Memories Of the Crushed Can

The Moose Jaw Civic Centre is into its last handful of games. Once the Warriors season is over, it will be time to say goodbye to perhaps one of the ugliest rinks in Canada, but a rink that had an identity and an atmosphere that was 2nd to none. In their history, the Warriors have had five play-by-play men---five people who are good friends of mine and five people whom I asked for their memories.

BRYN GRIFFITHS

Always loved the folks who sat in front of our broadcast location at the Civic Centre... great people.

BUT there was always this one guy who sat in front of us who was NOT a Warriors fan. Every time the home club would score he would turn around and thump the wall with his fist... which of course always made a loud noise in our booth. I always used to look forward to that thump as a sign of success each night. LOL

The other event almost got me fired. Warriors were getting crushed one night and it was a total blowout by the middle of the second period. So I decided to order a pizza (from one of our sponsors) over the air in mock disgust because I was getting bored of the game. Rob Carnie thought I was out of my mind, but looked at me with a wry smile and we continued on our merry way to try and keep things entertaining. Early in the third period, the pizza delivery guy made quite the entrance up the stairs and into our broadcast location, with all the fans watching, where we ate AND called what was left of the game. The Warriors Board were so upset that I tried to embarrass them by pulling this stunt that they asked the station to have me fired. GM Vern Trail backed me a 100% stating that CHAB was in the entertainment business and perhaps the team try and be more entertaining next game.

I will miss the place, but look forward to catching many games in the new and long overdue Multiplex!!!
IF they'll have me.

ROB CARNIE

I started attending hockey games and playing hockey at the MJCC in the fall of '74 when the Carnie Family moved to Moose Jaw from Regina. I played in "Learn to Play" for a season and among the other boys was my childhood friend Greg Thatcher. I remember his father Colin "coaching" us while smoking a cigar and telling me I would never be able to take a backhander with a "damn curve on the blades of your stick". Why the Hell do I remember that?

I CLEARLY remember my next season...in The Church Minor Hockey Association with the St. Joseph Seals, my first "real" team! We practiced every Monday morning at 7 a.m. in one COLD Civic Centre. We won the championship that season.

I remember everything was painted orange and blue, including the ice cleaning machine which was an old Willy's Jeep with the ice cleaning aparatus welded on. It even had a name...The Connor's Pup. I have no idea why it had a name.

I remember an old gentleman named Sid who took tickets. He was always smiling and always well dressed.

I remember the Regina Silver Foxes coming into Moose Jaw to play the Canucks and my sister's boyfriend Dave Desautels, #10 for the 'Foxes blowing out his knee in front of my eyes. He taught me to skate.

I remember the Japanese National Team playing at the Civic Centre and a young man named Doug Smail dominating for the home side in a 4-2 win for the home team. The place was packed.

I remember what a wonderful player Chris Chelios was as a boy...he played two seasons in Moose Jaw.

I remember hundreds of people smoking while watching the games...cigarettes, cigars and pipes and the blue haze that hung over the ice after each Canucks game.

I saw every home game in a 5 year stretch where the Moose Jaw Canucks went to the SJHL championship final vs. the Prince Albert Raiders every season. We lost every time. I remember a full scale brawl in the pre game warmup of one of those games. There were sticks and gloves and helmets, blood and hair all over the ice. There were no penalties.

I remember the Warriors moving here from Winnipeg. I thought we should have called them the Canucks.

I remember Graham James. Shame.

I remember stepping into the broadcast booth as a cocky 21 year old to assist Voice of the Warriors Bryn Griffiths and thinking I was "The Goods"!

I remember some wonderful young men wearing the Warriors jersey and some wonderful young hockey players. No one was more dynamic and entertaining than Theoren Fleury. No one.

I remember the adrenaline flowing through my body minutes before "Showtime" on 800 CHAB. I loved that. I used to live for it.

I remember my old Dad walking up the steep stairs before Warriors games and looking up to me in the broadcast booth and grinning. He was proud of me. He never told me that. I just knew it. I loved him more than I can describe. I miss him.

And...I'll miss the Civic Centre.

DREW HAUBRICH
1. Playoff Highs and Lows

The Warriors had some huge playoff wins and some devastating playoff losses at the Civic Center:



The Warriors knocked off Bob Lowes Pats' in the first round of the 2001-2001 playoffs. The Warriors had 24 fewer points than their rivals, but were able to beat them with a 5-2 win to clinch the series at the Civic Center.

In round 2, the Warriors were on the verge of taking a 3-1 series lead against the league-best Red Deer Rebels, when Joel Stepp scored shorthanded to tie it in the 3rd. Jeff Smith broke the hearts of the Warrior faithful with his OT winner which turned the tide of the series and led to a Rebels win in 6 games.



The next year, the Warriors again won their first round series, taking out Saskatoon in 6 hard fought games. But again, they couldn't get past round 2, losing to Brandon in a thrilling, 7-game series. I vividly remember a pair of games from that series. After the Warriors took Game 1 at home, Brandon's Eric Fehr blasted a slap shot from just inside the blue-line through the legs of Steve Belanger with 1:09 to go in the game to take Game 2, 2-1. You could hear a pin drop in the Civic Center after that goal. On the flip side, the roof nearly blew off the place when Petr Jelinek scored the OT winner in Game 6, which sent the series back to Brandon for Game 7. The Warriors season came to disappointing end, when the Wheat Kings took the deciding game 7-3.



Expectations in Moose Jaw were high for the 2003-04 playoffs. Coming off the first 40-win season in team history, the Warriors again rolled past the Pats in the first round, outscoring them 16-4 in a four-game sweep. This set up another memorable matchup with Brent Sutter's Red Deer Rebels. The Warriors dropped the first two games at home, but then rebounded to even the series at 2 with a pair of wins in Red Deer. The Civic Center played host to the turning point of the series, when Derek Meech scored for Red Deer in double-overtime to take a 2-1 win, and a 3-2 series lead. A young goaltender named Cam Ward was phenomenal for Red Deer, stopping 53 shots for the Rebels. Again, the Warriors season came to a disappointing end, dropping the series in 6 games and dashing hopes of Warrior fans for another year.





2. Watching Great Players Make Great Plays

It would be a huge understatement to say calling games at the Civic Center was a blast. If the home team was rolling, there was no better atmosphere in the WHL. Needless to say, these former Warriors, who have gone on to play in the NHL, made most Civic Center contests extremely entertaining:



Nathan Paetsch

Brian Sutherby

Kyle Brodziak

Brooks Laich

Deryk Engelland

Brett Carson

Troy Brouwer

Tomas Fleischmann

Dustin Boyd

Johnny Boychuk

Kenndal McArdle

Aaron Rome

Masi Marjamaki

Mike Brodeur





3. Warriors vs. Pats Rivalry

Although it didn't happen at the Civic Center, I will never forget Sean O'Connor vs. the City of Regina and it's mayor. In a series many expected to go the Pats way, O'Connor set the tone at the ceremonial face-off, by winning it cleanly, upsetting the mayor, the home team and their fans. It may have been exactly what the doctor ordered for the Warriors though, as they went on to the first round upset win.

Dustin Slade vs. Moose Jaw fans

The Civic Center was a very intimidating place for most teams to play, and during my time with the Warriors, the Regina Pats took their fair share of licks at the Crushed Can. Who can forget the night Dustin Slade started mixing it up with Warrior fans after being kicked following another melt-down. I'll also never forget watching Deryk Engelland lay a beating on a young Dan Waschuk during a 10-0 Warrior whitewash.

Limpright vs. Hubbauer

It really wasn’t much of a contest. The Warrior agitator caught the Pats speedster with his head down behind the Moose Jaw net. When it was all said and done, Limpright added another chapter to his legacy, Hubbauer was knocked silly and a lucky Warrior fan ended up with a new stick which was sent helicoptering over the glass as a result of the impact.

Fans Activity

And of course, even when the Warriors and Pats skated off the ice at the Civic Center, there was usually more entertainment to be found. Be it in the stands or out in the parking lot, the fans often used their fists to convince their counterparts that they were cheering for the wrong team.



4. Atmosphere

No question, the Civic Center is unique. Many will be sad to see it go, but it's time.

Ask the opposition teams who had to endure the out-dated facilities, the cramped players’ bench and Warrior fans who were literally on top of you at every turn. Some opposition players told me they felt like they were being led into the lion’s den when they skated on to the ice at the Civic Center.

Ask the referees and linesmen who hear it from the Warrior faithful each time they make a call on a close offside, a questionable penalty or, heaven forbid, wave off a goal for the home team.

Ask the fans who spent countless nights in the upper rows of the Civic Center. On nights when the Warriors were flying, I'm positive those fans would have suffered some permanent hearing loss. The noise in the Civic Center seemed to vibrate off the sloped ceiling, and by the time it reached the top rows, it felt like the place was trembling.

And of course, ask the fans. With the Civic Center meeting it's maker is good news for the folks who currently have to stand in the long lines in order to use the facilities during intermissions. I'm guessing the new rink will have a few more options, but there will still likely be some who prefer to duck behind a car in the parking lot.

One last note. I sure hope the burgers at the new rink taste as good as they do now. By far, the best in the league!

RANDY MERKLEY

Well I guess I'm the least experienced guy on the totem poll, but I'll never forget my two great years I spent calling games in Moose Jaw.

I remember feeling so nervous being the new voice of the Warriors because of the legacy Mr. Carnie had left. I used to listen to so many games Rob called (Of course cheering for the Pats at that time) and thinking how cool it would be to call games in the WHL. Then all of a sudden I'm sitting up in the booth where Carns called games was pretty surreal.

A two have so many memories from my two years. Season one being such a disaster with so many changes, to the turn around in 2006.

Being able to call the first ever second round win in Warriors franchise was pretty awesome. I'll never forget game 7 in Calgary with James for as long as I live. Coming back to win that series in the 'Dome' with Troy Brouwer playing on pretty much 1 leg. James and I drove out to Calgary for game 7, and let me tell you the drive back to the Jaw was pretty fun! We had Kelly Remple and Peter Loubardius on speaker phone for about an hour talking about the game. What a blast.

Beating Medicine Hat in games 1 and 2 in the East Final and coming back to M.J. and feeling the electricity in the City was so cool. Seeing people camp out in front of the stadium to get tickets was awesome. The atmosphere and noise in that building when they won game 4 of the East Final to go up 3-1 was unbelievable. Then how can we forget game 5 in over-time when Matt Hansen scores the O.T. winner to give the Warriors their first ever East Division Championship. I had the chance to call the game, but really the win was for Bryn, Carns, Haubrich, Gallo, and all the guys who have called games for the Warriors. I was thrilled to bring the call home back to M.J.

The other thing I'll always remember is sitting up in the booth before the games with James. We would get to the rink about 4 o'clock and have so many laughs and stories. I turned that booth into a living room setting with carpets, low lighting, TV, fans, side tables, it was our home away from home. Of course the fans- and the players who made it great.

Some of my favourites from my 2 year: Steve Young was outstanding. Trainer Michael Murray, Blair Jones, Dustin Boyd, Kyle Fecho, Carter Smith, Joey Perricone, Andre Herman, Josh Lepp, Cole Simpson, Jesse Zetariuk (beauty), Troy Brouwer....the list could go on.

Just a few memories from two great years in my life.

JAMES GALLO

To many memories to write down....

My first year watching Carns work always stands out in my mind. Seeing his passion for his hometown team was something that was shared by many, and obviously rubbed off on me.

Pats and Warriors games were always a thrill. I remember one night drew haubrich and myself calling the game, which featured two line brawls, and then as we were doing the post game show there was brawls in the stands.... that's old school hockey.

I can't recall the year, but Shawn Limpwright's monterous hit on Regina's Matt Hubbauer in the playoffs. Shawn smoked Matt behind the Moose Jaw, and Matt's stick went flying over the glass, which a Warrior fan flung back out.

Seeing Lane Lambert and Curtis Hunt go bonkers one night was amusing. That night Curtis brought out the white towel, and Lane was VERY animated on the bench.

The playoff run in 2006 was amazing, and seeing the city rally around the boys in the league final was unbelievable.

How about finding a dead mouse in the booth, that was GRRRREAT,

There are to many memories to put down, but what I'll remember most is just being apart of the history. BS'ing with the media boys before games, talking with the fans, I loved it all.

I'll shed a tear when the doors close, but I'll open a bottle to celebrate the opening of the new barn.

James should wait until the Chilliwack Bruins (the team that Merkley does p x p for now) to come to town before he opens that bottle. I know Carns and Drew would be there and if Bryn could make the trip, all five could sit at centre ice and have that drink. That would be a great photo op!

My heartfelt thanks to Bryn, Rob, Drew, Randy and James for getting their memories to me. I didn't get to the last Pats game in Moose Jaw, but I do want to be at the last one. It will be a very special night and a very strange night as I'm sure many emotions will be had as people leave the building for the last time. In fact, I wonder how long it will take some to leave and when they do, will they have a tear in their eye. I'm guessing the answer for many would be yes.