Hi everyone! Well, it’s surprise time! I promised all of you a treat this week, and I’ve come to deliver on that promise. If you head on over to the Video and Audio section of the website, you will find a truly rare piece of Seals history, something you might not have come across in almost 50 years. I’m talking about 12 minutes of the Seals post-game recap show immediately following their historic 11-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks! Much, much thanks to Jim Shattock who graciously transferred this clip to a digital audio format, and for allowing me to post this clip to the site for all of you to enjoy.

In case you would like to read up on what was undoubtedly the most lopsided victory in the history of the Seals, head on over to the 1972-73 season articles and scroll down to “Charlie O’s Angry Blast,” a piece penned by the Oakland Tribune‘s John Porter the day after the massacre. If any of you reading this were at the game, I’m sure the audio clip and article will bring back some warm memories.

Thanks to everyone who has purchased my new book When the NHL Invaded Japan: the Washington Capitals, the Kansas City Scouts, and the Coca-Cola Bottlers’ Cup. Not much of it is Seals-related (at least not much that wasn’t already mentioned in my book on the Seals), but need to promote it anyway I can. And this is my site, after all, so I’m going to bend the rules of the site just a bit. The good news is that Amazon seems to have got a bit of a stock now, so you shouldn’t have any problems ordering it now. If you do buy the book, from Amazon or from somewhere else, I would really appreciate it if you left some feedback. Amazon, of course, is a great place to do so, but anywhere else is also greatly appreciated and only helps promote the book. If you have any questions about the book, you can head on over to HF Boards where the Society for International Hockey Research has given me a place to interact with hockey fans. Just click on this link to my book forum and ask away!

Finally, be sure to check out my interview with Tim Hanlon of Good Seats Still Available, where we talk about the Coca-Cola Bottlers’ Cup, how the whole thing went down, why the Capitals and Scouts were chosen to represent the NHL, and why in the world I keep writing about teams that never seemed to go anywhere (unless you mean the cities to which they uprooted themselves in the hope of finding solid financial ground). The interview (episode #269) will be posted early Monday morning so mark your calendars (by that I mean the alarm on your cell phone or some other doo-dad on Facebook). Until then, head on over to Tim’s site to check out some of his other episodes.

Until next time, stay gold!