Another Staal Down (Only Two to GO, Ladies!) - Marc is Hitched!!

[THANKS go to Melissa A. for the "tip" on this one!!] This past weekend, Marc Staal and his longtime girlfriend, Lindsay, got married back in Thunder Bay.  I didn't miss this one ... I was waiting on pics!!  I think it was worth it!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO MARC AND LINDSAY!!

 

I DON'T say this to be rude, but do I see a "baby-bump" on Tanya??

That was the first thought in my head when I saw this pic!

Such a CUTE family!!

Hilary and Mike Celebrate One Year WITH A BABY!!

This weekend Hilary Duff and Mike Comrie celebrated their one-year anniversary.  She recently posted on her official blog, "First Anniversary Announcement" which includes THE ACTUAL ANNOUNCEMENT ...

"We also want to share the exciting news that .... BABY MAKES THREE!  We are extremely happy and ready to start this new chapter of our lives."

CONGRATULATIONS TO HILARY AND MIKE!!!

Neal Pictures of the Week (Ontario Autograph Session Edition)

This week's pictures are fairly "NEW" and courtesy of Sarah W., my new friend I found on tumblr (because we have similar interests in Mr. Neal!)!

Not only did she post a few great pictures of Nealy (below), but she was kind enough to share her story of how she met (and got her picture taken with) James at a recent signing:

James Neal did a signing at AJ Sports World in Vaughan, Ontario on July 26th, 2011. I had heard about it on Tumblr from another Penguins fan I was following.

I arrived at the store an hour and a half early, expecting there to be a huge line up. But I was the only person in the store. My Dad and I had to buy some things for James to sign, so we didn't mind being too early or the only one's there. I bought a James Neal jersey and puck for him to sign. The only problem was that they didn't have any jersey's in the store that I could have right that very moment. So I ordered one that would come in about a week, and they have me the number 8 (out of his number 18) for him to sign.

As I was in the office in the back filling out the form, James Neal walked in with a smile and greeted me and the store owner. Of course, I was freaking out internally, but the owner escorted James to the back where he would wait until the actual signing started. As I walked out of the office and out to my Dad and one of the workers, my Dad said "Sarah, do you realize who that was!?". Good to know my Dad was freaking out more than me.

I stood at the very front of the line as people began to walk in and stand behind me. As time went by I got to talking to the man behind me. He had driven all the way up from Pittsburgh to meet James! He told me that players don't do a lot of public signings in Pittsburgh, especially players like Crosby, Malkin, Fleury and Staal (even though Staal was in AJ Sports in February doing a signing). So, I knew this was worth it.

When 6:30 came around, James walked out in a black t-shirt and jeans wearing a huge smile on his face. He was blushing as he sat down with a employee of the store. Being the very first person to be in line, I walked up to the table and put the number 8 and the puck on the table and gave the yellow tickets to the employee. He attempted to sign the number first, but had difficulty trying to figure out what side of the number to sign. He seemed almost embarrassed, but it was cute. When he finished signing everything, I asked for a picture. He replied with "absolutely" and he jumped to his feet. I put my arm around his back and put my hand on his shoulder. Let me tell you, he has very strong and muscular arms, and to boot he smells amazing.

Corey Perry also did a signing that day (right after James) and when Corey walked in, he wasn't nice like James. He wore sunglasses and didn't greet anyone like James did. It's obvious that he hasn't let his success get to his head, which is refreshing. James Neal is honestly one of the nicest guys I have ever met, and I am very honoured that I got the opportunity to meet him.

Nealy smells amazing ... that just makes my day (he looks like he would!)!! I can only hope to be lucky enough to smell him one day - LOL!! ; P

THANKS for sharing your story and the pics, Sarah (you're so lucky to have met James Neal!)!!


This is an AWESOME picture (he's so darn cute!)!

J. Staal In Action this Off-Season

OH ... MY ... GOD!!! [this is so delicious that the words need to be spelled out instead of abbreviated!!]

Have you ladies seen this video??  If not, you MUST especially all the Staalsy-lovers out there!!!  Needless to say that I was distracted for a few minutes from reading the actual article that went with this video (and he's not even my favorite, but Lord HELP ME, he IS a hockey player and a good-looking one at that!)!!

There's really no need to further elaborate, so I'll just let you ladies ENJOY IT FOR YOURSELVES!!! [is that a black SHOE off to the left in the picture above?  PRETTY LARGE shoe!]

2011-12 Penguins Ice Crew Members

This post is not really to announce the members of this season's Ice Crew, but rather, a RANT (I'll try to make it short!) ...

Once again the female fans are left out ... don't you think WE want to see the male members of the crew just like the guys want to see the female members of the crew (WTF?!)?!!  They had a hard enough time getting us females sold on the whole idea to begin with, but now that we've slightly warmed to the idea, they go and do this crap!!

When the women crew members were announced last week, there was a whole bouquet of stimulation for the [male] eye ... a nice group photo of the female crew (with their numbers stategically pinned on their boobs above an eyeful of belly-button - most absent of a ring; you'll have to click on the link above to see it because there won't be any of that here) and even a video (for craps sake, there was a separate video for each of four girls!), but do we females get that when they announce the men?  Of course not ... NO video, no pictures, no anything ... just words of a long-ass article (did I read it?  YES - I'm not that shallow!)!!  But, for some reason, that's the very first thing that struck me about the announcement - NO PICS / VIDEO (because it was the reason I clicked on the link ... TO SEE THE PICTURES!)!!  Although, something tells me I'm not missing much because, if I remember correctly, they weren't all that much to look at - I'd much rather spend my time looking at hockey players!!!!

And so began my rant just as, now, it ends!  This really isn't a way to sell us females on the whole ice crew business (not really going to make fans out of us that way!)!!

Any other ladies have any thoughts on this??  I'd really be interested in hearing your thoughts to see if I'm the only one who feels this way!

[WATCH ... by the time I post this, they'll have added both pictures and a video or two!]

Eastern Conference Eye Candy: Johnny Oduya (Winnipeg Jets)

HOCKEY FACTOR
Johnny Oduya has the honor of being OUR FIRST (of MANY, I'm sure!) Winnipeg Jet ECEC (GO Jets!)!

Oduya is considered a "defensive defenseman" and he's hard-hitting on the blue line, but isn't flashy.  He's great for the team inside the locker room.

He first played organized [professional] hockey in his hometown of Stockholm, Sweden for the Hammarby IF Hockey playing as a junior (as of 2008, the club no longer exists due to financial difficulties).  In 2000, he moved to the US to join the QMJHL (Quebec Major Junior Hockey League) dividing his time between two teams - Victoriaville Tigres and Moncton Wildcats - for a single season before returning to Stockholm (2000-01) to play two more seasons with the Hammarby IF Hockey (2001-02, 2002-03).  In the 2003-04 season, he signed on with Djurgårdens IF Hockey which was part of the Swedish Elitserien (Elite league).

During this time, he became the 25th pick of the Washington Capitals in the 7th round of the 2001 NHL Entry draft (221st overall).  Prior to the 2005-06 season, the Capitals released Oduya so he returned to the Elite league joining the Frölunda Hockey Club (also known as the Frölunda Indians) back in Sweden.

On July 17, 2006, he was signed as a free agent by the New Jersey Devils making his NHL debut in the season opener on October 6, 2006 against the Carolina Hurricanes (at Carolina).  Scored his first NHL goal on December 19, 2006 against the Atlanta Thrashers.  He also played in his 300th career NHL game on April 10, 2010 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.  He was a role player among New Jersey's core and helped them to maintain a consistent level of play.

After four seasons with the Devils (2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10), Oduya was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers (who no longer exist and have been replaced by the Winnipeg Jets) where he has played for two seasons (2009-10, 2010-11).  This past season, he played in all 81 games for the Thrashers and ranked second on the team with 149 blocked shots and fourth in average ice time with 20:47.

Oduya also has some experience with international play.  He was on Teams Sweden for both the 2009 World Championship and 2010 Olympics.

HOTNESS FACTOR

Johnny has a diverse family background with his father, George, being from Kenya and his mother, Birgitta, being Swedish.  This makes him one of a small number of African American players in the NHL (past and present).


He has an older brother, Fredrik, who also plays hockey and was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the 1993 NHL Entry draft (154th overall); he was eventually traded to the Calgary Flames in 1999, but never actually played in the NHL (a back injury forced him to retired in 2000).

His full given name is David Johnny Oduya and his nickname is "Johnny O."

His first job was at the age 16 landscaping at a cemetary.

What's on his iPod?  He says there's not many songs, "The most that I have on there is '90's hip hop, a little bit of '80's stuff and some dance music from Europe."  What famous actress would he date?  Jessica Biel.  And what are his favorite websites? "My homepage is a Swedish news Web site because that is my Swedish update. I also like YouTube because you can find anything on there."  To read more like this on Johnny, visit "Chillin' with ... Johnny Oduya" on nhl.com.

FAVORITES:
Movie - "The Jury"
TV Show - "Entourage"



That's one BEAUTIFUL MAN right there!!



Information found in this post obtained from the following sites:

Johnny Oduya's Winnipeg Jets Player Profile page
Johnny Oduya's New Jersey Devils Player Profile page
Johnny Oduya Wikipedia
Chillin' with ... Johnny Oduya

Another Year of Being PERFECT ... Happy Birthday, Sid!!

Here's hoping you're "good as new" come hockey season!!

Are YOU celebrating Sid's birthday today or commemorating the day by doing something special in honor of him???  If so, I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU (pictures are always GOOD!)!!