Hi everyone! It’s been a tumultuous 2016 to say the least. Normally quiet and staid England went bonkers and opted out of the EU, the National League’s perennial also-rans, the Chicago Cubs, won the freakin’ World Series over the American League’s perennial also-rans, the Cleveland Indians, and Donald Trump made The Simpsons‘ insane season 10 (episode: “Bart to the Future”) prediction come true as he defied all logic and was democratically elected President of the United States. Merry Christmas everyone! Well, at least try to have a Merry Christmas…
On that note, we’ve got a huge update for you today! Correct that… I mean HUGE! I’ve added a ton of stuff to the website, namely a link to the Bay Area Radio Museum, to whom Seals Booster Club member Len Shapiro has graciously donated some rare audio clips of three WHL Seals games. Check the clips out at http://bayarearadio.org/site/sports/.
There’s also a brand spanking new Seals survey on the right side of the page. I’d like to open up the vote to select the 2017 inductees to the Seals Hall of Fame, and I’ve given you the choice between ten of the all-time greatest players in franchise history. You can vote for just one player at a time, and you can vote only once per device. You can also write in your own candidate, player or otherwise, if you don’t like the choices I’ve included in the survey. The three players who receive the most votes will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at the one-year anniversary of the website.
I’ve also added a new induction to the Overexposed wing of the Hockey Hall of Shame, the slightly odd 1987-88 O-Pee-Chee Tony McKegney “St. Louis Rangers” card. Yes, you read that correctly.
The Golden Ones have been creating a lot of buzz lately, and you can head on over to the brand new “Seals News” section to keep abreast of any events involving the Seals. To commemorate the addition of the Vegas Golden Knights to the NHL family, the latest issue of The Hockey News is all about expansion. There’s a feature on the 1967 expansion, and a guide on what to do and what not to do to build a successful expansion team. The Seals feature prominently in both articles, but the highlight of the magazine has to be Jason Kay’s wonderful two-page retrospective of the Seals and Barons. It also talks about Mark Greczmiel’s documentary, The California Golden Seals Story.
Speaking of which… Mark is closing in on his goal of $11,000 to finish his documentary. I can’t tell you how much I’m geeking out over this documentary. The deadline to raise funds is Friday the 23rd, i.e. TODAY so get on over to Indiegogo and throw Mark a few bucks to bring his awesome-looking project to fruition: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/california-golden-seals-story-final-fundraiser#/. With a donation you can pick up some cool perks too, such as replica Seals jerseys, cards, copies of the finished film, tuques, programs, media guides, pennants, and lots more. I, for one, am looking forward to my game program from October 25, 1974, which, if you’ve paid any attention to this site, you will recognize the date as the moment when the Seals’ Mike Christie was pummeled in the penalty box by members of the Broad Street Bullies. While you’re on the Indiegogo site, be sure to check out the trailers for the documentary. I’m telling you, there is some great old stuff in the film: photos, interviews, rare game footage; you won’t be disappointed.
Until next time, stay gold!