Taken 2 earned a wide-release last week, but that doesn't mean the threatening quote from the first Taken film starring Liam Neeson, doesn't have a lot of staying power, particularly in the world of college hockey.
Thanks to Chris Peters for directing us to this story from yesterday. It seems a banner commemorating the Western Michigan Broncos' CCHA Championship from last spring that hangs in the team's Lawson Arena vanished this week. While the "official" team championship banner resides at Joe Louis Arena, the replica banner stands as a memento for the team's run to the NCAA tournament last season.
Luke Witkowski, a Tampa Bay Lightning-select from the 6th round of the 2008 NHL Draft, was having none of it. Listed at 6'2" and 212 lbs, he's not the biggest defenceman on the Broncos, but he's acquired a very particular set of skills over his short career:
For the person who stole the CCHA banner outside of Lawson Arena:I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If you are looking.. — Luke Witkowski (@L28witko) October 8, 2012
for ransom, I can tell you I don't have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very.. — Luke Witkowski (@L28witko) October 8, 2012
long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let our banner go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look.. — Luke Witkowski (@L28witko) October 8, 2012
for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will bag you. — Luke Witkowski (@L28witko) October 8, 2012
Lo and behold, the banner was recovered less then 24 hours later.
According to a WMU spokesman, the banner was dropped off, thankfully unharmed, Tuesday at the Western Michigan campus police department by a student who claimed he "found it."
While that's a very effective and pretty cool use of social media (Witkowski tweeted out a picture with the banner after the recovery), let's hope that Witkowski doesn't start quoting lines delivered by Neeson's character in The Phantom Menace.