|
Greetings from Raleigh, North Carolina. Let’s jump right into a road trip edition of this weekly missive, with a few random thoughts written on my flight today from Washington.
Advertisement
It was an eerie sight walking into Capital One Arena on Wednesday for the Winnipeg Jets’ morning skate. Roughly 18,000 giant Alex Ovechkin heads on sticks had been placed in every empty seat for that evening’s celebration of the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer, who recently eclipsed 900 goals and 1,500 games played.
(Mike McIntyre / Free Press)
I love collecting unique sports souvenirs — I still have a Patrick Eaves replica beard the Anaheim Ducks gave away seven years ago — but I wasn’t about to swipe one from a fan. Fortunately, long after the game had ended and I’d written and filed my story on Winnipeg’s 4-3 loss to Washington, I spotted a couple of strays just waiting to be claimed.
Naturally, I pounced.
One for me. One for my son, who has always been an “Ovie” fan.
(Mike McIntyre / Free Press)
The 15-minute walk back to my hotel was a bit awkward, as the wind was howling and my two new buddies were flapping everywhere.
And yes, I got a few strange looks.
I managed to wedge them both into the bottom of my suitcase; I hope they’ll still be in reasonably good shape when I get home a week from now.
Another amusing sight came during the first intermission of Jets vs. Capitals, when a Timbits-style hockey game took the ice. Given the time of year, the kids weren’t dressed in their usual gear. No, they had turkey suits on.
It was complete and utter chaos, with fowl falling all over the ice.
One of the perks of being on the Jets beat is enjoying Thanksgiving on both sides of the border.
We have ours every October, of course. But the Jets are almost always on the road in late November, which means a second helping of turkey and all the trimmings.
I’ve spent the U.S. version in Anaheim, St. Paul (twice), Dallas, Las Vegas and now Raleigh, where I’m looking forward to a tasty meal later tonight once I’ve filed a pair of stories out of Jets practice.
And for that, I am very thankful.
Another thing I’m thankful for: the Free Press continues to see value in sending reporters like myself on the road to cover events that matter to our readers, such as games involving your beloved hockey team.
I’ve written plenty over the years about how many media outlets have stopped funding travel and why that’s a very bad thing.
As the only Winnipeg newspaper covering the Jets, the Blue Bombers and marquee events such as this week’s Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in Halifax (where colleague Taylor Allen is currently stationed) and the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy (which I’ll be attending), we’re able to bring you stories you won’t find anywhere else.
It’s how the job should be done. Unfortunately, it’s becoming a lost art.
On that note, a U.S.-based hockey writer named Sean Shapiro wrote a thoughtful column earlier this week about the issue. I found it quite insightful, and you can check it out here.
Speaking of the festive season, one of my favourite movies is Elf, starring Will Ferrell.
It hits all the right holidays notes and showcases New York City in all its Christmas glory. I’ll set my personal over/under on viewings over the next month at five — and I’ll take the over.
So you can imagine my excitement when I learned the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre was bringing the film to the stage. Not only that, but two very close family members had landed roles in the production.
It’s now up and running, with shows through Dec. 28. I’ll be seeing it once I’m back from this long road trip.
|
