Print   Recommend

Alyn McCauley, San Jose Sharks: "There is a lady in Japan who sends me stuff all the time, including a box of chocolate wafers. I did not eat them, though -- I figured they could not have arrived overnight."

Kris Draper, Detroit Red Wings: "I got a letter from a man in Sweden who claimed to be my father. He said he was proud of me. I said okay, then."

Adrian Aucoin, New York Islanders: "My mail is pretty normal, but I read other people's and it's scary. Especially the girls who think they are dating a player they've never met, asking them why they haven't called back. Some of them are total psychos."

Brenden Morrow, Dallas Stars: "A couple sent in their baby sonogram for me to autograph. I think they were planning to name their son after me."

Yannick Tremblay, Atlanta Trashers: "Someone wrote to me asking for $10 thousand dollars to get him out of prison. He said he was 16, had never been in trouble before, and hadn't had a fair trial. His prisoner number was on the letter, so I checked out his information on the Internet. It turned out that he was in his mid-40s and was convicted of armed robbery and shooting a police officer. I didn't give him the money."

Scott Hannan, San Jose Sharks: "I get the weirdest gifts. You can't talk about some of them in a magazine that kids read. But some girls send me beads. I just don't know what to do with them."

Bottom line is players usually don't talk about the regular, normal mail and gifts they receive. Most fans appreciate players in a good way. However, it goes to show that even if fame is at your door, you can also expect the weird to knock on it someday.

Holiday Review

All teams survived their holiday break, but starting back on December 26 is always rough. League standings clearly show that very few teams can excel at the home arena and away. Numbers in parentheses are wins at home and away (H3, A4).

First fact: the Toronto Maple Leafs are ranked No. 1 with an excellent sheet of 52 points. They are powerful and give no chance to their opponents. They are the only team presenting such good scores at home as well as on the road (H10, A11).

The Detroit Red Wings are not even close in second position and constantly struggle when they hop in a plane looking for wins (H13, A5).

Second fact: the biggest surprise so far certainly comes from the Ottawa Senators (ninth position in League standings) with 42 points. Although the team possesses pure talent, youth, roughness, and speed, it's hard for them to stay consistent for 60 minutes of hockey.

The Senators can compare themselves to the Colorado Avalanche in 10th, since they share the same number of wins (H10, A7).

Third fact: the Boston Bruins, in 12th, are nowhere to be found on their local ice, but seem to collect points far from home (H4, A10).

The New York Islanders go to the opposite direction in 15th (H14, A4), just like the Dallas Stars, who cumulated many surprising losses (H11, A6).

Despite the aging team, Dallas fans -- and executives -- still expect more and more from players.

Fourth fact: some teams like to keep their wins balanced, like the Buffalo Sabres in 25th (H7, A7), way down after teams such as Phoenix, Carolina, Florida, and Anaheim.

The Washington Capitals obtain the 28th rank, with a slight 26 points, with an even more balanced sheet (H5 wins and 10 losses, A6 wins and 12 losses).

Let's not forget to mention the Columbus Blue Jackets in the final 30th rank (H8, A1), who also lost nine games at home and 11 on the road, accumulating some 25 points.

By the Way...

The Canadian fan inside me believes the Ottawa Senators still have a good chance of grabbing the Cup in 2004, but hey, they should get their body parts in gear for more than 20 minutes. Anyway, we'll just have to wait and see.

Last, But Not Least...

Don't forget to watch every bit of hockey you can. The CBA clock is ticking loudly. The Collective Bargaining Agreement will expire in 259 days (as of December 30, 2003). Gosh, time goes fast.

Season's greetings to SC readers and staff!

Sources: The Hockey News, NHL.com

Have something to say? Visit the message boards and discuss this article. Comments? Agree? Disagree? Send in your feedback about this article.