Shoes, Ships, and Sealing Wax

A little hockey story

Back when the Capitals played in Landover, when we sat behind the bench, there was a season ticket holder behind us named Lou. Originally from Brooklyn, he'd lived in D.C. for a long time and was a great hockey fan. Vocal, but never profane.*

To point out a player who was deficient, he'd say "What are you doin', Murph?" (Just to use a not-particularly random example from the time. We heard "Hatch" quite a bit, too.)

Praise: "Way to be, Rod, way to be!"

And a phrase that rings in my ears to this day, often:

"Hell of a power play, Murray, hell of a power play."

So if you ever took in a game here in Washington, and you heard some long-haired girl muttering that in disgust...hell of a power play, Murray, hell of a power play...and you wondered why she didn't know the coach was Jim Schoenfeld/Ron Wilson/Bruce Cassidy/Glen Hanlon...she wasn't in a time warp, it was just an homage to Lou.

*One night, there were some frat boy types down there who were nothing but profane. Lou, who was maybe 5'4", said to them "Boys, you need to watch your language. There are" [he indicated my mom and me] "ladies present."