#two-time olympic champion three-time stanley cup champion

[icedbatik]

Penguins to retire Jaromir Jagr’s No. 68 during pre-game ceremony on Feb. 18

By Pittsburgh Penguins

November 10, 2023

The Pittsburgh Penguins will raise two-time Stanley Cup Champion Jaromir Jagr’s no. 68 jersey to the rafters at PPG Paints Arena on February 18 versus the Los Angeles Kings as part of a pre-game celebration, it was announced today by the club.

As part of the ‘Celebrate 68’ festivities, all fans in attendance that night will receive a replica Jagr No. 68 banner. In addition, a commemorative Jagr bobblehead has been added as a giveaway to all fans in attendance on Thursday, March 14 versus the San Jose Sharks.

Jagr, whose NHL career spanned over two decades, is one of the most accomplished players in NHL history and a member of the league’s ‘100 Greatest Players.’ In 1,733 career regular-season games, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound winger scored 766 goals, 1,155 assists and 1,921 points. He ranks fourth all-time in games played and goals, fifth in assists, and only Wayne Gretzky (2,857) has recorded more points than him. No player in NHL history has more game-winning goals than Jagr’s 135.

Drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round (5th overall) of the 1990 NHL Draft, Jagr spent the first 11 seasons of his 24-year NHL career with the Penguins, appearing in 806 regular-season games notching 439 goals, 640 assists, 1,079 points, 78 game-winning goals and was plus-208. He is in the top-5 in franchise history in games played (5th), goals (4th), assists (4th), points (4th), plus/minus (2nd) and game-winning goals (4th). He was one of 13 captains in team history, serving in the role from 1998-01. 

Jagr was an instrumental piece of Pittsburgh’s back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships in 1991 and ’92 – his first two seasons in the NHL. In that two-year span, Jagr suited up for 45 postseason contests, notching 37 points (14G-23A), which was sixth in the NHL over that stretch. Jagr shined during the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, recording a playoff career-high 24 points (11G-13A) in 21 games. In total, Jagr has dressed in 208 Stanley Cup Playoff contests, accumulating 201 points (78G-123A). He is one of just six players in NHL history with 200 or more playoff points. 

The 10-time NHL All-Star has won a plethora of awards over the course of his NHL career. He is a five-time Art Ross Trophy winner (NHL Scoring Leader – 1995, ’98, ’99, ‘00, ’01), three-time Ted Lindsay Award winner (Most Outstanding Player – 1999, ’00, ’06), and was the recipient of the Hart Trophy (NHL MVP) in 1998-99 and Bill Masterton Trophy (Perseverance, Sportsmanship, and Dedication to Ice Hockey) in 2015-16. Jagr was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team seven times (1995, ’96, ’98, ’99, ’00, ’01, ’06), the Second All-Star Team in 1996-97 and was a member of the All-Rookie Team in 1990-91.

Throughout NHL history, only Chris Chelios (26), Gordie Howe (26) and Mark Messier (25) have played more seasons in the NHL than Jagr’s 24. Of his 24 seasons, he notched 20-plus goals 19 times and 30-plus goals 15 times, which both rank third in league history. He’s also hit the 100-point plateau five times, and was the sixth-oldest player in NHL history to accomplish that feat during the 2005-06 season at 34 years and 31 days old.

The native of Kladno, Czechia has multiple accolades on the international stage. He’s won a gold medal (1998) and bronze medal (2006) at the Olympic Games, two gold medals (2005, ’10) and two bronze medals (1990, 2011) at the IIHF World Championship and a bronze medal at the 1990 IIHF World Junior Championship. Jagr is one of just 30 players in history to join the Triple Gold Club, which includes winning a Stanley Cup, an Olympic gold medal and an IIHF World Championship gold medal. He and Jiri Slegr are the only two players of Czech descent to accomplish this feat. 

Jagr currently owns Rytiri Kladno of the Czech Extraliga and has been majority owner of the team since 2011-12.

#Jaromir Jagr #jersey retirement #it's official #February 18 - 2024 #November 10 - 2023

[petoskeystones]

well guys in light of recent events i guess i'll tell you about Champions Day, when detroit was so goddamn good at every single major sport in 1935-36 that governor frank fitzgerald said fuck it let's have a day about it. 89 years ago today—

the tigers won their first world series. genuinely an insane lineup with hank greenberg, charlie gehringer, goose goslin, and mickey cochrane as player-manager. known wifeguy schoolboy rowe pitched a great season but he was also a pretty good hitter! anyways we won the world series in game six over the cubs and detroit celebrated until six am. it was the first baseball championship in detroit since 1887 (when the detroit wolverines won the national league pennant).

the red wings won their first stanley cup under the coaching of my worstie jack adams, but we beat the leafs to do it, so yippee! this season for the wings featured future hall of famers ebbie goodfellow, marty barry, herbie lewis, and syd howe (no relation). notably, this was the season that the longest hockey game Ever was played— in the stanley cup semifinals the wings went to SIX OVERTIMES against the montreal maroons, and won when mud bruneteau scored the only goal of the game. they were scoreless from 8:30 pm to 2:30 am. what the hell. anyways yeah we beat the leafs in the best of five series, 3-1.

and the lions won their first nfl championship. that's what they called it in the 1930s, just the nfl championship. the lions won 26-7 over the new york giants. however people simply did Not care about pro football in the 1930s, college football was much more popular and it was the least attended championship game ever (in national peacetime). the weather was miserable and they all got $300 and that's it. glen presnell, the last surviving player from that game, said "it was a way to make a living during the depression" okay!

the nba didn't exist yet. but other sports did! detroit was a majorhub for boat racing, and gar wood wasat the center of it all with his company, garwood industries, which made wooden pleasure or racing boats. he was the first man to travel at 100mph on water, which he did a few years before champions day, but they celebrated it anyways. joe louis was the athlete of the year and the number-one ranked heavyweight boxer in the world (in june of 1936 he would get knocked out for the first time in his career by max schmeling, reportedly because instead of training he got really into golf. i mean he later was pivotal in desegregating the professional golfers' association, and he knocked out max schmeling in 1938, so really it was all fine). and detroiter eddie tolan had won two gold medals in sprinting at the 1932 olympics, which was considered a huge success for the city (he had his own eddie tolan day that year) and for black americans. of the 307 races he competed in during his career, he won 300.

anyways. in the middle of the great depression detroit got to shine for a minute, and to this day is the only city to win the championship for three of the four major american sports in the same year. happy champions day folks!

#infodumping about detroit sports under the cut #1930s athlete names were crazy btw. the tigers outfield was named goose jojo and gee. #as always. lmk if you guys want book recs about this #michigan history #drw #tigers #lions

[theultimatefan]

Helen Maroulis Accepts Beat The Streets, Final X Berth, Will Compete for U.S. World Team Spot

2016 Olympic champion and three-time World champion Helen Maroulis (Tempe, Ariz./Sunkist Kids) has officially accepted her 57 kg berth in Final X. She will battle for the 57kg spot on the 2023 U.S. World Team in women’s freestyle wrestling in Final X, presented by Tezos, on Saturday, June 10 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Final X will determine the 2023 U.S. Senior World Teams in all three Olympic disciplines: men’s and women’s freestyle and Greco-Roman. There will be 30 weight classes contested, 10 in each Olympic discipline. The top two U.S. athletes in each weight class will compete in a best-of-three series in Final X to determine who will wrestle at the 2023 Senior World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.

Maroulis made history at the 2016 Olympic Games, becoming the first U.S. woman to win an Olympic gold medal in wrestling with her victory at 53 kg over three-time Olympic champion Saori Yoshida. She later became the first U.S. women’s wrestler to win two Olympic medals with her bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Maroulis has won three World gold medals (2015, 2017, 2021) and boasts six Senior World medals. Maroulis also won three Junior World medals. She was a four-time WCWA college national champion, winning three titles for Simon Fraser and one for Missouri Baptist.

It is the second straight year Final X will serve as the Beat the Streets New York Annual Benefit. This year’s event will be the 13th BTSNY Annual Benefit. These unique and electrifying annual events help BTSNY raise more than $1 million each year to support local youth wrestling programs which empower young people in New York City. The BTSNY Annual Benefit after party will follow the conclusion of Final X.

Maroulis, a native of Rockville, Md., has a perfect 8-0 record in previous BTSNY events. She is the subject of a new movie, “Helen | Believe,” which follows her astonishing comeback to the sport after suffering a career-ending injury that forced her into retirement.

There are a variety of options for Final X wrestling-only event tickets, with prices starting at $40 on Ticketmaster.

Benefit tickets and sponsorship packages (wrestling event plus exclusive after-party celebration access) that also provide the best wrestling-event seats are available at give.btsny.org/beatthestreetsbenefit2023. For more information on ticket packages, email Katrin Pokalyukhin at [email protected].

The team selection procedures for the U.S. World Teams in each style allows for 2022 Senior World medalists to advance directly to Final X at a specified weight class. Maroulis has met this requirement and accepted her qualification.

The Final X opponent for Maroulis will be determined at the U.S. Open in Las Vegas, Nev., April 26-30. The champion in women’s freestyle at 57 kg at the U.S. Open will qualify to face Maroulis in Final X.

FloWrestling will serve as the host broadcasting partner for Final X, presented by Tezos.

*Please note if Prudential Center's tenant, New Jersey Devils, hosts a Stanley Cup Final game on June 10 the contingency date for Final X would be Friday, June 9.

Final X, presented by Tezos At Prudential Center, Newark, N.J., Saturday, June 10

Declared Qualifiers to date Women’s Freestyle 57 kg – Helen Maroulis (Tempe, Ariz./Sunkist Kids) Men’s Freestyle 79 kg – Jordan Burroughs (Philadelphia, Pa./Sunkist Kids/Pennsylvania RTC)

HELEN MAROULIS Residence: Tempe, Ariz. Club: Sunkist Kids College: Simon Fraser Univ., Missouri Baptist High School: Marquette, Mich., Rockville, Md. (Colonel Zadock Magruder) Born: Sept. 19, 1991 • 2016 Olympic champion (first U.S. woman to win an Olympic wrestling gold medal) • 2020 Olympic bronze medalist (first U.S. woman to win two Olympic wrestling medals) • Three-time World champion (2015, 2017, 2021) • 2012 and 2022 World silver medalist • 2014 World bronze medalist • Three-time Junior World medalist (2008, 2010, 2011) • 2011 Pan American Games champion • Four-time WCWA women’s college national champion (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013)

Maroulis Beat the Streets New York Annual Benefit History (8-0 record) 2012: Ashley Hudson (USA), WIN 4-0, 2-1 2014: Marcia Andrades (Venezuela), WIN Fall 2015: Yamilka del Valle Alvarez (Cuba), WIN tech fall 10-0 2016: Samantha Stewart (Canada), WIN Fall 2017: Yuzuru Kumano (Japan) WIN 7-4 2018: Odunayo Adekuoroye (Nigeria), WIN 4-1 2022: Alex Hedrick (USA), match one, WIN, tech fall, 10-0 2022: Alex Hedrick (USA), match two, WIN, tech fall, 10-0

cover image: Helen Maroulis (credit: Tony Rotundo/Wrestlers are Warriors

[atlanticcanada]

Nova Scotians react to Sidney Crosby being named to Order or Canada

Ask hockey fan Mike Fougere his thoughts on Sidney Crosby and he’ll quickly tell anyone he’s a huge fan.

“He’s the best that ever came out of here and he’s the best that will ever come out of here,” said Fougere, who felt a surge of pride when we found out Crosby had been named to the Order of Canada.

“He’s a role model for kids and everybody wants to be like him,” said Fougere.

According to Crosby’s former peewee AAA hockey coach, Paul Mason, even after all these years, he never tires of watching Crosby play.

“When you see Sidney play hockey, he plays at a level that you just dream about playing,” said Mason who added Crosby takes as much pride in being from Cole Harbour, N.S., as he does in honing his hockey skills. “He loves this community and we love him back.”

Crosby was named to the Order of Canada because of his on-ice accomplishments and his years of support for community services and youth initiatives in Nova Scotia and across Canada.

“Whenever there is something that happens in this community and he thinks he should be able to help out, that’s what he does,” said Mason.

Former NHL Scout Paul Gallagher says it’s hard to capture in words how Nova Scotians feel about Crosby – and not just hockey fans.

“The province has embraced him based on how he plays and how he carries himself both on and off the ice,” said Gallagher.

A three-time Stanley Cup champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, Crosby is experiencing somewhat of an on-ice renaissance.

Now in his 18th NHL season, Crosby has 43 points in 35 games and is on pace to have one of the best years of his career.

“That’s what amazes me. I turn on the TV and I watch and make another great play,” said Gallagher. “I said to myself, the other day, ‘Crosby still has it.’”

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/kAwJjos

#new brunswick #prince edward island #nova scotia #news #politics #canada #CTVAtlantic

[iihfworldsjunior]

SAY HELLO TO THE HALL

There will be a particularly Canadian flavor when the Class of 2020 is drafted into the Hockey Lobby of Popularity on Monday night.

Very nearly 17 months after they were first reported (the enlistment function was delayed by a year because of the Coronavirus pandemic), six legends will have their spot among the game's immortals in midtown Toronto.

Of the sextet who will be regarded, five have associations with Hockey Canada - Ken Holland, Jarome Iginla, Kevin Lowe, Kim St-Pierre and Doug Wilson. (The 6th individual from the gathering is Slovak champion Marian Hossa.)

Before they procure hockey's most elevated honor, we should investigate the five Canadians.

KEN HOLLAND

The solitary individual from the gathering not to address Canada as a player, Holland has been a successive donor in the meeting room throughout the course of recent years.

Most popular as a three-time Stanley Cup champion as senior supervisor of the Detroit Red Wings, the Penticton, B.C., local initially joined the Group Canada staff as colleague head supervisor at the 2005 IIHF Big showdown, where Canada won silver.

He was senior supervisor at the 2006 universes and won gold decorations at the 2010 and 2014 Olympic Winter Games, as well as a World Cup of Hockey title in 2016. He is back again as a component of the staff with Canada's Men's Olympic Group for the 2022 Games in Beijing.

The Statement: "what I advanced most from Kenny was tied in with recruiting great individuals. He allows them to finish the work and I do, as well. At the point when you get into these [GM] positions, you assume you know everything and can do everything, except in the event that the chief recruits great individuals and allows them to finish the work, that is ideal.

JAROME IGINLA

Iginla remained on the platform wherever he went with Group Canada - at the 1994 La Copa Mexico (summer under-18), 1996 IIHF World Junior Title, 1997 IIHF Big showdown, 2002 and 2010 Olympic Winter Games and 2004 World Cup of Hockey.

The St. Albert, Alta., local kept 44 focuses in 47 games across seven worldwide appearances, yet it is the 44th - his nineteenth and last help - that will long have a spot in Canadian hockey legend.

The shouts of "Iggy! Iggy!" came only seconds before Sidney Crosby took a pass from Iginla and slipped a shot five-opening on U.S. goaltender Ryan Mill operator, giving Canada a notable home-ice Olympic gold in Vancouver and adding the last part of a noteworthy worldwide prize case.

He generally appeared to be at his best on the game's greatest stage; notwithstanding his partner on the Brilliant Objective in 2010, Iginla kept two objectives and an aid the 2002 Olympic gold decoration game, assisting Canada with finishing a 50-year dry season.

TEAM CANADA STATISTICS

1994 La Copa Mexico - 5G 9A 13P (gold medal)

1996 IIHF World Junior Championship - 5G 7A 12P (gold medal)

1997 IIHF World Championship - 2G 3A 5P (gold medal)

2002 Olympic Winter Games - 3G 1A 4P (gold medal)

2004 World Cup of Hockey - 2G 1A 3P (champions)

2006. Olympic Winter Games - 2G 1A 3P (7th position)

2010. Olympic Winter Games - 5G 2A 7P (gold medal)

KEVIN LOWE

Lowe played for his country only twice, and both in the early stages of his pro career of 19 years that comprised 6 Stanley Cup championships; the Lachute, Que., product assisted Canada to win bronze in the 1982 IIHF World Championship, and was awarded the Canada Cup championship in 1984.

However, his most notable international achievements were from the snow. Lowe played on Canada’s team management at 4 consecutive Olympic Winter Games, winning gold medals in 2002, 2010, and 2014, as a second-in-command to the executive director Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman.

He also served in a similar position in the year Canada took home in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and also designed Canada’s entry to the 2012 IIHF World Championship as general manager.

A Quote “Whatever the team Kevin has been involved in, no matter the role he played, whether manager or a player Kevin’s been a success. He’s also the person who brings teams together.” -Craig Simpson (NHL.com)

TEAM CANADA STATISTICS

1982 IIHF World Championship - 1G 1A 2P (bronze medal)

1984 Canada Cup - 0G 4A 4P (champions)

KIM ST-PIERRE

One of the most impressive players to ever wear the pads St-Pierre is considered to be the standard for goalie players. He is the standard by which all other goalies are judged in the women’s sport.

First female netminder who has earned recognition, St-Pierre is on close to or at the top of every major field of the Canada’s National Women’s Team - she is first in games played (83) minutes of play (4,552) and winnings (64) as well as shutouts (29) and is second in goals-against-average (1.17) and saving percentage (.939).

The Chateauguay, Que., native has backed Canada in winning Olympic silver medals at the 2002 Olympics, in 2006, and 2010 as well as IIHF World Women’s Championship gold in 1999 2000, 2001 2004, 2007 and 1999.

Alongside the team’s success, St-Pierre also earned many individual awards and was named Best Goalie and was selected to the all-star team in the 2002 Olympics and was named the top goalie at the women’s 2001 and 2004 world championships, and received an all-star award at the world championships of 2007.

It’s the Quote “One aspect that distinguished Kim from her peers was her ability to sort of play with the lines between confidence and cockiness. If you played with Kim, you were certain that she’d achieve every save. If you were playing with her each save look effortless.” — Caroline Ouellette (NHL.com)

TEAM CANADA STATISTICS

1999 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 2-2-0 0.50 GAA/1 SO (gold medal)

2001 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 2 - 1.20 GAA / 1 SO (gold medal)

2001 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 3-1 / 0.67 GAA 2. SO (gold medal)

2002 Olympic Winter Games - 4-0 2.25 GAA / 1.25 GAA / 2 SO (gold medal)

2004 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 1-1 / 1.00 GAA 2 SO (gold medal)

2005 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 2 - 0.00 GAA 3 SO (silver medal)

The 2006 Olympic Winter Games - 2-0 + 0.50 GAA/1 SO (gold medal)

2007. IIHF World Women’s Championship - 3-1 0.33 GAA 2. SO (gold medal)

2008. IIHF World Women’s Championship - 1-1 / 2.63 GAA / 1 SO (silver medal)

2009. IIHF World Women’s Championship - 2 - 0.00 GAA 2 SO (silver medal)

2010. Olympic Winter Games - 2-0 2 / 0.00 GAA 2 SO (gold medal)

The 2011 IIHF World Women’s Championship - 1-1 / 0.00 GAA 1 SO (silver medal)

DOUG WILSON

Doug Wilson made just a one appearance on his time in the Maple Leaf during his 16-year playing career. He was paired with Lowe on the blue-line during The 1984 Canada Cup.

The Ottawa player was involved outside of his playing days. He was employed as a consultant to the Canadian National Junior Team during its streak of five gold medals in a row during the IIHF World Junior Championship in the mid-1990s. Later, he was as a consultant for Canada’s men’s Olympic Team in 1998 Games.

“The Quote” “He played with an exceptional hockey intelligence. He was able to see the game and could read the game. If you played the same way today’s game is now played then you can see the numbers he posted and then, he’d have more numbers than he did then.” -Darryl Sutter Darryl Sutter (NHL.com)

TEAM CANADA STATISTICS

1984 Canada Cup - 2G 1A 3P (champions)

#hockey #hockey canada #nhl #ice hockey #iihf #world juniors

[rinkrats]

oh my god anon i have no clue how long ago you sent this because i'm really bad at checking the jungle of my inbox but... ahahskshqiwjdbdk THANK YOU FOR THIS? i had to stop and read all of it over and over and over again because it's incredible and i laughed every time

"SID IS A VERY STINKY BOY" i'm 💀💀💀🔪🔪🔪🥺🥺🥺🥺

#FLOWER 💖💖💖��� #sidney crosby #two-time olympic champion three-time stanley cup champion #and noted Stinky Boy #marc andre fleury #pittsburgh penguins #vegas golden knights #hockey #text

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 3.22

106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea. 238 – Gordian I and his son Gordian II are proclaimed Roman emperors. 871 – Æthelred of Wessex is defeated by a Danish invasion army at the Battle of Marton. 1508 – Ferdinand II of Aragon commissions Amerigo Vespucci chief navigator of the Spanish Empire. 1621 – The Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony sign a peace treaty with Massasoit of the Wampanoags. 1622 – Jamestown massacre: Algonquians kill 347 English settlers around Jamestown, Virginia, a third of the colony's population, during the Second Anglo-Powhatan War. 1630 – The Massachusetts Bay Colony outlaws the possession of cards, dice, and gaming tables. 1638 – Anne Hutchinson is expelled from Massachusetts Bay Colony for religious dissent. 1713 – The Tuscarora War comes to an end with the fall of Fort Neoheroka, effectively opening up the interior of North Carolina to European colonization. 1739 – Nader Shah occupies Delhi in India and sacks the city, stealing the jewels of the Peacock Throne. 1765 – The British Parliament passes the Stamp Act that introduces a tax to be levied directly on its American colonies. 1784 – The Emerald Buddha is moved with great ceremony to its current location in Wat Phra Kaew, Thailand. 1794 – The Slave Trade Act of 1794 bans the export of slaves from the United States, and prohibits American citizens from outfitting a ship for the purpose of importing slaves. 1829 – In the London Protocol, the three protecting powers (United Kingdom, France and Russia) establish the borders of Greece. 1849 – The Austrians defeat the Piedmontese at the Battle of Novara. 1871 – In North Carolina, William Woods Holden becomes the first governor of a U.S. state to be removed from office by impeachment. 1873 – The Spanish National Assembly abolishes slavery in Puerto Rico. 1894 – The first playoff game for the Stanley Cup starts. 1895 – Before the Société pour L'Encouragement à l'Industrie, brothers Auguste and Louis Lumière demonstrate movie film technology publicly for the first time. 1896 – Charilaos Vasilakos wins the first modern Olympic marathon race with a time of three hours and 18 minutes. 1906 – The first England vs France rugby union match is played at Parc des Princes in Paris. 1913 – Mystic Phan Xích Long, the self-proclaimed Emperor of Vietnam, is arrested for organising a revolt against the colonial rule of French Indochina, which was nevertheless carried out by his supporters the following day. 1920 – Azeri and Turkish army soldiers with participation of Kurdish gangs attack the Armenian inhabitants of Shushi (Nagorno Karabakh). 1933 – Cullen–Harrison Act: President Franklin Roosevelt signs an amendment to the Volstead Act, legalizing the manufacture and sale of "3.2 beer" (3.2% alcohol by weight, approximately 4% alcohol by volume) and light wines. 1939 – Germany takes Memel from Lithuania. 1942 – World War II: In the Mediterranean Sea, the Royal Navy confronts Italy's Regia Marina in the Second Battle of Sirte. 1943 – World War II: The entire village of Khatyn (in what is the present-day Republic of Belarus) is burnt alive by Schutzmannschaft Battalion 118. 1945 – World War II: The city of Hildesheim, Germany is heavily damaged in a British air raid, though it had little military significance and Germany was on the verge of final defeat. 1945 – The Arab League is founded when a charter is adopted in Cairo, Egypt. 1960 – Arthur Leonard Schawlow and Charles Hard Townes receive the first patent for a laser. 1972 – The United States Congress sends the Equal Rights Amendment to the states for ratification. 1972 – In Eisenstadt v. Baird, the United States Supreme Court decides that unmarried persons have the right to possess contraceptives. 1975 – A fire at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Decatur, Alabama causes a dangerous reduction in cooling water levels. 1978 – Karl Wallenda of The Flying Wallendas dies after falling off a tight-rope suspended between two hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 1982 – NASA's Space Shuttle Columbia is launched from the Kennedy Space Center on its third mission, STS-3. 1992 – USAir Flight 405 crashes shortly after takeoff from New York City's LaGuardia Airport, leading to a number of studies into the effect that ice has on aircraft. 1992 – Fall of communism in Albania: The Democratic Party of Albania wins a decisive majority in the parliamentary election. 1993 – The Intel Corporation ships the first Pentium chips (80586), featuring a 60 MHz clock speed, 100+ MIPS, and a 64 bit data path. 1995 – Cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov returns to earth after setting a record of 438 days in space. 1997 – Tara Lipinski, aged 14 years and nine months, becomes the youngest women's World Figure Skating Champion. 2004 – Ahmed Yassin, co-founder and leader of the Palestinian Sunni Islamist group Hamas, two bodyguards, and nine civilian bystanders are killed in the Gaza Strip when hit by Israeli Air Force Hellfire missiles. 2006 – Three Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT) hostages are freed by British forces in Baghdad after 118 days of captivity and the murder of their colleague from the U.S., Tom Fox. 2013 – At least 37 people are killed and 200 are injured after a fire destroys a camp containing Burmese refugees near Ban Mae, Thailand. 2016 – Three suicide bombers kill 32 people and injure 316 in the 2016 Brussels bombings at the airport and at the Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station. 2017 – A terrorist attack in London near the Houses of Parliament leaves four people dead and at least 20 injured. 2019 – The Mueller report on the election of Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election is submitted to the United States Attorney General. 2019 – Two buses crashes in Kitampo, a town north of Ghana's capital Accra, killing at least 50 people. 2020 – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces the country's largest ever self-imposed curfew, in an effort to fight the spread of COVID-19. 2020 – Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announces the country's first ever self-imposed curfew, in an effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.

#Events

[sidcrosbybro]

a badly explained introduction to the pittsburgh penguins

sidney crosby: the captain, has literally not stopped working since he was a baby, loves candy Too Much, once almost died because of a mozzarella stick, keeps adopting other players as his own

evgeni “geno” malkin: an alternate, true MVP, very tall, ran away from his home country to play in the nhl, really loves animals

kris “tanger” letang: also an alternate, bang bang, angry french canadian who takes no shit, has no time for referees and really loves causing trouble

matt murray: a goal guardian, fantastic at his job, won the stanley cup in his rookie year, has two really big dogs

phil kessel: a two time stanley cup champion, can’t stop won’t stop, loves his sister a lot, argues with geno because he cares

patric “horny” hornqvist: yes you heard me, his name is horny, an absolute net Goblin, other teams hate him, professional Mischief Maker

carl hagelin: “did you know he’s my best friend” -horny, beautiful flowing locks, possibly magic, loves his teammates a lot

jake guentzel: Absolute Legend in the 2017 playoffs, like seriously dang jake, really likes scoring, adopted by sidney crosby, one of the “kids”

conor sheary: another of the “kids”, short but won’t let that stop him, got cut from his high school team for being too little, a soft boy, went by the wrong name for two years because he didn’t want to correct anyone on the pronunciation

olli määttä: everyone thought he was real quiet til the last cup parade, best friends n neighbours with justin schultz, close friends with the captain, likes to nap outside

justin schultz: sometimes gets called jeff, no teeth, very good at his job, likes to have a Good Time™

bryan “rusty” rust: never stops working hard, hits the post a lot, even with empty nets, no one will let him live because of it, has cute dogs

tom kuhnhackl: A GERMAN BOY, really loves germany, has a famous hockey player dad in germany, looks like a soft excited puppy constantly, locked himself in a plane bathroom to scream about the olympics

brian “dumo” dumoulin: a literal Frat Boy™, worked really hard to get his degree and we’re proud of him, once celebrated winning the cup by drinking three beers all at once

carter rowney: a sweetheart, recently had a baby, just looks happy to be here tbh

chad ruhwedel: Oh Chad, he’s chill, was on a roller hockey team in high school

jamie “big rig” oleksiak: a New Boy, really big, like really big, will defend literally any teammate, it would be stupid to fight him, really loved by pittsburgh

matt hunwick: disappears a lot, kind of a mystery? has played for five different NHL teams now

dominik simon: czech lad, a Wilkes-Barre boy, has fluffy hair and does his best

zach “ZAR” aston-reese: fought a dude in preseason and won, it was hot, another Wilkes-Barre boy, does good things for this team and we should be proud

derick “brass” brassard: the NEWEST boy, really good at playoffs, excited to be here, has a nice face and works really hard

riley sheahan: another new boy, rescued and now appreciated, looks soft in hoodies

tristan jarry: backup goal guardian, very sweet, has a big dog, always looks calm to the point it’s unnerving, likes to take adventure out of his crease, will never live down falling over that one time, does his best and does amazing

#pens lb #this took so long

[bittysvalentines]

when you remember what you forgot

To: @maramcgregor

From: @thewesternredcedar

Happy Bitty’s Valentines, maramcgregor!! Your prompts were all super inspiring, but I was feeling seasonal so I went with a timely classic: Olympics AU! Please take AU seriously, though, as all sorts of stuff is shifted around, like when Jack OD’d and that Bitty is a figure skater still, and more- even the Olympic city is AU for my own storytelling purposes. Thanks to dear wrathofthestag for her beta work as well!

I hope you enjoy this!! *hugs* ___________________

TV Commentator 1: The torch has almost reached the stadium now, and we’ll finally learn who will actually bring it through the tunnel.

 TV Commentator 2: I’m on pins and needles, honestly.

 TVC1: I have my guesses. Don’t you?

 TVC2: There has been so much speculation, especially based on Montreal’s theme of “The Olympic Family.” Canada has so many superstars who are a part of that legacy of winter sports excellence.

 TVC1: Oh, and we can see a runner coming now with the torch, and the crowd is simply roaring. What a moment. It’s Team Canada’s captain, gold medalist Jack Zimmermann.

 TVC2: What a perfect moment for Zimmermann. Closing the circle on his long journey back to the pinnacle of his sport. So much focus on his personal life in the past, but now he’s just here as an athlete representing his country. What a moment. Listen to that crowd.

 TVC1: He’s taking this job seriously, look at that face. That’s the face of a proud Canadian and a proud Olympian.

 TVC2: He’s back for his second Olympics this year, after so many said he couldn’t get back here. What a moment for him, here in his hometown...

 TVC1: Oh goodness, look who is coming out now to take the torch from Jack.

 TVC2: Oh wow.

 TVC1: Four-time Stanley Cup champion and gold medalist Bob Zimmermann. Bad Bob, truly a legend in hockey.

 TVC2: Taking the torch from his son, what an iconic moment for Canada.

 TVC1: What a journey it has been for this family. So many public ups and downs, and now to be here. Truly an Olympic family and an Olympic story. My goodness.

*

 The stadium was enormous and darkened, so Jack didn’t look up, just watched the few feet of space in front of him, making sure he kept his feet and stayed in the light, taking the steady pace they’d suggested during rehearsal.

 He'd marched in with the team during the Parade of Nations and then been hustled out to quickly change and make his way to the tunnel for his run. There was hardly time for a breath.

 He’d been here before, of course, four years ago. But he’d needed to be so stoned on benzos to make it through the Opening Ceremonies, he didn’t remember much, just an exhausted and colorful blur.

 He’d come a long way since then. Far enough that he was ready to be back here, through rehab, finally on the right meds, in regular therapy, three years of progress, fully vetted by the Olympics committee. Captain.

 But still, it was impossible to look up.

 “I’m here, Jack.”

 His father’s voice, so close. Jack looked and there he was, his hand outstretched, eyes shining.

 “Here you go, Papa.”

 “Run with me?”

 Jack felt himself smile a little.

 “Yeah. Okay.”

 They took a few steps together and then a few more at a run before Jack let go and watched his father jog away from him, all of the spotlights and cameras following and leaving Jack alone in the darkness.

 It had all happened so fast, he wasn’t sure what to think.

 “You can go in through the athletes now and rejoin your team, Mr. Zimmermann.”

 The same helpful woman who had assisted him getting into place was suddenly at his elbow, holding out his team hat and sweater so he could change. “Canada is just on the other side of the U.S. here, through Norway. Would you like me to take you?”

 “No, I’m fine.”

 She led him to the edge of the roped in area that was swarming with American athletes, most of whom were still watching the torch’s progress towards the cauldron on the big screen, but several of whom were ignoring that in favor of taking pictures of Jack or shouting congratulations. She held the rope up for him to join them.

 Pats on the shoulder (and ass) from familiar faces and a couple of teammates who stopped him for hugs and chirps, fist bumps and high fives from random skiers and bobsledders, Jack threaded his way through the Americans. He’d almost made it to the next rope when one more voice managed to call out to him, distinct from the general din.

 “Jack Zimmermann? Hey. That was amazing!”

 A shorter blond man, familiar. Maybe from TV? Jack wasn’t sure.

 “Thanks.” Jack stopped in his tracks. The guy’s face was framed with little curls peeking out from his under his hat, cheeks flushed and lips red. Jack felt himself staring.

 “Glad we get to bump into each other again. Four years, oh lord.”

 The man was having to shout to be heard over the noise of the crowd.

 Jack wracked his brain trying to remember. “We met last time,” he shouted back.

 “We sat together at that athlete’s breakfast thing? Remember? I think I talked you to death. Sorry we never got the chance to meet up again.”

 Jack’s brain made the connection. He’d just watched an interview with the US Figure Skating Silver Medalist two days ago. “Eric Bittle.”

 A smile lit up Bittle’s face. “Yep. That’s me.”

 The holes in his memory from his first Olympic experience suddenly gaped open, vast chasms of people and events that Jack desperately wished he could somehow get back.

 Eric Bittle was still talking, his hands rubbing together in what looked like nerves. “I just wanted a chance to tell you… how much it meant, in my sport, that you were willing to do what you did in yours. You know. Coming out. It just was a… life changer. Really.”

 At that moment, the crowd around them started to roar, far louder than before. Jack swung around to look at the big screen.

 Eric Bittle leaned in close. “Oh lord, we did not just miss the cauldron lighting! I’m so sorry. I’d best stop distracting you, honey.”

 Jack shook his head, and shouted back, right in to Eric’s ear, “It’s fine.”

 The noise started to die down.

 “You get yourself back home to Canada, before I make you miss anything else.”

 Eric Bittle patted him on the arm and gave him a sweet smile. Jack could feel himself still staring.

 “Yeah. Okay,” he muttered.

 Bittle had already turned back to a group of athletes behind him to gawk at the spectacle unfolding around them.

 Jack slunk under the ropes between nations, ignoring the fireworks, and started to make his way across Norway.

 *

 Jack met up with his parents after the ceremony, still in the sea of bodies as it started to disperse.

 “Glad I roped you into this, kiddo?” his father asked with a gentle punch to the shoulder. “That was quite a ride.”

 “It was great, Papa.”

 Oddly, Jack had hardly thought about his torch run since it happened.

 Someone tapped Bob on the shoulder and he was cheerfully dragged aside into an interview, already offering sound bites as he turned to their camera. Jack’s mother pulled Jack into a hug then, her hands softly rubbing circles on his back.

 “I’m so proud of my boys,” she murmured.

 “Maman, could you see whether my schedule conflicts with men’s singles figure skating?”

 She pulled back to look Jack in the eye, brush a stray hair out of his face. “Sure, honey. If it works, do you want me to get tickets?”

 Jack thinks back to those little blond curls, wide brown eyes. “Yeah, maybe.”

 His father turned to them at that moment and gestured for Jack to join him in the interview.

 Jack took a deep breath, and went.

 *

 Back at his room in the gorgeous building where the team was being housed, Jack collapsed into a chair, wrung out and exhausted.

 He’d had a vague memory as he’d walked back across the plaza: of four years ago, standing in the cold, freezing his ass off while someone short and blond used his phone. But he was probably remembering wrong.

 Jack scrolled through his contacts anyway. He had hundreds, and he never sorted through them, even when he’d changed phones. Years of “we should get together” and “text me some time” merged into a huge list of unfamiliar names and numbers he’d never used once.

 There it was, partway down the list. Eric B. Jack’s heart picked up its pace a bit. It couldn’t be him.

 Jack Is this Bittle?

 Jack hit send and then twitchy panic flooded his legs. It was probably someone else that he’d forgotten, some prospect named Eric he’d housed for a night or some trainer who’d hoped Jack would call him for another session.

 The panic was electrical; he had to hop up and do something with the charge in his body. He did twenty push-ups and then changed into his pajama bottoms and brushed his teeth. When he came back to his phone, there was a response waiting.

 Eric B It is. Who’s this?

 Jack froze and read the text five times, slowly.

 Jack Jack

 Jack Zimmermann

 Eric B Jack Zimmermann?

 Jack I think you gave me your number four years ago, and I’m finally using it.

 Eric B Well that’s a kick! Better late than never, as my MooMaw would say

 Jack could feel his face heat at Eric’s conversational tone. Like he might be happy that Jack had gotten in touch.

 Jack I didn’t get to thank you for what you said tonight. Thanks.

 Eric B Oh honey. There’s so many of us this year, Jack. I can’t tell you enough how much your coming out meant to us.</I>

 Eric B To me.

 Jack had to stand up again for a moment. He walked in a quick circle around the room before he could answer.

 Jack It was the right thing for me to do for myself. I’m glad it helped you too.

 There was long pause after Jack sent this message. Maybe that was all either of them had to say?

 His text alert went off again after a minute.

 Eric B So, when’s your first game?

 Jack settled down and leaned back in his chair, pulling his feet up to tuck under him. Was this an actual conversation?

 Jack Thursday. When do you start?

 *

 Jack had gotten to sleep finally, way too late, after an extended text exchange with Eric in which he’d learned quite a lot about the upcoming figure skating schedule, good recipes for jam, and the story of Eric’s own tricky public coming out last year.

 He grabbed his phone in the morning and looked at the last text Eric had sent, just to be sure he was remembering correctly.

 Eric B Hope we can talk more soon. Anytime, okay?

 Eric had to compete today, day one. Jack’s hands got clammy just thinking about it.

 He stood in the hot shower for a long time, pondering his day: breakfast with his parents, team skate, interviews at one o’clock, and then, if his mother had worked it out, tickets to the figure skating venue in the afternoon.

 He needed to get his head around being here, get focused the series of games in front of him, because honestly right now, his mind was full of nothing but Eric Bittle.

 *

 Interviewer: So Jack, you carrying the torch into the stadium was a huge moment for the LGBT community. What has it been like since you publicly revealed your sexuality last spring?

 Zimmermann: Huh. Been like? Euh, the main difference is that I get asked about it in interviews all the time.

 Interviewer (laughing): Fair enough.

 Zimmermann: People just know a little more about me. Like knowing I’m Canadian, or six foot one.

 Interviewer: But it must be interesting to be here with a larger community of athletes who are out?

 Zimmermann: Yeah, sure. There are some great role models out there, like in... lots of different sports. And there are people who aren’t ready to be out, too, which is fine. The main thing is to improve the atmosphere so people can be themselves.

 Interviewer: Indeed. Do you think that’s happened?

 Zimmermann: It will have happened when we don’t have to talk about this in interviews anymore.

 *

 Eric Bittle was very flexible.

 That was what Jack had noticed a few seconds into Eric’s short program. Well, flexible and fast. And strong. Also, really slender. And his hair fluttered in a interesting way.

 Maybe he’d noticed a few things.

 Jack’s hackles were still up from his hours with the press after lunch. It had gotten a little better once he’d been able to join a few teammates in a group interview that was almost entirely fluff about the best places to visit in Canada, but before that he’d had three interviewers in a row ask him about his sexuality, and only one of them ask him anything specific about hockey.

 He’d stewed next to his mother for several skaters before Eric’s name was finally announced. He was fully aware of the cameras that were probably seeking out familiar faces in the crowd, and would no doubt find him, and then speculate.

 However, Eric’s leg could (apparently) extend entirely above his head in more than one direction, and honestly, that thought alone wiped clean Jack’s entire frustrating afternoon in one stroke.

 At the end of Eric’s program, as the crowd waited for the scores, a few people threw stuffed animals or flowers onto the ice. Jack watched as they got gathered up.

 “I should have brought something,” Jack muttered to himself, out loud.

 His mother looked at him, her brows raised. “You... wanted to… ?”

 Jack felt his cheeks go hot. “Oh, no. I just… I know him. Eric. But I’ll just send him a text.”

 Jack’s mother stared at him for a long moment, biting her lower lip. “Oh. Well when you do, tell him I thought it was a beautiful skate.”

 Jack’s cheeks got hotter.

 *

 Jack My mother loved your performance.

 Jack Oh and I did too. A lot.

 Eric B Wait? Are you here???

 Jack Yes

 Eric B Come say hi!!!

 “Honey?”

 Jack stared at his screen and then met his mother’s curious expression. “I just… Eric is asking… if we could meet up.”

 His mother’s eyebrows raised. “Oh?”

 “I thought he’d be busy… so. But it’s fine, never mind.” Jack looked back at his phone and then tucked it quickly into his pocket.

 “No. Go see your friend, honey. Papa and I will find you again later.” Jack wasn’t sure how he felt about the little knowing smile on his mother’s face.

 *

 “Jack Zimmermann, what in heck are you even doin’ here?”

 Eric pulled away from a gaggle of people and came dashing over to him in the cold concrete corridor, fully decked out in a cute zippered Team USA hoodie and some extremely form-fitting leggings that Jack had to look away from quickly.

 A huge set of badges were clattering against his chest as he ran over to him and pulled him into an enthusiastic hug. Jack’s body froze for a moment in surprise before his stubborn arms agreed to wrap around Eric’s back for a moment.

 The official who had led Jack back to the skaters’ area looked rapidly between the two of them, gave a quick nod, and left.

 “I got tickets. To…” Jack hesitated just a moment, but he’d already started the sentence so there was no going back. “... see you. Uh. Skate.”

 Eric’s cheeks pinked up and he shook his head. “Well that’s just a hoot and half cause you won’t believe what I finagled this morning? Tickets to your first game!”

 Jack thought his heartbeat might be visible through his skin. “Huh. Really?”

 Jack’s brain was flooded with the fact that now he was gonna have to score at least one goal on Thursday.

 Eric smiled then, his entire face lighting up. “Great minds, I suppose!”

 Jack couldn’t stop staring at him. The silence lingered just a bit too long before Jack managed to clear his throat and say, “Congratulations, Bittle. You were really great.”

 Eric shook his head, still grinning. “Lord, Jack, it went so well. I mean, I’m skatin’ in the goldarn Olympics. The team is fourth after the shorts! I cannot believe it!”

 Eric’s enthusiasm was so infectious, Jack found himself laughing a little. Eric’s eyes were so deeply brown, and he could not stop looking at them. Shit.

 “I should let you get back,” Jack managed.

 Eric licked his lips, and then said, sort of tentatively, “Jack, uh, you must have practice and all sorts of stuff you gotta do, right? Torch-guy interviews and all?”

 “Euh, when?”

 “Later?”

 “Today? No. I don’t have anything else today. Why?” Jack had hopes, but he didn’t want to even hint at them.

 “Well, Katya will literally murder me if I do anything right now but go back to my apartment and stay there, probably to use the crappy-ass oven to bake something so I don’t pass out from stress...” Eric’s cheeks were so pink Jack wanted to touch them just to see how warm they were. “But, well. She never said I needed to be alone, if you wanna keep me company.”

 Jack’s ability to communicate had been reduced to head nods and single syllables. “Huh. Sure.”

 Eric smiled and rested a hand on Jack’s forearm. “I gotta warn you, though, after I’ve skated, I don’t stop talking for hours.”

 Jack laughed and swallowed. “I won’t be a distraction?”

 Eric leaned in conspiratorially and said under his breath, “Well shit, Jack, I was kinda hoping you would be.”

 The official-looking group of people that Eric had been with were now all looking over at them with interest. A photographer down the hall had his lens pointing right at them.

 Jack felt like he was on the edge of something, a steep cliff, ready to fall or fly. But this was it. He’d come out so he didn’t have to pretend anymore, so he could march into a stadium of thousands of people, into a world of millions, and not have to pretend. Seemed like Eric Bittle was done with pretending, too.

 “I do like baked goods,” Jack said.

 Eric waggled his eyebrows. “Match made in heaven, honey.”

 They walked out of the arena together.

#maramcgregor #fanfic #bv2018 #bittysvalentines #bittyjack

[rinkrats]

Last summer, Colorado Avalanche star and fellow Nova Scotia boy Nathan MacKinnon told the world about his youth workouts with Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby. MacKinnon was a teenager set to begin his NHL journey, and Crosby was already an established Stanley Cup champion with Art Ross and Hart Trophies. Yet as they raced up the dunes of the Newfoundland beaches, Crosby had to win.

Crosby won, again and again. Until finally, MacKinnon took the lead on their last race…and he was promptly tackled by Crosby, who then surged past.

...They are hockey’s Big 4. Gretzky, Lemieux, Howe, and Orr. Maybe it’s time for hockey to have the Big 5, which includes Crosby.

“Sidney Crosby checks all the boxes of Stardom in his 15 Seasons of NHL hockey. (Crosby is) a model of consistency and excellence. He fits right in there with the greats of the game,” legendary coach Scotty Bowman told Pittsburgh Hockey Now. “When they describe generation type players, he fits the bill perfectly.”

Dominance takes a different form than flashing red lights in 2020. Dominance is about puck control and a single goal more than the opponent, not a handful. It’s about overcoming adversity and winning.

In addition to the all-time greats, there is a second tier of players such as Mark Messier and Jaromir Jagr, who left indelible prints upon their time but were mere mortals compared to the Top Four. Crosby was part of that crew, but his continued dominance in the salary cap era, which doesn’t just suppress team greatness, it attempts to forbid it, carries him beyond great to all-time great.

Through it all, there has been Crosby. From the kid who willed the Penguins to the 2009 Stanley Cup, the superstar who cut the ice in Vancouver until he scored the Golden Goal to lift Canada to an Olympic gold medal on home soil, to the veteran leader who cast aside personal achievements in favor of two more Stanley Cups, Crosby had defined the generation.

It is also fitting in the first nationally recognized Outdoor Classic with snow falling and nearly impossible ice conditions, it was Crosby who scored the game-winner in a shootout in front of an international audience.

The game checked all of the boxes for the heart and soul of hockey. And so does Crosby.

...“The way I like to describe it is this — if you beamed Sid back into any era in hockey history, he would dominate. The other players would have to adjust to him. And they would have great difficulty doing that,” said longtime Pittsburgh Penguins broadcaster Paul Steigerwald, who had a front-row seat for Lemieux, too. “There is nothing he does that anyone in previous eras did better.”

Of players who have at least 500 points, Crosby is the active points per game leader with 1.28 per game. In nearly 200 fewer games, Crosby trails current active leading scorer Alex Ovechkin by just 15 points. Crosby has 1263 points in only 984 games.

Crosby won’t get to 1000 games until next season, whenever that might be, but he’ll soon surpass 1338 points, which would put him into the top 30 all-time. With another 327 points, which at the current pace is about four more seasons, Crosby will surpass Phil Esposito for 10th all-time.

“In the early 1990s, he would have scored 75 goals, over 200 points. He would shred people in the ’60s, ’70s, and 80s. Mario, Wayne, and Jagr would have had another player to contend with for scoring titles if Sid were suddenly to appear,” Steigerwald continued.

...Unfortunately, like his owner and briefly his teammate Mario Lemieux, Crosby missed nearly two full seasons in his prime. While back issues got Lemieux, concussions, and a soft tissue neck injury, which masqueraded as a concussion derailed Crosby.

With those lost seasons, Crosby would be approaching 1500 points. Over the last 14 years, which encapsulates the salary cap era, only three players have won multiple Art Ross trophies. Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins teammate Evgeni Malkin and Connor McDavid are the only ones to win the award a second time.

Crosby doesn’t just have speed and skill. Or just toughness and vision. Crosby doesn’t just have hands and a hockey IQ above everyone else. He has all of those things. He is unique among current players, but perhaps not so unique among the all-time greats.

It doesn’t seem out of line to compare Crosby to Gordie Howe, who did everything, too. And does anyone want to bet against Crosby also playing until he’s 50?

“His conditioning, vision, hockey IQ, grinding ability, explosive speed, playmaking and scoring ability would be overwhelming (in any era),” Steigerwald concluded.

-Putting Sidney Crosby Among the All-time Greatest, 11 May 2020

#sidney crosby #text

[zashamalkin]

Hockey with the Malkins

Match TV interview with Geno and Anna below the cut. 

The Match TV observer attended the filming of a touching family mini-film, in which Nikita Malkin, the son of Pittsburgh forward Yevgeny Malkin and our channel's TV star Anna Kasterova, made his debut as an actor.

If you only knew how much work it costs to shoot a one-minute clip for Match TV! A lot of TV cameras, an operator rolling on the ice on a segway - he must catch a good frame and keep balance on a hydro scooter. Producers, screenwriters, technicians.

This is the process I found myself in when I arrived at the skating rink in Maryina Roscha, where the Malkins were filming. We get up carefully at the side with Anna Kasterova so as not to get into the frame when Zhenya and their son Nikita are caught in the lens, who score a goal into the opposite goal. And we are streaming on Instagram @matchtv_channel . And the questions are not even from me, but rather from the fans. These questions come to us live.

- Anya, you recently returned to the big broadcast, you work for Match TV. What emotions?

- Even in the tenth year of broadcasts, I will say that before each release I feel some degree of excitement. This is normal and natural. And you also need to feed on information. One broadcast I have - the Football Champions League, the second broadcast - the Biathlon World Cup ... Everywhere you have to be in the subject to feel confident.

- Is this the first joint shooting of Zhenya and Nikita?

- Yes, except for my videos for Instagram ... And here is my child! - Anya reacts to Nikita passing behind the glass. - I think he keeps well on the ice for his four years.

- How do you teach your son to hockey?

- Dad and coaches teach. Individually. Nikita spends a lot of time on the ice, and this is the most important thing.

- Does Zhenya feel like a fish in water on the set?

- I think he is very comfortable. Moreover, Zhenya skates in the frame, plays hockey and does what he loves. But for Nikita, this is the first serious shooting. And I noticed that the kid was a little worried. A huge number of people around, a film crew. Everyone says something, sets some tasks.

- Is it hard to be a hockey player like Malkin?

- And what do you think? Of course, you have to work hard. Zhenya has training sessions almost every day. And in the offseason there can be two of them.

During the season, you get up at seven in the morning every day. Regular flights, matches, one day off every 10 days. You have to watch your health - the older, the more. Only healthy lifestyle, alcohol to a minimum. Eugene does not use at all during the season.

Plus, when you are a star of that level, there are always great expectations from you. And this also puts pressure on the psyche. And think for yourself whether it is easy to live like this.

- Even jet lag is not a joke when there are four or six flights a week.

- It is easier to fly around America, there the maximum time difference is three hours. This is if you get from Pittsburgh to California. But I think that Zhenya has already got used to such a regime during his career.

- Can you imagine in your family that Nikita Malkin will become a goalkeeper?

- No!

- Why?

- Well I do not know. The kid looks good with a stick and a puck. But time will tell. When he is only four years old, it is difficult to say something.

- Zhenya's parents look at Nikita ... They remember Yevgeny Malkin at the age of four - and they see Nikita Malkin at the age of four. Does the son look like his father in terms of inclinations?

- There are no such comparisons. And you understand that these are grandparents. For them, the grandson is a priori better. Plus Nikita has more privileges and opportunities with such and such a dad. Zhenya had fewer of them. What is better and how? Time will show.

Yes, the baby is only four years old. He has zeal, some kind of success. But everything will be clear only in a few years.

- We're talking the day after the official All-Russian Hockey Day. You probably don't celebrate this holiday in your family ...

- Well, we have arrived! Why not? Of course, we celebrate! I even gave my wife a gift, I prepared it specially. This is his professional holiday.

- What would you wish for your husband?

- The fourth Stanley Cup is understandable. And also - Olympic gold. This is real, and I really hope so.

Filming lasted about five hours. Maybe even six. When I caught Evgeni Malkin already in the corridor on the way to the car, the Pittsburgh forward looked like after an intense hockey game.

- What is harder, Evgeny - to play a hockey match or to have such an acting shift?

- When you are filming, it is very exhausting! And you feel out of place. Somewhere you need to show acting skills, somewhere to look good on camera. It is very difficult.

When you skate on ice, yes, it's mine. But shooting outdoors, indoors, not to mention the stage, is a completely different job. And she squeezes you out emotionally. What if you forget some words? You must always be mobilized. But this is also interesting.

- Nikita skates very well at the age of four. How do you teach your son?

- I'm working with him. Plus, on the set there was coach Dima, who also works with Nikita. And the son also goes to school with children on Saturdays and Sundays. That is, there are about five classes a week. And I am always on the ice when Nikita is engaged. Somewhere I give a hint, somewhere I consult with the coach what is the best to do. We can say that I am sharing my experience.

- It is also important for children which coach you get. And then there were recently scandalous cases when the coach knocked children with a club on the helmet. These videos were tearing the web apart. Although Nikita Kucherov and Nikita Gusev went through such a school ...

- Now there is a different world, different priorities. I will not let anyone bang my child on the head with a club. But I will not hide, I also went through this hockey school. There were moments that the coach could shout. Sometimes he treated us harshly.

You should understand that there is one coach and 20 players in the group who do whatever they want in training. Now I go to children's workouts and I see it all. These are children, they are naughty, they run in different directions. Sometimes the coach can break loose and even scream.

I urge you not to be aggressive. You have to be patient and control yourself. Although I understand coaches and teachers that it is difficult to work with a large group of children. And it is necessary not only to control them, but also the parents who are standing around and shouting from behind the side are completely different.

Of course, children need to be handled carefully. You need to love them and not discourage them from playing hockey.

12/16/20

#evgeni malkin #anna kasterova #nikita malkin #match tv #off season 2020 #moscow #12/16/2020