All World Hockey by T. Michael Travers

It doesn't seem possible ... But this year I will be 80 years old, and my hope for you is that you are able to also reach the same number one day.  I continue to play hockey five times a week, every week, in Toronto and at the Fabulous Igloo in Bradenton, Florida. To prepare you, I thought you may be interested in a heads-up to the rarified air known as: " The Golden Years". First things first -- when it happens to you and I sincerely hope it does, you'll wonder ... how did I get to be this old? I feel the same as I did 20 years ago. Don't be confused, don't complain, getting here, getting old, is like winning the lottery and a whole lot better than the alternative. Let's start this "guidebook" with peeing. You'll be peeing a lot. Actually, I started in my 50's, but it's gotten way worse. As an example, I've been trying not to drink any liquids after 7 pm. Last night, I woke from a deep sleep  4  times to have a whiz -- where does...

  My connection to baseball runs deep.  As a youngster,  I was a  Dodger .  No, not a Los Angeles, a Brooklyn.  Jackie and Roy and Pee Wee were my guys to cheer for, but I think it was "Duke" Snider and his fabulous moniker that caught my attention. Duke Snider ... How can you not like a guy named "Duke: When " The Bums"  moved to Los Angeles, I didn't move with them, and my interest in the sport lay dormant until 1977, when the Toronto Blue Jays first took flight. I was at the CNE Grandstand on that April 7th, snowy, overcast day on the 1st base side to cheer for Doug Ault as he hit two home runs and bounced another off the top of the fence. I showed up for 37 more consecutive home openers until 2013. 30 years ago, my son, Sean, created the  Ontario Blue Jays Baseball Academy  and ran it for more than 25 years, helping more than 400 very talented Canadian ball players earn scholarships to American colleges and universities -- current Major L...

(Would you have believed at the beginning of the 2025 season that the Toronto Blue Jays had even a remote chance of playing and finishing the season the way they did?) How did The Jays beat the American League's leading home run-hitting New York Yankees and advance towards the World Serious? There's BLUE everywhere! Have you noticed the Blue Jay caps, jerseys and flags in opposing teams' ballparks when the Jays are on the road? Anaheim, Detroit, Baltimore, Miami, Denver, Seattle. Jays fans are everywhere! It's a team that all Canadians can gather around, support and cheer for. You can see Jay's paraphernalia in the most unusual places. Photos by your scribbler  ... I've seen Jay caps at The Vatican in Rome, Tracé-déroulé in Paris, and on La Rambla in Barcelona, as well as on the beach at Juno in Normandy. Whenever I do, I always ask the cap owner ... "Who's your favourite Blue Jay, all time?" The answers aren't surprising... Carter! Olerud! Rob...

This is way too early to be talking hockey. However, the Maple Leaf Hockey Club has just announced the new ticket price list for the coming season, and   Leaf Nation  has some questions about the across-the-board ticket price hikes. I'm not going to talk about it here because the hockey media has been crucifying the decision makers. But I would like to bring your attention to one game --  January 23, 2026 .  It has my Leafs against the team from Vegas, and Mitch Marner's first time in Scotiabank wearing something other than blue and white. If you would like to buy a cheap seat ticket to this game -- not standing room with an unobstructed view -- the price is $421.75 each. By comparison, later in the season, the Leafs' all-time rival, the Montreal Canadiens, game for the same seats is $336.75 each.  It appears someone in the Leaf organization understands the value of "Mitchy". Or is the ticket office just anticipating increased interest in that game so Marne...

  Captain Definition :  "Captain is the only player designated by the team to speak with game officials regarding rule interpretations". That may be the rulebook definition of NHL team captain, but, as fans, we may have a more personal description and "a guy who best represents our team and our city". We all have our favourite captain, past or present. After he retired from the game, I asked  Hab  superstar, Guy Lafleur, why he was never the captain of the team. He said, "I didn't want the pressure that comes with that job, especially in a hockey crazy city like Montreal." The Toronto Maple Leafs' first captain was "Hap" Day in 1927, and the team's most recent appointee is Auston Matthews. In Leafs' history, we've had some outstanding choices as well as some embarrassments. No need to use this space to dwell on the poor choices when I can acknowledge one of the game's finest ambassadors and a team captain beyond compare, D...