Canadian Media Say What?!

Earlier this afternoon, my good friend Jeremy from Section303.com forwarded me the following link from The Province (a Western Canadian news source): Study: Women Not Much Into Pro Sports

Now, if you can't already tell from the title of the article, there was a study conducted by a leading Canadian sociologist in 2008 regarding women and sports. The study concluded that women would be more likely to socialize and "fiddle with their cell phones at a sporting event" over watching the actual game. There were also drastic differences in the percentages of male to female fans who followed any major professional sport at all. It should be noted, however, that the sport with the greatest percentage of female followers was the NHL; where female fans made up roughly 33% of the researched population.

Overall, the research showed that women were far less enthused by professional sports than were men. And guess what? I'm not the least bit surprised. One might assume that I would be incensed by such a claim and would have much to argue against such a case; organizing a rousing sing-a-long of "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better". But let's be "serious" for a moment...women ARE in the minority when it comes to being fans of sports or having much knowledge about sports in general. This is as much a study of gender bias as it is a study of cultural expectations. Girls who show interest in sports/athletics during their formative years often have to overcome the stigma of appearing masculine and let's face it, lesbian, in the eyes of their peers, male OR female. Androgyny is not something that is viewed as particularly appealing while you're fighting your way through puberty.

Women who like sports, follow sports and are passionate about sports are often seen as the exception to the rule. This discovery either comes as a pleasant surprise or a dumbfounded shock, depending on the recipient of such information. While I'd like to think that my affinity for sports (hockey, most specifically) makes me stand out in a sea of carbon copy women, I'm not offended if, upon learning this news, one might be inclined to recoil slightly in disbelief, finding my passion a hard pill to swallow. Being a sports lover might be the antithesis of some men's fantasies about the ideal woman and I'm okay with that too. Who I am is not for everybody. Women might be the minority contingent in the sporting world (both in number of fans and athletes), yet I think we more than make up for it in our passion for the game.

I may be small but I do have a pretty loud voice.

In this instance, I'm proud to be in the minority.

Step It Up: The Dan Hamhuis Edition

Photo by Wes Cunningham. Used with permission.

At the ripe old age of 26 [side note: boy, do I feel old], Dan Hamhuis is the oldest and most NHL-experienced defenseman on the team. Now, when you think of defensemen who really get the job done for us, Dan Hamhuis is not normally the first one to come to mind. Well, at least for me, he’s not. The powerhouse pairing of Ryan Suter and Shea Weber (whom I affectionately refer to as “The Twins”) are my go-to guys for defense. Even just a season ago, I would not have had such great things to say about Suter because I was always disappointed in his effort. BUT, he stepped up his game over the course of the ’08-’09 season and eventually won a first class ticket to my hockey loving heart...and I didn’t even have to call him out. On the other hand, Shea Weber had pretty much already secured himself a place in my heart towards the end of the ’07-’08 season and his performance over this past season just sealed the deal. I LOVE me some Shea Weber.

But poor, poor Dan Hamhuis...maybe he’s too under assuming and soft spoken for me to really turn my attention towards him. The guy has been on our team for years and yet he's never given me reason enough to notice him. At the end of each season, I find myself underwhelmed with his performance on a whole. If you look at his numbers over the past three seasons, the most you can say is that he remains consistent. While staying consistent on a team like the Predators (where their ability to remain consistently inconsistent is a constant thorn in my side) is no small feat; for a defenseman in the prime (one would assume) of his playing years, Hammer should be gearing up for a stellar season. But is he? I’m afraid he might resort to yet another “Mehhh” performance. So what if he’s got a killer hip check? Hip checks don’t get the job done on the blueline. And yes, some could argue that Dan might find it a little harder to be a breakout star this upcoming season now that his defensive partner, Greg Zanon, will be playing for the Wild. But I would argue that now, more than ever, is when Hamhuis finally steps it up and becomes a leader on the ice, right along side Suter and Weber. Young guys like Cody Franson, Teemu Laasko and Alexander Sulzer are ready to fill in the remaining spots left open on the blueline. Their entire NHL careers are ahead of them and I’m sure they are more than willing to show what they can bring to the game. They still play hockey for the love of the game and the pursuit of something they’ve been waiting for their entire lives. I’d like to see a little bit of that spark in Hammer this time around. And do I even need to mention the fact that it's his contract year?!

With the lack of true veteran experience in our defensive core, it is time for someone to take their role a little more seriously. And that someone is Dan Hamhuis.

On a related note: Chris Chelios as a Predator? Umm, I don't think so....

Ryan Jones!

Ryan Jones Returns with Two-Year Deal

All was quiet on the Predators front for the last few weeks. This news should have people talking for a little while, deciding where best Mr. Locks of Love will fit into the line up every night.

I think he will perform very well if he is allowed to be consistently paired with a solid line. Like Joel Ward, he has the ability to score some timely goals. And like former Predator, now Philadelphia Flyer Scott Hartnell, this kid is great at staying in front of the net and waiting for that perfect pass.

On an obscure side note, every time I hear his name, I think back to Full House when Joey was the host of a kid's show called "Ranger Joe". It had a theme song that went "Ranger Joe, Ranger Joe, he's the greatest guy I know...Ranger Joe!" Insert "Ryan Jones" where Ranger Joe would be and he's already got his own theme song. My mind, it is a curious thing. You don't have to tell me; I already know I'm weird.

[I looked for a sample of this on YouTube but had no luck...]

Another One Bites The Dust

Twitter Me This: cellblock303: Antti Pihlstrom makes it official, he's headed to Farjestad

Quick, how do you say goodbye in Finnish? This move doesn't surprise me in the least. He's probably better off for it anyway.

Näkemiin [goodbye in Finnish], Antti. The only thing I will miss about you is your ridiculous blonde hair and the way it stuck out all crazy from underneath your helmet.

Step It Up: The Jerred Smithson Edition

First, we lost Vernon Fiddler to Phoenix. Then Scott Nichol moved on to sign with San Jose. And though no official announcement has been made (that I know of), Radek Bonk ran off to the KHL to join Radulov in some Russian hockey love. Thinking back to the 2008-2009 season roster, none of these guys were really integral cogs in the grand scheme of things. But if you look at what they were better at than others, you would find that they all had pretty solid (if not close to top-notch) skills at the face off dot. Between the three, Fiddler’s percentage was the lowest with 54.1%, Bonk at an impressive 59.9% (third overall in the NHL and an individual career high) and Nichol with 54.6%, which, let’s face it, is pretty good considering he played less games than most.

So why am I calling out Jerred Smithson, you ask? Well, in terms of guys left on the team who find themselves more often than not at the face off dot...Jerred Smithson’s your guy. At a 52.6% FO win percentage, his numbers are pretty darn good. Looking at who is left on the team to help in the face off wins, this is where it gets kind of sticky. Jordin Tootoo walked away with a 56.2% FO average last season but that number is skewed due to the small number of times he actually found himself in the circle; a whopping 16. Really though, the only two guys left to put any stock in are Jason Arnott at 50.6% (I can’t believe he ended the year that high because I hardly ever remember seeing him win a faceoff) and David Legwand at 49.8%. Delving further into the breakdown, Arnott and Leggy both faced over 1,000 times at the dot last season. Bonk and Smithson both faced over 700 a piece themselves. Fiddler and Nichol rounded out the list but since we’ve wiped out three of these guys, there is a drastic drop off in terms of players left who can put up these kinds of numbers. Obviously Arnott and Legwand will continue to contribute in this area but their main focus should lie beyond winning a draw. Until some of the younger players can find their bearings and start making an impact, the responsibility of winning face offs lies with more seasoned veterans of the game.

If you wonder why I even bothered to single out these statistics, here’s my reason: face offs are an essential part of the game and crucial to the success of power plays and penalty kills. Face offs can be the spark of momentum shifts in a game, leading to a goal scored and quite possibly, a game won. Radek Bonk might not have been too good at much else last season but at least he knew how to get to the puck in a draw better than almost anyone the Predators have ever had on their roster. So Jerred Smithson needs to step up his game...or really, in this case, keep it up. He averaged more shifts per game than Bonk did last season yet with an additional upside of good penalty killing instincts; something that will also be lacking with the loss of Fids and Scooter. He’s also at the start of his two-year contract extension, making more than he has in any previous season in the NHL. Honestly, I see no reason for him to NOT perform at or above where he was last year. For the success of the coming season, I surely hope his performance only gets better from here.