Soft Spot wanted! AHL 2011 Hall of Famers

I have been wishing lately.
Another hockey "Soft Spot" is needed.

A player admired due to talent (real or perceived by me),
looks (a very subjective selection - mine :-D),
indomitable spirits, and of course that certain (so irrational) "IT" (lol).
And taken all together makes a "Soft Spot" and that will be even more reason for going to games.
For me! For sure! Did you think otherwise? Afterall, have done that, been there!

Who might turn into "Soft Spot 2011/12"?

Last season 2010/11 there wasn't one, really!
Talent: Spurgeon but only briefly.  Hackett, Wellman, others from time to time.
Indomitable spirits: there was (and will be again we hope) Ortmeyer.
Looks: well,  Rau had the edge in my book - barely but a  rather elegant edge :-).
That certain "IT": No one.
You laugh? You shake your head?

But truthfully, while that team of 2010/11 did a most admirable job coming from that far behind
to end up  - almost (and what a heartbreaker that was) - the Winner -
it was just a group of nice guys working very hard, being coached hard.


Catching an errant puck (vs Rockford)
artandhockey photo

And Team 2009/10, no "Soft Spot" on it, as well.

More over, there was also no spark that might have lit up an "IT" Man.

There was however the urge to nickname most of the players,

and if you all read my blogs from that year...you'll remember a few, I am sure.

Why I felt that need to invent nicknames?
I have no idea, it just seemed the right thing to do to give that (really rather blah) team an immediate tongue-in-cheek identity!
That urge was absent last season. Why? I have no idea.

So let the new hockey season begin.
Let's observe new talent - maybe there will be a "Soft Spot"and/or "IT"man
and if all else fails, maybe the urge for nicknames, at least, will return.
Which would make posting so much more amusing, trust me.
Who knows.

Inductees to the AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE HALL OF FAME  2011 Mitch Lamoureux As dynamic as he was scrappy, Mitch Lamoureux feasted on American Hockey League goaltenders during a 17-year professional career that saw him become one of the most prolific AHL scorers of his era, including a record-setting rookie season in 1982-83. Harry Pidhirny A durable and reliable centerman whose numbers were as good as any player of his time, five-time AHL All-Star Harry Pidhirny played 1,071 games over 17 seasons in the American Hockey League, the third-highest total in league history. Maurice Podoloff One of the founding fathers of the American Hockey League and its first President, Maurice Podoloff was known as a pioneer whose vision and dedication helped build the foundation for a league that continues to thrive nearly 75 years later. Larry Wilson Arguably the most recognizable figure in Buffalo Bisons history, Larry Wilson enjoyed a long and distinguished career in the American Hockey League, spanning 15 seasons as a player and six more as a head coach.