“The body’s just not there,” Lack told Daily Hive in a phone interview from Arizona. “To be able to play professional hockey it takes such a toll.”
Lack says he rehabbed on a daily basis until Christmas, but still only feels about 85-90% of where he needs to be to play again.
“I haven’t played a lot of games in the NHL where I have not been battling something.”
The good times
One of Lack’s most fond memories from his playing career was when he won a gold medal with Sweden at the 2017 IIHF World Championships. But as the team’s third goaltender, he appeared in just one game.
He played a much bigger role during his most fond NHL memory: leading the Canucks to their last playoff appearance in 2015.
“That was such a fun experience for me,” he said.
Lack was arguably the Canucks’ MVP down the stretch, posting a .927 save percentage in 20 games after Ryan Miller was hurt on February 22. In 41 games that season, Lack posted a .921 save percentage, tying him with the recently departed Roberto Luongo.
After winning over the hearts of Canucks fans who regularly chanted his name, Lack was traded to Carolina the following offseason in a controversial deal.
“I’m not sure why we got that special bond, but somehow it kind of just happened,” Lack said of his relationship with Canucks fans. “I’m extremely grateful for what I was able to experience during my time in Vancouver. It’s definitely something that I’m going to remember and cherish for the rest of my life.”
On getting the start in the Heritage Classic
Lack was a central figure in the lead up to Luongo getting traded to Florida in 2014, through no fault of his own.
Riding a seven-game losing streak heading into the Olympic break, Eddie Lack started the first game back after the NHL resumed its schedule, which was logical given Luongo had just travelled back from Sochi.
Lack earned a 20-save shutout in a 1-0 Canucks victory, so head coach John Tortorella started him in the next game against Minnesota. The Canucks lost 2-1 in a shootout, but Lack made 22 saves, plus six of seven shots faced in the shootout.
So Tortorella started Lack in the Heritage Classic too, meaning not only would Luongo sit on the bench for a third consecutive game; the future Hall of Famer wouldn’t get to play in the marquee game at BC Place.
Luongo later requested a trade and never played for the Canucks again.
Lack recalled Tortorella telling him that he would be starting the Heritage Classic the day before the game, during a family skate at BC Place.
“I was 100% sure that I wasn’t playing the next day,” Lack said. “And then Torts came up to me on the ice. He was like, ‘Hey, you’re starting tomorrow.’ I’m like, ‘What? Like, are you sure?’”
“The biggest thing was, like, I was really happy for myself, but seeing Lui on the ice with his kids skating around and everything, it was a very weird feeling because I felt very sad for him. That would have been a very special game for him to play.”
Torts the best NHL coach he ever had
It may surprise fans to know that Lack is among the players who really liked playing for Tortorella.
“From the coaches that I had playing in the NHL, [Tortorella] was for sure the best, and I’m not saying that [just] because I played a lot. I actually thought that he was the best when I didn’t play either. The thing that I liked about him was that he always kept you in the loop.”
When Luongo got a string of games in a row, Torts would communicate that too, Lack says.
“The nice thing was that he would always talk to you … explaining his decisions and I loved that.”
How hockey culture embraced Lack’s personality
In a sport that regularly keeps all signs of personality buried beneath cliche answers, Lack stood out.
Known for his love of tacos, Lack didn’t hide his sense of humour at the rink or on Twitter.
“In Vancouver, they kind of embraced that [personality] more, and liked that I was my own [person]. I would say when I went to Carolina they kind of wanted me to be more quiet and just kind of put me back in my shell a little bit more. And I totally get that too.
“But that wasn’t me. So I tried a little bit to be more quiet and not so outspoken and outgoing and everything, but I wasn’t feeling like myself when I did that.”
“It’s weird because somehow I think that being outspoken and everything helped my career, but in some part I definitely think that it hurt it too.”
What’s next?
Apart from binge-watching Ozark on Netflix, Lack’s new career in real estate is keeping him busy these days.
“It’s a lot of paperwork and talking on the phone.”
It’s a natural progression for Lack, whose family owns hotels in Sweden. But not wanting to return home yet, he’s setting out to do his own thing.
“It’s for sure been an adjustment not waking up at 8:30 for morning skate and just relaxing the rest of the day. It’s actually work, but it’s been fun so far.”
The now-retired goalie is also partnering with Vancouver company Alpha North and GamerzArena on a yet-to-be announced esports project.
“We’ve got a few cool things coming up now with the tournaments… it’s going to be something that we can give back to charity,” he said. “Playing video games is definitely something that I’ve been doing my whole life just to kind of relax. I feel like now is a good time to do something about it when everyone is sitting home being bored.”
Lack says he still plans to help Arizona State University as a part-time goalie coach, as he did this season, wanting to keep one foot in the game.
“I don’t want to close that door completely,” Lack said. “This is going to sound weird but coaching and stuff doesn’t challenge me that much as a person because it’s hockey and I’ve done hockey for so long… I wanted to get into something brand new for me to really challenge myself as a person to grow.”
It time for me to RETIRE. The next 7 minutes are a tribute to All of you that were with me during this crazy ride and my way of saying – THANK YOU.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic fell 6-4, 6-3 to Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open tennis tournament on Friday.
The 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., won 61 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on just one of her six opportunities.
Stakusic had upset top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) on Thursday night to advance.
In the opening round, Stakusic defeated Slovakia’s Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday.
The fifth-seeded Frech won 62 per cent of her first-serve points and converted on three of her nine break point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Alejandro Kirk’s long single with the bases loaded provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off 4-3 win in the 11th inning of their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.
With the Cardinals outfield in, Kirk drove a shot off the base of the left-field wall to give the Blue Jays (70-78) their fourth win in 11 outings and halt the Cardinals’ (74-73) two-game win streak before 30,380 at Rogers Centre.
Kirk enjoyed a two-hit, two-RBI outing.
Erik Swanson (2-2) pitched a perfect 11th inning for the win, while Cardinals reliever Ryan Fernandez (1-5) took the loss.
Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman enjoyed a seven-inning, 104-pitch outing. He surrendered his two runs on nine hits and two walks and fanned only two Cardinals.
He gave way to reliever Genesis Cabrera, who gave up a one-out homer to Thomas Saggese, his first in 2024, that tied the game in the eighth.
The Cardinals started swiftly with four straight singles to open the game. But they exited the first inning with only two runs on an RBI single to centre from Nolan Arendao and a fielder’s choice from Saggese.
Gausman required 28 pitches to escape the first inning but settled down to allow his teammates to snatch the lead in the fourth.
He also deftly pitched out of threats from the visitors in the fifth, sixth and seventh thanks to some solid defence, including Will Wagner’s diving stop, which led to a double play to end the fifth inning.
George Springer led off with a walk and stole second base. He advanced to third on Nathan Lukes’s single and scored when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. knocked in his 95th run with a double off the left-field wall.
Lukes scored on a sacrifice fly to left field from Spencer Horwitz. Guerrero touched home on Kirk’s two-out single to right.
In the ninth, Guerrero made a critical diving catch on an Arenado grounder to throw out the Cardinals’ infielder, with reliever Tommy Nance covering first. The defensive gem ended the inning with a runner on second base.
St. Louis starter Erick Fedde faced the minimum night batters in the first three innings thanks to a pair of double plays. He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
ON DECK
Toronto ace Jose Berrios (15-9) will start the second of the three-game series on Saturday. He has a six-game win streak.
The Cardinals will counter with righty Kyle Gibson (8-6).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
CALGARY – Mired in their first four-game losing skid in 20 years, the Calgary Stampeders are going back to Jake Maier at quarterback on Saturday after he was benched for a game.
It won’t be an easy assignment.
Visiting McMahon Stadium are the Eastern Conference-leading Montreal Alouettes (10-2) who own the CFL’s best record. The Stampeders (4-8) have fallen to last in the Western Conference.
“Six games is plenty of time, but also it is just six games,” said Maier. “We’ve got to be able to get on the right track.”
Calgary is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
“I do still believe in this team,” said Stampeders’ head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson. “I want to see improvement, though. I want to see guys on a weekly basis elevating their game, and we haven’t been doing that.”
Maier is one of the guys under the microscope. Two weeks ago, the second-year starter threw four interceptions in a 35-20 home loss to the Edmonton Elks.
After his replacement, rookie Logan Bonner, threw five picks in last week’s 37-16 loss to the Elks in Edmonton, the football is back in Maier’s hands.
“Any time you fail or something doesn’t go your way in life, does it stink in the moment? Yeah. But then the days go on and you learn things about yourself and you learn how to prepare a little bit better,” said Maier. “It makes you mentally tougher.”
Dickenson wants to see his quarterback making better decisions with the football.
“Things are going to happen, interceptions will happen, but try to take calculated risks, rather than just putting the ball up there and hoping that we catch it,” said Dickenson.
A former quarterback himself, he knows the importance of that vital position.
“You cannot win without good quarterback play,” Dickenson said. “You’ve got to be able to make some plays — off-schedule plays, move-around plays, plays that break down, plays that aren’t designed perfectly, but somehow you found the right guy, and then those big throws where you’re taking that hit.”
But it’s going to take a team effort, and that includes the club’s receiving corp.
“We always have to band together because we need everything to go right for our receivers to get the ball,” said Nik Lewis, the Stampeders’ receivers coach. “The running back has to pick up the blitz, the o-line has to block, the quarterback has to make the right reads, and then give us a catchable ball.”
Lewis brings a unique perspective to this season’s frustrations as he was a 22-year-old rookie in Calgary in 2004 when the Stamps went 4-14 under coach Matt Dunigan. They turned it around the next season and haven’t missed the playoffs since.”
“Thinking back and just looking at it, there’s just got to be an ultimate belief that you can get it done. Look at Montreal, they were 6-7 last year and they’ve gone 18-2 since then,” said Lewis.
Montreal is also looking to rebound from a 37-23 loss to the B.C. Lions last week. But for head coach Jason Maas, he says his team’s mindset doesn’t change, regardless of what happened the previous week.
“Last year when we went through a four-game losing streak, you couldn’t tell if we were on a four-game winning streak or a four-game losing streak by the way the guys were in the building, the way we prepared, the type of work ethic we have,” said Maas. “All our standards are set, so that’s all we focus on.”
While they may have already clinched a playoff spot, Alouettes’ quarterback Cody Fajardo says this closing stretch remains critical because they want to finish the season strong, just like last year when they won their final five regular-season games before ultimately winning the Grey Cup.
“It doesn’t matter about what you do at the beginning of the year,” said Fajardo. “All that matters is how you end the year and how well you’re playing going into the playoffs so that’s what these games are about.”
The Alouettes’ are kicking off a three-game road stretch, one Fajardo looks forward to.
“You understand what kind of team you have when you play on the road because it’s us versus the world mentality and you can feel everybody against you,” said Fajardo. “Plus, I always tend to find more joy in silencing thousands of people than bringing thousands of people to their feet.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
