Opening night at New Rink. Full House!!

Moving into new Rink Saturday!!!!

Well our first practice in the new rink is this Saturday. We play at home on Sunday and its already sold out (5000 fans).  It should be an exciting game for the fans who have been waiting a long time for a new rink to be built. Its finally here!!!  Above are a few pictures of the rink as of this past week.

SønderjyskeE - Rødovre Highlights!!

Another big with for Sonderjyske!!! I had an assist on the 3rd goal. I come down the left side and make a sauce pass to my new line mate Kim (read about him in article below) as he takes a one timer for the goal. Kim and I would like to take credit for the nice goal but new line mate Dejan (read about him below) made the play happen, which you cant see. He made a nice play on the wall that gave Kim and myself the 2on1. Its hard to see me (#12) clearly because the drums are shaking the camera. On the 5th goal in the other end, you cant even see me in the right corner but I just threw the puck to the net and it snuck in behind the goalie. It was a lucky goal. It you look closely you will see the goalie has the puck and it drops between his legs and dribbles in. Ill take it.  Final score was 7-0!!!

Meet my New Line Mates!!

Finally some guys that are close to my size in height. In the picture above are my two new line mates. Dejan Matejic on the left is an import from Sweden that was the top scorer in the league last year. He is a highly skilled forward that when controlling the puck will always make something happen. He is very dangerous with the puck.  Dejan has great patience all over the ice and it’s the first time I’ve played with him. It’s been nothing but good things thus far.  To my right in the picture is Kim Lykkeskov, who I’ve played with before. Kim is a local player that is one of the best Danish players in Denmark. He has NHL speed and creates space for guys like Dejan and myself. Kim is our captain and is an icon of Sonderjyske hockey. Kim has all the tools to be the best player in the league. He shows up every night competing and making it frustrating for our opponents.  It’s fun playing with these two outstanding hockey players. Hopefully coach keeps us together!!!  If Stormy and Carlsen are reading this blog, no hard feelings guys hahaha. 

This past weekend we played in Belarus for the Continental Cup and many of our fans made the trip supporting Sonderjyske Hockey. It was amazing to see how dedicated our fans were. After the Bronze Medal game all players recieved medals. I thought it would be a nice gesture to give my medal to a fan that supported us in Minsk Belarus. So after last nights game I gave one of our fans my medal I recieved in the tournament.  Some might think why did  you do that, but I will never forget that experience and the medal is something that I feel our fans deserve. They are some of the best fans Ive encounterd in  my 4 years of playing in Europe. I'm thankful for their support and dedication to Sonderjyske Hockey!!!

Why would I play for Red Bull Salzburg!!!

FREE Red Bull!!!! That is why!!!   I remember when I played in the Austrain League two years ago and we would travel to play Red Bull I was always excited to get free Red Bull. I mean lets be serious here, Red Bull is pricey. When we were recently in Belarus playing them they gave us cases of Red Bull. THANK YOU!!!! I mean I live off Red Bull, not for the late night mix drinking purposes but for getting me pumped up before games. So when Salzburg offered us a few cases I was happy to take a few and fuel my body. I got wings!!!  After I started thinking that they werent just being nice offering us Red Bulls they were marketing it. Smart bastards I tell ya. The rich get richer!!! Plus every time I buy one of those cans Im just helping pay one of the guys salary. Hopefully they saw my sick skills on the ice hahaha, and offer me a contract of a life time Supply of Red Bull. Where do I sign!!!  I mean who doesnt know what Red Bull is. Its like the Golden Arches at Mcdonalds.
Im off to my home game now and just got thinking of Reb Bull because I have one chilled in the fridge ready for my tasting!!!  You're welcome Red Bull.

Bronze Medal In Minsk Belarus!!!

What can I say about Minsk Belarus..... It’s very interesting. It’s just….. different. Don’t get me wrong, different isn’t bad, its just ….different. I got a bit of a taste of what my buddy Ryan Vesce is dealing with in Russia (best of luck). I mean I’m all about trying new things and seeing new places, but eating fried fish for breakfast and getting spaghetti served with ketchup for dinner isn’t really me. I lost 8 pounds during the 4 day trip, mostly due to the hard work paying hockey of course.

The city of Minsk has about 2 million people and the country reminded me of Hungary lots. It was really difficult trying to speak to locals, they wanted no part of speaking English. Everywhere I went locals asked where I was from I quickly spit out I’m Canadian. I’m mean lets me honest here not too many people like American’s but for some reason everyone loves Canadians. So I was Canadian for the weekend when people off the streets asked where I was from. It was defiantly an experience to remember from our hotel rooms that were straight from the 60’s (no joke) to our police escort to every game from the hotel to rink. When we arrived to the rink for the first time it was like looking at an NHL arena. It was unreal!!!! The rink is better than the Nassau coliseum on Long Island, but then again that’s not saying much. The rink was amazing and everything was run very professional. I was impressed!!

The Tournament started Friday where we played the host from Belarus and lost 2-1. It was a really close and exciting game but in the end we couldn’t sneak out a win. On Saturday we played Salzburg Red Bull. This organization is one of the best clubs to play for in Europe. They are treated like NHL players. I mean they chartered a flight to Minsk while we debated taking a 30 hour bus. We flew thank god (not charter). Well we lost to Salzburg the next game 3-2. Once again playing really well against a top team, but we couldn’t manage a “W”. It was frustrating knowing that we were playing really well and still could muscle a win out. The final and 3rd game against a team from France, we won 3-2!!!! Winning this game, we (Denmark, Sonderjyske) made history. It’s the first time that any team from Denmark has finished 3rd in the Continental Cup. It’s a big accomplishment for the club. Coaches and Management were proud with our performances. 

Here is an article talking our team.

http://www.iihf.com/de/home-of-hockey/news/news-singleview/article/soenderjyske-grabs-bronze.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=187&cHash=24c3c0ccc8
Overall, it was a great experience and it’s another place I can check off in my book. Minsk Belarus (check).

The rink we played in!!! Minsk Belarus

3-2 win highlights

First is an interview with my line mate Stormy. He says my name in the video and Im sure he's just saying that Im the best player he's ever played with hahaha. At the 1:55 mark starts the highlights!!!

The first goal scored Im in front of the net and #9 tips the puck in to the left of the net. On the 2nd goal I come into the video on the right, driving wide on a 2 on 2 and make a back hand sauce pass (standard) to #9 coming into the play late. Stormy #9 fakes the shot drives wide and hits me back door for a solid goal. A great play by #17 Carlsen to drive the net and make the play happen to make Stormy and myself look good.

6-2 Win highlights

Im wearing #12.  I assist on the 1st, 3rd and 4th goals!!  Its hard to see me when I make the pass on the 1st and 3rd goal. On the the 1st goal I make the pass out of the right corner to the net front to #9. On the 3rd goal Im out of the video in the left corner and make a slot pass to #17 all alone for a low blocker side goal.. The 4th goal was a face set play that went wrong but resulted in a goal. We'll take it!!!

Kenny Turano is tipping the scale at 178!!!! Wait what!!!!

Kenny Turano!!

Impossible we all say. I mean the "kids legs" are atleast 178lbs. Turano told me a few months ago he was unhappy with his weight and was going to lose a few pounds before his wedding. I mean Kenny was never over weight by any means, but he was unhappy with how he was eating and feeling recently. His starting weight was around 200lbs and now hes down to 178. I mean im 5'6 185 (yes vesce 185. solid 185) so there is no way Turano is 178. Hansen told me the other day that Turanos Big toe and rest of his foot is about 20lbs each. It just doesnt add up. Kenny Turano has the biggest legs I have ever seen. Here is a picture of what Turano's legs look like. No joke, minus the tan!!!   I've got to admit though, when he puts his mind to something he can accomplish anything. I hope his weight loss doesnt effect his powerful golf swing, because hes my partner in the summer. Hopefully it takes off his slice!!! Keep up the good work Turz.

Big win keeps the Lions in 1st place!!!

Daniel Villadsen being taken off the ice after hit into the boards.

Last nights game was over from the start, when all lines dominated the game. My line brought nothing less then "A" game. Stromy and new line mate Carlsen were buzzing like flys in sh%t!!!!  We had many chances in the first 10 minutes and we were finally rewarded when Stormy scored the teams first goal of the game. We never looked back and played a great game considering we are still missing our leading scorer Kim. Hopefully he will be back soon from his knee surgery. There was a scare after Daniel Villadsen suffered a hard hit into the boards where he was taken of the ice in a stretcher.  It was a scary moment, but after this mornings practice we heard that he is going to be ok. He went awkwardly into the boards while trying to dump the puck in. He was only on one foot so he exsposed himself and was hit hard.  We wish him a quick recovery.  As an athelte you always have those thoughts of getting hurt but in the battle of a game/match you never have time to think about it because things are happening in a split second. It isnt to after an injury you think back what you could of done differently. Being an athlete you always know that there is a chance you will get hurt, its just how you recover. Most players I know always seem to recover in better shape and learn from there mistakes that caused the injury. Some injuries happen, and its out of your control, like taking a stick to the face and losing some teeth. Although, if you ask any hockey player they will say thats not an injury. There aren't too many hockey players that I know that have their real teeth. Myself included!!!!

Im back!!!

Myself, Ryan, Rich, and Kenny. Above my right shoulder is Gerard in way back with his arms up!!

First off, Happy New Year to my blog followers. My wife was here visiting me for a while and time was limited on the computer. Jenn would find me checking my fantasy hockey team and tell me that she didn’t fly across the Atlantic to see me put players in my line up. She has a good argument. It was an amazing time having my wife here with me, but the time flew by and now she’s back in Beantown saving the world. Back to cooking for one and eating for two, but ill manage just fine as I’m a veteran to this lifestyle of being apart for nearly 6 years. People always ask how we do it. I just tell them that Jenn has her career and I have mine (well job, not so much a career) and we respect each and how hard we've both worked to get where we are, so we would never tell the other to stop what they love doing.


So…….I've been getting some heat from my buddies back home because of my recent post about my wife being stuck in the airport for 50 hours on her way her to see me. They keep telling me they know how tough Jenn is and that I need to tell them something they don’t know. So I'll give you all a little idea who I'm dealing with here. First we have Ryan Vesce AKA Rocky, who is hands down someone that can chirp you and leave you speechless with no comeback. He's quick with he’s word, but for some reason I think I’ll be able to get under his skin because he has a baby girl on the way. I'm certain she will be a hottie and get Kate's good looks, and 100% will date a hockey player which will eat Ryan up. Now there is Rich Hansen AKA Hanny, who is quick with his words, but don’t let him fool you because if you seem to get the upper hand he will take it to the next level. Ranging from, putting an item up on Craig’s list while listing your name and phone number, so you get 100's of calls about it. To stealing your car keys and taking your car and hiding it somewhere in town and returning your keys so you don’t even know what happen. True story!!! The guy has a skill and he will never stop until he has won. I tend to stay away with pranks on Rich these days. Rich gets it from his father which still pulls these stunts to this day. Gerard Miller....... AKA Jebby. Jeb is someone that is always willing to do something for someone else but don’t be fooled as he will use big words and trick you but at the same time trick himself because he doesn’t even know what those words mean (Kenny Turano will shoot him done). Jebby is the youngest of our group of friends and is like the younger brother that usually gets it the most, Mainly from Kenny Turano who is known to Rich Hansen as the dumbest smart person he has ever met. Kenny AKA Turz tends to stay away from the pranks but will for sure get involved if he knows he won’t get caught. Kenny is one of the smarter ones out of the group and will let you know if you are wrong. Although Hansen seems to think that Kenny will never get mad at myself or Rocky, only himself or Gerard. These are my close buddies from New York and we all say we will act like little kids until we are 90 years old. Hansen said that if we were 90 and lying hospital beds, he would pull my plugs as a joke and then put them back in. I don’t doubt the kid one second. All and all I miss these guys and can’t wait to see them at Kenny Turano’s wedding this summer!!!

Sounds of a New Baby Crying

To my friends with Children on the way. Gibson's, Celata's, and the Vecse's!!!
                                    Best of luck!!!!!