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PHT Morning Skate: Tom Hanks, Martin Short and OHL

By James O'BrienSep 17, 2015, 9:30 AM EDT
3 Comments

PHT’s Morning Skate takes a look around the world of hockey to see what’s happening and what we’ll be talking about around the NHL world and beyond.

Plenty of bits in Elliotte Friedman’s latest “30 Thoughts” column, with one of the more intriguing bits being the Los Angeles Kings’ easier said than done goal of knocking Drew Doughty‘s ice time down from 29 to 25 minutes per game. Bold prediction: split the difference and expect 27. (Sportsnet)

As far as CSNNE.com’s Joe Haggerty is concerned, many (now-former) Boston Bruins were simply “too soft” in 2014-15. (CSNNE.com)

The five greatest moments of Simon Gagne’s career. (The Hockey News)

What we can gleam from the NHL’s first games ever. (Greatest Hockey Legends)

The lion really sells Jonathan Bernier‘s new mask:

Someone wants to make a fourth Mighty Ducks movie, but Disney apparently isn’t particularly interested. (BarDown)

From the “Um, What?” files: Martin Short and Tom Hank cheer on … the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs?

Photo: Clearly, President Obama isn’t rooting for the Lightning

By James O'BrienJun 8, 2015, 7:27 PM EDT
15 Comments

The Tampa Bay Lightning have backers including Hulk Hogan and Chris Jericho (plus supporters outside of the professional wrestling world, one would assume). The Chicago Blackhawks have the ultimate trump card: the Leader of the Free World.

President Barack Obama showed his Chicago allegiance in posing for a photo with a Blackhawks sweater alongside Illinois Congressman Mike Quigley heading into Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final:

Talk about being a puck partisan.

2015 NHL Awards entertainers: Rob Riggle and Daughtry

By James O'BrienJun 3, 2015, 3:34 PM EDT
13 Comments

That guy who just didn’t like Will Ferrell’s face in “Step Brothers” (Rob Riggle) and the band with that dude who almost won “American Idol” (Daughtry) will be your entertainers for the 2015 NHL Awards on June 24.

The event will air live at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN, by the way.

Riggle (pictured) is a pretty well-known face among comedy nerds, but you may know him from his days as a correspondent for “The Daily Show.” He’s a guy who is seasoned at drawing sports-related laughs, as he also did some work for the NFL. As a general rule, he’s pretty funny when he yells.

Need more examples of his work? The NHL provided a lengthier rundown:

Riggle is widely known for his memorable comedic roles in films such as The Hangover, Step Brothers, The Other Guys, 21 Jump Street, 22 Jump Street and Dumb & Dumber To. The stand-up comedian and improv actor’s television credits include Saturday Night Live, his work as a correspondent on The Daily Show, a recurring role on Modern Family and the star of the new Fox animated series, Golan the Insatiable. The Kansas native is a passionate sports fan and recently retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve after 23 years of service. 

Let’s leave the Daughtry talk to the NHL, too, actually:

Daughtry has scored four No. 1 hits, garnered four GRAMMY Award nominations, won four American Music Awards, sold more than 8 million albums and has sold-out concerts worldwide. Daughtry’s self-titled debut album was the fastest selling rock debut in Soundscan history and its follow up, Leave This Town, marked the quintet’s second consecutive No. 1 album. Daughtry’s third album Break The Spell was certified gold in only four weeks of its release. Daughtry’s single “Waiting For Superman” broke into the Top 15 and its new single “Battleships” is racing up the charts. The band’s latest album Baptized was released in November 2013.

Here’s a photo of lead singer Chris Daughtry, if that helps:

source: Getty Images
Via Getty

Alyssa Milano runs NHL’s official Twitter feed tonight

By James O'BrienMay 17, 2012, 8:08 PM EDT
4 Comments

Noted sports fan/actress Alyssa Milano will run the NHL’s official Twitter feed during Game 3 of the Los Angeles Kings-Phoenix Coyotes series tonight.

The NHL’s feed is @NHL, so you can follow along for what will surely be extensive discussions of Corsi ratings and why save percentage is a superior way to judge a goalie than mere wins. If you have specific questions for Milano, you’d be wise to use the hashtag #AskAlyssa. There’s also a Pinterest page for the event, which you can check out here.

NHL.com reveals that this is the first time a celebrity has ever taken over the official Twitter account for the league.

My recommendation for a starter question? #AskAlyssa if Anze Kopitar is “the boss.”

(Actually, she probably won’t appreciate that reference.)

Scott Gomez is now Nick Jonas’ landlord

By James O'BrienFeb 16, 2012, 8:30 PM EDT
5 Comments

Montreal Canadiens center Scott Gomez isn’t all that great at hockey anymore, but give him credit: he seemingly gives us a reason to laugh every other day. He’s also filthy rich.

Those factors came together in a delicious stew today as it was revealed that pop star Nick Jonas is renting a Gomez-owned apartment for the meager fee of $23,000 – per month. (Yes, that deserves italics.)

Designer Marc Jacobs also once inhabited the apartment, which means I’m unqualified to mock two-thirds of the famous people in this story.

According to the video from the Wall-Street Journal, the three-bedroom apartment has six TVs. You know what that must mean, right? Yup, there’s probably a flat screen in the bathroom. I guess Jonas and Gomez get the last laugh, then, huh? (Cries.)

The best part of the video – in my opinion – is when one of the pundits wonders how an NHL player can afford such an apartment. That’s gold, folks.