I just got back from watching the 23rd annual Oldtimers Hockey Challenge at the MTS Centre tonight (and due to living in Windsor, Ontario prior the arena's construction until Christmas last year and also because of Jets tickets being sold out, thus unavailable to poor schlubs like me) it was the first time I've actually been inside the home of the new Winnipeg Jets since it's completion in 2004 and BOY is it ever nice and a lot more modern (obviously) than the old Barn on Maroons Road. Not a bad seat in the house as they say.As sort of..."disappointing" as it was for my first game to not be a Jets contest. It was still pretty cool to see former Jets Laurie Boschman, Dave Babych, Dave Ellett and Russ Romaniuk as well as Hall of Famers and Stanley Cup champions Brian Trottier (NY Islanders) and Theoren Fleury (Calgary).
Although the game was "incomplete," that is to say it was interrupted by such things as a sing-a-long (Fleury, Trottier and former Red Wings and Rangers forward Ron Duguay for some reason performed a rendition of John Denver's Rocky Mountain High) pictures with any rookie on the Patrolman team that scored-which the unsuspecting rookie would receive a pie-face and an amusing break in the action when the local Tim Horton pee-wee youngsters "took on" the NHL legends (a thrill of a lifetime to remember for the group of five-year-olds to deke the likes of Glenn Anderson and Trottier and score on Trevor Kidd. One quick little guy even did some impressive back-checking on Trottier. The Oldtimers also presented the Tim kids with a pretty cool miniature of the Stanley Cup-although a little disappointingly, the kids didn't get to parade around the rink with the trophy. In fact, they didn't even get to touch it too much, at least on-ice) all the while the official game-clock kept running. In fact most of the actual game action in the second period took all of about seven minutes.
The Oldtimers built up a lead of 10-1 by the end of the second and strangely enough the score reverted back to 0-0 to start the third. i guess the real "game" started then as the teams started to show their actual skill. As to be expected, it still wasn't enough for the Winnipeg Police Patrolmans team as the all-star Oldtimers seemed to score at will with precision passing especially by Fleury, Gary Leeman and Greg Adams. Fleury for his part, notched four goals in about 10 minutes. of course this wasn't to be taken seriously as it was all in the name of fun and entertainment and all the proceeds went to charity. Overall the night had the feel of the old "Schmockey Nights" from days gone by at the old Winnipeg Arena with Oilers great Glenn Anderson (who I still can't forgive for being an Oiler and help to annually lay a beating on the Jets during the eighties) having a puck on a string to sucker a Patrolman when "awarded" a penalty shot by former NHL referee and assistant host/play-by-play man Ron Hoggarth.
CTV sportscaster and Winnipeg's own Rod Black was the emcee as well as plating for the Oldtimer. He also engaged in the "Schmockey Night" festivities as he did a "slow-motion" breakaway with the old "magnetized-puck-on-a-stick routine. I actually fell for it and was quite impressed momentarily while he kept the puck on his stick while he twirled it a la Alex Ovechkin. But then when he let his stick drop to his side and the puck stayed attached to it, I realized that I had been duped and was indeed a dope for falling for it.
All in all, it was a good and entertaining family night out at the MTS Centre. A good time for $15.00.
