Belfour Goes Blonde

One of the more surprising aspects to this latest rumor of Eddie the Eagle soaring off to Europe to continue his lengthy career, is that he has seemingly chosen Swedish meatballs over Russian Vodka.

A report out of the Stockholm Expressen has Eddie Belfour signing with Leksand; a 2nd tier club in the SEL, almost any day now.

Looking back at the illustrious career of Belfour, you have the 3rd most career wins in NHL history. And considering his single cup win in his 1000 seasons of NHL duty, a case can be made that he pulled off his statistical dominance while on clubs less supportive than those of Patrick Roy and Martin Brodeur.

Along with his one Stanley Cup ring, Belfour has a Calder Trophy, two Vezinas and Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award in his portfolio. Thus being an obvious choice for an induction into the Hockey Hall Of Fame once he gives in to retirement.

Sadly, Ed Belfour is known for his legal troubles and his abrasive temperament, more so than his talents. And even at the ripe old age of 42, his decision making abilities continue to come under question to this day.

Ironically, in the same offseason while legendary players like Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne contemplate retirement at the top of their game, Belfour refuses to do so three seasons too late. And to the best of my knowledge, not one of the 28 current Hall of Fame inducted goaltenders could be found guilty of rounding out their careers in a lesser league. So does this make Belfour even more of a laughing stock?

I suppose a case could be made that Belfour's competitive edge is keeping him from giving in to those not willing to take a chance on him in the NHL. Or perhaps he wishes to revitalize the Swedish Elite league with his star power. Much like Beckham is seen as doing for the LA Galaxy and the MLS. However, the likelihood of the decision to cross the Atlantic for any reason other than to desperately find a way back into the NHL at the age of 43 or more, appears to be rather dubious.

One thing that is certain, is that we will not be listening to, "Eddie, Eddie, Eddie" chants in an NHL arena this season. Instead, we might be lucky to dig up some YouTube footage of, a "put ze cheeken in de oven, bork, bork, bork" chorus instead.