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Monthly Archives: June 2018

Ex-Caps Mike Marson and Bill Riley bask in Devante Smith-Pelly’s Stanley Cup heroics

12 Tuesday Jun 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Bill Riley, Devante Smith-Pelly, Mike Marson, Stanley Cup, Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals

Mike Marson wasn’t able to make it to D.C. Tuesday to witness the Washington Capitals’ Stanley Cup victory parade with other Caps alumni members –  he was grounded by the ravages of rheumatoid arthritis.

But Marson was hooting and rooting from afar, basking in the glow of a championship won by the team that made him the National Hockey League’s second black player when it drafted him in its inaugural season in 1974.

“They had some tremendous play from (Alex) Ovechkin, Mr. Devante Smith-Pelly, (Braden) Holtby,” Marson told me. “So many guys played well.”

Former Washington Capitals forward Mike Marson is thrilled that his team finally won the Stanley Cup.

He had special praise for Smith-Pelly, a fellow black player from Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, who came up big in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 7 goals and 1 assist in 23 post-season games.

“He was heroic. He scored the most-important goals, I believe,” Marson said. “I take my hat off to Devo. A lot of hard work there, a little bit of rough water occasionally, I think, but good for him. He came out the superstar and was all that he could be.”

Smith-Pelly scored three goals in the final three goals in the final three games against the Vegas Golden Knights, none bigger than the smooth (real smooth, reeaall smooth) Game 5 third-period tally he slid past goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury that tied the game at 3.

Capitals center Lars Eller scored the game-winning goal that secured a 4-3 win and the Cup for the Capitals. But without Smith-Pelly’s acrobatic goal, there’s no go-ahead goal by Eller.

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Actor Denzel Washington may be The Equalizer in movie theaters this summer, but Smith-Pelly nailed the role on ice in Las Vegas last Thursday night, much to Marson’s delight.

Washington Capitals forward Mike Marson, circa 1974-75.

Marson was so thrilled by the right wing’s Game 5 goal that he threw a cushion at his television – an odd family tradition.

“When my dad, myself and my Uncle Romeo used to watch hockey, when something went one way or the other, we would throw out cushions at the TV and laugh, of course,” he said.

After the ceremonial cushion toss, Marson grabbed the phone and called Bill Riley, who became the NHL’s third black player when he joined Marson on the Capitals in 1974-75, to compare notes on what they just witnessed.

Mike Marson scored 16 goals in his rookie season with the Capitals in 1974-75. (Photo/Washington Capitals archives).

Riley, who played right wing, summed up Smith-Pelly’s Game equalizer to me in four emailed words: “Gives me goosebumps. Wicked.”

Marson and Riley take pride in Smith-Pelly’s Stanley Cup success because, like them, he has overcome.

Washington Capitals right wing Devante-Smith Pelly.

He’s overcome the racist ignorance of “fans” who taunted him with chants of “basketball” as he sat in the penalty box in Chicago in February during a game against the Blackhawks.

Marson endured racist taunts and death threats during his four seasons with the Capitals, a turbulent time chronicled in Canadian filmmaker Damon Kwame Mason’s seminal black hockey history documentary, “Soul on Ice: Past, Present and Future.”

Still, Marson managed to score 24 goals and 24 assists in 196 NHL regular season games from 1974-75 to his final three games with the Los Angeles Kings in 1979-80.

Riley still recalls when “fans” in Detroit dismissively referred to him and Marson as “round ball players.” The racist indignities on and off the ice didn’t deter Riley from scoring 31 goals and 30 assists in 139 games with Washington and the Winnipeg Jets from 1974-75 to 1979-80.

Bill Riley and Mike Marson were teammates on the Washington Capitals in the mid-1970s. Both are proud as parents about Capitals forward Devante Smith-Pelly’s Stanley Cup Final success (Photos/Washington Capitals archives).

Both retired Caps are overjoyed that Smith-Pelly kept on keeping on after being cast aside and doubted by the Anaheim Ducks, the team that drafted him in the second round of the 2010, the Montreal Canadiens, and New Jersey Devils.

A free agent, he signed with the Capitals before the start of the 2017-18 season for the league minimum $650,000. He dutifully played on the Capitals fourth line, a checking line that didn’t get big minutes during the regular season.

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“I was in touch with Devante,” Marson said. “Devo’s a Scarborough guy and this and that. He endured as a player, kept getting better every game, and was playing with confidence.”

Devante Smith-Pelly crushing beers in a WWE belt before noon is a big mood (via @Capitals) pic.twitter.com/BXrOwEoiJk

— SI Extra Mustard (@SI_ExtraMustard) June 12, 2018

Smith-Pelly made the most of his opportunities, notching 7 goals and 9 assists in 75 regular season games. Then came the Playoffs, The Goal, The Cup and The Parade.

“Devo was able to make it happen,” Marson said.

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play.

 

 

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Devante Smith-Pelly scores his biggest goal, helps power Capitals to Stanley Cup

08 Friday Jun 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Devante Smith-Pelly, Stanley Cup Final, Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals

It’s like whenever the Washington Capitals needed a third goal, it had Devante Smith-Pelly’s name on it.

Washington Capitals right wing Devante Smith-Pelly.

For the third time in three Stanley Cup Final games, Smith-Pelly scored the Capitals’ third goal of the game Thursday night against the Vegas Golden Knights – and perhaps the biggest one of his career.

The big right wing’s third period tally tied the game at 3. Moments later, Capitals center Lars Eller scored the go-ahead goal, securing Washington’s 4-3 victory and the franchise’s first Stanley Cup championship.

“It’s unbelievable, it’s amazing” Smith-Pelly told NBC Sports’ Jeremy Roenick. “I was just trying to do my job.The big guys are going to get their points. Us bottom six guys, we knew if we contributed, those guys were going to score. And if we chipped in, we were going to be successful.”

Smith-Pelly said the Capitals didn’t panic when Vegas held a 3-2 lead in the third period.

“We pushed through that all season long,” he said. “We’ve been doubted all year. We knew we were going to get some looks and we just needed to capitalize, and that’s what we did.”

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Hoisting the Cup and notching the game-tying goal capped a season of redemption for Smith-Pelly, a 2012 Anaheim Ducks second round draft pick who was viewed as an under-achiever after he tallied 5 goals in 12 playoff games for the Ducks in 2013-14.

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He was dealt by the Ducks to the Montreal Canadiens  then moved to the New Jersey Devils before he signed with the Capitals before the 2017-18 season.

Used primarily as a checking forward, Smith-Pelly notched 7 goals and 9 assists in 75 regular season games in Washington.

He recaptured the playoff magic from his Anaheim days, scoring 7 goals and 1 assist in 24 post-season games for the Capitals.

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Thursday’s win ended an eventful  Las Vegas trip for Smith-Pelly. The Scarborough, Ontario, Canada native, one of two black players on the Capitals, intimated that he wouldn’t go to the White House to celebrate the Cup win, if President Donald Trump invites the team.

“The things that he spews are straight-up racist and sexist,” Smith-Pelly told Michael Trakios of Postmedia News Wednesday. “Some of the things he’s said are pretty gross…It hasn’t come up here, but I think I already have made my mind up.”

Smith-Pelly will become the eighth black player to have his name inscribed on the Stanley Cup.

His name will join those of goaltenders Grant Fuhr (Edmonton Oilers – 1984, 1985, 1987, 1998, 1990), Eldon “Pokey” Riddick (Oilers – 1990) and Ray Emery (Chicago Blackhawks – 2013), forwards Dustin Byfuglien(Blackhawks -2013) and  Jamal Mayers (Blackhawks-2013), and defensemen Johnny Oduya (Blackhawks-2013, 2015) and Trevor Daley (Penguins – 2016, 2017).

Happy tears from the Smith-Pellys.☝️#StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/uFEDHkgWjY

— NHL (@NHL) June 8, 2018

Capitals rookie defenseman Madison Bowey could get his name on Stanley Cup.

Capitals rookie defenseman Madison Bowey didn’t play a minute in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but he could still get his name on the trophy.

NHL rules state that a player must have at least 41 games played with the team or appear in at least one Stanley Cup Final game to qualify for name inscription. Bowey  played in 51 regular season games for Washington in 2017-18.

Bowey, who was called up from the Hershey Bears, the Capitals’ American Hockey League farm team, didn’t score a goal last season, but he did tally 12 assists in those 51 games.

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play.

 

 

 

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Three is a magic number for Capitals’ Devante Smith-Pelly in Stanley Cup Final

05 Tuesday Jun 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Devante Smith-Pelly, Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals

Washington Capitals forward Devante-Smith Pelly.

Three seems to be a magic number for Washington Capitals forward Devante Smith-Pelly.

Smith-Pelly scored the third Capitals goal in the first period against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final Monday, a tally that gave home team Washington a 3-0 lead. The Capitals won the game 6-2.

Smith-Pelly’s performance Monday night wasn’t bad for a guy who got accidentally hit in the face with a puck by a teammate during the Capitals’ morning skate.

Saturday night, Smith-Pelly notched the Capitals third goal, a third-period tally that sealed Washington’s 3-1 win.

“I love playing in the playoffs. It’s fun,” Smith-Pelly told NBC Sports. “It just happens maybe I’m scoring goals at the right time. I don’t know. I love playing in the playoffs. That’s really the only way I can explain it.”

The goals Monday and Saturday further enhance Smith-Pelly’s reputation as a playoff performer. He now has 6 goals in 23 playoff games. He notched 7 goals in 75 regular season games in 2017-18.

As a member of the Anaheim Ducks, Smith-Pelly scored 5 goals during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play.

 

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Former NHL star McKegney conflicted by USA Hockey hiring of Vanbiesbrouck

02 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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John Vanbiesbrouck, Tony McKegney, Trevor Daley, USA Hockey

Tony McKegney feels conflicted.

The retired National Hockey League forward isn’t sure how he feels about former NHL goaltender John Vanbeisbrouck becoming USA Hockey’s assistant executive director for hockey operations 15 years after he called a young Trevor Daley the N-word.

He knows Vanbiesbrouck from their days as teammates on the New York Rangers in 1986-87, McKegney’s only season on Broadway.

“John and I were good friends. We spent a lot of time together, we had a lot of fun together,” McKegney told me recently. “We went to concerts together, we golfed together, we must have roomed together at some point. We went to Florida together to my home in Jupiter. He was from near Detroit, I was from near Detroit, and we just got along.”

Former NHLer Tony McKegney was a teammate of John Vanbiesbrouck in New York (Photo/Soul on Ice Movie).

But having been one of the few black hockey players of his era, McKegney also knows the hurt that a then-19-year old Daley must have felt when Vanbiesbrouck – who was Daley’s coach and general manager with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds – used a racial slur in 2003 to define him.

“I just felt for the kid because it just brought back some memories for me,” McKegney said of the episode. “Going forward, I just don’t know how to feel about it now. I don’t know. When I hear that word, it brings up some tough memories.”

USA Hockey tapped Vanbiesbrouck last month to succeed Jim Johannson, who passed away in January. Vanbiesbrouck addressed the Daley controversy in a teleconference with reporters last week, saying he was “absolutely, 100 percent wrong” for using the slur.

“I’m extremely sorry for it,” he told reporters. “It’s not who I am, it doesn’t define me as a person and I have no prejudices in me, and it will never happen again.”

USA Hockey Executive Director Pat Kelleher added that Vanbiesbrouck looks at the incident as “a terrible situation, an awful mistake, something that’s helped change him for the better.”

Vanbiesbrouck’s hiring has been criticized on social media by hockey fans who say it sends the wrong message about a sport that says it promotes diversity and inclusion.

But others online have expressed support for Vanbiesbrouck, acknowledging that he made a terrible mistake, but asserting that 15 years is a long time to hold it against him.

Embed from Getty Images

McKegney says he’s not one to judge another person’s actions considering the troubled times he’s had in his life.

He pleaded guilty to impaired driving in Belleville, Ontario, Canada, in 2017 and guilty to operating a water craft in Kingston, Ontario, while intoxicated in 2015  – a case that brought incidents of substance and domestic abuse to light.

“I’ve certainly made some errors in my life, made some bad judgments, made some mistakes I would love to take back,” said McKegney, who attributes some of the problems to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a neurodegenerative brain disease that he says stems from concussions he suffered during his playing career. “I’m certainly not defending anything.”

Still, Vanbiesbrouck’s hiring stoked memories of the 2003 incident for McKegney along with unpleasant recollections of the racial abuse that he endured from the time he started playing hockey as a kid through his 13-year NHL career.

McKegney said he heard racial slurs so much that “I thought the N-word was my middle name.”

Though Willie O’Ree was the NHL’s first black player, Val James the league’s first American-born black player, and goalie Grant Fuhr the first black player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, McKegney was the NHL’s first black star.

He was the first black player to score 40 goals in a season and the first to score 20 or more goals in eight seasons.

McKegney tallied 320 goals and 319 assists in 912 NHL season games for the Rangers, Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Quebec Nordiques, Minnesota North Stars, Hartford Whalers, Chicago Blackhawks, and Detroit Red Wings between 1978-79 to 1990-91. He notched 24 goals and 23 assists in 79 Stanley Cup Playoff contests.

“Tony McKegney showed me it was possible for someone like me to play in the NHL,” future Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla said in author Cecil Harris’ book, “Breaking The Ice, The Black Experience in Professional Hockey.” “He set the example. He was a role model.”

Embed from Getty Images

But McKegney’s on-ice accomplishments weren’t enough to shield him from racist taunts from fans and opposing players.

“In certain cities, we’d go to St. Louis, we’d go to Atlanta (Flames), Pittsburgh, for some reason, then Philadelphia,” McKegney said. “It was a small group of people, but you feared the words coming out.”

Occasionally, the racial insensitivity occurred on teams he played for.

“I had an assistant coach come up to me and ask me if I could date a black woman versus a white woman,” said McKegney, who was adopted and raised by white parents. “This happened in the early ’80s, and this (white) woman became my wife. When I heard that, I thought ‘My God.'”

Tony McKegney was a high-scoring forward for Buffalo, St. Louis, Detroit, Quebec, N.Y. Rangers. and Minnesota North Stars (Photo/Buffalo Sabres Archives).

When McKegney heard about the racial incident with Vanbiesbrouck, he said he reached out to Daley and chatted with briefly after a junior hockey game in Ontario.

“It was a one of those subjects where he wanted to focus on how well he was doing and just be positive and not dredge up anything, the past,” McKegney said. “Obviously, he was moving forward.”

McKegney’s trying to do the same thing these days. Instead of dwelling on an ugly moment in 2003, he prefers to think about how well Daley has done in his career.

Embed from Getty Images

A 2002 Dallas Stars second round draft pick, Daley, now 34, is a two-time Stanley Cup champions who has helped anchor defenses for the Stars, Chicago Blackhawks,Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings.

“Every time I see Trevor Daley, and see he’s still playing and having success, I think about that part,” McKegney said. “And I draw on that positive.”

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play.

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