NHL Legends Game a great opportunity
Miscouche resident created a buzz at 2001 Gold Cup and Saucer
It was a tough blow to Tyne Valley and all those surrounding communities who used the Tyne Valley Community Sports Centre, which was destroyed by fire in late December.
The community has since swung into action to get a new arena built and has a monumental task of trying to raise at least $1 million. The total cost of construction is expected to be in the $6-to-8 million range.
Everyone would like to help the Rally for the Valley campaign and we have that chance by attending the NHL Legends Game at Credit Union Place in Summerside on Sunday. Former Boston Bruins star Ray Bourque and Friends will take on a team from Tyne Valley in the 4 p.m. contest that is expected to draw a huge crowd.
Former NHL players include former Western Capital Darren Langdon, Gary Leeman, Ron Duguay, Dennis Maruk, Bob Sweeney and Joe Mullen to name but a few. Former Major League Baseball player and Fredericton, N.B., native Matt Stairs will also suit up for the game.
It is a chance for locals to help a great cause by attending Sunday's game and, at the same time, see the skills and talent of some former NHL players. It promises to be a fun event and fans are encouraged to attend.
HARNESS RACING
Another harness racing season just wrapped up last Saturday in Charlottetown and by all accounts, it was another successful season at both
P.E.I. tracks.
The live wager was up 10 per cent over 2018, with a total of $4.28 million going through the wickets.
That is encouraging to all those involved and the sport appears on a strong footing entering a new season that opens in May.
The first of 72 cards of racing opens in Charlottetown on May 2 and runs through until Dec. 31. Summerside has its first of a 28-card schedule on Victoria Day (May 19) and the 2020 meet concludes on Oct. 25.
SCARLET AND GOLD
Scarlet and Gold won the
2001 Gold Cup and Saucer, giving Charlottetown native and world-class driver Wally Hennessey his first-ever Gold Cup win.
He was brought to P.E.I. by then former Summerside native Billy Companion, who was the trainer for the horse owned by Birt Robinson of Calgary. Scarlet and Gold won the race in 1:54:1, which at that time was the secondfastest Gold Cup and Saucer mile in the history of this great race.
Only Native Born's 1:53:3 win in 1998 was faster while Little Black Book also paced in 1:54:1 in 1993. Scarlet and Gold passed away in England on Jan. 18 at the age of 26. The horse was retired in 2003 and sold to stand stud in Ireland.
He later did some stud duty in England, where he was later put out to pasture for the last 10 years.
There was quite a buzz around Island harness racing when Companion landed home with this great horse with the real nice name. It was very exciting for all those connected with the horse to win the big race. Companion has since retired from harness racing and resides in Miscouche.
NHL
Two of the hottest teams since Dec. 1 have been the Tampa Bay Lightning and Columbus Blue Jackets. The Lightning was 12th in the Eastern Conference with 27 points at that time, but have since gone 22-6-2 (won-lostovertime losses) to move into third in the conference with 73 points.
The Blue Jackets, meanwhile, were 13th in the conference on Dec. 1 with 26 points and have since gone 18-5-5, which puts them in sixth place with 67 points.
One might expect that from Tampa Bay with its balance and depth, but not so from Columbus. The Blue Jackets lost three very good players to free agency last summer. Artemi Panarin has been on fire for the New York Rangers this year while Matt Duchene is a top-six forward and Sergei Bobrovsky is a top goaltender.
Head coach John Tortorella has the Jackets playing great hockey without those three players and he should be a top candidate for this year's Jack Adams Award as coach of the year.
The Montreal Canadiens are also hot lately, having won eight of their last 11 games. Montreal, however, is still six points out of the final wildcard playoff position in the Eastern Conference.
The Canadiens are a great example of how hard it is to gain any ground in the
NHL standings once you get behind. On Jan. 10, the Canadiens were nine points out of the final wild-card spot and, despite their eight wins since, they have only gained three points on that last playoff position.
Montreal will need to keep the same pace over the rest of the regular season, which should put them in the playoffs.
BASEBALL
Rogers Hornsby was one of the all-time great Major League Baseball players whose career spanned 23 seasons from 1915 to 1937, mostly with the St. Louis Cardinals. He had a career batting average of .358 and that is second only to the great Ty Cobb, whose career average was .367. He hit .400 or more three times, was a two-time National League MVP and won the Triple Crown twice.
Hornsby was never shy to give his opinion on baseball or anything for that matter. He had some great quotes over the years and there are a couple that kind of stand out.
Obviously, he was a great hitter, prompting Hornsby to say, "I don't like to sound egotistical but anytime I stepped up to the plate with a bat in my hand, I couldn't help but feel sorry for the pitcher.”
People used to ask Hornsby what he did in the winter when there was no baseball.
"I'll tell you what I do, I stare out the window and wait for spring,” he said.
Hornsby would not have much time to wait if he was living and playing today. Spring training opens in Florida and Arizona in the coming week. Pitchers and catchers report for duty either Tuesday or Wednesday while fullsquad workouts begin next weekend.
Have a great week! Joe MacIntyre is a local life insurance broker. His column appears every Saturday. Comments and suggestions can be sent to joemacintyre18@
gmail.com.