Goodbye

As many of you know there will be no Canadian Goose Hockey this winter. It seems rink management had to make room for the growing youth hockey program at Johnny's Ice House. Silent has contacted rink management and pleaded the case of the team. He has said that the team has been a loyal mainstay at the rink for the past ten years. The team has built many relationships with other players and rink personnel. Also CG has played competatively in the B league for all of the years it has been at Johnny's, making it to the finals in 4 of the past ten seasons and winning the championship three times. Silent stated that the team would go to the Stanley Club after the games if it was required, he was told that bar attendence had nothing to do with the teams ouster. Silent also suggested that the team could move up to the A league or down to B2 league, this suggestion was also revoked. In then end it seems that there was something that happened between CG and the Rink Management in the past that could not be over come.

There were multiple attempts made to save the season but all were in vain. The team will try to get back in the B league as soon as possible. Silent sends his thanks and appreciation for being able to skate with so many great atheletes and hopes to see them all soon.

There will be a chance to get together wth all the members and friends of the team past and present in February. It may are may not be a superbowl party. The evening will include all the great stories that gave made the team so much fun to be a part of. The proceeds will help to cover the debt the team has accrued pver the which has come to reach nearly $2,000. We will welcome the alumni ho have played on Dingbats, Team Goose Island and Goose Hooters.

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Canadian Goose Hockey

The End of an Era

For all of you who were not at the game and haven't visted point streak yet, the dynasty has ended. The Goose lost last night to World Gym.

I want to thank those who made it out last night for the game that was delayed over an hour.

We played hard but World Gym had all their best players attending this game. They were not taking any chances. We kept it close the entire time and played like champions. Needless to say the mood in the locker after the game was somber as if there had been a death in the family. I can say that I am very sad that we will not be starting a new season together in the upcoming weeks, but I am very glad that I had the chance to meet everyone and play on the best Mens league team I could imagine. For now, I am hanging up the Goose sweater in hopes that it won't be long before we are wearing them again.

Cheers,
Here is too all of you and I expect that the season ending Goose charity event that Silent is organizing will see everyone in attendance and a lot of drunken fun. The charity event will most likely be at Nick and dino's Tripoli Tap. http://metromix.chicagotribune.com/search/28494,0,2129556.venue

CHEWY

Big Win

There aren't many bloodshot eyes this morning except for the 7 guys that played in the Canadian Goose Game last night. There was a late arrival by Finney that was the spark the team needed. The first period was shaky CG missed some chances and the World Gym goalie made some saves. Pinkie held his own through out the game and was happy with the poor shooting decisions made by World Gym. The second period ended with CG behind one goal. Studlee Budlee had a highlight reel goal which caused a range of emotions by the team. Studlee skated through 3 world gym players in the Goose zone in the crease. He then gained speed in the neutral zone and capped off his end to end rush by firing a wrist shot low stick side to tie the game at three.

Goose must have been pacing themselves for the flurry of action in the last 5 minutes of the game as they were losing 4-3. Nick tapped in a rebound to tie the game. Then a few seconds later Nick fed Finney for a backdoor tip in that game goose the lead. Finney got his hat trick with breakaway goal he scored five hole. Silent sealed the game with a goal he took off of the face off and shot high glove. Finney got the jacket for the hat trick and the picture shows him with a halo because we're trying to look over his 3 penalites.

The 7-4 win gave goose sole possession of 4th place. Goose looks to get another win in the team's finally regular season game ever on Sunday night at 9:20 against the Scorpions.

New Skates

The talk of the locker room was Chewie's new skates. He got the new T-Blade runners which caused his skating strides and turn to be very load on the ice. There were a few late arrivals who came from the Stanley club. The game was sloppy partly because the ice was very poor. The first and third periods were defensive battles. The second period was where the game was decided. The beached whalers jumped to a 5-2 lead in the second period. CG fought back to bring it to one goal. Goose peppered the Beached Whalers goalie in the third but could not get one past him. The game could have been tied with 2 minutes left in the game by IB Justin but he couldn't find the handle on a few chances. The Beached Whalers scored in the empty net at the buzzer to win the game 6-4. CG then headed to the Beer Bistro for more discussions about there pending demise. There was talk of Canadian Goose Memorial function in the Private Party Room at the Beer Bistro in which all team alumni would attend. Details will be following. The team looks to take the ice and build a head of steam when going into the playoff on Sunday night.

Good Times, Bad News

CG came to the rink on Friday night in a cloud of controversy. The future of the team is uncertain as they have been asked not to return in the fall. Silent was the man holding all the info and he was not able to make it until the end of the first period. So the discussion on the bench was mostly about the grave news and the future of the team. In between discussions the players found time to be a short handed Raw Thrills team. Pinkie played solid and the team jumped to a 3-1 lead in the first and coasted to a 5-3 win. Silent held a press conference in the locker room to give everyone the story. The team was devastated. The Gentle Giant commented after the game,"It just doesn't feel real". This was the feeling shared by the team who had be the B-League mainstay for the past 10 years. CG has made the playoffs for the past ten consecutive seasons. The team has been to the league championship game 4 times winning it 3 times. The team's impressive resume could not save it from its demise. Unless they can be saved at the zero hour by a miraculous change of heart by the league's brass.

The Jacket was not awarded because everyone's mind was else where.

The Curse of the Jacket

CG was short stacked before the late Saturday night game against the Boozehounds. Cg could not find there rhythm in the game. The team played a step behind and played catch up the entire game. There was a running clock in the third period and the team was happy to get off the ice early. IB Robbie had chances but could not find the back of the net. He has been slumping since being awarded the Jacket. Mickey and IB Robbie are now on the list of people who will not be awarded the Jacket due to the jinx it causes in some players, thus adding to the legacy of the Jacket.

After the game the team headed to the Beer Bistro to have a few drinks with fans which leads to this weeks blind item.

A player celebrated scoring the game winning goal by answering the same 5 questions asked of him by one particularly drunk admirer. He then proceeded to play with a chihuahua and a cougar early into the morning. He had more fun with the cougar but the chihuahua did watch.

Another player celebrated the "win" with a fan as well. Details of that player's adventure were not available at press time.

The Streak Ends

Canadian Goose was buzzing in the locker room because they we set to play against Cheese, thier former goalie who the team lost due to free agency. The game started as most games start against the Flyers, chippy. There were sticks swinging, cross checks and alot of whining. CG fell into the trap by taking alot of penalties in the first half of the game. The Flyers surged ahead with a hot power play and even more whining. But CG powered back to tie the game at three, then the teams traded goals and slashes in the third. But the Goose could not prevail loosing the game 5-4, ending their four game winning streak.

Get out of the way

Silent tried to jinx the team in locker room before CG's game against the second place Old & in the way stating that CG can move into 2nd place with a win. Capitan Skids followed that with the word "Shutout". The team was looking for one player to show up in the zero hour to make the line match-ups work. That man was IB Matt who came straight from work to add a second centerman and complete all the lines. The game started a little sluggish with both teams feeling each other out. CG was down 2-1 when Studlee Budlee decided to sit on a horse shoe. He netted two goals one which was a centering pass that found its way into the net and the second that found him standing in the crease with the goalie diving the opposite way so he tapped it in to give CG the 3-2 lead which they never looked back on. He got his hat trick with another goal in the third period scored 1 on 1 in the crease. Then CG proceeded to coast to a 6-3 victory putting them into a tie for second place. The defensive core played solid in front of Pinkie who made his usual flashes of brilliance with some garbage in between. Jimmy put in his usual solid defensive play on the blue along with Chadwick and Chewie. After the game Capitan Skids did his Peter Griffin impression and found 6 cents in the locker room stalls. The Jacket was not awarded to Studlee Budlee as IB Robbie, the current holder, was not in attendance. Cg looks to next Wednesday when they take on the Flyers with some familiar faces on the wrong side of center.

Early in Early out

There were 4 players in the locker room 10 minutes before the Canadian Goose was to take on the Scorpions on Sunday afternoon. Then Pinkie arrived and so did the IB Crew. The locker room was not very active before the game as most people's heads were in the clouds from a long Saturday night. Pinkie stood on his head through out the game. CG dominated the game with a few mental lapses that the Scorpions capitalized on. The game was close the first two periods as the teams traded goals. IB matt had two goals heading into the third period and was looks for the jacket. He got his hat trick and and added a helper in the third period as CG scored 4 goals to win the game 7-5. Mickey made up for his door slamming 10 minute misconduct by scoring an empty netter from the circles in the defensive zone. IB Robbie was given the jacket for his game winning laser slapshot off the post in the third. IB Matt did not go to the Beer Bistro after the game otherwise he would have won the jacket. IB Robbie celebrated his jacket win by getting yelled at by the server at the bistro for ordering food before ordering drinks.

Groundskeeper Pinkie?

Here's Pinkie imitating Johnny Walker



Yes that is a pink golf ball.




Sliced perfectly into the water hazard.

Now you know where he got his nick name from. Talk about talking a joke way past it useful life.

Godfather: The Hero

The Godfather saved a fellow citizen from a mugging recently. He embodied the Canadian Goose spirit and helped some one in need. Just like CG helps a fallen goalie on the opposing team. click on the picture for an enlarged view. Its not the best copy from the Beverly Journal, but you get the point.

Sunday Bloody Sunday

CG took the ice against World Gym, a new team to the league. The team welcomed the Gentle Giant back to the ice. The Gentle Giant brought good news of the Godfather's adventure and bad new for the other teams forwards. The two teams traded goals the first two periods, which left the CG team down by one goal in the third. Mickey took the team on his back getting his hat trick and scoring half the teams goals in the third period. There was one penalty as the referee's said they were going to hide their whistles. A few tussles broke out after the whistle which were just enough to leave a sour taste in the mouths of World Gym.

Late Again

2 miuntes prior to game time and there was no sight of Pinkie. Chewie made the call and it turns out Pinkie was stuck in Saturday traffic. Joey went to get a goalie to stand in until Pinkie could get dressed. This was after Rueben could not convince Cheese to help out the team. Pinkie came into the game with 13 minutes left in the first period and then proceeded to let in 2 goals. Things looked bleak for goose but they scored a flurry of lucky goals. joey was called for his second diving penalty in as many games. IB Robbie had three goals and an assist which earned him the jacket. IB Robbie stated that "You make your own luck" when asked about his goals. CG surged in the second period making the score 6-3. Chewie looked at the team before the third period and said "This game isn't over we need three more goals" He though about it for a few seconds and said "We need to SCORE those goals." Raw Thrills brought it to within one goal but could not tie the game as Canadian Goose skated to a 7-5 win.

Welcome Back Cotter

"Silent where is Pinkie?". A question that is usually heard 10 minutes before game time in the Canadian Goose Locker room. Silent always says "He is on his way". Then some one calls Pinkie as he is walking into the locker room. Skipping warm ups didn't seem to bother Pinkie as he was flashing his glove and knocking puck out of the air. CG was in control the entire game but they could not put the goals in to seal the game. On two occasions Silent and Mickey scored goals less than 20 seconds apart which sealed the game leading Goose to a 7-2 win. IB Robbie and Silent combined for a great penalty kill that was an imitation of the Buffalo Sabres as they cycled the puck in the zone for 2 minutes missing multiple goals by inches. Joey got called for a "Dive" which is very rare in men's league hockey. IB Matt was forced to play defense again. His agile skating and ability to make a good outlet pass make him a very good defenseman and a great center when he gets the opportunity to play forward. Speakin of defense Chewie exploded with a offensive presence netting a goal and an assist. Mickey made his return after a long hiatus for the CG ranks. He started the scoring in the first period and contributed on all but one of the goals giving him 3 goals and 3 assists. He would have won the jacket had he went to the Beer Bistro. Pinkie was the innagural winner of the new Summer Jacket and wore it proudly at the bar even though he had left the puck bag at the rink. It was not if he was going to lose the puck bag it was when. It took 5 games the line was set at 2 games so the over wins.

Classless Lumberjacks

Canadian Goose was lined up to play their bitter rivals the Boozehounds on Sunday afternoon, the only problem was that the bench was short stacked. But with minutes to game time a stream of player filed in. Some of the new players got a quick taste of why the Boozehounds are such a hated foe. The amount of stick work rivaled that of a Lacrosse game, yet the referees were reluctant to call any penalties. The game plan of the Boozehounds was to run the crease as much as possible which caused two disallowed goals. One disallowed goal one of the Boozehounds was sitting on Pinkie and on the second disallowed goal Pinkie got an elbow which knocked his mask off. both goals were protested vehemently by the Boozehounds which leaves one to ask the question, "Who runs goalies in men's league games?". Chewie summed it up after the game by stated that it is a classless move to run a goalie. He said that with a stream of blood running down his face from a cut on his eyebrow. There should have been at least a 4 minute high sticking call, but there was no penalty called at all. CG tried to retain their composure in spite of the sear volume of dirty, classless play that Boozehounds brought to the game. CG ended up losing 5-2.

After the game some players headed to the Beer Bistro to meet and greet some of the many fans that Canadian Goose has picked up over the years. In fact these fans had not actually made it to the game but the CG players still showed these ladies a good time.

Captain Skids, although not at the game, left his calling card outside of the rink to let the team know that his thoughts were with the team. See pictures below.

Almost

Canadian Goose is still looking for their first win of the new summer season after losing to the Flyers in a shoot out Wednesday night. Allot of new faces were sprinkled through out all the lines. Some new faces got their first goals as a member of the team. The team put in a strong showing by scoring two goals late in the game to take an insurmountable 2 goal lead. But the team had a brain fart in the the last 2 minutes of the game letting the Flyers tie the game with 1.6 seconds left. There was only one goal scored in the shootout and it wasn't by CG. The team warmed up by coming out of the corners for the first time in its history. Pinkie, who demanded the new warm-up, showed signs be being a solid goalie and third defenseman by playing the puck as much as possible. The team showed its discipline by fighting through the vicious slashes that any CG player received any time he touched the puck. There could easily have been 20 more penalties called on the Flyers and the clock seemed like it took allot longer than 6 seconds on the last face off. Stay tuned for more excuses. Captain Skids made his return and filled the locker room and the bench with laughter, none of the jokes can be repeated on this site. After the tough loss the team went down the street to the Beer Bistro to review tapes and talk shop over the many delicious beers they serve there.

Here is a link to that Kevin Stevens yelling at Brian Bellows.

Video

Not Much to Write About

CG lost 9-3 to the reigning B League Champs, Old and In the Way. There was a case of jet lag and a case of poor Home Depot service that hurt the CG performance. It seemed the team was just lost in translation and could not get any goals in. It was a character loss that helped some of the new players get accustomed to the CG system. Next game is on April 25th at 8:10 against the Boozehounds.

Good Start

Opening day for Canadian Goose brought some new faces and brought back some old faces. The locker room was sparse up until just about game time. A long Zamboni clean help those players showing up late get dressed in time for warm-ups. Goose faced off against the Scorpions which were a top tier team last season. Both teams were getting the kinks out of their game in the first two periods and traded goals. The game was tied 2-2 heading into the 3rd period. The teams exploded scoring 3 goals a piece. With 2 minutes left CG found themselves down by a goal. Pinkie skated to the bench for the extra attacker. After averting a few empty nets CG scored at the buzzer to force the game into shoot out. The Scorpions took the shoot-out but CG established its contender status. Finney had a hat trick which included scoring the goal that pushed the game into a shoot-out, he also drew a hooking penalty in his signature way. CG takes the ice on Saturday night against their dreaded rivals the Boozehounds. Keep posted for the unveiling of the Summer Jacket award.

Time for Golf

Canadian Goose was knocked out of the playoff in the first round by the Stags with an 8-5 loss on Monday night. The game went back and forth with a plethora of ugly goals. But in the play-offs ugly goals are what win championships. CG fell 2 goals with in the first 5 minutes. It looked like it could be a long game but CG bounced back with three goals to take the lead. Silent lead off the CG scoring by tucking the feed from Captain Skids behind the goalie. 8 seconds later the Godfather deflected a pass from Mitchell into the top corner. The third goal went in off of Captain Skid's skate. But the Stags scored a back breaker with 1 second left in the first. CG seemed to bekilling penalties all game. The teams traded goals until the 9 minute mark in the third when the Stags pulled ahead by 2 with a shot the tricked under Pinkie. CG pulled the goalie put IB Matt on the point with 2 minutes left. They were on the power play but could not put anything past the Stags goalie. The Stags put the puck into the empty net to seal the game. The locker room was quietly filled with disbelief and shock. Chewie stated "I thought we had a good chance this year".

There is no rest for the CG front office this off season as CG is looking at bringing some new players in to try and inject some more scoring in the line up as well as fill the void of some leaving players. Stayed tuned for news of the new signings.

We have a Cause

Captain Skids came into the locker room and caused some confusion among the team. It turns out that he has a rare affliction that has no cause and no cure. Captain Skids is one of only 8% of people afflicted with Bell's Palsy in which the dormant virus returns. IB Matt who has be hobbled by bronchitis and Captain Skids braved the snow and made it to Johnny's for the 11:00 game against the first place Flyers, in spite of their ailments. With 9 skaters to the Flyers full bench it looked bleak for CG. Canadian Goose rolled up their sleeves and dug in for a hard fought game. The team played a very disciplined game, defensive minded. There were spurts of offensive pressure by the Flyers which were weathered by the team which was back stopped by Pinkie. The Flyers took a 1-0 lead in the first period. CG came back and took a 2-1 lead in the second with goals by Mitch and IB Travis. CG kept the shifts short and made sure to have their forwards back to clog up the neutral zone. With all of their defensive efforts they could not keep the Flyers from taking the 3-2 lead after Pinkie received a slash from a former CG member on the Flyers. With less that 3 minutes left, IB Robbie took a penalty as tensions mounted. As the players on the bench were looking for the right time to pull the goalie, Mitch intercepted a pass in the crease and drove a goal home to send the game into a shoot-out. IB Robbie and Silent both faked themselves out in the shoot-out. Pinkie let in the first shoot-out attempt but stopped the next 2. IB Matt retained the tie with a snapshot goal on the blocker side. The hard fought tie put CG into 6th place at the end of the regular season. CG first play off game is on Monday March 12 at 11:10 against the Beached Whalers.

For more information on Captain Skids illness:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell's_palsy

Playoff Rundown

CG has locked up 6th place in the league. They got a 1st round by.

Their first playoff game on Monday March 12th at 11:10 will be against either the Beached Whalers or the Stags.

If they win that game they will play on Monday March 19 at 9:50.

Win there and the championship game is on Friday March 23 at 9:30

3 Game Recap

Canadian Goose 1-2 in the last 3 games. The effort put forth by the team has not be what you would expect from a team heading into the playoffs. The team is going by the old motto "In like a lamb out like a lion." A glimmer of hope and a vision of things to come in the playoffs occurred on Sunday February 18th when CG played Raw thrills. Raw thrills jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first period. Most teams would have packed up their equipment and left. Not Canadian goose, while being backstopped by Pinkie, the team rolled up their sleeves and came back to win the game 7-5. IB Travis and the Godfather hooked up on two goals. IB Mat had 2 unassisted goals and got on assist on the game winning goal scored by Rueben. CG looks to end the regular season against the first place Flyers on Tuesday night at 11:00.

Other CG news

Chewie missed the last game as he was home with his wife as they welcomed their new daughter into the world.

Pinkie will be performing at Second City on this Saturday, March 10, at 12:00pm. Second city is on 1616 N Wells and there will be $5 admission.

News Flash

Captain Skids will be available for the rest of the season and next season. His contract was in jeopardy due to some legal issues which have been resolved.

In a statement released early this morning the Captain said" I would like to thank every one who supported me through this ordeal. It has weighed heavy on all our hearts and we are happy this has been resolved. I am going to try to put this behind me and I look forward to contribute to Canadian Goose's playoff run."

Close Game

On a late Wednesday night members of the CG team arrived at the rink to have a hard fought game against the dreaded Boozehounds. The Boozehounds jumped out to a 2-0 lead. Then the Goose tied up the game scoring 2 gaols. It was a tennis match game where teams were exchanging goals, but CG ended on the short end of that stick losing 5-4. In a hard fought game the IB presence was missed leaving players winded which may have cost CG the game. Rueben netted two goals making a good bid for the jacket had CG won the game. Two more bodies would have made a world of difference. Stay tuned for highlights from CGTV.

After the game, Captain Skids was the topic of conversation. Suz the bartender at the Beer Bistro told a story of a bar patron who noticed Captain Skids' image on the CG Team Picture which is displayed at the bar. It turns out the Captain dated this gentleman's mother a few years back. Captain skids was not available for comment.

At a Loss for Words

CG came to the rink on Sunday energized after watching the Bears make it to the Super Bowl. The first period ended with Lincoln Station up 1-0. The second period is what put the game out of reach for CG, when they dropped 3 goals to put Lincoln Station's lead top 4-0. Studlee started the third period with and end to end rush ending the shut out and giving the Goose a glimmer of hope to pull out a win. This didn't happen andCG ended up losing 6-1. Mitchel did his talking on the ice, taking 4 very rough penalties. The Godfather was quiet because he was not there and has not been to a game since the new "Referee Jar"was implemented. And IB Robbie could not find the meaing of the word "smitten".

Lazy Sunday

CG gets its 8th win of the season by forfiet after the other teams goalie failed to show up. The team skated hard in the scrimmage.

Family Day Loss

The CG team was scrambling during warmups as players were still getting dressed. CG could not get squared away in the first period as the lines could not get set and along with a barrage of penalties they dropped three goals. Mickey was on the ice for a total of 13 seconds in the first when he took a cross check to the face and got into a fight which put him in the box for the rest of the period. He would later get into another fight in the 3rd as his knee was taken out. The gritty play of the speedy forward could not rally the troops , losing the game 6-2 to the Scorpions. The two goals that CG scored were highlight goals that consisted of amazing passes. Chewie got his first goal of the season on a nice pass from IB Robbie. Mickey fed Silent with a homerun pass which he slid past the goalie. Both goals came in the second period which has historically been the teams worst period. On Saturday it turned out to be its best period, the two goals in the second cut the Scorpions lead to 1 goal. But an early goal and another barrage of penalties in the third killed the Goose. Chewie gave the one finger salute as he was leaving the game late in the second only to be turned around and put in the box for a 10 minute misconduct.The Goose showed its "family day" fans what CG hockey was all about, 4 letter words. Fans discovered some new words which were as colorful as IB Fruity's(picture below) drink at the Beer Bistro after the game.

Late Night Win

CG arrived to the Late Friday night ready to start the New Years Celebrations. Three lines strong and ready for a win. Pinkie was skating as a forward as well as Studlee. The game started out looking like a real grudge match. Sticks were flying. Studlee was throwing hits. The Godfather was there to give pointers on how to score in the B league to IB Matt. IB Matt was listening because he fired one right under the crossbar in the first period followed by another ringer on the power play in the second. IB Matt was flying around the ice all game and seemed to be gripping his stick a little too tight trying to get his third goal and seal his bid for the jacket. IB Matt got the Hat Trick and the Jacket scoring into the empty net. CG had the lead and never looked back.