Snowshoes

After a week to 10 days of arctic outflow winds which left a temperature including wind chill around the -25 mark, a more pleasurable form of winter is settling in here in beautiful northern British Columbia.

Soft snow is piling up by the hour. Since I'm relatively near the coast, the snow will turn to rain soon enough, turning the great powder in the city into more traditional sloppy, mushy mess that is heavy to shovel.

So I'm taking this opportunity on Wednesday to go snowshoeing, my first expedition of the season.

While I'm out there realizing just how out of shape I really am, I thought I'd leave you with some memories of hockey's "old Snowshoes," Allan Stanley himself.

Allan Stanley ranks as one of the greatest defensemen to ever wear Maple Leaf's blue and white. A grizzled veteran by the time he arrived in Toronto, Stanley was a fixture on the Leafs' four championship teams of the 1960s. He often was paired along side big Tim Horton on a blueline that also boasted Marcel Pronovost, Carl Brewer and Bobby Baun. Stanley became a bit of an offensive presence in the era before Bobby Orr redefined a defenseman's offensive role. Stanley was a pinpoint passer and as a result he often saw time on the Leafs' power play units.

Tim Horton's long time defense partner, Stanley was nicknamed Snowshoes for his awkward looking skating stride.

Full profile of Allan "Snowshoes" Stanley