Homer, Gibson. Gibson Homer. Either way, he's one of USA's goalies of the future.
photo: Chris Tanouye / HHOF-IIHF Images
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
--Juliet, II, ii, Romeo and Juliet
We all need a name. The government requires it, and our friends identify us by it. A name can be traditional or unique, a Twitter handle or a nickname. But with eight billion people on the planet, some names are more memorable than others, though they all smell as sweet underneath that hockey equipment.
Herewith is a playful look at some of the more special names skating around the ice lanes at this year’s U18 in Frisco and Plano:
Marcel Marcel, Czech Republic
A name so sweet they said it twice. Marcel, in the Czech version the "c" is pronounced as "ts", is still only 17 but is already 6’4” (193cm) and 243 lbs. (110 kg), so if you don’t remember his name, you’ll remember his immenseness as he comes at you looking for the puck.
Fyodor Nikolayena, Belarus
When commentators in Plano refer to him by his surname only, it sounds as though they are calling him by his full name—Nikolai Enya. But no, those five syllables are all for just the surname.
Jack Hughes, United States
Hughes is part of the great family of three brothers who have all been drafted into the NHL and are among the game’s brightest young stars….Wait a second. It says here Jack Hughes was born in Westwood, MA and is 17 years old. What? This is a DIFFERENT Jack Hughes? Doesn’t he know that name is already taken in the hockey directory? Confusing!
Jimi Suomi, Finland
It's not the name on the back of the sweater that matters--it's the name on the front. But what if they're the same? He's not Jimmy Polska or Jimmy Danske--he's Jimi Suomi!
Roman Zap, Germany
Surely the only onomatopoeic name at the tournament, it is so very tempting to add an exclamation mark to his name for effect—Roman Zap! Here’s hoping he scores a big goal so we can create a suitable headline—Germans Zap Opponents
Niks Fenenko, Latvia
The Latvians loves to adds an s to everythings, so it’s a wonders theys haves a players named Fenenko and nots Fenenkos.
Ivan Miroshnichenko, Russia
This year’s letter king belongs to the Russian forward, whose surname extends to 14 letters, which has more than Zapzapzapzap.
Lane Hutson, United States
The NHL has Micheal Ferland and baseball has Andruw Jones, but this isn’t a spelling mistake so much as it looks like a typo. Surely it’s Huston and has been inputted into the IIHF system incorrectly? Nope. It’s Hutson. Lane Hutson. And he’ll be draft eligible in 2022.
Gibson Homer, United States
You know when you fill out a form? Sometimes they ask for a first name and a last name; sometimes they want the last name first and the first name last. This is where we’re at with Homer Gibson. Er, Gibson Homer. Homer is more a first name than last name, and Gibson—like, say, the great Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson—is more of a last name. We’re not sure if the American goalie can play well on the road, though—he’s such a homer. (sorry)
Rutger McGroarty, United States
His is an aye-aye kind of a name—unique, different, something you notice, but you also can’t help but watch the sniper play! The son of Jimmy McGroarty of Mississauga, Ontario, the dual citizen has elected to go the NCAA route rather than the OHL, but he’s a top prospect for the 2022 draft and knows how to put the puck in the net. You can just hear the mcroar of the crowd as he flies down the ice.
Red Savage, United States
The son of Brian, a long-time NHLer, Red’s name is distinct for a couple of reasons. Back in the day, virtually every red-headed player was nicknamed Red, which is funny when you look back because we have only black-and-white photos of many of them! But Red isn’t so-named because of his red hair. It’s a shortening of Redmond. But Redmond is hardly a common first name, and in hockey the one Redmond who stands out is Mickey Redmond. Did Brian Savage have a connection with Mickey? We don’t know, but we do know that Red is the son of a Savage.
Quick Hits
And how is it that a guy named German plays for the Czechs, and someone else named Zhilkin wears a Team Canada sweater while a guy named Brad Lambert is NOT Canadian but a true-blooded Finn? It’s all in a name, but sometimes names just don’t mean a thing.
--Juliet, II, ii, Romeo and Juliet
We all need a name. The government requires it, and our friends identify us by it. A name can be traditional or unique, a Twitter handle or a nickname. But with eight billion people on the planet, some names are more memorable than others, though they all smell as sweet underneath that hockey equipment.
Herewith is a playful look at some of the more special names skating around the ice lanes at this year’s U18 in Frisco and Plano:
Marcel Marcel, Czech Republic
A name so sweet they said it twice. Marcel, in the Czech version the "c" is pronounced as "ts", is still only 17 but is already 6’4” (193cm) and 243 lbs. (110 kg), so if you don’t remember his name, you’ll remember his immenseness as he comes at you looking for the puck.
Fyodor Nikolayena, Belarus
When commentators in Plano refer to him by his surname only, it sounds as though they are calling him by his full name—Nikolai Enya. But no, those five syllables are all for just the surname.
Jack Hughes, United States
Hughes is part of the great family of three brothers who have all been drafted into the NHL and are among the game’s brightest young stars….Wait a second. It says here Jack Hughes was born in Westwood, MA and is 17 years old. What? This is a DIFFERENT Jack Hughes? Doesn’t he know that name is already taken in the hockey directory? Confusing!
Jimi Suomi, Finland
It's not the name on the back of the sweater that matters--it's the name on the front. But what if they're the same? He's not Jimmy Polska or Jimmy Danske--he's Jimi Suomi!
Roman Zap, Germany
Surely the only onomatopoeic name at the tournament, it is so very tempting to add an exclamation mark to his name for effect—Roman Zap! Here’s hoping he scores a big goal so we can create a suitable headline—Germans Zap Opponents
Niks Fenenko, Latvia
The Latvians loves to adds an s to everythings, so it’s a wonders theys haves a players named Fenenko and nots Fenenkos.
Ivan Miroshnichenko, Russia
This year’s letter king belongs to the Russian forward, whose surname extends to 14 letters, which has more than Zapzapzapzap.
Lane Hutson, United States
The NHL has Micheal Ferland and baseball has Andruw Jones, but this isn’t a spelling mistake so much as it looks like a typo. Surely it’s Huston and has been inputted into the IIHF system incorrectly? Nope. It’s Hutson. Lane Hutson. And he’ll be draft eligible in 2022.
Gibson Homer, United States
You know when you fill out a form? Sometimes they ask for a first name and a last name; sometimes they want the last name first and the first name last. This is where we’re at with Homer Gibson. Er, Gibson Homer. Homer is more a first name than last name, and Gibson—like, say, the great Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson—is more of a last name. We’re not sure if the American goalie can play well on the road, though—he’s such a homer. (sorry)
Rutger McGroarty, United States
His is an aye-aye kind of a name—unique, different, something you notice, but you also can’t help but watch the sniper play! The son of Jimmy McGroarty of Mississauga, Ontario, the dual citizen has elected to go the NCAA route rather than the OHL, but he’s a top prospect for the 2022 draft and knows how to put the puck in the net. You can just hear the mcroar of the crowd as he flies down the ice.
Red Savage, United States
The son of Brian, a long-time NHLer, Red’s name is distinct for a couple of reasons. Back in the day, virtually every red-headed player was nicknamed Red, which is funny when you look back because we have only black-and-white photos of many of them! But Red isn’t so-named because of his red hair. It’s a shortening of Redmond. But Redmond is hardly a common first name, and in hockey the one Redmond who stands out is Mickey Redmond. Did Brian Savage have a connection with Mickey? We don’t know, but we do know that Red is the son of a Savage.
Quick Hits
And how is it that a guy named German plays for the Czechs, and someone else named Zhilkin wears a Team Canada sweater while a guy named Brad Lambert is NOT Canadian but a true-blooded Finn? It’s all in a name, but sometimes names just don’t mean a thing.