Embarassing player encounters

[Flashpoint]

Last summer I went to noon hour shinny at my local rink (just north of Dallas). There were about 8 guys in the dressing room. I recognized some of them as members of the Finnish team that plays in my beer league (they all work for Nokia, but live in Dallas).

That's when I noticed the Stars hockey bag.

I played 3 on 3 half ice for an hour with Jere Lehtinen.

I've been playing hockey for over 20 years, but when you're on the ice taking passes from a recently (like 2 months) retired NHL player... well your skills are pretty embarrassing in comparison.

Still the most fun game of pickup I've ever had.

[Reign of Fire]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Am I the only one who hasn't met an NHL player in person?

I would have been right with you up until last year's Olympics, when I met Lanny McDonald at the Hockey House. It was brief, and double checked to see that he was signing a Flames Hat for me lol...not much of a story, but it was cool to meet a guy that won the cup for us

[Racki]

I was at the theatre at Chinook (whatever it's called now) and Jarome walked right up behind me in line. All I said was "Jarome" and he says "hey" and walks away. I thought I'd be a little cooler but I gotta admit I was a little starstruck when I saw the guy.

[theonlywhiteout]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

Pretty sure this is a FOI thread.

I think we've all read your diatribes before. No need to infect this forum.

http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showpos...&postcount=106

Says the guy who needlessly trolled my post? Yeah ok

[BigFlameDog]

Originally Posted by theonlywhiteout

When I think of embarrassing I tend to think of the Saskatchewan Rough Rider's, actually. Nothing says 100 years of excellence like 3 championships in an 8 team league

MOD EDIT: Stop it

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Codes

Waiting in line, chatting it up with other fans. Finally, it's my turn. I talk to him briefly, shake his hand, check out his ring.

Really OT but since we're sharing stories.

I worked at a liquor store quite a few years ago. One day a guy came in during the spring/early summer.

He was wearing a Team Canada ring that was absolutely glorious. I started to inquire about it and he said he'd just got it and that's why he was wearing it.

Turns out he was a trainer or something and his ring was from the WJHC during the lockout year. He said even Crosby and those guys hadn't gotten their rings yet.

He proceeds to hand it to me and tells me to try it on.

I swear to god it took every rational bone in my body (not very many of them) to keep me from just turning around and running out the back door and never returning. It looked just like a SC ring but had the hockey Canada symbol with the score on the one side.

I had to awkwardly hand it back after about 20s. It was like out of a movie where he had to kind of force it off my hand because I really didn't want to give it up. haha.

[CofR]

I met Jarome at the theatre in Eau Claire once... I was carrying a bag of popcorn in one hand and my drink in the other. I fumbled like an idiot trying to put the stuff down so I could shake his hand. He was with his family so I didn't want to take too much time away from him but he was very pleasant and could tell how nervous I was meeting him.

I also met the Sedin twins here in Ottawa on Remembrance Day last November, both were very friendly to me.

[theonlywhiteout]

MOD EDIT: Stop it

[robocop]

oh yeah, when I lived in Saskatoon some of the LA Kings had a bunch of trainers in the summer and my ex was one of them. At a party one of the guys kept sticking his hands in the firepit and I kept telling him to stop it, there I am trying to save some drunk plugger from burning what he needs to use to make a living and I'm thinking he won't ever remember me.

[SebC]

Not a player, but I saw Darryl Sutter in the airport in Frankfurt in 2007, asked him if he was on his way back from the World Juniors in Finland. That was the year the World Juniors were in Sweden. I then asked for a picture with him. In that picture, he does not look happy.

[CrazyCaper]

Back in 2000, I dated a girl briefly who used to babysit for Brad McCrimmon. He was an associate coach in Calgary at the time. I went to his place one night on a Flames game-day with her to help take care of his kids. After the game, he came home with his wife, along with his brother Kelly, and he gave me the full tour of his house. Tons of memoribilia(tons of photos, mounted jerseys from each team he played for, replica Stanley Cup from '89). After the tour, we sat down and had a few beers and he hooked me up with 4 Gold Level seats for the next game. Definitely a class act!

[Flames_Gimp]

I told Craig Simpson to keep his head up right before playing a charity game of wheelchair hockey. When I said it there was an awkward silence followed by a dirty look.

During the game he was all over me slashing/lifting my stick etc. was pretty funny.

[Dion]

A buddy and I went to a hockey card show in 1992. Most of these shows would get a player to sign autographs as a draw to get people to come. Anyways we had car trouble and ended arriving as the show was ending. We ran to the room hoping to get Bobby Hull's autograph. We ended up bumping into him as he was exiting the hall the show was in. We asked for his autograph and he replied he was going for a beer in the pub next door and asked if we wanted to join him. We both were speechless for many seconds then happily agreed. We ended up spending the next hour talking about hockey and his life as a cattle rancher.

[CaptainCrunch]

A couple

Years ago there used to be a restaurant on 58th ave called Hurleys. I was drinking there with some buddies and walked into the bathroom to see Mike Vernon drunkenly puking into a sink. He asked me what the frack I was looking at and I replied "My shoelaces" and walked out.

I went to a game in Vancouver between the Nucks and Edmonton. Afterwards me and my buddies went to a club called the Shark Tank (or something like that) and ended up sitting at a table with Pat Falloon (Left with the ugliest chick alive) Boris Mironov (Incredible chain smoker) and Bob Essensa who I kept calling him Cujo all night just to get a rise out of him.

Never tell a Russian hockey player that smoking probably makes you a worse hockey player.

[darthma]

OH man, I haven't laughed this much in a thread for a long time (as is evidenced by the multitude of 'thanks').

[Aleks]

I've had a few encounters......first was back when I was 9 or 10, met Vernon, McInnis, Fleury at the airport when I was dropping off my grandparents....Got autographs on my hat, still got it...

Phaneuf in Morgans, but was a little ######y, but bought drinks so thats cool.......Glencross hammered with a couple not my type ladies, also Morgans, was pretty distracted...... And another morgans (I spend some time there I think....) was sitting with friends and my buddy pipes up and says "hey, isn't that Lecavelier?", sure enough, him, mike green, jason spezza, corey perry, and dan boyle stopped for a pic and chat....I was pretty bombed but still neat...that was during the prep for the 2010 olympics

[XeO]

I got two.

I was at The Colosseum on a weekday night with a few friends. We were gonna watch Borat and while waiting in line, we noticed miikka kiprusoff standing infront of us with some guy. Miikka was wearing a toque and normal preppy clothes. My friend yelled out hey Miikka and he turned around and said hi back.

then later on when we sat in Borat, he walked in with his friend a few mins later and sat a few rows below us. We joked around about tossing popcorn at him and saying "Ha can't save this now can you?" But we didn't cause that might be a bit douchy

Anyways, we were curious what he drove here, so we stalked him to his car. He drove a Black Truck. Then later when we were exiting the theater, we were in the left turn lane to go left and he was 2 lanes to the right of us, and when the lights went green he turned left with us across 2-3 lanes (totally illegal) and then the next set of lights was McLeod and we went north and he went south.


the 2nd story was when I was at the Whiskey, back during 03/04. I went down to the washroom on the bottom floor, and went to use the urinal and who is beside me? Mike Commodore. We finished pissing about the same time, and I went to the sink to wash my hands, he just exited and went upstairs without washing his hands. Then when I walked back up to the main level, I saw people going "Oh my god Mike Commodore!" and they were shaking his hands etc, and i remember going eww he didn't wash his hands!

[DrJ]

Originally Posted by Kaine

I've met several NHL players over the years, even had a couple as neighbors

Although it has been awhile since I spoke to either of them, I grew up with Mike Green and TJ Galiardi. I never actually played with either (age differences) in minor hockey but had relatives and friends that did.

No really interesting stories tho.

I played on TJ Galiardi's team.

Let's just say our hockey development went in opposite directions

[JoseCuervo]

Todd Bertuzzi use to take lessons at my Golf Course, and one time when he was paying for them his credit card got declined and I had to ask him for another, all the while hoping he wouldn't Bertuzzi me.

[CalgaryFan1988]

A long time ago i went out in Ottawa with a bunch of friends, a few of the colorado avalanche players walked in (Yelle, Deadmarsh, Keane, Roy, some blonde guy who was called up because Forsberg was injured, maybe a couple more no names). Talked to all of them, anyways, I went over and chatted up Keane, told him I was going to buy him a beer, he said "no thanks". I said "i'm buying you a beer because i'm going home to tell my dad i bought mike keane a beer" (my dad's a habs fan). So i walked up to the bar, asked for a beer and they said the bar was closed and could no longer serve alcohol. I kept pleading with the bartender saying it was for mike keane.....no luck!! I apologized to Mike and felt like a loser, I was pretty drunk though so I guess it was ok. lol