(Jimmy was allowed to answer only a few questions by email sent through A.J. Josh Elzinga player profile, stats and championships. It went like this: Elzinga clipped Wingfield in the face, Wingfield asked for a fight, Elzinga declined. Submit changes (incorrect DOB, missing stats, incorrect stats, social media links etc) using a web form and we will review your update request within 24 hours and update accordingly. Eventually, Donny Grover, a former Trashers defenseman, noticed Brenda in the stands and invited her onto the ice. They had their own chants and waved body bags when opposing players lost fights. Josh Elzinga NOT the Josh who broke Brad Wingfield's leg . Craig resides in Estero, Florida with his wife Amy, son Cayden (9), who plays for the Junior Everblades 10U teamand daughter Sophia (12), who currently plays for the Girls Florida Alliance 12U AAA team. what happened to josh elzinga hockey. As evidence that Galante was prone to violence, the prosecution played footage of him purportedly striking the official during the infamous Kalamazoo game. Launching an expansion hockey team in Danbury seemed less like a vanity play than a natural progression. Thats where he told me his story, amid the light and heavy bags, in the regulation ring. I first heard it from a father on the sidelines of a Little League game soon after I moved in. He took a shot at us, AJ told me. And how is this kid running a hockey team?". said. The rest of the game doubled as a near riot. Originally from Montreal,Charlieplayed over 900 games professionally around the globe over his 17-year career, including the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers. Initially, just as a spectator. None of this fazes the 47-year-old Brenda. what happened to josh elzinga hockey. [The attitude was,] You're supposed to be courteous in minor league hockey? And Brenda was given a new on-ice opportunity when Mad Hatters goalie Jeff Hill jokingly yelled at her to Be a man. He knows how to treat people. When Jimmy returned from work, his son greeted him with the big news. Originally from the Metro Detroit area, Craig grew up playing youth hockey in Michigan within the Detroit Little Caesars organization. FGCU Ice Hockey - Evaluation Skate Information Meeting. Still, Vogel wanted something to remember the moment by, so he donned his goalie gear to take some photos with Brenda on the ice. In the Trashers-Frostbite game, however, he inflicted no real damage even though he spent three periods looking for a fight, ran up 43 penalty minutes and even made a run at the Adirondack goalie. Parents were warned to keep children away. She had always wanted to play in a game and afterward she kept talking, Did you see this save and that save? It was really, really great. . In 1980, after the Houston Oilers barely missed a trip to the Super Bowl, Coach Bum Phillips gave their fans a famous pep talk. The story of Galantes team has become legend in Fairfield County, where I live. AL hasattended many coaching seminars and clinics around North America. I figured it would be like a video game, controlling players and all that. "We're probably not going to want to participate," he said haltingly. Mid-season, thats when we really caught fire, AJ told me. "I still hate even the name Kalamazoo.". Southeast Elite is proud to announce the Mathieu Garon with be an instrumental member of the Southeast Elite organization as a goaltender instructor. Still, as one might expect from a teenage GM, the roster was dense with goons. Tampa Bay fans still include him among their grievances: a wasted pick. The players were aware that their owner was, well, connected. was taking calls from players and agentsincluding, he says, Sean Avery'sasking for a Danbury roster spot. THEY WERE EVEN WELCOME TO STAY IN THE GALANTES' GARGANTUAN HOME. The judge let Galante remain out of prison pending trial but put him under house arrest. Team Information. DeLuca believed his granddaughter's husband, Mark Colella, had physically abused her. There was only one problem: it wasnt protecting her sides, leaving her exposed, and often, black and blue. From March 2014: The oracle of ice hockey. The cornerstone of Marc's approach is focusing on making each hockey player a better athlete. Wagner's career stats in the league: two games and 73 penalty minutes. In the summer of '06, the Trashers sent 105 season-ticket holders refund checks, totaling $31,177. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. I suspended his son." He went online to find the main switchboard number for the Roanoke Valley (Va.) Vipers, left a message and eventually made contact with his counterpart. "You got us a guy with one eye? The team played in the Wings Stadium. He had skipped an afternoon class to pick up Rupp. To Galante, it was a rounding error. Born Jul 23 1982 -- Burbank, IL. "A.J. Teaching athletes to learn and howto think, over just going through the motions of drills, brings the best out of each athlete. Born 1984-09-30 in Burbank, Illinois. "Listen, for all you guys who don't have a sack, I've brought enough balls for everyone," he said. 69 posts. Soon, a 3-on-3 scrimmage was underway with Brenda, for the first time in her life, facing shots in a real game. ", Rupp's skepticism did not diminish when Galante piloted his blue Escalade out of the airport parking lot and promptly got lost. was fined and suspended for nearly coming to blows with an executive from another team during a game. When father and son get together, they talk family, business, the future. "Al Davis, he was a wild man with a team full of outlaws, and that's how I wanted to be. First year, he was playing for the Port Huron Beacons, killing us. Mario Larocque was different: Hed been taken in the first round of the 1996 NHL draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Josh Elzinga Defense Born Sep 3 1984 -- Burbank, IL [38 yrs. I never had one bad thing happen in my dealings with Jimmy Galante.". and Jimmy Galante. The U.S. Attorneys office learned enough to get wiretaps and, eventually, search warrants. ", Occasionally, though, Jimmy betrayed a temper and turned it on his team. Through United States Ice Rink Association Gilles has acquired his Hockey Director Certificate, Human Resources Management Certificate and Programming, Marketing and Promotions Certificate. A senior at New Fairfield High, AJ had been an alternate captain of his schools hockey team, which played at the Danbury Ice Arena with Jimmy often in attendance. "After games you'd have these blue-collar guys next to wealthy real estate developers. He was a defenseman and hit a kid, Galante said. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. By game's end they were hooked. Following a successful junior hockey career, he played four (4) years of college hockey at Eastern Michigan University, where he was a CSCHL All-Star in 2001. Danbury, Connecticut, is the ultimate small city. (The indictment alleged that the Trashers' player payroll was in excess of $750,000, but the team reported that it hadn't gone over the UHL salary cap of $275,000.) Catalyzed by their new scorer, the Trashers cruised through the regular season, finishing 48--17. He got suspended., As James Harper, a veteran minor-league linesman, was talking with the scorekeeper, he got into it with Jimmy Galante, whod come down from the owners box. ago] Height 6.02 -- Weight 205 [188 cm/93 kg] Regular Season. By Chris Kazarian The legend of the United Leagues Danbury Trashers was cemented midway through the teams first season in a game against the Kalamazoo Wings. But it wasn't just the players who were punished. He almost looked like Waynethe same intelligent eyes and long face, the same scraggly mall-rat hairbut not quite. "You need a wild card," says A.J., "so we decided we would beat people to submission. How did A.J. As he explained, No matter what type of day you had when you go out on the ice for an hour, hour and a half or two hours you forget everything that happened that day and you focus on that black little puck. The pediatric emergency room at Danbury Hospital was named for Galante after he helped fund it. ", THESE BONDS were cemented by a brand of violence the Trashers purveyed without apology. All Rights Reserved. "Before games we'd be mobbed," says Tom Devine, owner of the Two Steps Downtown Grille. We were maybe the toughest team to ever play this game. SON CONNOR IS NOW PLAYING IN THE USHL (WATERLOO BLACKHAWKS), Played in over 1,000 games in the NHL, AHL, Swedish Elite League, Finnish National League and more, Private hockey instructor with Saveology.com Iceplex team, Former Assistant Coach for the Florida Everblades (ECHL) during the 09-10 season, Currently the Director of Hockey Operations at TPH Ft. Lauderdale, National Hockey League (NHL) Alumni for the New Jersey Devils and Detroit Red Wings, 2013-current -Coach with the Florida Alliance/Southeast Elite Program, 2012-current -Coach with the Florida Jr. Everblades, Player for the United States men's ice hockey team in three Olympic's (2002, 2006, and 2010), Playedfour years at the University of WisconsinMadison, This website is powered by SportsEngine's. Word of the incident quickly spread through the blue-collar Connecticut city, which soon embraced the fighting mentality of the Trashers. View the profiles of people named Josh Elzinga. Such a city will have many of the bad elements of a metropolis and few of the good. A UHL season was about 80 games followed by playoffs; the champion took home the Colonial Cup. (The video was inconclusive.) It started becoming urban legend.. U.S. Hockey Report provides exclusive amateur hockey news reporting and scouting services in the United States and Canada. He reportedly spent more than $3 million to expand the rink from a 600-seat bandbox to a 2,500-seat showplace called the Danbury Ice Arena. Then Sen. Joseph Lieberman hailed Galante as a "shining example" in the community. ", "WE LOVED THOSE FANS," SAYS OMICIOLI. The former Director of Hockey Operations for the Jacksonville Ice and Sports Complex, Gilles is no stranger to youth hockey. Recalls Galante, "It was obvious he was thinking, What did I get myself into? was on the phone with agents for some of the best hockey players in the world. The Danbury Whalers of the Federal Hockey League now play downtown, and it's fair to wonder whether they would be there were it not for the hockey culture Jimmy Galante started and the arena he built. Everyone, however, agrees that he did it at least in part for his son, AJ, who was 17. It had to do with the acoustics. The 2004 05 NHL lockout was a labor lockout that resulted in the cancellation of the National Hockey League (NHL) season, which would . Before and after games downtown Danbury was hopping. So while Greg, 49, can walk, his wife is paralyzed, relying on a motorized wheelchair to move around. Galante pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to violate the federal RICO act, one count of conspiring to defraud the IRS and one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud with the Trashers' bogus salary-cap figures. Their goons fight our goons. And fans werent the only ones who found the Trashers; players did too. There was a tremendous infusion of talent, Christiansen said. Wingfield's skate caught on the ice, and as he fell back his left tibia, fibula and ankle broke with such force that the crack could be heard in the stands. Since birth Brenda has suffered from spina bifida, an abnormality that causes an opening in the spinal column. Jon Nasty Mirasty, a Cree from Saskatchewan, wore a Mohawk, sometimes multicolored, and would average eight penalty minutes a game for Danbury. Most teams rode in a rickety, Partridge Familystyle bus. Matty the Horse spent 18 months in the big house, but he survived it, dying a free man in August 2012. (Colella denies this.) The game plan was 'Keep your cool and you'll get a power play,' but it didn't always work out. Defenseman, noticed Brenda in the community wanted to be courteous in minor league hockey on making hockey. Skepticism did not diminish when Galante piloted his blue Escalade out of prison trial... 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