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“I don’t even know who Craig Billington is, that’s a name you just made up.” – Joel. Here at 4th Line Towers, we answer the questions that other podcasts (and their affiliated websites) dare not. In episode #202, Carl made a reference to Craig Billington, a former Colorado Avalanche goalie that Joel believed to be a fabrication. While not one to usually question Carl’s knowledge about one of his beloved teams, I had to admit that I’d never heard of Billington either. Is Craig Billington Real? Yes. Not only is he real, but he also tended the goal of the Colorado Avalanche between 1996 andRead More →

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Like many sports, the NHL has some great rivalries; the Penguins and Flyers for example. The Islanders and Rangers, the Flames and the Oilers, Red Wings and Avalanche, all three Californian teams… Rivalries are formed for lots of reasons, many are down to geography, relative successes or because Claude Lemieux sucker-punched Slava Kozlov. Whether formed on the ice, or by broadcasters looking to add some tension, rivalries have become part of the sporting landscape. Rivalries are of course deeply personal, so I’m going to explore some of these across the different sports teams I follow. Hockey: Detroit Red Wings & Colorado Avalanche In the mid 1990s,Read More →

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When Henrik Zetterberg announced he was retiring from hockey, the question naturally arose about whether or not the Detroit Red Wings’ captain has had a career worthy of the Hall of Fame. Furthermore should his number be retired and hoisted to the rafters? In episode #198, Joel and Carl discussed Zetterberg retiring, and after deliberation decided that he was not a Hall of Famer. Hall of Fame nominees have long divided opinion, and the organisation itself often faces criticism for the players it does, or more often does not, induct. There are no set guidelines for what makes a Hall of Famer for us toRead More →

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The tilt of the Earth’s axis slowly moving away from the sun can only mean one thing; fall will soon be here and we can all rejoice at the impending return of the NHL. Here at 4th Line Towers we can’t wait to watch some proper hockey again. This year we’re approaching our previews in a different way; the word count for each team’s preview has been dictated by the number of points that team scored last season. To further mix things up, we’ve divvied up the teams between our writers. Let the Metropolitan division preview begin! Our other previews are: Central Division 2018/19 Preview PacificRead More →

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As the arrow of time advances from summer to fall, we can all rejoice at the impending return of the NHL. Here at 4th Line Towers we can’t wait to watch some proper hockey again. This year we’re approaching our previews in a different way; the word count for each team’s preview has been dictated by the number of points that team scored last season. To further mix things up, we’ve divvied up the teams between our writers and some special guests. Let the Central division preview begin! Nashville Predators – Mike Laybourne 2017/18: 117 points For a good preview on the Preds, go read last season’sRead More →

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As summer drags its lazy backside into fall, we can all rejoice at the impending return of the NHL. Here at 4th Line Towers we can’t wait to watch some proper hockey again. This year we’re approaching our previews in a different way; the word count for each team’s preview has been dictated by the number of points that team scored last season. To further mix things up, we’ve divvied up the teams between our writers. Let the Pacific division preview begin! Vegas Golden Knights – Mike Laybourne 2017/18: 109 points Embed from Getty Images The sophomore season, the difficult second album… whichever way youRead More →

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As a Canadian born in December, Drew Doughty’s chances of becoming a first round draft pick were slim. Malcom Gladwell’s book Outliers isn’t a hockey book, but it does open with a chapter about hockey players and ‘relative age effect’. The point the chapter makes is that players born at the start of the year are more likely to be successful, because they’re closest in age to the previous year’s eligibility cut-off in junior hockey. This quirk of fate means that players will get more attention from coaches and as such will develop into better players For more insight into this, and how nothing has changed sinceRead More →

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The World Cup’s group stages are over and we’re now into the Round of 16. The last week has given us some surprises, some controversies and a few contenders for goal of the tournament. The Champs Are Out Only two teams have ever won consecutive World Cups, Italy in 1934 & 1938, and Brazil 1958 & 1962. Four-time winners and current title holders Germany were odds-on favourite to add their name to that revered list, but but instead fell at the final hurdle and failed to progress to the round of 16. Just like Italy in 2010 and Spain in 2014; the reigning champs couldn’tRead More →

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  Dan Byslma, former Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres head coach has joined the Detroit Red Wings. His addition as an assistant bolsters the Wings coaching staff and adds much needed experience to a team looking to halt the decline. It feels like Byslma has been brought in so that Detroit has an immediate replacement should current head coach Jeff Blashill be fired. Let’s face it, there’s a pretty solid chance of that happening if things don’t improve. The appointment of Byslma makes sense, he and Blashill worked together on Team USA’s coaching staff during the IIHF Championship earlier this year. Embed from Getty ImagesRead More →

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We’re around the mid-point of the round robin part of the 2018 World Cup, some teams have already been eliminated and others are clinging on desperately. Here are some thoughts from the last week of the competition. Men’s World Cup: No Girls Allowed I can’t believe that in 2018 this is still a thing, but it is, and we should talk about it. International tournaments have always lit the fuse for small-minded bigotry based on foreign stereotypes, but the vocal minority have reached a new low. I assume/hope this is isolated to British fans only. International friends; your mileage may vary. To add a differentRead More →