Avoiding GDS
I had given up. I’m not kidding. I wasn’t watching my Center Ice Package. I was barely paying attention to the Bruins, and I had most assuredly given up on my beloved Lowell Devils. Look at the posts I have made over the last couple months. Aside from me announcing my engagement, trying to sell T-shirts (buy some fucking shirts by the way), and giving detailed recaps of how sick I’ve been and my slight drinking problem, there has been little posts about hockey fights, or fighters.
It wasn’t a conscious decision. I really wish I had more to say. In fact, a lot has happened enforcer wise. George Parros was waived and picked up. Todd Fedoruk got his faced caved in. Brashear has been active. Those are just a few things that have happened. You see, I just didn’t have the heart. The two teams I follow the most, The Boston Bruins, and Lowell Devils, seemed to be very happy playing within the confines of the new rules. Boston has virtually no one that can do any fighting, and the Devils seemed to be the same old same old Lowell hockey club. They were once again a team that had capable guys on their roster, but no one seemed willing to drop em.
The Lowell theory goes back to the Ron Thou shall not fight, you’re a fucking joke Smith days. For years they loved to get pushed around even though they had guys capable of sticking up for themselves and teammates sitting on the bench. Even when Tom Rowe took over behind the bench and vowed they wouldn’t get pushed around, they did. Look at guys they had on their roster in Rowe’s tenure as head coach.
Brantt Myhres: 687 PIMS in 154 NHL Games. Only 77 in 29 injury plagued games in Lowell. He told me flat out he wanted to fight.
Sean Curry: Possibly the biggest pussy in the whole league.
Stephen Peat: Played 3 games. Has a mysterious leg injury.
Cody McLeod: Undersized for the role he was asked to play.
Mitch Love: Showed tons of promise before he was hurt last year.
Gordie Dwyer: One of the greatest guys I have ever met. Seemed totally unwilling to be that guy in the A.
The point I am trying to make, is I was done. I could not care less what the Devils of Lowell did. As such, I didn’t even notice when Cam Janssen was reassigned to Lowell from New Jersey. Two years ago, I would have been foaming at the mouth. Oh, I noticed when he was assigned for conditioning of his shoulder and he didn’t fight. I hoped his lack of physical play was not Gordie Dwyer Syndrome. I.e. I don’t want to fight because it’s just the A. When Janssen was sent back down after the holiday, I didn’t even notice. So when he had 3 fights in two games over the weekend, I was excited.
I really don’t think Cam is going to suffer from Gordie Dwyer Syndrome, or GDS. He had a spirited fight with Riley Cote Friday that featured the longest square off in history. I think he was the winner. He got jumped by Lowell PD’s favorite player, Martin Grenier, in what could be called a draw, and lost to Worcester’s Jonathan Tremblay yesterday. The point is, Janssen seems to really relish his role and has no signs of GDS. Cam has renewed my interest in gooning, and thuggery, and I thank him for it. So, Mr. Janssen, if you keep it up, I will keep the faith. You have the chance to become the most beloved Lowell player since Trevor Gillies. If there is a pill or a lotion you need to apply to avoid GDS, I will supply it. Hopefully all you need is the cheers of the fans, and a few cold ones after the game. Hey, I can supply that as well!