Hi everyone! It really is no secret that professional athletes are a cocky bunch. For generations now, professional athletes have had trouble keeping feet out of mouths. Once upon a time, comments were published in newspapers, and that was pretty much it, but as time went on snarky comments became commonplace. If not for idiotic comments, Twitter probably would have died a long time ago. Of course, back in the late 1960s, newspapers were where players heard about what their opponents said about them. Everyone has heard stories of coaches placing nasty articles in dressing rooms hoping to anger and inspire the troops. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t.

In the November 13, 1968 Long Beach Press-Telegram, L.A. Kings’ goaltender Gerry Desjardins was none too impressed with the play of the Seals, and he wasn’t shy about sharing his thoughts on the subject, labelling his opponents “mediocre” among other insults. Sometimes these kinds of comments light a fire under a team, but in this case, the Seals didn’t beat L.A. until late March. The Seals-Kings rivalry never quite reached the same fever pitch of Boston vs Montreal or Detroit vs Colorado, but in 1968-69, the clubs engaged in a sometimes vicious battle for California hockey supremacy, culminating in a closely-fought 7-game playoff series. So, in the end Desjardins got away with his comments, although he would eventually end up in Oakland three years later after the Seals had sunk to the bottom of the West Division. Hmm… maybe he didn’t get away with it… Then again, he did end up in Chicago a few weeks later without having played even one game for Oakland, so I guess he did get away with it. Good for him for turning away the fickle finger of fate, and avoiding any repercussions for flapping his gums. After all, defying the odds is never an easy task. You can read all about when Desjardins threw down the gauntlet right here.

Have a great weekend, everybody! Until next time, stay gold!