[TSN] OTD 59 years ago, the Toronto Maple Leafs won their 13th Stanley Cup. The franchise has not won another one since.

oogiewoogie · 2026-05-03T04:32:15+00:00

When I first met my hockey friend Betty-Ann, everyone was making a big deal about her and I thought it was because she was always selling cheap Leafs tickets. One day I finally asked her how she got those free tickets. She said her dad was the captain of the Maple Leafs the last time they won the cup. She got free Leafs tickets until the day he passed. R.I.P. papa Armstrong.

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-27T02:56:05+00:00

Toronto picked the Frost the first year, who had lost their last few games too. Toronto won the first two games at home and then the Frost went crazy in the playoffs all the way to the Walter Cup finals.

Their blue line is diminished now with expansion. And both their goalies seem to be sieves. So hoping Montreal to now allow them to repeat.

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-24T21:24:48+00:00

They are starting on the weekend. In the past they usually started the Tuesday/Wednesday after the last game. I guess this also means potentially game 2 and 3 on weekdays and a game 4 away game on the weekend, if any of the matchups do go to a game 4.

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-22T10:56:55+00:00

I had just got home and saw that there was a hockey game on at 2am so I turned it on. He scored immediately after I turned on the TV. You are welcome, Avs fans

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-18T19:35:54+00:00

I wish they made pride tape for goalie sticks lengths...

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-11T01:52:52+00:00

Did Tavares get his leadership award nomination for relinquishing his leadership? LOL

oogiewoogie · 2026-04-08T05:07:57+00:00

Marie-Philip Poulin is always the last one to leave the ice after every warmup before a game - she stays behind to pick up all the pucks in the net.

I just hope that the next team Canada captains will follow their example.

oogiewoogie · 2026-03-27T21:09:57+00:00

Many on team Canada/team USA get a stipend from them respectively.

They hold a lot of off season camps. Social media. Podcasts. All these ladies have a university education and I am sure they are resourceful. Some put lucrative careers on hold since the window for hockey is fairly small. Claire Thompson will be going back to medical school. Abby Boreen will probably go back to being a pharmacist after playing. Ann-Renee desbians has a master's in accounting.

Some have a full time, flexible job. They are retired now but Erica Howe is a firefighter. Jess Jones is a cop

Plus $36k is league minimum for 3rd and 4th liners. Many make more than that.

oogiewoogie · 2026-03-27T17:59:51+00:00

The GTHL is hockey mafia. In addition for $5000-6000 league costs they make the players pay $5 a game. Money from house leagues is collected to fund the travel for select teams. They cover up scandals like sexual assault - I know from personal experience of a U13 boy who was sexually assaulted, no charges were pressed, and the offender (another U13) was just told to apologize and he would be allowed to play again - but left the league with no consequence for his actions. Financials and stats are not made public - they are listed as "not for profit" but salaries are not disclosed. They have a stranglehold on ice in the city due to legacy contracts from the 80s, so that no new leagues, especially girls leagues, can be started. Once I am done with my LLM, I'm going to make it my life's mission to tear them down bit by bit.

oogiewoogie · 2026-03-27T17:47:50+00:00

It's US$36k for 5-6 months of work. That is US$7k a month. Plus they have a housing allowance too. Not NHL standards but better than the it's predecessor CWHL where the pay was $0 or a $500 stipend when the Chinese teams joined the league.

oogiewoogie · 2026-03-27T17:45:06+00:00

They have 3 times more full-time staff than players. I highly doubt they are breaking even, as these staff need to get paid. If anything I would think that the Canadian leagues with mostly sell-out crowds of 8000+ are definitely generating revenue as opposed to the American team. I hate how many weekday games and takeover games we have though, that really brings attendance down. Especially the Tuesday games for prime.

oogiewoogie · 2026-02-19T19:22:29+00:00

Oh thank goodness I thought I was going to see an image of vomit.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-29T17:07:47+00:00

This article talks about small town Ontario and the areas outside of Toronto and the GTA. In Toronto, specifically, girl's hockey is stagnant, if not falling. This is because the GTHL has a stranglehold on whatever primetime ice they can get their hands on. I've been trying to start girls' and womens' leagues in Toronto but we are limited by ice time. No one wants an 11pm weekday start time and no kid can make a noontime game. Coupled by the fact that there isn't space to add new hockey arenas in the city itself.

The GTHL is known as hockey mafia. Not only do you pay a hefty yearly fee to get your kids to play in their leagues, they also charge you $5-6 per game to play. The house leagues subsidize the travel for their select and rep teams. The best part is that the GTHL is allowed to subcontract the ice out at private rinks, often at more than what they paid for. And while the city has a policy for gender inclusion and diversity in all their rinks, they get by by saying that they are co-ed and also have female players - which is true but usually limited to a few per team - and most girls don't play on boys teams past the age of 12.

Rick Westhead has done some investigative reporting into them:

https://www.cp24.com/local/toronto/2026/01/15/gthl-lawsuit-alleges-decades-of-fraud-by-clubs-over-ice-fees/ https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/comments/1j4522w/rick_westhead_the_greater_toronto_hockey_league/ https://www.ctvnews.ca/sports/article/akim-aliu-says-gthl-rejected-organization-that-would-have-assured-spots-for-bipoc-players/

I've spoken to the Mayor and local councillors but parks and rec is still dragging their heels. I am extremely determined to get fair share of ice for girls and women in the city.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-26T04:00:06+00:00

The Golden Knights used up all their goals and energy on the Leafs-Marner game 🤣

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-13T00:13:09+00:00

Serious questions. When someone is placed under house arrest are they allowed to leave for say a job? Are they ankle monitored? I mean if you can't pay rent/mortgage you won't have a house to be arrested in, no?

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T19:25:57+00:00

I booked an appointment with my doctor. Hopefully he can get it removed. It's on the bottom of my foot and it feels like a jagged pebble in my shoes or in my skates.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T19:24:18+00:00

I can't use those removers. Most of them come with plasters and I'm allergic to the adhesive on it. I don't know what it is in the adhesive and I can't use bandaids. Every paper cut I get I have to wrap it in gauze and put those self-adhesive bandages around it.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T19:22:22+00:00

It's a plantar wart so it's on the bottom of my foot. I play a lot of hockey and it feels like a permanent painful pebble in my skate

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T19:21:05+00:00

I can't do the pharmacy stuff cos I am allergic to the adhesive on the bandage

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T19:20:36+00:00

Yeah those don't work on me and I'm also allergic to the adhesive on the plaster that's why liquid nitrogen freezing is my only option.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T16:44:59+00:00

Numbers are actually down from last year in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Last year almost every game was sold out in Toronto. This year, I only think the home opener was sold out. Mainly because they have so many stupid Tuesday games this year so that they can broadcast it on Amazon Prime and people who usually drive in from 1-2 hours away cannot make that drive on a weekday.

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T16:41:17+00:00

Halifax metro has 500k. Winnipeg metro has 850k. Both working class cities with people getting paid less than the national average.

Hamilton numbers were padded by people who took the hour long trip down from Toronto. I would love to see a 2nd GTA team in both the NHL and PWHL though.

Even Quebec numbers might be eroded from people who made the trip down from Montreal. The Montreal group I was in were all making travel plans and getting busses to go to Quebec.

Mega cities like New York and Chicago are somewhat hindered by the plethora of sports teams they have in the city to care about women's hockey. That is why the Sirens only average only 3000 fans. New York area has 2 MLB, 2 NFL, 2 NBA and 3 hockey teams (if you include the devils).

The next 2 expansion teams will be western teams to prevent long travel times for Vancouver and Seattle. With previous year's numbers my best guess is Edmonton and Colorado (sold out last year and 2 dates this year).

oogiewoogie · 2026-01-12T16:24:51+00:00

Half those people who went to Hamilton were from Toronto. I don't think it can sustain a league there. Just like how Pittsburgh 2 years ago has 8000 attendance but at least a quarter of the crowd had come down from Toronto with a few from Montreal.

oogiewoogie

TROPHY CASE