Ice Cold Takes: Ryan Reaves the goal scorer, a good hockey dog, Crosby vs. Fleury

Ice Cold Takes is a weekly NHL humor column covering what is trending around the NHL. Now complete with a fancy new logo!

As you may have noticed, ICT has some new art work. Thanks to the graphics department at FanSided, this column is now legit, meaning everything I say holds more weight than it did last week. This is still a very insignificant amount of weight, but slightly less insignificant than last week nonetheless.

The entire league is firing on all cylinders right now. Sebastian Aho has at least a point in his first 12 games, Johnny Hockey is scoring game winners and the Edmonton Oilers are losing games despite having Connor McDavid doing stuff like this.

Hockey Twitter is no different. Trade talks are heating up. People are putting out weird playoff predictions based on voo doo math (what?) and every Bruins fan with a Twitter account is lined up with virtual torches and pitchforks at Tuukka Rask’s door because Jaro Halak has had a few great games. Yep, NHL Twitter is in mid-season form.

It’s November 1st. Let’s all calm down and enjoy some nonsense while we nurse our respective hangovers, shall we?

Trending Up

A Halloween costume for the ages 

Halloween costume of the century goes to 14-year-old Luke Fanella from Naperville, Illinois with this Chicago Blackhawks bench costume, complete with Jonathan Toews, Patty Kane and a cheering crowd behind him.

Fanella’s story is a heartwarming one, complete with a great message from the main man himself: “Fulfill your dreams, try your best, try your hardest. If any kids try to bring you down, just don’t listen to them.”

To all the kids out there who say this column is trash. You may be right, but I can’t hear you because I’m not listening anymore! On the contrary, this advice did not work when I told my wife I wasn’t listening to her anymore as she

asked me nicely to do the dishes

tried to bring me down.

Here’s another costume that is similar in make but magnificently different in meaning. This kid took full advantage of either his favorite or least favorite player, Tom Wilson, in the penalty box. Accurate.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpm3NLJBYNv/?taken-by=tsn_official

Ryan Reaves, goal scorer

Our main man Ryan Reaves is a human highlight reel this season! He’s added a new layer to his tough-guy playing style by scoring three goals in his last five games. Which is two more goals than John Tavares has in his last five games! Incredible!

Perhaps the Toronto Maple Leafs went after the wrong person in the offseason. Had they brought in an offensive presence like Reaves, they’d also likely have Nylander signed and would be better equipped to handle Matthews being out for four weeks.

Is it time to start asking the question we’re all thinking? Is John Tavares a bust? The answer is no. We can’t make that decision yet because comparing him to a player of Reaves’ prowess is not fair to Tavares. Let’s give him another month or so to mature into his role before we set such high standards.

Doggie defense

Is there anything more “Boston” than a father telling his dog to hook and crosscheck his kid while also insulting his kid for not being able to score on a dog? Maybe if this took place in a Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot during a championship parade.

The puppers positioning is incredible, though, right? He stays between the player and the net the whole time without chasing. What a good dog!

Trending Down

Vegas antics 

The hockey world is split when it comes to the antics before a Vegas Golden Knights game. Mixing hockey with Medieval Times was cute in the playoffs, but some hockey fans are getting a little tired of seeing it every game. You might say it’s the candy corn of pre-game spectacles.

Well, Gnash has a solution to the problem:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BplQZjBBdSE/

This is what we all wanted, right? The regular season Western Conference champs don’t have time for useless pregame ceremonies. Raise your glass, and a banner, to Nashville for this move.

Mike Condon

Ottawa’s back up goaltender had a rough night against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. You hate to see this happen to a goaltender. Yikes.

Also, you love to make fun of these goaltenders when it does happen! Of course it went five-hole, too. The overhead shot shows that it probably wasn’t even going in the net if he didn’t get in front of it.

Don’t feel bad for Condon, he’s an NHL goalie. He’ll get over it. As for the Coyotes, look out everyone. They have been red-hot in the last four starts, outscoring opponents 20-4. Now that they have the half-court shot down, I can’t see anyone stopping them.

Sidney Crosby 

On the ice, Sid has been nothing short of spectacular this season. Off the ice, though, there’s one goalie he just can’t beat.

Marc-André Fleury a.k.a. the NHL’s prank king is at it again with a hyper-realistic Crosby mask that fooled even the Pittsburgh Penguins janitor! He made off with all of Crosby’s sticks, but have no fear, Pens fans, I’m sure he’ll be able to get more before the next game.

The CCM ad is the second in what will be a brilliant commercial rivalry between the two players. For reference, here’s the first jab:

With all due respect to goalies, Marc Fleury is probably the only one in the world that isn’t a complete weirdo. Don’t get mad, goalies, I said “with all due respect.”

Betting with Bruin (1-5)

Off to one hell of a start! My advice last week was to bet against me on every call. If you are doing this, congratulations on all your winnings. Have no fear, I have a fool-proof plan to get back in the win column.

Lock: Maple Leafs (-140) to beat the Stars – The Leafs are without Auston Matthews but that doesn’t mean their offense isn’t one of the most potent in the league. Look for John Tavares to step it up and score a couple tonight.

Upset: Stars (+133) to beat the Maple Leafs – The Leafs are without Auston Matthews for a few weeks so let’s bet against them until John Tavares learns how to play again.

I NEED THIS, OKAY? No matter what happens, I’m getting a second point in the win column tonight. Obviously no one is taking this horrible advice so let me break the curse this week before we get back to regular betting next week.

Keep your head up

Odds presented by Oddsshark.