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Tue Sep 02, 2008 2:55 pm EDT

Gov. Sarah Palin is not doing hockey any favors these days

By Greg Wyshynski

Uh, what the hell happened to that Tina Fey-esque "VPilf" who endeared herself to many puckheads by self-identifying as a "hockey mom" and proudly accepted a jersey during her introductory press conference?

The one whose Bon Jovi groupie hair and inescapable accent delighted viewers of the nightly local news sportscast back in 1988? The one who made clever jokes to campaign staffers about the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? (Answer: "A hockey mom wears lipstick!" Wocka. Wocka.)

Did the GOP researchers rely on Wikipedia, a dart board and Sean Hannity's advice during the vetting process? Something tells us (and Japers) that the Lightning knew more about Steven Stamkos before selecting him than the McCain campaign knows about Sarah Palin before selecting her. Hell, the Bolts probably knew more about Matias Sointu, too.

We're not about to turn the blog over to politics -- our buddy Stu Hackel did just that over on the New York Times' hockey blog, and the response wasn't pretty -- but at this point hockey is an unavoidable facet in the unraveling of a vice presidential candidate. Especially now that Palin's 17-year-old daughter's pregnancy has been attributed to a "superhunky bad-boy ice hockey player" from back home; one whose impending shotgun wedding would bring quite a charmer into the vice president's mansion, according to his MySpace page.

Could it be said that Palin is introducing the "hockey mom" to a mainstream American audience, like "Soccer Moms" and "NASCAR Dads" have been previously established? If so, we've seen a stereotypical "puck mommy" go from feisty to filleted in the span of a week.

But the mainstream is also witnessing two very different examples of a high-school hockey player: One who joined the military on Sept. 11 to serve his nation, and the other who is currently starring on Deadspin under the headline "demon hockey seed." And this is on just Day Two of the story.

There are obviously greater concerns than the image of hockey when it comes to the current firestorm over Palin's candidacy. But know this: If the poop hits the oscillator on this one, the term "hockey mom" just joined terms like "Swift Boat" and "Lewinsky" in the pantheon of political shorthand. Which is great news for political satirists, but rather lousy news for "hockey moms" that will be forever saddled with this level of idiocy:

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56 Comments

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  1. tmr
    1. Posted by tmr Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:04 pm EDT

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    That was a little harsh...
    By definition, global warming has been occurring ever since the last ice age...fancy that. Hysteria is never a good thing. It clouds the mind to true solutions. But a hockey player visiting the White House is ALWAYS a good thing...
  2. # huit
    2. Posted by # huit Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:33 pm EDT

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    didn't say that we (read:people) are the reason for global warming, but saying that our action has no effect at all is kinda stupid
  3. carl_vs_mastershake
    3. Posted by carl_vs_mastershake Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:18 pm EDT

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    Careful Wysh. Know your role.
  4. Tardell Scorpion
    4. Posted by Tardell Scorpion Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:47 pm EDT

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    tmr: you have no idea what youre talking about. the fact that you dont understand what fossil fuel production/consumption has done over the last 150 years. regardless of your thoughts on global warming (youre still up crap creek) shows how hilarious north americans are living in a cyber bubble. explain the pollution in glacial layers that show when industrial civilization and say it has no effect. explain pcb's being in mothers milk in indigenous women who live thousands of miles north of you. mainstream goofs use global warming as their topical "environmental issue" while underneath that is a massive issue of "youre living on borrowed time, in a culture that takes more energy to consume than you get out of it." thermodynamics always wins. theres no magic bullet. get use to it.
  5. Bubbabanjo
    5. Posted by Bubbabanjo Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:05 pm EDT

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    Man...................I like her more and more. A loose daughter. Hunts. Likes puck. Man she is the kind of bag woods chick I dig! She is real people. Doesnt mean I'll vote for her...but I like her and her crazy family.
    Wyshynski you dont stink at all....great reporting again!
  6. meatwad the great and all powerful ruler of earth
    6. Posted by meatwad the great and all powerful ruler of earth Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:37 pm EDT

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    ha-liberals are so stupid.
  7. jkrdevil
    7. Posted by jkrdevil Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:36 pm EDT

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    Who would have guessed the terms "hockey Mom" and Puck Bunny would be thrown into the Presidential Race.
  8. Got Stanley?
    8. Posted by Got Stanley? Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:11 pm EDT

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    I suppose this is what I get for supporting a hockey team in the most liberal city in the nation -- i have to occasionally read tripe like this. Is this all you can find against the woman -- that her daughter was *gasp* a teenager and *gasp* did something stupid? Well, thankfully for all of us, Bristol is more mature than the people freaking out because she's actually a viable candidate and is dealing with it in an adult fashion.
    Hockey is hockey, and politics is politics. If you want to hit Palin, hit her on the issues, not on teenage behavior ... and do it somewhere other than a hockey blog.
  9. Erik
    9. Posted by Erik Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:17 pm EDT

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    don't make me make me go all chris crocker and make some youtube "leave sarah palin alone" video.
  10. jc
    10. Posted by jc Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:31 pm EDT

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    Haha, spindr you are a retard. Other than that. Whatever.
  11. Goon
    11. Posted by Goon Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:41 pm EDT

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    palin rocks and she is going to do mccain some good...
  12. David O
    12. Posted by David O Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:37 pm EDT

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    wysh,
    i read your blog pretty much everyday and watch a lot of people say "you stink" in the comments.
    it pains me to say- one devils fan to another- that if you keep posting crap about politics i'm going to have to agree with everyone else.
    cut the crap. i know all the gm's are on vacation but palin has as much to do with the nhl as obama does with the nba.
    go back to what you do well.
  13. Steve M
    13. Posted by Steve M Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:28 pm EDT

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    Please don't become another Olberman ... he was pretty good when talking sports but has turned into pond scum.
  14. GerardM
    14. Posted by GerardM Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:03 pm EDT

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    Wysh is obviously another Obama apologist who is afraid because his guy is about to be toast, so they need to create a story. Remember hockey fans OBAMA LOVES THE NBA !!! Nuff said as to his qualifications or lack thereof. As for post # 1, well your just an idiot
  15. Russ Cargill
    15. Posted by Russ Cargill Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:35 pm EDT

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    Wider than the grand canyon folks. Classy!
  16. cupcrazy
    16. Posted by cupcrazy Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:05 pm EDT

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    @ wysh 6 years ago I cancelled my subscription to ESPN the magazine because they wanted to address politics more than sports, with Stuart Scott being the biggest offender. and dont even get me started on Keith Olberman. talk about a tool. my point is, this IS a sports ( hockey ) blog, and thats what I expect; if I want politics, there are tons of sources for that as well. I wont say you stink, but if you support Obama, then I do think yer an idiot
  17. MP
    17. Posted by MP Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:53 pm EDT

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    I thought this was about hockey. Thanks for your opinion on politics. Jerk.
  18. mortimerpeacock
    18. Posted by mortimerpeacock Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:26 pm EDT

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    Jesus H. Christ people, lighten up.
    Greg W. is writing about a genuinely hockey-related story. What's wrong with that? It seems like most of you are just upset that he'd dare to utter a critical word about a Republican.
    And really, why the urge to separate sport and politics? It's not mandatory that every blog has to specialize.
  19. Wyshynski
    19. Posted by Wyshynski Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:21 pm EDT

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    @ mr. ben --
    Again, there are close to 350 posts currently in the Puck Daddy archives, and hundreds more floating around the search engines. I think there might be five, if that, which cover the presidential election. Context, please. This isn't a political blog.
    But like I said: There are going to be collisions between hockey and politics. Whether it's a local school system refusing varsity status for a high-school hockey program or a VP candidate promoting herself as a "hockey mom," there's news value here. We're not doing, "Which political candidate is Player X in the NHL!?!"
  20. Chris L
    20. Posted by Chris L Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:24 pm EDT

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    We need to concentrate on the real enemy and true threat to hockey....Bettman!
  21. Jake T
    21. Posted by Jake T Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:19 pm EDT

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    Greg,
    Who is going to do more for hockey? Palin or Obama? Case closed.
    I'm totally digging this choice and her spunk; plus what she stands for.
    Bottom line...if the next VP is a fan...we're more on the board and visible.
    Oh and spare us the Jon Bon hair (over 20 years old) do's...I wonder what your video call of sports would have looked like back then? or anyone else's for that matter who is making fun of her. She's more than just a hockey mom...she is cool and a really solid choice to make history matter.
  22. Jamesalmighty
    22. Posted by Jamesalmighty Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:50 pm EDT

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    Wyshynski only you would post this garbage: "Did the GOP researchers rely on Wikipedia, a dart board and Sean Hannity's advice during the vetting process?" and then say "We're not about to turn the blog over to politics".......Please. .......Don't be so obvious. I understand you don't like Hannity, Palin, or the whole GOP. Stick to hockey man. Don't insert the mud smearing campaigns of politicians just because you happen to agree with them, and just talk about what matters. Would you like it if say a religious blogger inserted his beliefs into all the hockey blogs? That would be annoying wouldn't it. There are certain boundaries you should abide by in making these threads.
  23. Pepper
    23. Posted by Pepper Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:35 pm EDT

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    Boldly go, Puck Daddy, boldly go.
    And less is more. Except when it comes to Capitals victories.
  24. boristhespider
    24. Posted by boristhespider Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:45 pm EDT

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    i love it when people bring up fossil fuels....explain how oil is a fossil fuel? Explain why there have been scientific studies done that show that there are bugs that excrete a substance that is essentially oil. Explain why those same areas that have been drilled for oil are regenerating? Explain why that there is not absolutly one hundred percent certain areas where oil is garunteed to be? Would it be safe to speculate that certain areas where fossils are found would have oil? Oil is not nor has it ever been a fossil fuel, also if we as a populace can make a synthetic oil, hows come coal cannot be made in a synthetic form? Oh yea thats because coal is a fossil fuel! Talk about people being sheep.
  25. Jeremy S
    25. Posted by Jeremy S Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:18 pm EDT

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    I'm sorry Palin will do nothing for Hockey, nor does she need to its good as it is.
    Wysh I actually gained confidence in you as a person, not as a writer, for supporting Obama. I had no idea there were so many angry hockey republicans out there.
    @Jake, honestly if your vote for prez has anything to do with what your candidate might do for hockey, please do something else come election day.

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