CABIN READ | THE DAY I (ALMOST) KILLED TWO GRETZKYS BY JAMES DUTHIE
Posted by Oak and Oar on
This winter has been an awkward one of sorts here in Manitoba. For those of us who like to put in some time at the lake, enjoying the winter activities, it has been a bit of a sad winter so far. It has continually gone from freezing cold to pushing record highs, with next to no snow. I’m not mad at the warmer than average weather, but as a result the sleds have yet to feel me loving yank their pull cord and the pond awaits the chiseling of my hammer to secure the big red net, that no matter how hard I try, I can’t hit.
So, with no snow, the options are some what limited. If it’s warm, we fire up the ping pong table for a few hours in the garage or toss some darts. If it’s freezing we post up inside wreaking havoc on the PS2 playing Madden ’04, NBA Jam or Tiger Woods ’10.
I realized it had been a few months (actually more like a year) since I had picked up a book and read it cover to cover. So this weekend I hit Indigo to rifle through some print. I was about to call it quits, headed for the door that led back to the frosty empty evening, when this title caught my eye. The Day I Almost Killed Two Gretzkys. Upon further inspection I realized the book was written by one of my favourite TSN personalities, James Duthie. Considering this book came out in 2010, just goes to show that I haven’t done much reading lately. I had no clue James had penned a book, and this is coming from the guy who has taken a strong liking to TSN sports radio. Now I can’t stand those reviews where people are like, “Once I started reading I just couldn’t put it down”. Yes you can, if you take the front part of the thick sandwich fold and join it with the corners of the second half of that sandwich fold, the book as a result, is now closed. But truth be told, I picked it up last night and before I knew it I was half through the 281 page collection of columns by the Carleton University Journalism grad. Sure it is an easy read, but an enjoyable one. In fact, by column 2 I had already figured out why Crosby has had a run of misfortune. In James’ column, ’10 Things You Didn’t Know About Sid The Kid’, point number 3 discusses Sidney’s obsession with superstition.
“…He also won’t wear proper shoes in the dressing room. If he’s showered and fully dressed, and has to go back into the room, he’ll take his dress shoes off at the door, as if it were some traditional Japanese restaurant. When he eats, Maxime Talbot must sit on his left, Pascal Dupuis on his right…”
And boom there it is. The absence of Maxime Talbot. I tried to track down episode four of HBO’s 24/7 (with no success), to see if the two shared a pre-game together the day of the 2011 Winter Classic (Crosby’s first head hit). And I have no idea if Talbot sat to Sid’s left during the pre-game meal on the 5th (the second hit to the head Crosby took). But I can tell you that on July 1 Maxime signed with in-state rival, the Philadelphia Flyers, and from there Crosby has, unfortunately, become a lost puppy. I guess if the Penguins want to see Crosby back on the ice they are going to have to fork up $8.75 million to bring Mad Max back. Thanks James Duthie.
