Things That Make Me Go Hmm...

• With Colin Long’s return in doubt, the Kelowna Rockets surely will be filling his departure with a 20 year-old __________. Should the Rockets fill that spot with a d-man or a forward? Lucas Bloodoff and Mark Guggenberger are the two overagers on this years team. October 15th is the deadline for teams to pair down to three 20 year-olds.
• Mark Guggenberger starts skating with the team Thursday, which begs this question. What happens when you have three goaltenders on the ice? Someone gets the shaft when it comes to getting reps in practice. The crease gets a little more crowded when Guggenberger returns.
• Kyle Verdino must hate Canadian billionaire Jim Ballsillie. The Kelowna Rockets d-man has been watching Ballsille unsuccessful attempt to move his Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton. Verdino is a Phoenix resident while his mom and dad are, or were, Coyote season ticket holders.
• I am looking forward to seeing Zach Habscheid play this weekend. Mark Habscheid’s son is in his rookie season with the Chilliwack Bruins and is slowly making strides under the watchful eye of his father. I'll speak to both of them about that father/son - coach/player relationship on Friday.
• Speaking of the Bruins, man am I hungry for pizza. The best pizza in the league can be found at Prospera Centre. Now if only Bruins play-by-play man Randy Merkley would stop spitting on me from the broadcast booth above!
• If you are going to have early season struggles, its best to do it out of the watchful eye of your devoted fans. While the Lethbridge Hurricanes are winless in six games this season they can iron out all the problems on the road.
• I needed to sit down when I read last week what broadcaster Rod Pedersen was doing. After calling a WHL game in Regina Friday night, traveling to Edmonton to call the Riders game Saturday and then returning to Regina to call a Pats game on Sunday, I was exhausted just reading it. I feel sorry for the guy. If I hear he is also helping local farmers harvest this years crop, I'm going to call the authorities. Is CKRM radio running a sweatshop?
• Feeling a sense of deja vu Rockets fans? If Tyler Myers makes the Sabres this season it will mark the second straight year the team has lost a 19 year-old defenseman. Who’s next? Tyson Barrie?
• I spoke to the WHL Commissioner before the start of the season about the economy potentially taking its toll on ticket sales across the league. At the time Ron Robison said season ticket sales were neutral - not up nor down - league wide. I am no statistician – hello Allan Caldwell - but the number of fans watching games in the first two weeks of the season must be down from a year ago. While season ticket sales may not be down league wide, walk up sales must be taking a kicking.
• I really like the new Rockets website. The addition of articles from the two local newspapers makes it a must read for hockey fans. As one season ticket holder told me, he can now cancel his subscription to the Daily Courier as he can find the articles for free on the Rockets website. The video highlights the following day are also a great addition.
• The goaltender that lost to the Kelowna Rockets in the 2003 WHL championship signed a big deal today. Cam Ward is 38 million dollars richer after signing a new contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. Ward was in goal when the Rockets beat the Rebels in 6 games on 2003. I knew he was a good goaltender then, but not that good.