B.C.'s own Stanley Cup playoffs, in bubble hockey
Article content
Alas, the Vancouver Canucks aren't going to win the Stanley Cup this year — the 2024-25 team didn't even make the playoffs.
Article content
Article content
This makes it 110 years since the Vancouver Millionaires won the city's one and only Cup in 1915. Even Victoria has had a shorter Cup drought — the Victoria Cougars won the trophy in 1925.
Article content
But there is a place for local hockey fans to work out their B.C. Cup dreams: a new bubble-hockey game at the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame.
Article content
Article content
'They painted (the players) in Vancouver Millionaires and Victoria Cougars colours, so that you have the 1915 Stanley Cup champion playing the 1925 Stanley Cup champion,' explains Jason Beck of the Hall of Fame. 'Player names and numbers are on each player, so you've got (Millionaire) Cyclone Taylor facing (Cougar) Frank Frederickson. It's really cool.'
Article content
Article content
The uniforms are beautiful: royal maroon jerseys, white pants and striped socks for the Millionaires, sky-blue jerseys, gold pants and striped socks for the Cougars.
Article content
Radio personality Matt Price adds commentary ('The B.C. Historical Classic is underway!'). 'O Canada' plays before the start of the game. A siren goes off after someone scores.
Article content
Article content
A Jumbotron scoreboard above centre ice reads 'Patrick Arena,' after the Patrick family that started up the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, where the Millionaires and the Cougars played.
Article content
Article content
A history and photographs of the two teams are displayed on the base of the game, which is labelled: 'British Columbia Historical Classic, Electrified Ice Hockey Simulator Machine.'
Article content
It also lists some of the innovations that Frank and Lester Patrick introduced into their league ('Blue lines! Penalty shots! Jersey numbers!')
Article content
The historical classic is the brainstorm of Robert O'Connor, a family doctor in Metchosin, a Victoria suburb. Last year, O'Connor wanted to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Victoria's Cup victory. So he bought a bubble-hockey game and customized it in his garage.
Article content
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘Not our best': Undisciplined Oilers thumped 6-1 by Panthers in ugly Game 3
SUNRISE – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had the puck with Sergei Bobrovsky at his mercy. The Oilers forward — an injury question mark coming into Game 3 of the Stanley Cup final — fired high and wide of the Panthers' goal with his team enjoying an early power play. It was about as good as things would get for Edmonton on an ugly Monday night that saw Florida dominate in picking up a resounding 6-1 victory to grab a 2-1 lead in the NHL title series. 'Not our best,' Oilers captain Connor McDavid said of his team's performance. 'I don't think our best has shown up all series long, but it's coming.' It better happen quick. A knife-edged matchup through 8 1/2 periods — a 4-3 Edmonton overtime victory and a 5-4 Florida triumph in double OT — didn't follow the same pattern after shifting from Alberta's capital to Sunrise's stifling heat. 'We didn't play very well, that's evident,' said Oilers winger Evander Kane, who took a pair of penalties in the first period. 'We have nobody to blame but ourselves.' Brad Marchand scored 56 seconds after puck drop to send Amerant Bank Arena into an early frenzy before that man-advantage chance where Nugent-Hopkins ripped that puck off the glass. The Oilers were undisciplined from there with three minor penalties in the offensive zone and another for too many men on the ice before the first intermission. The Panthers finally made the visitors pay when Carter Verhaeghe went bar down on Stuart Skinner. Corey Perry cut the deficit in half 100 seconds into the middle period on a power play as Edmonton briefly showed signs of life, but a turnover by Oilers defenceman John Klingberg led to Sam Reinhart making it 3-1. Sam Bennett then crushed Edmonton winger Vasily Podkolzin to create a turnover that led to his own breakaway goal before Aaron Ekblad and Evan Rodrigues rounded out the scoring on man advantages in the third. The Oilers played into the Panthers' hands all night, coming unhinged with scuffles after the whistle — something they had largely avoided through two games. Florida, which defeated Edmonton in seven to capture the franchise's first championship 12 months ago, showed again why its roster is littered with players adept at straddling or crossing the officiating line. And, from the Oilers' perspective, the calls have been tilted in the Panthers' favour. 'They seem to get away with it more than we do,' Kane said of the gamesmanship. 'It's tough to find the line. They're doing just as much stuff as we are … there seems to be a little bit more attention on our group.' Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch, whose team felt there should have been a too-many-men penalty on Florida in extra time of Game 2, had a biting take on the refereeing so far in the series. '(Wes McCauley and Francis Charron) did an outstanding job,' he said of Monday's officiating crew. 'They even caught the too-many-men penalty in the first period, which was too many men. 'They caught us there. I just wish they had been calling the game in Game 2 in overtime.' Skinner said it won't be difficult to flush the result. 'It's one game,' the netminder said after getting the hook following Florida's fifth goal on 23 shots. 'They could've beat us 12-0 and it's the same result. It's still just 2-1 (in the series). 'It might feel a little bit harder just because we weren't in the game, but it doesn't change how we're going to respond.' Both teams pivoted to message-sending mode in the third period, including a long fight between Edmonton defenceman Darnell Nurse and Florida forward Jonah Gadjovich. 'Boys being boys,' Knoblauch said. 'Just trying to make investments for the next game.' McDavid said his group can, if necessary, match the Panthers' physical style moving forward. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. 'We feel like we can play any game,' he said. 'When the game's out of hand, you're going to see that stuff.' Edmonton now has 48 hours to regroup before Game 4 on Thursday. 'You go back home at 2-2 or down 3-1 … it's a big swing,' said McDavid, whose team will host Game 5 on Saturday. 'It's a pivotal game. There's no doubt about it.' The Oilers will need a lot more — offence, discipline and composure — in a contest that could go a long way in determining if their Cup script is any different this time around. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2025.
Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
These Florida Panthers look familiar. And they're two wins from another Stanley Cup after wearing down the Oilers
The Florida Panthers are halfway there. The Edmonton Oilers look halfway done. The Panthers' big guns got the job done, from Brad Marchand's opening-minute goal to Aaron Ekblad's third-period power-play goal that chased Stuart Skinner from the Edmonton net. Sam Bennett, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart and Evan Rodrigues also scored in a penalty-filled, bench-depleting 6-1 win over the Oilers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup final Monday night. 'Emotions are high,' Marchand told Sportsnet after the game. 'Sometimes it's how the game goes.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW The Panthers lead the best-of-seven final two games to one with Game 4 — and a chance to put a stranglehold on the series — set for Thursday, also at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla. Nhl Fans in McDavid's hometown of Newmarket, Ont., show support for favourite son NEWMARKET - With the Oilers in the Stanley Cup final again this year, the decision to bring … 'We've got to find a way to win,' Edmonton captain Connor McDavid said. 'The focus shifts right away to winning the game on Thursday. We came for a split, didn't get it tonight. Another opportunity Thursday. 'Game 4 is really big. You go back home 2-2, or down 3-1. It's a big swing game.' The Oilers took their swings — quite literally — at the Panthers as their frustrations boiled over with the game getting out of hand. The referees issued five misconducts to Edmonton, three to Florida. 'When we get into garbage time, those things happen and I don't mind when those things happen,' McDavid said. 'It's what good teams do, fight your way out of the rink.' The Panthers know not just how to win but how to beat down an opponent. They needed just five games to beat Tampa in the first round and Carolina in the Eastern Conference final. And though the Maple Leafs took them to seven games in the second round, Game 7 was a 6-1 shellacking. The Panthers find ways to get their opponents off their game. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW 'We talked about it in the third,' Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. 'If you have to take a punch, take a punch. If you have to take a cross-check, take a cross-check. Spear, slash in the face, whatever the case is, you've got to take it. We just played a really smart game.' The Oilers took 21 penalties. After being the team that complained the first two games about uncalled goaltender interference on Skinner, they were the team that was called for it in Game 3 on Sergei Bobrovsky. 'Look at some of the calls,' said Oilers winger Evander Kane, who took three minors and a 10-minute misconduct. 'Some of them are frustrating. They seem to get away with it more than we do. It's tough to find the line.' Hockey NHL teams in states with no income tax have economic advantage, professor says Tampa Bay, Las Vegas, Florida, Dallas and Nashville all play in states with no income tax. Florida's win bodes well for the Panthers' chance at defending their championship. When a best-of-seven Stanley Cup final is tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 holds an all-time series record of 23-7 (.767). 'We try to play the same way every game,' Marchand said. 'The biggest thing that we talk about is consistency throughout our game. Sometimes, games get a little bit of hand, but they're fun ones to be part of. ' Though Game 3 was the only one so far that didn't require overtime, it started an awful lot likes the first two games: a quick goal, this time 54 seconds in by Marchand, and plenty of penalties. Verhaeghe scored the only power-play goal of the period to put Florida up 2-0. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Corey Perry scored with the man advantage early in the second, but the Panthers didn't let the Oilers come back. Reinhart scored just 1:20 after Perry gave the Oilers life. Then Bennett got his playoffs-leading 14th goal as Florida went up 4-1. The Panthers have outscored the Oilers 5-2 in the middle frames. The Oilers seemed well out of sorts, unable to get anything meaningful going against the defending champs. 'It wasn't our best at all,' McDavid said. 'I don't think our best has shown up, all series long, but it's coming.' The Oilers would be better off forgetting this game happened. They face big questions about a power play that has gone cold and about their goaltending. Calvin Pickard put in a solid third period after replacing Skinner. The Oilers took far too many penalties 200 feet from their net, they were caught retaliating too much, and they showed the kind of frustration more indicative of a young team, not the league's oldest team 'It was penalty chaos tonight,' Skinner said. 'I don't know what to make of it. There's a lot of emotions that are going into this. We're trying to win a Cup. They're trying to win a Cup. So there's fight. 'Some guys are flaking, going down, trying to cause penalties. The other teams don't like that. So then it's just going to be a battle. Obviously, we're not going to go down without a fight.' Cup notes Paul Maurice became the third head coach in NHL history to win 1,000 games in the regular season and playoffs, joining Scotty Bowman (1,467) and Joel Quenneville (1,090) … Marchand, 37 old, became the oldest player to score in the first three games of a Stanley Cup final, besting the previous mark held by 35-year-old Frank Mahovlich (in 1973 with Montreal) … Perry became the third player in NHL history age 40 or older to score multiple goals in the final … Bennett extended his goal streak to four games to establish a new franchise record for the longest in the post-season.
Global News
3 hours ago
- Global News
Panthers rout Oilers 6-1 to take 2-1 lead in Stanley Cup final
Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett scored again, Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe each got their first goal in the Stanley Cup final, and the defending champion Florida Panthers capitalized on the Edmonton Oilers' worst performance in weeks to win Game 3 in a 6-1 rout Monday night. The Panthers lead the best-of-seven series 2-1. Marchand became the oldest player to score in each of the first three games of a final and the first to open the scoring the next time out after notching an overtime winner. His 11 goals in the final are the most among active players, one more than similarly ageless Corey Perry. Bennett added his NHL playoff-leading 14th goal, just the second at home, after making a big hit on Edmonton's Vasily Podkolzin that contributed to the turnover to spring him on a breakaway. Marchand and Bennett have combined to score eight of Florida's 13 goals in the series. Story continues below advertisement But it was not just them this time. Verhaeghe buried a perfect shot into the net under the cross bar on the power play, Reinhart made up for missing the net on an earlier attempt, Aaron Ekblad scored to chase Stuart Skinner on the fifth goal on 23 shots and Evan Rodrigues added the exclamation point in the waning minutes. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy At the other end of the ice, Sergei Bobrovsky earned the 'Bobby! Bobby!' chants from a fired up Florida crowd. The two-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender known as 'Bob' was on his game for the very few quality chances the discombobulated Oilers mustered, making 32 saves. Perry — at 40 the oldest player in the series — beat Bobrovsky with some silky hands for a power-play goal, keeping up this final being a showcase of cagey veterans along with Marchand. Connor McDavid could not get his team on track, and Edmonton took 15 minors — led by Evander Kane's three plus a misconduct to add up to 85 penalty minutes — including a brawl that ensued with less than 10 minutes left. Trent Frederic and Darnell Nurse, who fought Jonah Gadjovich, got misconducts that knocked them out of a game with an outcome determined long before. After the final looked as evenly matched as can be with Games 1 and 2 each needing extra time, overtime and then double OT, Game 3 was a lopsided mismatch. The Oilers came unglued to the point Jake Walman resorted to squirting water on Panthers players on their bench from his spot on the visiting side. Story continues below advertisement The teams have some extra time off before Game 4 on Thursday, when the Panthers have the chance to take a 3-1 lead.
