1. Sam Rosen may be "retired" but he certainly isn't retiring. Sam was a big hit at the New York State Hockey Hall of Fame event last weekend where his buddy Joe Micheletti was honored, along with Bill Smith, Jiggs McDonald, Dave Maloney and photographer Bruce Bennett. Rosen still is being sought for interviews.
2. Ironically, the NY State HOF honoree who stole the show is someone we hardly hear from; legendary hockey photographer Bennett. Double B's speech was more like top-flight, standup comedy. (He's actually one of the funniest fellows in the hockey world.)
3. Speaking of funny lines, how about this one from buddy George Grimm on Chris Drury dealing K'Andre Fleury to Carolina.:"Drury has weakened a Conference rival DEFENSIVELY!"
4. And speaking of the NY State HOF – just one more time – the last time The Maven was there, superscribe Stefan (Rapid) Rosner showed up arm in arm with his then girlfriend Alyssa. The even better newer news is that the lovebirds are now officially engaged.
5. Here's the even better part: Stefan, good guy that he is, wastes no time crediting the lovely Alyssa with encouraging his hockey-writing career. That's friendship, the perfect blendship.
6. Bob Goodman, 69, longtime Rangers fan, and undisputed "King of Hockey Collectibles," is beginning to sell off parts of what amounts to his hockey museum. He's already put a lot on eBay. Bob's followed the Blueshirts since 1962 and was a season ticket holder from 1975-2022.
7. "I'm actually selling my Holy Grail 1912-13 C57 set and my near mint 1966 Topps set," Goodman tells me. I wonder whether ace collector Glenn (Chico) Resch would be interested.
8. Goodman on his Rangers: "They're headed in the right direction with key moves and getting rid of a lot of dead wood. I like our top four defensemen but we need a bottom five and six. Finally, this is Igor's year as long as he stays healthy."
-1750998566-q80.webp "Jihaad Campbell's injury shouldn't keep him from carving out a big role as a rookie for Philadelphia Eagles in 2025")
