Memories: Hockey & High Heels Event with the LA Kings

by Lisa Ovens

I have a soft spot in my heart for the Los Angeles Kings. Don't get me wrong;  I would prefer my hometown team, the Vancouver Canucks to be playing in the Western Conference Finals right now. Even though the Kings handily bounced the Nucks out in round one, I won't hold any grudges or cheer against them. Because one of my coolest Hockeyandhighheels.com days was spent with the Los Angeles Kings and some of their most dedicated fans.

I had successfully pitched the Kings about hosting an event for women, and their fan development department got busy and planned a full day of activity for female hockey fans. Cool thing number one...The Kings utilized my logo and name, Hockey and High Heels in their event marketing materials. Having a cult following/somewhat obscure hockey company nestled on the fringe of the multi- billion dollar Sports Entertainment Industry, well, that kind of plug was pretty special for me. Yay!

Once the press release arrived, another little bonus...one of the activities listed was a " Social hour with Luc Robitaille and Lisa Ovens".  Yep, that was particularly thrilling for me, because how often does a person get their name included in the same sentence along with a Hockey Hall of Famer, a Stanley Cup winner, and the highest scoring left winger in NHL history?  It was October 2007, and at that point in time, the Kings were still in a rebuild mode, and Robitaille had just taken his front office position as President of Business Operations. There was definitely a buzz about this, and one could easily sense that Robitaille was going to be a great fit in this role. And me? Pretty fine with my role in that sentence and sharing a social hour with the dude :o)

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon in late October as the guests began to arrive. Hilary, the event planner even let me register a few of the guests.That was when I met, face to face, a season ticket holder, Nadine, (pictured here on the right). Coincidentally, she had emailed me before the event was even confirmed to share how much she had enjoyed reading my book, and even extended an invite to catch a Kings game with her should I ever be in LA. That was pretty sweet of her (especially of her husband, who would have to be kicked out of his seat on my behalf. And their seats are good: I believe she said "we sit so close we can see THEIR EYES"). And then voila, two weeks later she was buying her event ticket, and we'd actually get to meet sooner, rather than later!

Aside from the game we watched at the end of the day, one of the bigger highlights was our 1.5 hour skating clinic led by former King, and current radio commentator, Darryl Evans. This part came after a tour of the Kings locker room (this was pre- castle facade entryway - dang!). The Kings had done this type of clinic for men, but this would be the first time it was ever offered to female Kings fans. It was during the clinic that a third cool thing happened: I did an on ice TV interview with Fox Sports, and half way through,  Bailey, the Kings mascot showed up! It was Bailey's first season and the very first mascot the Kings ever had; thoughtfully named after the Kings own Garnet "Ace"Bailey , their Director of Pro Scouting who had died in the September 11th terrorist attacks.Needless to say, but it was an honor to meet Bailey during his inaugural season. Hailing from Las Vegas, Bailey the Mascot was a pretty good skater, too. As were the Lady Kings, a local hockey team that participated in the event. Darryl worked us pretty hard, and even though Heidi Androl left the ice on a stretcher ( no, it wasn't due to exhaustion, it was part of a comedy bit for Kings Vision), all of us skaters were energized, with many women asking about possibly having a second because it was so darn fun.

After touring the many special  rooms, lounges and club sections at Staples Center (egad, there's plenty of them, all polished and perfect, ready to pamper the elite and the famous), we gathered for the social hour. I had the opportunity to speak, followed by Darryl and then Luc. During Darryl's talk it was very evident that the women in the room were serious Kings fans and incredibly knowledgeable ones at that as they grilled him about player personnel and other hockey operation concerns. Oops...a tiny rant is about to begin... So often, certain Canadian hockey fans (and even the Canadian hockey media) question the intensity of hockey fandom in the NHL's sunbelt markets and the Kings aren't immune to this. It's frustrating that they can't wrap their heads around the fact that fans exist south of our border that are just as dedicated and committed to the game as many Canadians are. End tiny rant. Anyway, back to the event... Luc was a lively speaker with a delightful sense of humor, and was genuinely excited about his new position and the changes in store for the Kings organization. I did get a photo with him, which I won't post here, mainly because I was wearing my cheesy " hey, look I'm posing with a hockey celebrity" smile ( so goofy, it shall remain in a hidden folder along with a similar pic of me and Mattias Ohlund during a Canucks event taken the previous season).

I do have this photo with Heidi Androl after the social hour. We were getting ready to do an interview that I kind of wish had happened before the clinic, because my hair was so much better then. But look at Heidi's hair. Should have asked her how she managed to combat the post hockey helmet look.

The game that night was versus the Edmonton Oilers (also was the late game on Hockey Night in Canada).  I had packed my special 3.5 inch "Oiler Killer" shoes (at the time, the shoe stat was 5-1 when the Oilers and I were in the same room - ha cha :o) As a group, we had great seats, and I sat with three regal King fans; one with the best name ever, Lisa, and a couple of cool Kings bloggers, Connie and Kairu. The three of us had a blast. I even made them take turns playing my Sau Ya Goule drum ( a fan accessory that I don't leave home without).

 Staples Center is a fantastic arena, and I did my best to check out as much of the concourse as I could during the intermissions. Oh, another cool thing: during the second period, Hilary collected me and led me down close to ice level so she could introduce me to a season ticket holder and fan of H&HH so I could sign a copy of my book for her. A memorable moment for sure, and man, she had a pretty sweet view of the ice. I'm talking "Nadine territory" here!

I should take a moment to mention that fact that Hilary Hodding, is a dynamo Fan Developer and event planner - she roved around the arena throughout the game, checking in on her other clients, making sure they were enjoying their in-game experience. I have been fortunate to be behind the scenes at a several of these events, and for those who may not realize, let me tell you how hard the sales and marketing departments work, game in and game out.

As the shoes expected, the Los Angeles Kings won the game 3-2. Then I had to go. But the final cool thing would happen the following day, after I arrived back in Vancouver. The first thing I did was call my mom. And before I could say anything, she blurted out...

Mom: Lisa...you were on Hockey Night in Canada!
Lisa: Seriously?
Mom: Yes. It was the start of first intermission and I headed to the kitchen for a snack. All of a sudden I heard Scott Oake say 'Hockey and High Heels" and then Kelly Hrudey said "I love it!' I ran back to the TV and they showed several clips of you and the girls on the ice skating and puck handling!

The next day I tracked down someone at CBC in Toronto with the authority to send me a DVD of the HNIC clip. To this day I do not know why Hockey Night in Canada didn't interview me like Fox Sports did, but at least I can listen to Kelly Hrudey say he loves Hockey and High Heels over and over again!!!

My day with the LA Kings will always be remembered. After what seemed to be an eternity of re-building for this team, I am truly happy for the Kings and their resilient fans as they embark on the next round of the journey, the Conference Finals. I know all too well, what it is like to see your team finally make it there again after such a long absence. And I will stop right there and simply say it is to savor the thrill of being one of the Final Four.

Now, I do have a little bit of a problem as far as cheering goes. The other half of the Western Conference Final is the Phoenix Coyotes. Another team I have a place in my heart for. They were the first ever NHL franchise that I teamed up with for and H&HH event. Gotta write another "Memories" story!

Game Three Sharks/Canucks: Choppy Water at the Shark Tank

Canucks lead series 2-1

by Lisa Ovens

It was a choppy affair; a real bumpy ride for all involved at the Shark Tank Friday night. The multitude of penalties called played a big part in the game, and this fan longed for a smoother ride through Game Three. Instead it was stop, start, bump, oops there goes another defender kind of game. Despite being down 4-1, the Canucks forged ahead and almost righted the ship, but ultimately came up short in the 4-3 loss.

The Sharks brought it as best as they could to end their Western Conference Final losing streak, feasting on power play opportunites (10 of those...yikes!), and just generally wanting the win more than the Canucks did for a lot of the time. Not surprising since they looked like guppies in Game Two's 7-2 loss to Vancouver a couple of days ago. Patrick Marleau, the man one man called gutless last week, earned the second star tonight, scoring two first period goals with one being a pretty breakaway tally.

So, the Canucks are facing their second Finnish goaltender in a row these playoffs. We went from a Rinne to a Niemi. A Pekka to an Antti (new fans, I did their last names first if you aren't up on your Finnish goaltenders). Thought Niemi was on his game stopping what he needed to to keep the Canucks from completing an inspiring comeback after a bevvy of penalty kills and the loss of defenders, Rome and Ehrhoff. So essentially the Canucks did pretty good considering all of that drama and a crappy first period start!

Now, in the stands I saw a lone, Lime Green Man (he was the one wearing a shark costume on half of his body, thus looking like he was being eaten by a shark), and a couple of  Light Blue-ish Teal Men. Who knows how many more dudes in spandex there were, but I enjoyed the variety immensely because it can't be all Green Men, all the time.



The ladies love the hockey!!!



And how about those Road Canuck Fans...the sportscasters speculated about 4000 Orca clad Canuck fans surfaced in the tank and I could hear them singing Oh Canada...sweet!

After thoroughly enjoying  the Canuck wins in both Games One and Two (who doesn't like that 2-0 feeling in the postseason?), we now have a little adversity to face in this series: can goalie Roberto Luongo improve his Shark Tank win stat (he's 0-4 currently)? Who will shore up our fabulously blue line with Ehrhoff and Rome likely out? Will the officials continue to control the weather for both teams in this Motion in the Ocean of a series? How will the Canucks fare starting at noon in the ridiculously timed Game Four on Sunday? Will we see more shades of blue, teal and green spandex lurking around the Canucks Penalty Box??

Don Cherry Suit Watch:  Jacket/Canucks Win Loss Stat

Well the tides are turning on the Suit Stat in this series... May 18th, Game Two: Cherry adorn in a subdued suit, yet the Canucks win (subdued look Canucks record is now 2-5)

May 20th, Game Three: Don sports that crazy, loud Edmonton Oiler third jersey inspired jacket and the Canucks lose (loud patterned Canucks record is now 8-2) 

Post Script: Duty calls, and I will have to miss Game Four, the first time in years that I've had to miss a Canucks playoff game. Go Canucks Go!!!

The Don Cherry Suit Win/ Loss Statistic

When Grapes goes loud...the Canucks win!!

by Lisa Ovens

After two rounds, the Canucks have played 13 games...8 wins 5 losses. Mixed into all of these playoff hockey memories? Visions of Don Cherry's suit jackets kept appearing in my minds eye. I started to see a pattern, and it wasn't plaid or pretty florals.

I went back through Coach's Corner archives to confirm what Don Cherry was wearing during the segments, and this is what I found...

Since the beginning of the Playoffs, The Canucks are 7-1 when Don Cherry sports a loud bold suit jacket during his Coach’s Corner segment on Hockey Night in Canada.

When Grapes wears a more subdued suit jacket (only one tone or colour) …the Canucks are 1-5

Subdued suits and Canucks mostly lose

2nd round Predators/Canucks

Game Six win bold pattern
Game Five loss subdued/one colour
Game Four win subdued/one colour
Game Three win bold pattern
Game Two loss subdued/one colour
Game One win bold pattern

Wins:  Bold Jacket 3 subdued Jacket 1     Losses:  Bold jacket 0 subdued Jacket 2

Round one was a little different. Cherry didn’t start his Coach’s Corner segments until after the Canucks won Game One. However, even when Cherry’s segments were featured during the Habs/ Bruins series, they happened in between the Canucks/Blackhawks games and his choice of jacket still supports the win/loss pattern…

Game Seven win Bold bold pattern
Game Six loss ( the day after subdued suit)
Game Five loss subdued Easter look pink (one colour jacket)
Game Four loss subdued Easter look purple (one color jacket)
Game Three win  Bold
Game Two win   Bold   Checked jacket between Canuck wins
Game One win    Bold

Wins: Bold Jacket 4 subdued jacket 0  Losses:  Bold Jacket 0 subdued jacket 3

Right now the Canucks are playing game number 14, the first of a possible seven in the Western Conference Finals against the Sharks. The Sharks are leading 2-1 after the second period. Don Cherry's jacket for the evening? Green plaid.


So there you have it! GO PLAID GO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Western Conference Finals: Game Three Wings vs. Hawks

Red Wings lead the series 2-1

By Lisa Ovens

Since Jan Snyder is brilliantly recapping the Pens/ Canes Eastern Conference Final games for Lisa's Hockey Lounge at h&hh.com, I figured I'd offer up some Western Conference Finals game three chat, because

a) I live in the West

b) one of the WCF teams knocked out my home team in round two and this is my opportunity to slightly dis them... and

c) I get to use this really crazy picture of Scott Stevens!

The Kronwall Hit on Havlat...What would Scott Stevens Say???

"Well, it's not figure skating. No one gets a free ride out there. Just ask Paul Kariya...and Eric Lindros...and Koslov...and, oh, Ron Francis...and that other guy. Yeah...that was My NHL."

Okay, Scott Stevens didn't say that. I just embellished some quotes of his. But couldn't you imagine Stevens being a go to guy on hits these days? Maybe he'd say stuff like..."skating with his head down...one Mississippi...ooh it's a cleansie!!"

Yeah, Scott Stevens calling a hit a cleansie, Ha!

The first period Kronwall hit resulting in five and a game misconduct that ended Martin Havlat's evening in the wooziest of ways was just one tidbit of many from game three of the Wings/ B.Hawks series. The Blackhawks had a whopping 11 minutes of powerplay in the first period which translated into a whopping two goals for the young, fresh faced team.

NBA legend Michael Jordan was seen moving and shaking with Bobby Hull. Also seen was Chicago back up goal tender Cristobal Huet and a dressed "back up" back up goaltender Corey Crawford to start the third, as number one net minder, Nikolai Khabibulin didn't return because his "Bulin Wall" status became questionable, or one of the bricks is damaged, or both.

The Blackhawks loss control of the game and blew a 3 goal lead. The Red Wings fought back and forced the game to a 3-3 tie. One reason for the comeback? Adam Burish had words for Nik Lidstrom with five minutes left in the second period. yes, that's correct... words for Lidstrom. Of all people to "chat" at. Thanks to the CBC for pointing that out to me. The Wings Niklas Lidstrom is so smooth, so stealth, so classy of a player, you sometimes don't realize he's there, yet important things get done. Burish yapped at him, and during the next play Lidstrom scores. Man, he's the coolest. I heard Lidstrom once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels. (That's a joke. It's a spoof of the latest "Most interesting man in the world" Dos Equis beer commercial).

And speaking of the CBC, I am glad to watch a game with the Hockey Night in Canada gang for a change. I have a threshhold when it comes to TSN's playoff coverage, and this past week I reached it. That's another column.

So the sold out standing room only crowd at United Center (which for a little while was the "Quiet Center") were treated to a third intermission, and an overtime period that was abruptly ended by their very own Patrick Sharp who potted the OT winner: final score 4-3. Those Blackhawks, they're writing the book on over time period efficiency.

Soon we will learn details about fallen B. Hawk, Martin Havlat, and the situation with Nikolai Khabibulin. And maybe we'll learn more about the Red Wing's Pavel Datsyuk and his aching foot.

What we do know now is game four is set for Sunday, May 24th at 12 noon pst (nooner hockey games, can anyone get used to this, really?) and the Blackhawks are all excited thinking this like a really big series now, and in the other corner the Red Wings, well, it's business as usual for the defending Stanley Cup campions.