Captain Kirk & Flying Saucers

Time Travelling - Jays & Oilers Play The Spoilers

It was a day of homecomings. One larger than life and the other inside baseball. The Edmonton Oilers returned to home ice for game one of the Stanley Cup Finals. Across Canada, Canadian Jordan Romano returned to the Sky Dome in Toronto to play closer for the Phillies.

Where’s Waldo? Edmonton Oiler - Corey Perry - Peterborough Minor Petes

It’s been a life time since The Great One slashed Dougie in the face, off the face off and got away with it. 1993 Leafs vs Kings, went to game 7 wouldn’t you know it. The Kings would win or should we say the Leafs would lose and the Stanley Cup Finals was set between the L.A. Kings and Montreal Canadiens. The Habs would win in 5. The famous McSorley illegal stick penalty was the drama most remembered. The Habs already down a game after getting blown out at home in game one. Down by a goal late in game 2, on the verge of losing the first two at home. McSorley’s penalty lead to the goal that tied the game and Eric Desjardins completed the hat trick with the overtime winner, in the Forum as they called it, when places had names.

If you were 18 years old, you remember it like it was yesterday. If you were 18 years old it means 32 years later….you’re 50 and that was the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup.

Edmonton got up early on the Romulan villains from south Florida. The galactic defending champs. A juicy rebound landed on Leon Draisaitl’s stick early and the Oilers landed the first hit. Florida scored two quickly to take the lead into the second period and you figured by that point the nerves, after a week of waiting, were gone and the game would settle into whatever it was going to be.

Edmonton looked the better team, but the Panthers have a way of punching back when everything looks normal. The Oilers have had a way of falling asleep, in the past. This year, not so much. But the Oilers got caught napping anyways and Bennett scored another and it was 3-1. Viktor Arvidsson, the tenacious 4th liner scored on a sneaky slapper pulling the Oilers within one going into the third. It’s worth mentioning that the Oilers 4th line of Podkolzin - Janmark - Arvidsson played very well, doing everything a 4th line should. An effective and often dangerous pain in the ass while the big guys got some air.

In the 3rd period reports of the flying saucer pass were no hoax. Of course, McDavid, who seems to have figured out how to be his other worldly self in the presence of mere humans. Not too much and just enough when it matters most. First, a back handed saucer to Ekholm to tie it.

With a minute left in OT, Florida got an unlucky stick penalty of another kind, shooting the puck over the glass for delay of game. On the power play Oilers D-Man Bouchard dropped a pass from centre back to the streaking comet McDavid in his own end. Flying through a crowd of Romulan ships and entering enemy territory. It looked like for a brief second McDavid might split the Panthers defensemen and do it on his own, but instead he cut to the left boards and set up. Nugent Hopkins briefly finding himself trapped along the boards with the puck, bounced passed it off the boards to a waiting Corey Peterborough Perry in the corner, who in one sweet motion as only the big sneaky Perry can, dished a behind the back pass to McDavid at the side of the net. McDavid did what Data McDavid does, and in a millisecond surveyed the situation and found no doubt Draisaitl open like a window in front. Draisaitl pounded the puck past Bobrovsky. Game one goes to the Edmonton Oilers.

OK BLUE JAYS

Jordan Romano and his Mario Bros-Fro came sauntering out onto the Sky Dome field last night. The return the of native son, but this time no big light show and booming theme music. Romano who had thrilled Toronto fans with that closer moxie Jay fans know well from past glories, lost his mojo last season. When closers lose it, they really lose it. Like the tall tales of towering home runs given up by fictional Red Sox reliever Sam Malone from Cheers. The closer is feared until they are pitied.

A 1-1 game in the bottom of the 9th gave the Jays a chance to walk one off without extra innings. Romano who’s kind Canadian nature, fastball and long lanky kick had made him a fan fav, was called into the game by the Phillies Canadian bench boss, Rob Thomson. How could he not really, give the kid a chance to stick it to his old team after they gave up on him.

Vlady smacked a single off the mound right off the bat, so to speak, just to let Romano know where loyalties lie. Perhaps to play with Romano’s head or just cause the old teammate knew the lanky kick would give him the time, Vlady, who almost never does, stole second.

Alejandro Kirk

Enter Alejandro Kirk, the Jays often described catcher, whose physical presence is always present. Kirk takes fan fav to a whole other level. All those things they say about baseball players and their questionable athletics come alive when Kirk comes into view. Don’t be fooled. After last season as a member of a Jays team where every player struggled with constancy, Kirk is back to form at the plate and the Jays look to be following suit.

Romano and Kirk, funhouse mirror images of each other. A skinny Schwarzenegger facing the deferential DeVito. Toronto twins from another mother.

Romano served it and Kirk ate it up. The ball off the bat all but made it out, bouncing off the top of the wall in centre field. Kirk slowing as he rounded second and being surrounded by his teammates, jumping. Vlady long before touching home. Romano slumped off while the Jays walked him off.