Just when some Toronto Maple Leafs fans and media had concluded that the blue and white had taken their Calgary counterparts to the cleaners on their recent blockbuster deal, the Flames responded by getting a badly needed win, against a weak opponent in Carolina, but, it was close to a must win, in terms of the playoff race,and a bit of a gut check, for some of the former Leafs who went west in the deal. There’s no question that Dion Phaneuf was the best player in the transaction. That goes almost without saying, but as I had stated in this blog previously, most trades can only be evaluated fairly, after a year or two, when long term observations can lead to conclusions, and even then, some swaps take longer, perhaps 3-5 years to assess. This is certainly the case, where draft picks are involved. How do those players develop after they are drafted ? Sometimes players acquired in a deal, are used as trade bait within a few months or a year, to bring in other players or draft picks, so it is foolish to jump to conclusions immediately after a major move. As things turned out for the Flames, in their second game after the blockbuster, Matt Stajan scored the winning goal, and Jamal Mayers was involved in a fight, which may or may not have inspired his teammates, and there are obviously different schools of thought on that subject, and I’m familiar with both, as most of you are as well.
Stateside, Wednesday was national signing day for the American universities, pertaining to football. It is a huge reminder here in Canada, one we’re all familiar with, of the exponential differences between college sports in the United Sates and Canada, in so many different ways. The competition between Florida and Texas for the best recruiting class, superseded every professional sports story south of the border. In Canada, college recruiting, with much smaller scholarships in terms of money and the number available, gets no headlines or any media attention, other than local coverage in the smaller towns and communities, where there are no professional sports nearby. I remember being an undergraduate student at York University in Toronto, between 1974 and 1978. I never attended any of the “Yeomen” ( they are now called the Lions ) football or basketball games, and I don’t know of anyone else who did back then either. The same was the case for my one year of graduate studies at the University of Windsor, in 1979-80. Any free time I had, was spent visiting nightclubs on the other side of the border, in Southfield, or West Bloomfield, Michigan. At Syracuse University, in 1980/81, I went to the very first football game played in the then, brand new Carrier Dome, against the University of Miami of Ohio, as it was a major occasion. I also attended the homecoming football game in November, against Dan Marino, Hugh Green, and the then nationally ranked, University of Pittsburgh Panthers. That was also a marquee event. “American Bandstand” host, and Syracuse alumnus Dick Clark, was the homecoming feature guest. The girls all lined up at halftime, to give Dick Clark a kiss. It really is a world of difference, in terms of the big business dimension of American college sports, and the much, much smaller enthusiasm for university sports in Canada, other than a few schools in this country, like the University of Western Ontario,in London, as an example. It’s not better or worse in either country, just a different attitude and approach. I’m glad that I had the opportunity, to be exposed to both.