Category: Opinion

2013-2014 NHL Regular Season begins with new debate over fighting in hockey

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Is this something that still has a place in hockey?
Game on – the National Hockey League’s 2013/2014 regular season got officially underway yesterday with three games on the opening night schedule. The beginning of a new season should always be an exciting time for hockey fans, with this year being especially unique with the newly-aligned divisions that created new rivalries going forward this year. Questions of how players perform on new teams, or which teams rise and fall from their previous performances get answered over an 82-game schedule.

However, last night’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens featured an ugly injury that reignited the recent debate about fighting in the NHL. Partway through the third period, heavyweight enforcers George Parros and Colton Orr squared off for the second time in the game. As both players wrestled with each other’s jerseys, Parros lost his balance and was knocked unconscious with a hard fall on his chin. Parros was later stretchered off the ice and diagnosed with a concussion.

There is a general consensus among surveyed players today that fighting is still a integral part of hockey. However, it has sparked a fresh debate from media writers who are questioning whether fighting should be eliminated from the game. The latest questions stem from the possibility that the NHL could be held liable for the long-term effects of head injuries suffered from fighting – a debate gaining momentum following concussion-related lawsuits and settlements from the National Football League.

What do you think about fighting in the National Hockey League? Do you think it still has a place in the game in either the amateur or professional level?

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Eight Must-See Concert Tours of 2013

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Not having the NHL playoffs in Canadian arenas has put a damper on the events scene lately, but there are still a lot of hot tickets to be excited about this summer.

This weekend saw the likes of the Rolling Stones and Mumford & Sons rock the stage in Toronto and Surrey respectively, and it’s just the beginning of a long list of marquee concerts coming to an arena near you. Whether you’re a fan of The Eagles, Paul McCartney, Pink, One Direction or Justin Timberlake, there’s something for every music fan’s taste in 2013.

Here’s our breakdown of the must-see concerts of 2013: Read More

November 2012 – A concert-goer’s paradise?

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By Kat

November isn’t all about the ‘Mo and the coming of the Canadian winter. Or at least it hasn’t been for music fans in the Great White North.

You’d think the absence of hockey would make for dull and dreary times in arenas in Vancouver and Edmonton, but the concert schedule is looking pretty swell for the tail end of November. True, it has been a tough slog for the sports fan waiting for the puck to finally drop on a season, but if you believe in quality over quantity, headline acts like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bruce Springsteen and Sir Paul McCartney coming to town should make any entertainment buff more than a little excited. All three of the aforementioned acts make their hotly-anticipated appearances in Western Canada in the coming days.

Those out East also plenty to be excited about, with pop superstars Justin Bieber (with Carly Rae Jepsen), and music legends Neil Young and The Who making their way to Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal in the coming weeks. And oh yeah – Canadian sports fans have that little football party called the 100th Grey Cup lighting up downtown Toronto come November 25.
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Canada’s top concert venues

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By Jon

When it comes to a quality concert, you need a quality venue to match. In my experience, a band can loss appeal to it’s loyal followers if the decision is made to go to a larger venue with bad acoustics or a lesser qualified venue with questionable sound equipment. Large venues have higher pricing and restrict a fans ability to get up-close and personal with the airborne spit, sweat, guitars or occasional ‘moshing’ artist that may come flying your way. It’s part of the concert experience that makes those general admission mid-sized  venues so entertaining.

There are other benefits that come with these locations, generally based in concert halls or ballrooms they have free standing room as well as tables, easy access to a bar, good acoustics and lower pricing than any arena setup. They entertain up and coming artists that may move to the larger scale venues the next time they tour and with that, the high priced, seat restricting, mass marketed event.

So it’s obvious what style of concerts I enjoy; a cheap, un-restricting, high quality of sound venue that hosts recognized entertaining talents. Doesn’t everybody..? So here is my list of the top venues in Canada. Sorry if some are missed but each major city has it’s own that caters to what I’m describing… hockey arena or neighbourhood pubs are not what I’m talking about here people,  Twenty thousand seats is too much, a hundred person capacity doesn’t make the cut, gotta have a roof, bar is a necessary and artists that we have heard about but aren’t a house-hold name ‘yet’.

Vancouver
Commodore Ballroom

No question, best in Vancouver. Over the years the venue has hosted notable Grammy Award or Juno Award winning performers such as: The Tragically Hip, James Brown, U2,Coldplay, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, The Police, Pearl Jam, KISS, Tina Turner, The Beastie Boys, Nirvana, Kid Rock, Hedley, Dr. Dre, Katy Perry,Lady Gaga, and Metric among others.

Edmonton
The Edmonton Events Centre

People complain but lets be serious, this is a pretty damn good venue, multiple levels, bars and good entertainers. I’m not talking about a night club trying to pass as a venue on a thursday ‘live music’ nights.

London ON
Aeolian Hall

A smaller venue with no seating but you always have a good time with people that love to bands that play here just as much as you. It’s a quality little venue to make for a kick ass night!

Toronto
Horseshoe Tavern

Besides the well-known fact that the Rolling Stones once graced the stage, other celebrated artists – Canadian and otherwise – owe a debt of gratitude to the ‘Shoe for being there when they needed it. (Among them are The Tragically Hip, Blue Rodeo, Willie Nelson and Stompin Tom, Ryan and Bryan Adams

Toronto
The Opera House

One of the most popular live music venues in the city, the Opera House hosts those bands that are too popular for a smaller venue, but not quite mainstream enough for the ACC. The sound and lighting is incredible – a perfect way to catch those rising stars or old favourites without paying inflated ticket prices.

Montreal
Club Soda

Club Soda has hosted 4,200 performances and entertained 1.2 million persons. Thanks to its daring programming policies oriented toward freshness and originality, Club Soda let Montrealers discover over 1,000 Quebec, Canadian and foreign artists.

Got any additions? Comment!

Texting fan gets called out at Iron Maiden concert

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You might be allowed to bring your cell phone with you at a concert, but don’t let yourself get caught texting with it. At a concert in Indiana last week, Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson called out a fan in no subtle terms who had apparently been texting for much of the night.

From the Sault Star:

The rockers were performing at the Klipsch Music Center in Indianapolis when Dickinson spotted an audience member texting throughout much of the band’s set and called him out for his rude behaviour.

Pausing midway through the track Wasted Years, he shouted, “Oh, for f—‘s sake, the man (in) the white shirt, you’ve been texting for the last three f—ing songs! You’re a w–ker!”

The crowd roared with approval and the 53-year-old then carried on with the show.

Have you ever been annoyed by fans glued to their phones?

As for Iron Maiden, they continue their Maiden England North American tour with gigs in Western Canada this week before heading along the American West Coast to close out their concert dates. We’ve got tickets to all of Iron Maiden’s remaining gigs; don’t miss out!

“Share it Maybe” with Cookie Monster?

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You’d have to live under a pretty big rock to not have heard – and be able to un-hear – Carly Rae Jepsen’s ridiculously-catchy single “Call Me Maybe”. It’s still up right up the top of the radio charts, and the official music video has garnered well over 15 million views.

Well you can chalk up another cover of the song to add to the collection that’s currently floating out there on YouTube (in company with Justin Bieber, the Miami Dolphins cheerleading squad, U.S. President Obama…it’s a big club!). Cookie Monster of Sesame Street has chipped in (pun intended) with his version of the song:

Cute and creative? Or should the song be put to bed already?

Of course, Carly Rae Jepsen has a lot more to offer than just her one single. Her second album Curiosity was released earlier this February, and she’ll be accompanying Justin Bieber on his BELIEVE tour that kicks off this September, starting in Glendale, Arizona. Tickets to all their concert dates can be purchased through ShowTimeTickets.com.