The trees proudly display their seasonal finery, the air is as crisp as a freshly picked Paula Red, and a thick paste coats the roof of my mouth (probably a side-effect from my medication). The sense of anticipation we all feel can only mean one thing; It's hockey pool season once again.
Hockey Pool season (sometimes referred to as Autumn by the Eskimos) is that favorite time of the year when men and women of all ages hunker down with their stat sheets and try to figure out ways of giving me their money.
Three years ago I won the well known Wingell Cup and more than $600 dollars as top point getter in our pool. One year later: NHL players strike and last year a change to a live draft format that I was unable to be involved with. So here we are....2006-2007 season underway and I'm ready to defend my title. When I say I that should actually read WE but more about that later.
Many of you have asked how I did it. If you'll recall I lead from the very beginning and by the all-star break had built up an insurmountable advantage. If I don't perform up to expectations this year then we can just say that it was beginner's luck. Obviously there is a lot at stake, so much in fact, that it would be foolish of me to divulge any secrets. I will say this though; If you can find a sports statistics whiz kid like I did you'll be doing yourself a big favor. Mine is named Soren (son of GF Phyllis) and we'll be attempting to repeat as a tandem once again. He made the picks and I rubber stamped them after making a couple of key changes. One was choosing Marc Savard as my ace in the hole and the other was picking a defenceman who had already retired. The latter move worked to our advantage as I held on to the retiree at trade time (hailed by The Hockey News as "A bold psychological manoeuvre"). So there it is...get someone who knows a lot about hockey to make your picks and choose a least one retired, injured, or dead player. Good luck to you all.
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