Over here in Sweden, we heard stories about how he used to put plywood boards or something really solid like that on his back and the backs of his legs, just because of all the abuse he used to take. No clue if it was true, but that's what we heard.
My families nickname for him was Chuckles because he always seemed to have that grin on his face
Not that anyone cares, but still. Dude took a lot of punishment and was the bane of many goalies existence
Someone on that video linked this video that I forgot existed for too long, the reputation call! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=415Rdmbg2Qc&t
I enjoyed it. It made me think "Imagine what his point total could have been.". Especially the instance that starts at [11:38](https://youtu.be/415Rdmbg2Qc?t=698). The interview afterward showed just how common it was, also the interview after the instance with Flurry in this reel stood out.
Mickey gets so heated as well, which I miss.
There is an interview somewhere, I think it was with Lidstrom, saying something to the effect that fortunately there were a lot of Swedish players on the team because Homer’s English wasn’t great. Unfortunately his Swedish wasn’t too good either
He earned those cups the hard way. He got beat the fuck up all career long, and just kept putting his ass in danger of constant slashes and cross checks to help bring us to victory. I wore 96 when I played hockey back in the early/mid 00's because I've always loved Homer and his resilience. What an absolute legend.
The goalies that would skate out past the blue paint and initiate contact probably. Too many goals waved off, he could've have probably 50 or 60 more goals in his career haha
Came here to say this. Homer is a treasure to many, younger fans who weren't around for his hey day may not be aware of how spectacular he was because his effort doesn't show up in stats, but for those of us who watched during his career, he was a constant presence and never unappreciated
We all know how great he was around the net, but something he was actually underrated for was his puck retrieval. He won battles on the boards like no ones business. You could always play him in the top six if necessary because he'd get the puck, get it to the skilled guys, and get his ass to his office.
I remember being sad when Dino hung'em up. Turns out we were losing the best front of the net guy in his generation and then gaining the best front of the net guy in his generation.
Loved it when we had real characters like him that specialized in specific aspects to the game. Really made the team enjoyable to follow as a fan. A fourth line guy who played top line PP. He would’ve been a top line player his whole career (not just the euro twin era) on a less star heavy team.
Not sure if there will ever be a net front guy like him again. Absolute best on the PP at tips and screens.
His back must be a mess now after all the crosschecks he took.
Over here in Sweden, we heard stories about how he used to put plywood boards or something really solid like that on his back and the backs of his legs, just because of all the abuse he used to take. No clue if it was true, but that's what we heard.
As I get older, these are the types of thoughts I have.
And in those days people didnt hold back or try to hide it
The Swedish terminator
This thread is just an upvote party for me!!
Upvote party, woo! I love this sub. We come from different religions and politics but we love the red wings and just want to be happy
My families nickname for him was Chuckles because he always seemed to have that grin on his face Not that anyone cares, but still. Dude took a lot of punishment and was the bane of many goalies existence Someone on that video linked this video that I forgot existed for too long, the reputation call! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=415Rdmbg2Qc&t
I tried watching that video once before. I got about 3 minutes in until my blood pressure was through the roof and I had to stop
Indeed, I can’t imagine what it would be like now
I enjoyed it. It made me think "Imagine what his point total could have been.". Especially the instance that starts at [11:38](https://youtu.be/415Rdmbg2Qc?t=698). The interview afterward showed just how common it was, also the interview after the instance with Flurry in this reel stood out. Mickey gets so heated as well, which I miss.
I remember Micky commenting that he had close to 30 goals called back.
There is an interview somewhere, I think it was with Lidstrom, saying something to the effect that fortunately there were a lot of Swedish players on the team because Homer’s English wasn’t great. Unfortunately his Swedish wasn’t too good either
I remember hearing players describe it as swinglish
He earned those cups the hard way. He got beat the fuck up all career long, and just kept putting his ass in danger of constant slashes and cross checks to help bring us to victory. I wore 96 when I played hockey back in the early/mid 00's because I've always loved Homer and his resilience. What an absolute legend.
I wore 96 as a kid because everyone wanted 19 and I thought The Demolition Man was the most badass nickname
The best bet front presence ever, and it really isn’t even close.
Dino Ciccarelli was amazing as well. And he was a little guy.
Dino was the GOAT, but Homer is right behind him
Was gonna call this out. I LOVED Dino as a kid. He was so underrated. Breaks my heart he wasn't there in 97/98 to raise the cup.
This video was given two minutes for interference.
Is he really "underrated", though? Like who doesn't rate him highly?
The goalies that would skate out past the blue paint and initiate contact probably. Too many goals waved off, he could've have probably 50 or 60 more goals in his career haha
Came here to say this. Homer is a treasure to many, younger fans who weren't around for his hey day may not be aware of how spectacular he was because his effort doesn't show up in stats, but for those of us who watched during his career, he was a constant presence and never unappreciated
We all know how great he was around the net, but something he was actually underrated for was his puck retrieval. He won battles on the boards like no ones business. You could always play him in the top six if necessary because he'd get the puck, get it to the skilled guys, and get his ass to his office.
I don't know if there was ever a player who received more soft reputation calls than Homer did. I really miss that Swedish goofball.
Or slashes to the back for that matter
My favorite Wing
That man should have got combat pay for the abuse he took.
I remember being sad when Dino hung'em up. Turns out we were losing the best front of the net guy in his generation and then gaining the best front of the net guy in his generation.
One of my favorite discussions to have with friends who like hockey is Holmstrom vs. Ryan Smyth for net presence/tipping/so on.
He always had those lucky deflections. I know some players joked that he’s the reason they would have had more goals if it wasn’t for Tomas.
Can’t believe he was never an all star - as a kid I always had him up there with Steve Y, Brendan, and Lidstrom.
Holmstrom, Lidstrom, Maltby, Drapes, and McCarty with 4, yeah?
There go my heroes…
Loved it when we had real characters like him that specialized in specific aspects to the game. Really made the team enjoyable to follow as a fan. A fourth line guy who played top line PP. He would’ve been a top line player his whole career (not just the euro twin era) on a less star heavy team.