Canadians love hockey. It's part of our history. It's part of how we see ourselves and our place among the nations of the world. Canada is hockey country.
In this new column, I will focus on current NHL matchups involving Canadian teams as we head toward the playoffs, but place them in the context of notable anniversaries in Canadian history.
Each entry involves a game preview, featuring notable trends or storylines throughout league and is concluded with my predicted outcome for the game. The aim is to supplement your hockey with a little history and vice versa.
On this day in Canadian history, in 1959, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker announced that the government was cancelling the CF-105 (Avro Arrow) development program.
Amidst Cold War tensions with the USSR, the Canadian government had commissioned A.V. Roe of Canada to produce an interceptor jet, designed specifically for Canadian conditions, to defend against Soviet aggression.
However, costs for the jet soon ballooned and the advent of the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD), specifically surface-to-air missile defence, made the Arrow and its technology obsolete.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Carolina Hurricanes, 7:00PM
2014-2015 Season Records: TOR 23-30-5 (7th in the Atlantic); CAR 20-29-7 (8th in the Metropolitan)
Leading Scorers: Phil Kessel (22G, 26A); Justin Faulk (10G, 25A)
As the Leafs and Hurricanes duel it out tonight, fans of both franchises will be eyeing the standings. While both teams are having forgettable seasons, they could be rewarded in what is, arguably, the deepest draft in recent years.
Currently, Carolina has a 9.5 per cent chance at winning the first overall pick, while the Leafs sit at 8.5 per cent. Even if neither team nets the golden ticket for Connor McDavid, there is still significant talent to be had in the first round.
Prediction:Hurricanes by 1
Vancouver Canucks at New Jersey Devils, 7:00PM
2014-2015 Season Records: VAN 33-21-3 (2nd in the Pacific); NJD 22-26-9 (7th in the Metropolitan)
Leading Scorers: Henrik Sedin (12G, 38A); Jaromir Jagr (11G, 18A)
Vancouver looks to continue its rebound season and push into the playoffs, currently 6-4 in their last ten games.
Meanwhile, New Jersey’s poor season continues. The one bright spot for the Devils this year has been Corey Schneider, the goaltender they acquired from Vancouver in 2013. He has already played forty-nine games and boasts a .924 SV per cent, single-handedly winning games for a team that is second-last in goals scored per game.
Prediction:Vancouver by 1
Minnesota Wild at Edmonton Oilers, 9:00PM
2014-2015 Season Records: MIN 29-21-7 (5th in the Central); EDM 17-32-10 (7th in the Pacific)
Leading Scorers: Zach Parise (23G, 19A); Jordan Eberle (15G, 26A)
After a near meltdown earlier this season, the Wild have been cruising since acquiring goaltender Devan Dubnyk from the Arizona Coyotes. Dubnyk has found his game again this year after being castoff from the Oilers in January 2014.
He is 10-1-2 with the Wild, including four shutouts. Moreover, in games against the Oilers this year, Dubnyk has been vengeful; he is currently 4-0 with an incredible .966 SV per cent.
Prediction:Wild by 2
Anaheim Ducks at Calgary Flames, 9:00PM
2014-2015 Season Records: ANA 35-16-7 (1st in the Pacific); CGY 32-22-4 (3rd in the Pacific)
Leading Scorers: Ryan Getzlaf (17G, 37A); Juri Hudler (19G, 29A)
This is the fourth and final meeting between the Ducks and Flames this season. Anaheim has already beaten Calgary twice this year and could clinch the season series with a win tonight.
Since the 2004-2005 lockout, the Flames have never won a season series against the Ducks. However, more important than evening the season series against Anaheim, Calgary will be striving to maintain playoff positioning as they try to get back into the postseason for the first time since 2009.
Prediction:Flames by 1
Last Minute of Play
While the Diefenbaker government might have made the right decision to scrap the Arrow for practical reasons, it came at a loss of 14,000 highly skilled workers that were immediately out of a job.
Many of them went on to work in the United States aerospace program, a veritable “brain drain” for Canada’s aeronautics industry.
Currently, for many Northern Ontarians, the Arrow is probably more symbolic of our journeys to Toronto. In 2010, a new stretch of highway bypassed Nobel and the exit was named Avro Arrow Road.
But the Arrow has a longer, more significant connection to our region. At one point, Nobel was the home of an Orenda Engines testing facility, where the Iroquois turbo engine was being developed for the interceptor.
Mike Commito is a Canadian historian and an avid hockey fan. Follow him on twitter @mike_commito.
