! It's quite an experience to look down on the ice from a bird's eye view, and definitely not for those afraid of heights. The wooden planks making up the catwalk floor were awfully creaky.
I sat up above the nosebleeds with 2 Swiss journalists, one of whom works for Hockeyfans.ch, and they were very bitter that the seats were so bloody awful. They were surprised that last year's tournament in Grand Forks offered much better seats to journalists, and I agree that I was shocked by how high they were. I am not a whiner, but it's awfully hard to write about a game if you can't make out the uniform numbers on any of the players. The damn flags also blocked the scoreboard, so we spent half of the game watching from the media room in the basement.
Media Guides: Once again, Team Canada has a massive media guide that is as thick as a novel (148 pages!). You get a boatload of personal information on the players and staff, along with a bunch of statistics from past tournaments. 1974? Yep, I can look it up and see that Doug Jarvis led Canada with 7 points in 5 games and Canada won the bronze medal. Team USA has a thick guide (82 pages) but it's filled with a lot more advertising than the Canadian guide. I can't wait to pick up the Norweigen team's guide. It may be a whole 5 pages thick.
Canada coach Brent Sutter got a lot of questions after the game, but poor Finnish coach Hannu Aravirta didn't get a single question! I would have asked one if I could think of a relevant question to ask.
TV Delay - Yes, it's real and noticable. While watching the game down in the media room, we could hear the crowd scream almost 2 seconds before we saw the goal on the TV sets. It's basically like listening to a game on the radio while watching it on TV, only in reverse.
Justin Pogge - He had a quiet night, but I was impressed with his game and his side-to-side mobility. Poor Finnish goalie Tuuka Rask had to deal with a defense that didn't clear rebounds very well and he was almost helpless most of the night.
I am curious to see how many people will show up for tomorrow's tilt between Norway and Switzerland. You could probably score some cheap tickets on craigslist or ebay, knowing that most people bought the ticket packages mainly for the Canadian and US games.
Anyway, this game was the first I have ever covered as a member of the press, and it was an interesting experience, to say the least.
I was taken to my seat by walking the catwalk that runs over the ice, right under the roof! It's quite an experience to look down on the ice from a bird's eye view, and definitely not for those afraid of heights. The wooden planks making up the catwalk floor were awfully creaky.
I sat up above the nosebleeds with 2 Swiss journalists, one of whom works for Hockeyfans.ch, and they were very bitter that the seats were so bloody awful. They were surprised that last year's tournament in Grand Forks offered much better seats to journalists, and I agree that I was shocked by how high they were. I am not a whiner, but it's awfully hard to write about a game if you can't make out the uniform numbers on any of the players. The damn flags also blocked the scoreboard, so we spent half of the game watching from the media room in the basement.
I am curious to see how many people will show up for tomorrow's tilt between Norway and Switzerland. You could probably score some cheap tickets on craigslist or ebay, knowing that most people bought the ticket packages mainly for the Canadian and US games.
Comments:
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Really interesting stuff, Jes. Good luck with your new venture as an actual working reporter!
I've seen guys walking on the steel catwalks that are up near the ceiling at the Hartford (Ct.) Civic Center, but they're usually just up there to change a lightbulb.
I've seen guys walking on the steel catwalks that are up near the ceiling at the Hartford (Ct.) Civic Center, but they're usually just up there to change a lightbulb.
you could have asked about if the monty phython "finland" vacation song is acurate!
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I want to be
Pony trekking or camping
Or just watching TV
Finland, Finland, Finland
It's the country for me
You're so near to Russia
So far from Japan
Quite a long way from Cairo
Lots of miles from Vietnam
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I want to be
Eating breakfast or dinner
Or snack lunch in the hall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
You're so sadly neglected
And often ignored
A poor second to Belgium
When going abroad
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I quite want to be
Your mountains so lofty
Your treetops so tall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
All together now, Finophiles!!
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I quite want to be
Your mountains so lofty
Your treetops so tall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
Finland has it all...
If you've enjoyed hearing this song and would like to know more about Finland, why not ring Mr. Griffiths of Hemill-Hampstead? He and his charming wife Edna would be glad to answer any of your questions, and - who knows? - may show you some of their unrivaled collection of scandinavian credit cards.
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Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I want to be
Pony trekking or camping
Or just watching TV
Finland, Finland, Finland
It's the country for me
You're so near to Russia
So far from Japan
Quite a long way from Cairo
Lots of miles from Vietnam
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I want to be
Eating breakfast or dinner
Or snack lunch in the hall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
You're so sadly neglected
And often ignored
A poor second to Belgium
When going abroad
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I quite want to be
Your mountains so lofty
Your treetops so tall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
All together now, Finophiles!!
Finland, Finland, Finland
The country where I quite want to be
Your mountains so lofty
Your treetops so tall
Finland, Finland, Finland
Finland has it all
Finland has it all...
If you've enjoyed hearing this song and would like to know more about Finland, why not ring Mr. Griffiths of Hemill-Hampstead? He and his charming wife Edna would be glad to answer any of your questions, and - who knows? - may show you some of their unrivaled collection of scandinavian credit cards.
# posted by 
: 1:32 pm
: 1:32 pm << Home
