Everyone in life would love to have that get out of jail free card. if only the game of Monopoly applied to events in your own life, especially when dealing with the law. Sometimes the lucky people have that name of that Police officer who they can mention their name to the officers on the scene, and suddenly your wish is granted like from a genie and you get away with breaking the law. These names, the people you know kind of give you that ego as if you might be a big deal. Most of this name dropping might get you out of minor infractions like speeding or rolling through the stop sign. When I tried to give a name to a Police officer once, the guy told me a lie and said that guy was fired. What if the guy you know does not get along with the Police officer who pulled you over? Then when it comes to any kind of celebrity, most of them will use their status to try to wiggle out of the jam they got themselves in. Alex Galchenyuk may have used the old celebrity trick on July 9th, when he was arrested in Scottsdale, Arizona. Who is Alex Galchenyuk? I’ve never heard of him either. Galchenyuk is an 11 year hockey veteran of the NHL and signed with the local team, the Arizona Coyotes. It would have been Galchenyuk’s third stint with the Coyotes. The 29 year old left winger was taken away in handcuffs for driving drunk and left the scene of a hit and run. This did not go well as he was threatening the Police officers that he was going to bring Red Dawn on their lives with his Soviet Russian friends back in Moscow.
Alex Galchenyuk signed a one year deal with the Coyotes to return to the team he played for in the 2021-22 season, on July 1st. Galchenyuk also played for the Coyotes in the 2018-19 season as well. Galchenyuk was out celebrating his return to the Coyotes with family. Then he drove his BMW after the festivities with family where he ran over a curb in a parking lot while knocking over a sign. He also did damage to someone’s parked automobile. Thank God no one was hurt. Galchenyuk fled the scene as witnesses said two males were in the BMW. The Police caught up to the out-of-control hockey player where his father, who probably took over behind the wheel, tried to take the blame. The witnesses tell a different story as they saw Alex behind the wheel. Galechenyuk was obviously drunk’ slurring his words & using racial slurs as he verbally assaulted the Scottsdale Police Officers who were trying to get this menace off the streets. Galchenyuk then was aggressive to the officers, even threatening their lives and families. Then it was like in the movie Red Dawn, in the beginning the invasion by the Russians where the skies are full with Soviet parachuters coming down like it was raining cats and dogs.
That was when Galchenyuk rained down the threats saying, “One phone call & you’re all dead, your family and your blood line is dead”.
The people that apparently were going to invade the Scottsdale police station, like in the the movie Terminator, were his Russian friends. Galchenyuk played youth hockey for several years growing up. These Russian friends would cut out one of the officers’ wives or daughter’s kidney. Then imagine Galchenyuk in back of the squad car cuffed in a real life penalty box saying, “I’m gunna chop you and your daughter up,” doing his great Mike Tyson impression as Iron Mike wanted to eat his opponent’s children one time.
We all have had drunken stupid nights, although maybe not to this length. Last year Alex Galchenyuk played most of the year in the AHL American Hockey league. Galchenyuk only played in 11 games for the Colorado Avalanche and did not have any points. Galchenyuk was drafted by the Montreal Canadians in 2012 and stayed up North for 6 seasons. After leaving Montreal, Galchenyuk has suited up for six other teams which includes the Coyotes, Wild, Penguins, Senators, Maple Leafs, and last season, the Avalanche. Galchenyuk has 146 career goals while dishing out 208 assists for 354 points for his entire NHL career. Galchenyuk returning to Arizona may have been like coming home as he had two stints and no other team he played more than one year for except the Montreal and the Coyotes.
The Arizona Coyotes have enough problems already as they may be headed out of town to relocate in another city. The Coyotes as an organization have had a hard time finding a home arena to play their games at in the state of Arizona. The Coyotes quickly terminated the services of Alex Galchenyuk, will move on, and can easily pick up another veteran of his playing level on the open market. Galchenyuk found out how much of an ASS he was, apologized, and will seek help so he does not follow that yellow brick road again or drive on the side walk. Galchenyuk was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Using the Russian operatives or hit men to do your dirty work as a hockey player makes you kind of a wienie. Plus, Russia has their own problems dealing with Ukraine. I’m sure Vladimir Putin has used up all of Galchenyuk’s men – throwing them out in the battle field to get slaughtered. Now if he said he had Ukrainians on speed dial, then perhaps he has some quality contacts. Let’s get back to reality and rethink this. Who would risk their lives or do a life sentence in prison to help a hockey player no one has ever heard of? We all wish we could snap the fingers and have some protectors come out of the woodwork to finish the fight off. This is the real world. I wish Galchenyuk played during the days of Stu Grimson and Bobby Probert so someone could punch this guy’s lights out on the ice. Perhaps he could not be such a dumb ass the next go around and tell us about these Finish mountain people that snack on hearts.
One of the best hockey movies of all-time is Slap Shot. It may be the best hockey movie all-time and one of the best sports movies of all-time. The Charlestown Chiefs with the Hanson Brothers’ old-time hockey or goon it up style from the movie was based on a hockey league from the 1970’s even though it is not mentioned in the credits. The NAHL (North American Hockey League) only lasted 4 seasons in the 1970’s an it was the Federal Hockey League in the movie Slap Shot. The NAHL was a developmental league for another league that is not around any longer, the WHA (World Hockey Association). When the Eastern Hockey League went under in 1973, the Southern Hockey League formed with the NAHL to play 4 more seasons from 1973-1977. The connections the NAHL has to the movie Slap shot are right in front of your eyes. So are you ready to put the foil on coach?
The film’s screenwriter, Nancy Dowd, has a brother who is Ned Dowd, who played for the Johnstown Jets. Charlestown Chiefs and Johnstown Jets…
Most of the teams in the NAHL were from the state of New York. The Johnstown Jets came from the state of Pennsylvania. Nancy’s brother, Ned, suited up for the Jets as the movie Slap Shot had one of their own Neds. Ned Dowd played a part in Slap Shot, as the famous goon Ogie Oglethorpe who played on the Syracuse team.
In the movie Slap Shot, the Chiefs’ Ned was Ned Braden. A pure goal scorer with a college degree who would not goon it up.
In the movie Slap Shot, the Chiefs were up for sale.
The Johnstown Jets were also on the block.
The NAHL lasted 4 seasons and had 4 champions with two going to the Syracuse team, the Blazers.
The Slap Shot movie had their own version of the Syracuse team, who they called the Bulldogs as they were one of the top dogs in the league. Just like the Blazers who won two Lockhart Cups in the NAHL.
The Bulldogs in Slap Shot had Dr. Hook, Tim McCracken, as their captain and best player on the ice. The Blazers had Ray Adduomo as the team’s top scorerer who tallied over 50 goals in one of those years Syracuse took the Lockhart cup.
The other champion in the NAHL was the Philadelphia Firebirds who won a Lockhart Cup. The Johnstown Jets would add a title of their own in the 1974-75 season.
Spoiler alert!!! In the movie Slap Shot, the Charlestown Chiefs would win the championship.
The Jets would beat the Broome County Dusters and references of Broome county were mentioned in the movie Slap Shot. The NAHL had about dozen teams in its 4 year history. Other teams not mentioned so far were the Beauce Jaros from St. Georges, Quebec. The Erie Blades, another team from Pennsylvania. Cape Cod had two names, the Cubs and Codders, and they were out of South Yarmouth, Massachuettes.
Other teams were the Maine Nordiques, Long Island Cougars and the Mohawk Valley Comets, who were from Utica, New York.
The only team I left out of the 4 year NAHL, was the Buffalo Norsemen series with the Johnstown Jets. It links to the movie Slap Shot.
The Norsemen have the same colors as that team the Charlestown Chiefs rumbled with before the game with the team called the Hynannisport Presidents, in the movie. The Jets were up 3 games to 2 in a playoff series with the Norsemen and the three characters based on the Hanson brothers started a fight in the pre-skate. Steve, Jeff, and Jack Carlson who were three brothers for the Jets, were not afraid to drop the gloves.
If I’m talking about the movie Slap Shot, how can you forget about the Hanson Brothers? In the movie Slap Shot they have a character on the Charlestown Chiefs, Dave “the Killer” Carlson.
The Carlson brothers were retaliating against the Norsemen when the Buffalo fans made racist remarks to a black player on the Jets during the first few games of the playoff series. The Norsemen had signs saying the black hockey player should be playing basketball instead of hockey and all kinds of negative stuff was yelled out in that series. Which is just a shame. After the pre-skate brawl was broken up by the officials, both teams headed to their respective locker rooms. The Buffalo Norsemen would never come back out on the ice resulting in a forfeit to give the Jets the playoff series. Same kind of thing as the Chiefs won the championship in Slap Shot because the Bulldogs of Syracuse protested Ned Braden taking it all off as both teams were in middle of rumble on the ice. The officials made the call, the Bulldogs forfeited and Chiefs win the the cup.
Tommy Lockhart was the founder of the Eastern Hockey League that went under as the NAHL named the cup after him. The last season of the NAHL, the champion Syracuse Blazers won the Lockhart cup on April 10, 1977. Since that night, the cup has gone MIA. Only three historical cups according to the Hockey Hall of Fame have vanished without a trace. The Lockhart trophy, through the grape vine, was last seen in the basement of the Blazers’ coach, Danny Belisle.
Only two of the original NAHL teams would move on after the league folded up shop for good. The Philadelphia Firebirds and the Broome Dusters would still have life in the AHL American Hockey League. The best thing that came away from the NAHL would be by far the movie Slap shot that was well done. It showed some of these hockey league were like beer leagues and guys giving it all for the love of the game on the ice either by dropping the gloves or putting the puck into the net.
The USFL has concluded season two as the Birmingham Stallions repeated as champions. The league has already decided they will return for their third season. The USFL was the first Spring football league since the original 1980’s USFL to play more than one season in a row and declare a champion. Last year, the USFL had 4 hub cities instead of just the one they used in season 1 in 2022. The USFL used Tom Benson Stadium in Canton, Ohio as their site for the playoffs and championship in year one. This year they expanded their use of Canton making it a hub city for two teams and more playoff action. Before you expand the league into more teams, you have to get these teams home to their actual city and state, not their adopted city and state.
The USFL has done well with building a fan base for the Birmingham Stallions, Michigan Panthers, and Memphis Showboats because these teams play their home games in their respective cities. Teams like New Orleans, Houston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and New Jersey need to go home. Let’s say the league accommodates that for those teams on a permanent road trip. Then let’s say the team would want to expand to ten teams by adding two teams from the past to the mix. Which two teams would fans like to see resurrected?
The USFL has 11 options they could used from the past 1980’s league. Times have changed since the 1980’s as some of these cities have other teams playing there from other leagues. In those situations, the USFL may not be a good fit. I will go from the worst idea to the best idea with all 11 options.
#11. LA Express
The present USFL has not made their way out West yet. The LA Express would be a bad idea, as the city already has two NFL teams: the Rams and Chargers. The Chargers fan base may be smaller than what they had in San Diego. The Express on their first go around they had the stud quarterback in Steve Young. When the Express played at the LA Coliseum, nobody showed. The greatest game nobody saw was quoted by the press when Jim Kelley and his Houston Gamblers played Young’s Express in LA. The pro: LA is a big market. The Cons: LA has two baseball teams in the same market.
#10. San Antonio Gunslingers
Some would say the old San Antonio Gunslinger logo is cartoon like. I like it. In the first go around in the USFL, the Gunslingers team on payday would all race in their cars to the local bank to cash their checks. The players knew if they got there before their own teammates, they might get paid that week. Some checks bounced. Great place to play in the Alamo Dome in San Antonio. The USFL would be invading XFL territory as they already have a team in San Antonio called the Brahmas. The XFL seems to have a team in almost all the big cities in Texas. The USFL and XFL share one city already for the Gamblers and Roughnecks.
Is the Gunslinger name tainted in the city as San Antonio arena team uses the same nickname? The pro: San Antonio would be a nice addition to the South division with teams already in place like New Orleans, Houston, Memphis and Birmingham.
#9.ORLANDO RENEGADES
The Orlando Renegades only played in one season in the USFL. The Renegades originally were the Washington Federals and the team left DC for Florida. The Renegades did outdraw the Federals in attendance. Both the Renegades and Federals were bad teams. I love the Renegades logo with the feathers and the hatchet. These days anything to do with Indians and Native Americans in your team logo is not a good thing. Ask the Cleveland Indians and the Washington Redskins organizations. The Atlanta Braves, Chicago Blackhawks, and the Kansas City Chiefs are still hanging around. Then you have to deal with the XFL team in Orlando, the Guardians, who are a bad team. Do you think Orlando fans would like to watch two bad Spring football teams? Plus, Orlando has a very successful Arena league team in the Predators. To be outdrawn by that league in attendance would be embarrassing.
#8.JACKSONVILLE BULLS
The Bulls did very well in the first go around of the USFL in the 1980’s. The Bulls led the USFL in fans attending their home games. The Bulls offense used Lindy Infante’s high electric offense that featured running back Mike Rozier and quarterback Brian Sipe to create a must watch team. Another very cool logo and team you could easily add to the South division. My only problem with the Bulls is the city already has the Jaguars of the NFL. Last year the Jaguars fans returned out of the wood work as the team finally made it to the playoffs. How many times did you hear the Jaguars were a team that was going to move to another city? Some thought they’d take up a home base in London, England. The Jaguars were horrible for most of their existence. I think the Bulls would be bad timing at this time since the city agreed to renovate the home stadium the Jaguars play home games in.
#7. OAKLAND INVADERS
The Invaders is a great nickname. If the Invaders resurrected, they could move right back in the Oakland Coliseum and pretend like they never left. Bringing back football on the infield of the baseball diamond. The Invaders made it all the way to the championship game in 1985 led by former Michigan Panther and New Orleans Saints Quarterback Bobby Hebert, but they ended up losing to the Philadelphia Stars. I like the idea of the Invaders back in the league, but teams are leaving Oakland rather than wanting to play there. Raiders to Vegas. Now the Athletics want to head to Vegas. Could the USFL follow the conga line and have the Invaders become the Vegas Invaders? I think the west coast would be a better idea if the league is thriving and in a permanent state of mind that this Spring league would not fold up shop. Too many teams water down the product on the field. I think the league would have to move slowly toward the West.
#6. ARIZONA WRANGLERS
Arizona is not far off from adding the Wranglers in the South Division. When the Cardinals moved to Arizona it took that team many years to build up a fan base there. Playing outside would probably be a bad idea as the Cardinals played for years in the hot sun of Arizona State Sun Devil stadium. The Wranglers did play their home game in Sun Devil stadium. Arizona does have an all-purpose dome State Farm stadium and I think the Wranglers could play there the second go around to build up a fan base. The Wranglers were able to merge with the Chicago Blitz when they folded and Arizona made it to the championship game in 1984 only to fall victim to the Philadelphia Stars. My one problem with Arizona is that the Coyotes want to move out of town and skate somewhere else. Baseball, basketball, and now the Cardinals have done well. Arizona is a roll of the dice if the USFL want to return to the cactus state.
#5. DENVER GOLD
The Denver Gold were not very golden in the first go around of the league. Bad ownership. The stories of bare to the bones came into play when you talked about the Gold ownership. The meals supplied by the team… you could probably be fed better in prison. The rent-a-wreck was the words used to describe the car situation for the Gold players when they needed a car. Is Denver a one horse type of town with the Broncos in the NFL? Setting up shop in Colorado is technically west coast. Denver could be a team temporarily in the North Division or even in the South but still kind of in no-man’s land. Something about having games with the mountains in the back ground is cool. Could you build up a following in the second go around or is this idea a pipe dream breathing in the Rocky mountain high?
#4.OKLAHOMA OUTLAWS
The Outlaws may be the coolest logo ever in the USFL. The original Outlaws only existed one year in Oklahoma. The Outlaws would become the Wranglers. The Outlaws had a owner who would treat his team like cattle. They had Doug Williams at quarterback in that year as he emerged later on in the NFL with the Redskins. Williams became the first black quarterback to win a Superbowl title. Oklahoma has a professional basketball in the Thunder who have done well since vacating Seattle. It sucks that the Supersonics are not still around in the NBA. Oklahoma is all about Sooners football as they love the college game. If you can get the interest from the fans wanting a team in the Spring and bring back the Outlaws, you would be the only game in town when you play football. The second go around teams don’t have these problems with cheap and bad ownerships because the league is owned by Fox network. Would Oklahoma be too far west? Like the Denver idea, they could be in either division temporarily until you establish teams on the West coast.
#3.WASHINGTON FEDERALS
The first go around for the Washington Federals was horrible because they played bad football. You could compare them to the Washington Generals that played the Harlem Globetrotters on the Simpsons. Krusty the Clown bet on them because he thought they were due. The name & the color scheme I like for the Federals. Baseball came back to the nation’s capital as the Expos turn into the Nationals and they did well. DC has the Commanders and they have the Defenders in the XFL which would be hard. Could the beer snake extend to back to back spring fling football teams as DC fans have been one of the exciting fan bases in football after the NFL. The Federals would fit in with the North Division with Michigan, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New Jersey. Watching bad Redskin football all these years means maybe the younger generation will gravitate to the Defenders and Federals.
#2.CHICAGO BLITZ
I like the idea of having a team in my own home city. The Blitz had Bills legendary coach Marv Leavy coaching them at one point. The Blitz’s first season the team did well as they made the playoffs and lost to the Stars in overtime in Philadelphia. The Blitz played their home games at Soldier Field but only averaged 18,000 fans per game. The Chicago Bears are planning to move to the burbs as the Blitz can retake their former home turf in Soldier Field. Downtown Chicago these days is not the safest place to be. The Blitz could use another stadium vacated by the Chicago Fire, the soccer team, on the south side of town. Bringing back the Blitz, you can fit them right in the North division with Michigan, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Pittsburgh. The Blitz ended up folding and most of the team became a part of the Wranglers in Arizona. The biggest question is whether a big city like Chicago can gravitate to a small Spring football league.
#1.TAMPA BAY BANDITS
The Tampa Bay Bandits will ride again in the USFL. The Bandits were back in 2022 in the reboot of the USFL. The league wanted to open up the Memphis hub city and resurrected the Showboats, saying the Bandits will be back in the future. The Bandits did well in the 1980’s when actor Burt Reynolds had some stake in the team as he was a co-owner. The Tampa Bay market does have the Buccaneers in the NFL. No XFL team to deal with. Every league wants a Florida franchise. The USFL best option is Tampa Bay over the other two choices they have had in the past with Orlando and Jacksonville. Tampa Bay would be a perfect team to add to the South Division. The Tampa Bay fan base has improved with the Buccaneers over the years and the Lightning in the NHL. In baseball, I’m not sure why the Rays gets a raw deal when they’ve been a top team for the last ten seasons in the MLB.
The USFL should not rush expansion as all their teams they have now still have to establish their own fan base in their own cities. In year two, the entire USFL was a well-balanced league as every team was competitive. As a fan, we want to see some of these old helmets back in the league in the future. It may be the same helmet, just in a different city as well. Perhaps the USFL and the XFL will emerge. Some of these old helmets may never resurface in the future.
#1. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (9-2) VS #1. PITTSBURGH MAULERS (5-6)
The 2023 championship features both teams that came in as division champions and now will meet in Canton Ohio for the final game of the year. The Stallions are trying to repeat as champions, as they took down the Philadelphia Stars last year in the inaugural year of the USFL reboot. The Maulers won their first post-season game ever in their first appearance last week, and this goes back to the 1980’s history when Pittsburgh never came close to the post-season. It took overtime last week, but Maulers got it done versus the Panthers. In the South, the Stallions broke the Breakers in a blow out win to advance to the championship game. Maulers have won three straight while the Stallions have won five straight.
HEAD TO HEAD THIS SEASON: Stallions won 24-20 against Maulers this season in their only meeting.
It was Deon Cain’s 91 yard touchdown return that would be the game winner over the Maulers in week 4 action.
ALL-TIME HEAD TO HEAD RECORDS BETWEEN STALLIONS/MAULERS INCLUDING 1980’S
Stallions 3-0 Maulers
THE QUARTERBACKS THAT WERE NOT QB 1 TO START THE SEASON
Both quarterbacks starting this championship game were not even the opening day starters for their perspective team. For the Stallions it was J’Mar Smith who started the season as QB1, a guy who led Birmingham all the way to the championship last year. Smith out-played Alex McGough who was QB1 to start the 2022 season. Smith got the job and ran with it. However, Smith would suffer a season-ending injury in week 1 which unleashed Super McGough as he has the Stallions back in the same position as last year. The Maulers, are the Chicago Bears when it comes to quarterbacks. Bad quarterbacks with a great defense is the Mauler way of life. James Morgan started the season for the Maulers, and it did not take much for Troy Williams to show he much better than that guy.
LAST WEEK QB STATS
Alex McGough versus the Breakers: 310 passing yards, 84 rushing yards and total 5 touchdowns. Stallions destroyed Breakers 47-22
Troy Williams versus the Panthers: 23-40, 203 yards, 1 touchdown pass, 36 rushing yards. Maulers beat Panthers in OT 31-27.
Both Williams and McGough are duel threat quarterbacks. Alex McGough is the best quarterback in the USFL. Williams is a solid option as he takes what defenses are giving him and does not make mistakes with the football. Williams needs a running game and relies on the short passing game in hopes his receivers can break tackles. McGough is a master at improv. McGough can make things happen with his feet or his arm. Broken plays are when McGough thrives and turns into Patrick Mahomes.
QUARTERBACK EDGE: Stallions
The Stallions have the better offense while the Maulers have the better defense. Stallions can put up the most points in the league while the Maulers give up the least amount of points in the USFL. This game comes down to the Stallions defense versus the Maulers offense that will decide the outcome. The Stallions did get one of their main staples back last week in linebacker Scooby Wright.
Scooby is not only a fan favorite in Birmingham, but he is the heart and soul of this Stallions defense. Last week, Scooby made his presence felt in the win over the Breakers. Wright had three solo tackles of which four of those was for a loss of yards. Wright also had one pass defended.
The Maulers weapon to win the match up between their own offense versus the Stallions defense comes down to wide receiver Isiah Hennie. Last weekend, Hennie led all Maulers receivers with 6 catches for 83 yards. Hennie was targeted 10 times as he is Troy Williams’ guy. Hennie had one of those catches for 41 yards as he is the playmaker for the Maulers. If the Maulers want to win this match up and the game, Hennie needs to have a big night at the office.
MAULERS OFFENSE VERSUS STALLIONS DEFENSE: EDGE BIRMINGHAM
DEFENSE WINS GAMES
Defense can always prevail over great offenses. The Maulers would need their defense to play lights out versus the Stallions, and it starts with the Boogie Man, Boogie Roberts, on that Pittsburgh defensive line. The Maulers defense in the first meeting versus the Stallions kept them in the game as they had the lead and lost that game on a kick off return. The Maulers gave up 27 points to a Panther quarterback making his second start in the USFL last week. It worries me with Super Alex McGough and that Birmingham loaded offense that can pass and has running attack with some nice options in the back field and a quarterback that can take off. The Maulers defense will have to have their best game of the season to steal this game away from heavy favorite Stallions team.
I like both coaches for the Maulers and Stallions. I think both coaches are players’ coaches. Skip Holtz, despite injuries his team has had this season, has done a marvelous job putting the right pieces in place to keep this Stallion machine running on all cylinders. Ray Horton is a god compared to last year’s Maulers coach, Kirby Jackson, who should have never been hired in the first place. The players for both teams would run through a brick wall for their coaches. Experience-wise you have to give Skippy the edge from doing this last year with the Stallions. Skip Holtz’s experience from college as head coach and having coaching in his blood line gives the Stallions the upper hand in this big game.
EDGE: Stallions
FINAL THOUGHTS
As a fan, I want the Maulers to be like Sledge Hammer blowing up the Stallions. In this championship it would be the David beating Goliath story. I don’t think this game will be a blow out. I think this game will be close through three quarters. The Stallions prevail in the 4th quarter. The Stallions have too many wild horses on their roster for this Mauler team to handle going full throttle for 4 straight quarters.
The Wild shamrock 