Johnstown Stories
I
remember a lot about Jody. He was constantly fighting and sticking up for his
teammates. I remember one game the away team went after one of high scores who didn't fight.
The guy slashed our player. Jody went over to him and started to whip his a**.
He sucker punched the guy right in the face. He was a great Johnstown Chief and is very missed by all of us here in
Johnstown. Congrats Jody Shelley- all the luck to you. Johnstown loves ya.
~Thanks
to Amanda Leach (From section 20)
Dec. 22, 1999
ECHL Looking into violations in Friday's flip-out
The behavior of Johnstown Chiefs coach Scott Allen and player Jody Shelley after Friday's game against the Hampton Roads Admirals at Scope was under review by the ECHL on Tuesday.
After the Admirals' miraculous comeback victory, Allen had to be restrained from reaching referee Wes McCauley, and Shelley hit linesman John O'Brien in the hand with his stick. Upon leaving the ice, Allen smashed an exercise bicycle and Shelley dropped his gloves and challenged a group of fans to fight.
Jason Rothwell, the ECHL's director of communications, said that McCauley's game report described none of the mayhem and that the league will seek input from all parties involved before handing out any punishments.
``We were unaware of the situation until Monday,'' he said.
~Thanks Dave for pointing
this out at
http://www.pilotonline.com/sports/admirals/sp1222ads.html
TOP
AHL Stories
Syracuse
The second period of the 1/19/01
Crunch v. Bears game began the way the first had ended- physically.
However, our dear ref had decided to let the teams play...um, okay,
whatever...for example- Reggie Savage was being held to the Hershey bench BY THE
PLAYERS ON THE BENCH and NO CALL! Well, team "police man", Jody
Shelley was sent on for a shift 7 minutes in, and took care of Steve Parsons.
The fight was not one of Shelley's cleaner decisions, but he held on for the
win. The two got 5 minutes in the box. Play continues...On another
Crunch power play @ 18:32 Jeff Williams fires a shot past goalie Philippe Sauve.
Crunch go up 2-1 in this very tight game. With just about a minute left,
there is a face-off near the benches. The teams are lined up for the draw,
but exercising the home team's right to the last line change, Agnew sends out
Jody Shelley to take Sean Selmser's position. Selmser and Bears d-man
Garry Gulash were set to go, but Selmser was desperately need ON the ice, not IN
the box. Shelley hops on to the ice and motions Selmser to the bench, a
grinning Shelley takes his spot next to Gulash. The puck drops, and so do
the gloves. Shelley pummels Gulash in one of his easier fights. The refs
separate the two, and Shelley raises his hands, and wipes 'em clean...and he
heads directly to the locker room, victorious. The crowd is buzzing, the
teams set up for the next face-off...And continuing what Selmser and Gulash had
started and Shelley had carried on; Crunch d-man Jeff Ware and Bears' left
winger Steve Parsons drop the gloves...Then Selmser lines up with Joel Prpic,
Crunch's Jeremy Reich and Bears' Yevgeny Lazarev trade blows, as does the others
on the ice (Sryubko & Davidson for the Crunch); Including the goalies get in
on it. J.F. Labbe and Philippe Sauve went at it. Labbe "fixed
him" pretty well. Total chaos, the refs didn't know where to turn,
and not ONE person was sitting in the arena (rather, people were standing on
their seats). Shelley walked out to the team entrance to watch then
ensuing action and cheer on his mates. It was loud. It was wild.
When Labbe got Sauve to the ice, the refs picked Labbe off Sauve, Labbe raised
his hands and wiped his hands clean (similar to Shelley's trademark).
Amazing. The players were FINALLY ushered off the ice to the locker room.
The ice was littered with helmets, gloves, sticks, and pads. Ten minutes
plus to decipher the penalty calls!
~Thanks to Carly
Living in Wilkes-Barre, PA, I
really am a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Pittsburgh Penguins fan, but when Syracuse
comes to town, I can't help but cheer for the Crunch and it's all because of
Jody Shelley. You see, our arena is known as "the house that Bonvie
built" - except I am not a Dennis Bonvie fan. I always enjoyed
Jody coming to town to show Bonvie that Bonvie's not the best fighter in the
league. That's how it all began.
Trips to Syracuse to see the
Penguins play made me really appreciate the Crunch even more. The fans
down here are considered to be the best in the AHL, but I think Syracuse has us
beat... not because of attendance, but because they always welcome me and my
family to the Onondaga County War Memorial and cheer for their team, no matter
what.
Now, I catch myself checking the
Columbus Blue Jackets box score every time they have a game to see how Jody
did. When the Blue Jackets play Pittsburgh, I can't help but root for the
Jackets. Pre-season, I drove to Syracuse to see the Blue Jackets play the
Sabres. I sat right behind the bench mainly because I wanted to see
Jody. This year for Christmas, my mom got her hands on the best present
ever, which I call "Jody on a Stick." I'm not sure what Columbus
called it.
I've met Jagr and Lemieux... but
Jody Shelley is the one player I really want to meet.
~ Thanks to Jan Sokolowski
| When
I started “Dave’s Unofficial Syracuse Crunch Page” over three
years ago, I thought I would never write an editorial or feature
article. It’s just not me
– but I found something I really wanted to say. |
When the Gloves Come
Off
Update: After
the posting of this article, Jody scored his first NHL goal, Dec 15 vs
the Kings! Video
Clip
It
appears we may have seen the last of Jody Shelley here in Syracuse.
His recent call up to the Columbus Blue Jackets seemed routine
this week, until an article in the Columbus
Dispatch which quoted president and general manager John MacLean as
saying:
“Jody
Shelley will be with us for the road trip [through December 17], and he
could very well be with us for the rest of the season…. I think we
need that element he gives us. We’ve
needed it for a long time, actually.”
I
couldn’t agree with MacLean more.
If Shelley had been patrolling the ice from day one, the Blue
Jackets would not be in the shape they are injury-wise right now; he
would have protected their key players from the poundings they have
endured this season. Shelley’s
contagious enthusiasm would also have been a huge benefit not only to
the players themselves but also to the Blue Jacket fans.
This article
is not about Jody Shelley as a player.
Everyone knows about Jody Shelley as “the Enforcer,” but few
know about Jody Shelley, the person.
A disclaimer first: I don’t “hang out” with Jody Shelley,
and I don’t consider us personal friends.
The stories I have to tell about Jody come from my experiences
with him at promotional events or in my role as webmaster of “Dave’s
Unofficial Syracuse Crunch Page.”
Those stories alone give a great look into the classy guy Jody
Shelley really is.
First
Impressions
The first
time I met Jody Shelley was at the Sports Page Bar & Grill, toward
the end of the 2000-2001 season. He
and Jeremy Reich were there to promote the Budweiser table top hockey
tournament, in which the players and “regular folks” like me were
pitted against each other.
Several of
Jody’s relatives had contacted me over the year about him, thanking me
for keeping them updated on his progress (via my web site), and I went
down to mention that to him and to pass on a “hi” from some of those
relatives. Now, bear in
mind, I am a very shy person and it took a lot of guts for me to walk up
to him and start a conversation – but I didn’t have to say much!
“Hi,
Jody,” I said. “Several
of your relatives have contacted me through my web site and they wanted
me to say hello from them, and congratulate you on your fine season.”
His reply shocked me: “You
are the guy who does that site?
I love that site!
My parents can’t stay off it and they really appreciate it!”
He then said, “I was hoping to get to meet you someday!”
Wait a
second… Jody Shelley, who had recently returned from a stint in the
National Hockey League, was hoping to meet me?!
Wow!
We talked
hockey a bit, and then my partner and I defeated him and JR to advance
to the finals. The man who
had once seemed larger than life had made me feel like an equal.
The
Photo CD
One of the
things that came out of my talk with Jody at the Sports Page was that
the players were not given a lot of pictures from the Crunch for their
families to have. I told
him I would put all the ones I had on a CD and give it to him at
season’s end. I burned a
CD with over 400 pictures, a screensaver I had made of him, fight clips,
and anything else I had that I thought would be of interest, and I had a
friend toss it in his locker right before the end of the playoffs.
A couple of
weeks later, I came in to work and checked my voice mail.
“Hey Dave, Jody Shelley here… I am heading back home soon and
I wanted to thank you for the CD. My
folks will love it! Have a
great summer and I will see you next year!”
Talk about class!
The
Locker Room
As
I mentioned earlier, I am a very shy person.
I get really nervous about just walking up to the players and
saying hello or asking for an autograph, but when I was invited to a
practice to meet the players, I drummed up the courage to go.
I was provided with one of J.F. Labbe’s goalie sticks for the
players to sign and I was lead into the locker room to meet the guys
after practice.
I walked in
and we went around the horn to meet the players.
Jody was still on the ice; he’s almost always the last one off.
In the meantime, I met about six of the guys as we walked around
the benches; all of them were very cordial and said they enjoyed my web
site. I tried to make
conversation as well as I could - I did not want to sound like a
fanatic, or worse.
I approached
Matt Davidson and we were talking about his number change when I noticed
Jody entering the locker room. Though
just off the ice, he crossed the locker room and I saw out of the corner
of my eye that he was coming my way.
He yelled, “Dave, how’s it going!
Did you have a good summer?”
With that
one statement and a handshake, he turned me from just another fan
brought into the locker room, to someone who was legitimate –
“cool,” if you will. It
certainly made the rest of the visit with the Crunch a lot more
comfortable for me as well as the players, kind of like, ”Hey, if Jody
knows who this guy is, he must be OK.”
I got
everyone to sign Labbe’s stick and went back over to Jody and asked
him to sign it as well. He
did, and then asked if I wanted one of his sticks (gee – let me think
about that one for a minute)!
He took a stick from the rack and my Sharpie and said, “How do
you spell your name?” I
was thinking, “OK, he forgot my name, no biggie, he talks to a million
people,” so I said, “D-A-V-E.”
He looked at me with a “duh” look on his face and said, “I
know, but how do you spell your last
name?” He then
autographed the stick with my full name and a really nice personal
message.
Chris’
Flowers
Recently
Jody Shelley, Jeff Ware and Kent McDonell did an autograph session at a
Liverpool flower shop. My
friends and I arrived before the players and thus got to see them enter
the shop. Jeff and Kent
waded through the people, smiling politely, and went to the appointed
table to set up and begin signing autographs.
When Jody
entered the shop, he immediately went to the first child he saw and said
hi and asked him how he was. The
child gave him a hockey card – not of Jody, of some random hockey
player – and Jody asked, “Do you want me to sign it?”
The young boy said, “No, it is for you!”
Jody asked him, “Well, are you
going to sign it for me?”
The boy shook his head shyly, and Jody made a big deal of
thanking him and basically acting like he had been given a million
dollars. Jody also stopped
and spoke to everyone personally along the way to the table, and
acknowledged me by name.
These are
some of my experiences with Jody Shelley.
Others have told me similar stories, such as my friend whose son
is autistic and was taken to meet Jody.
Jody now calls the boy by his name whenever he sees him, and the
boy’s face lights up every time.
For that moment, maybe the challenges his parents face fade a bit
too.
I’m sure
many of you out there have similar stories as well.
Best of
luck, Jody Shelley – no one deserves to be given this shot more than
you do!
|
Last season (2000-2001) in Syracuse, my son Tony and his friend
Mickey went
up to Jody and asked if he would come say hello to Mickey's grandmother and
my son Tony's "adopted grandmother," and he said, "Sure, just
wait while I
take a quick shower." While waiting, Grandma put on her lipstick, and
soon
Jody came out in regular clothes (which Grandma liked even better than the
uniform!) and said, "Hi," to Grandma, then bent down and gave her a
kiss on
the cheek. She was in seventh heaven! After that, we went to Coach
Mac's
for snacks and Jody was there too... he saw us and came over to sit down
and talked to us for a while. Grandma is in ill health now, but Jody's
stick is STILL on the wall above her bed, and on her good days she still
talks about him.
~ Thanks to Jenny
TOP
Columbus Stories
Jackets to add crunch to roster
~ Syracuse enforcer to arrive Saturday
Friday, February 16, 2001
Aaron Portzline
Dispatch Sports Reporter
The Blue Jackets can accept reality. The
Pittsburgh Penguins -- with Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Alexei Kovalev and Co.
-- have the talent to blow out virtually any NHL team on any given night, but
especially an expansion franchise.
The Blue Jackets, though, will try to make this
much clear in a showdown with Pittsburgh on Saturday in Nationwide Arena: They
will not be pushed around.
For evidence, look no further than the roster
move the Jackets will make official Saturday morning.
It has been in the works for weeks. Jody
Shelley, a 25-year-old left winger/enforcer extraordinaire, will be called up
from the Blue Jackets' top affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey
League.
While the Blue Jackets play in Detroit tonight,
Shelley will play for the Crunch in Syracuse. He then will fly to Columbus on
Saturday morning and make his NHL debut hours later against Pittsburgh.
Chances are it won't be a subtle one.
"I'm a grinder. I'm a gritty player. I
play rough,'' Shelley said. "I'm a role player, not a goal scorer. I take
care of the guys who don't need to spend their time taking care of themselves.
"I'm not afraid of anyone. I can't be. The
tough side of the game is what I really excel at, and I welcome all the
opportunities I get to show my talent.''
Shelley might not be well-known in central
Ohio, but he has left his mark -- literally -- through junior hockey and the
minor leagues. Now in his seventh pro season, he has 2,143 penalty minutes to go
with 77 goals in 387 games. He has dropped the gloves, by his own estimation,
"well over 150 times.''
This season with Syracuse, he has played 51
games, totaling four assists and 267 penalty minutes, tops in the AHL. The
Jackets' penalty leader, Tyler Wright, has 109 minutes.
"He's a tough, tough kid,'' Blue Jackets
president- general manager Doug MacLean said of Shelley. "Pittsburgh has
added a fair amount of toughness to their roster in the past few weeks. We want
to be equal to the task, if that's where they choose to take it.''
That is what Shelley has been waiting to hear
from an NHL general manager since he joined the Halifax Mooseheads in 1994. For
several years, he was a boxer on skates. In Shelley's third junior season, he
had 571 penalty minutes in 76 games.
He is a perfectionist, too.
"I spend a lot of time watching my fights
and other guys' fights on videotape,'' Shelley said. "It's an art form. It
deserves study. I like to know what I'm getting into before I step on the ice.''
Earlier this season, when Shelley was in
training camp with the Blue Jackets, he had a couple of video sessions with
then-teammate Krzysztof Oliwa. In an odd turn of events, Shelley might use that
knowledge first- hand, so to speak, when Oliwa -- traded to Pittsburgh on Jan.
14 -- returns to town.
The two didn't exactly strike up a friendship.
"I watched some of his fights with him a
couple of times in training,'' Shelley said. "That's the extent of our
relationship. Other than that, I barely talked to the guy.
"I don't think of him as anything special.
He's been in my shoes, working his way up and trying to make it in the NHL. He
got there a little before I did, but I don't see him as anything special.''
MacLean is adamant to point out that Shelley is
not a goon. Actually, MacLean bristles at the suggestion.
Shelley has worked hard in recent seasons to
polish the rest of his game, and Jackets scouts say his skating, puck control
and game savvy have improved greatly.
"To become an NHLer, he's had to learn to
play the game and not just through toughness,'' MacLean said. "There's not
room anymore in this league for just a fighter. You try that and you'll get
exposed almost immediately. A guy has to be able to skate.
"Jody has worked his way up. He's one of
those guys who, because of effort and character, will get a chance to play.''
Even so, Shelley isn't being called to Columbus
to skate with Geoff Sanderson and Espen Knutsen on the Blue Jackets' top line.
He is here to make sure those guys have room to operate and a minimum of bruises
when the game is over. Shelley will take the bruises, thank you.
"I know my place,'' Shelley said. "I
enjoy my place.''
In recent weeks, the Blue Jackets have been in
a precarious position. Three of their top fighters -- Lyle Odelein, Jamie Pushor
and Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre -- are defensemen who play substantial minutes, so
losing them to a five-minute fighting major is costly.
Shelley isn't expected to see much ice time,
though. Therefore, a trip or two to the sin bin wouldn't be so devastating.
"He's not a maniac, but he likes to
fight,'' said Grand- Pierre, who remembers fighting Shelley in junior hockey.
"We both went at it hard, seriously. We
both got some good shots in. What I remember most, though, is that he's a tough
kid. He'll go with anybody.''
~ Article from the Columbus
Dispatch
No Oliwa-Odelein bout this time
Sunday, February 18, 2001
Craig Merz
Dispatch
Sports Reporter
The fans who packed Nationwide Arena last night got what they
wanted when the Pittsburgh Penguins' Mario Lemieux decided his touchy back would
not sideline him.
Although he didn't figure in the scoring, there was
electricity in the crowd every time he touched the puck.
Still, the fans wanted more. But potential combatants Lyle
Odelein of the Blue
Jackets and former teammate Krzysztof Oliwa did not deliver.
They tried.
Both were throwing punches 15 minutes into the game but not at
each other. Oliwa was tangling with newcomer Jody Shelley, and Odelein took on
big Steve McKenna. There was the rub.
Shelley and Oliwa received five-minute fighting majors.
Odelein and McKenna were given majors and game misconducts for starting a second
fight. It was an early shower for both.
Pittsburgh got the better end of the deal. McKenna can barely
pass standardized skating tests and Odelein is a mainstay on the defense.
"I thought it was a questionable call,'' Odelein said.
"I thought they should have put all four of us in the box. We didn't know
the other guys were fighting.''
Oliwa said all the right things on his first trip to Columbus
since being traded to Pittsburgh on Jan. 14.
"I heard some boos,'' he said. "That's OK.
Everything was perfect.''
He had a much-publicized skirmish with Odelein in Nationwide
Arena on Dec. 3 and subsequently was banished from the team. Oliwa was on
injured reserve at the time because of a broken arm suffered in a game in
Detroit on Oct. 28.
"There are no hard feelings between us,'' Oliwa said of
his former New Jersey teammate. "What happened, happened. There was a lot
of frustration. Sometimes when you're competitive this happens in the dressing
room.''
The real revenge game for Oliwa occurred Friday in East
Rutherford, N.J., where the Penguins tied the Devils 4-4. Oliwa had an assist
against the club that dealt him to Columbus for a third-round pick in the 2001
entry draft.
"That's where I started my career seven, eight years ago.
That was a big game for me (Friday),'' he said.
He said the unusual back-to-back reunion stops were like a
"double-header.''
Columbus fans saw very little of Oliwa in his brief stay with
the team. He missed all of training camp while recovering from knee surgery in
the spring. He assisted on the Jackets' first-regular season goal by Bruce
Gardiner on Oct. 7 against the Chicago Blackhawks but played just 10 games
before an awkward slide into the end board put him on the shelf again. He has
three assists and 61 penalty minutes in 17 games this season.
"I played a few games here,'' the 6-foot-5, 235- pound
left winger said. "I came here with a hurt knee. Then I break my arm.
That's part of the business.''
So is making sure guys like Oliwa and McKenna don't take runs
at the Blue Jackets. That's why Shelley was called up from Columbus' American
Hockey League affiliate in Syracuse, N.Y. Shelley leads the AHL with 267 penalty
minutes in 51 games.
He fought McKenna (6-8, 255 pounds) in his NHL debut shift
nine minutes into the game. Both of Shelley's fights would have to be considered
draws.
Blue Jackets center Tyler Wright likes seeing Shelley in the
lineup.
"He has a physical presence,'' he said. "I've been
hearing good things about him down in Syracuse. It's a good chance to see him
play. It's his first game in the league, so we're all excited for him.''
~ Article from the Columbus
Dispatch
Shelley's NHL stint short, but enjoyable
By
Monty Mosher / Herald Sports
Jody Shelley's first stint in the
NHL lasted 93 knuckle-busting seconds.
They will be among the most enjoyable and memorable heartbeats of his
life.
The former Halifax Mooseheads left winger
and captain who played much of his
minor hockey in Yarmouth was demoted by the Columbus Blue Jackets to
the AHL's Syracuse Crunch after making his NHL debut Saturday night
against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Back in Syracuse on Sunday
afternoon, the six-foot-three, 215-pound
Shelley reflected on his rise to the NHL and his debut under the bright
lights.
"It's unbelievable," Shelley said of remarkable climb from the midget
B
ranks to the NHL. "Making the Mooseheads, that was the biggest thing for
me right there. After that I didn't know. I went to school (Dalhousie) and
that wasn't where I wanted to go. I saw the guys I played against in
junior playing in the NHL, so I figured, why not me?
"It's about sticking with it.
The biggest thing for me was staying
positive. A lot of guys play 10 years in the minors and never get one
game. Right now I've got one game under my belt and I guess it's just from
working hard."
Chris MacFarland, the Blue Jackets
hockey operations coordinator, said
Shelley did a great job.
"He's a great kid. He earned
his NHL contract and he earned that game last
night."
Shelley, 25, made the most of his
time on the ice. The reigning AHL bad
boy had first-period scraps against Steve McKenna and Krzysztof Oliwa.
Pittsburgh went on to win 3-2 in overtime.
Shelley said he was told late last
month when he signed with Columbus the
NHL team wanted to evaluate him this year and there would be some
opportunities for him in the near future.
One of the dates mentioned was
Saturday's game against Pittsburgh, which
marked the return to Columbus of Oliwa, who left after a nasty, public
dispute with Blue Jackets defenceman Lyle Odelein.
Odelein plays 30 minutes a night
for the Blue Jackets and the team didn't
want Oliwa coming back and causing a ruckus. Shelley got the call on
Thursday. "I still didn't believe it until I got my plane ticket."
The Oliwa-Odelein feud was well
known in the Ohio city and Shelley's
arrival for the game only added to an event already hyped up with Mario
Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr in town.
"He left on bad terms,"
Shelley said of Oliwa. "He had a fight with
Odelein in the dressing room. He had a fight with Odelein in the parking
lot. There was bitterness between him and Odelein's wife. It was a real
soap opera. It was kind of hyped. Oliwa was coming back. They had McKenna
and this guy (Sean) Tibbetts. They had a fairly tough lineup.
"It's just one of those
things they didn't want him to come in and be an
idiot. And it was a good chance to see what I could do."
He had a mixture of nerves and excitement before the game.
"I was nervous until I got on
the ice for warmup. And then it was exciting
because it was probably half packed during warm-up, everybody on their
feet the whole time. Lemieux is in the other end skating, Jagr is in the
other end skating.
"You couldn't be thrown
into a better situation. Two tough guys I can
measure myself with and Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, I mean that's
unbelievable."
He was told not to seek out the
Pittsburgh enforcers and that they would
come for him if they wanted him.
He thought he would end up
tangling with Oliwa on his first shift, but
McKenna obliged him instead. "I thought it was a great first fight. It got
the nerves out."
Later in the period, he and Oliwa
came face to face.
"We were in the offensive zone and he said let's go. I said I'd like to
score a goal first, just kind of joking. I think both fights went
awesome."
He was the toast of the dressing
room after the game.
Veterans Geoff Sanderson and Kevin Dineen among others stopped by to
congratulate him. Odelein took him to dinner.
Coaches Doug MacLean and Dave King
also had some good things to say. "They were happy with me. They were all
thrilled."
Though he hoped to be able to join
Columbus for its upcoming trip to the
West Coast, he did get sent down.
"I had a return ticket when I
went. I was really happy with the way I
played. Everyone around me was positive. I thought maybe there was a
chance I was going on the trip, but I had no expectations. When they said
I was going (to Syracuse) I said, 'Great, thanks for everything, it was
more than I expected and I hope to see you guys again.' "
Kevyn Adams scooped him up a game
puck and he got a game tape.
"I walked away with memories
for sure. I got all the stuff you get in a first game. Hopefully, it's not my
last."
Syracuse plays the
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on the road tonight.
Shelley has played 51 AHL games this year with a league-high 267 penalty
minutes.
~Article from http://www.herald.ns.ca
Enforcer Jody Shelley has won over Blue Jackets fans
Saturday, January 26, 2002
Dispatch Sports Reporter
 |
| Tim Revell / Dispatch
Jody Shelley, left, isn't
afraid to get in the middle of the fray, even if he's outnumbered, as he
was during a game against Dallas on Dec. 22.
|
The tin mines of Nova Scotia were cavernous, but Ned Shelley never heard an
echo like what rumbled through Nationwide Arena on Thursday night.
As Shelley listened, the Blue Jackets crowd chanted a name that put a lump in
his throat:
"Shel-ley, Shel-ley, Shel-ley.''
The fans wanted their new enforcer -- Ned's 25-year-old son, Jody -- off the
bench and into the game to give San Jose an attitude adjustment, so to speak.
"When they started calling his name I thought, 'Wow, what a big move up
to the NHL,' '' Ned Shelley said yesterday as he watched his son sweat his way
through a morning practice.
The big move was something that Ned and his wife, Doreen, never expected.
Their son had talent, but his background suggested that the NHL would remain a
million miles away.
Jody grew up in Nova Scotia playing house hockey, which included non- travel
leagues a step or two from the all-star teams that serve as breeding grounds for
NHL talent. The travel leagues were serious business. In house hockey,
meanwhile, "between periods, the other team would be at the other end of
the rink smoking cigarettes and eating french fries,'' Jody said.
No wonder Ned and Doreen -- and children Krista, 23, Luke, 17, and Kate, 14
-- sat in wonder as Blue Jackets fans made it known who they wanted to take the
ice against the Sharks.
"Shel-ley, Shel-ley.''
"For us, it was very, very emotional, because we never really thought
that Jody would ever get to this step,'' said Doreen, who said the Shelley clan
had not watched Jody play in person in six years. "When he was young, he
journaled how he wanted to be an NHL player, but he never played in all the
(league) tiers that bigger cities had. So it is only through hard work and
determination that got Jody to where he is.''
And where might that be? Try on the minds of the Blue Jackets masses.
Shelley, who appears to have found a home in Columbus after shuttling between
the big club and the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League, is the
newest fan favorite. He has won over the crowds with his fists and feistiness,
the enforcer that Columbus has lacked since Krzysztof Oliwa -- who really was
more bark than brawl -- left for Pittsburgh last season.
Don't think that Shelley hasn't sensed the star treatment.
"Maybe I feel like I'm getting a little attention, but I don't know how
to take it,'' Shelley said. "I'm just having fun out there and glad the
people are enjoying it.''
He would like to think that the crowd chant was prompted, at least in part,
by his hockey skills, which continue to improve (he has two goals, one assist
and a team-high 90 penalty minutes). But he's not naive.
"You think maybe they wanted some action?'' he said, referring to his
reputation as someone who is not afraid to drop the gloves.
Of course they did, but for the last two minutes of the game Thursday,
Shelley disappointed his fans -- or at least most of them -- by keeping his
hands to himself.
"I don't like the fighting part,'' Doreen said. "He never fought at
all until major-junior and was seldom in the penalty box. He was always a good
scorer.''
Since then, however . . . "he warned me before I came down that he
wasn't looking his best,'' she said. "He said he had a few stitches, a few
scars and a fat lip.''
Shelley wasn't raised to be a tough guy, but he saw it modeled by his father,
who toiled in the mines. When work dried up out west, Ned Shelley moved the
family across Canada from British Columbia to Nova Scotia.
"He doesn't drive a Cadillac and get his nails done, that's for sure,''
Shelley said of his father, who coached him for 10 years. "He's paid the
price for everything he's gotten, and for us. He's a great man.''
With a famous son.
"My son walks the corridors at school and everyone wants to know if Jody
Shelley is playing,'' said Doug MacLean, Blue Jackets president and general
manager. "I'm proud of the kid.''
Blue Jackets management also is impressed by the left winger with the
gap-toothed smile.
"It's common that players who play tough become fan favorites,'' coach
Dave King said. "That's nothing new, but Jody has a lot of flair, too,
which we like. He plays his shifts with so much intensity. I like the way he
forechecks and the way he's done a good job with defensive coverage.''
Shelley still can't believe he's playing in the NHL. He first heard the
chants "Shel-ley, Shel-ley'' in his head when he was a kid.
"I was always scoring the overtime winner in the Stanley Cup Finals,''
he said. "I took a different route to get here, and it's amazing, awesome.
It's something I appreciate every day that I'm here.''
BLUE JACKETS SIGN LW JODY
SHELLEY TO MULTI-YEAR CONTRACT
Shelley scored three goals, led Columbus
with 206 penalty minutes during his rookie NHL season
COLUMBUS, OHIO
– The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed
left wing Jody Shelley to a multi-year contract, club President and General
Manager Doug MacLean announced today. As is club policy, terms of the deal
were not disclosed.
Shelley, 26, netted three goals and three
assists for six points in 52 games during the 2001-02 season, his first in the
NHL. He also set a club record with 206 penalty minutes. He scored
his first NHL goal at Los Angeles on December 15 and recorded his first NHL
assist versus San Jose at Nationwide Arena on January 24. He also led the
team in plus/minus rating at +1 and finished sixth in hits with 84.
“Jody Shelley is an exciting young player
who emerged as one of the fiercest competitors in the NHL this season and became
a real favorite of our fans,” said MacLean. “He made great strides as
an all-around player a year ago in Syracuse under Gary Agnew and provides our
team with size and toughness up front. He continued to improve steadily
this year and I’m very excited about his development and confidant he will be
a solid contributor in the growth of our hockey club.”
The Yarmouth, Nova Scotia native spent most
of the early part of the season with the American Hockey League’s Syracuse
Crunch, registering 3-5-8 with 165 penalty minutes in 22 games. During the
2000-01 season, Shelley tallied 1-7-8 with a league-leading 357 penalty minutes
in 69 games with Syracuse. In one game with Columbus, he racked up 10
penalty minutes. That contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins on February
17, 2001 marked his NHL debut.
Shelley shows up in shape, in search of more
success
He's looking to improve on stellar rookie
season
Monday, September 16, 2002
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Jody Shelley will never forget the 2001-02 season. After seven seasons and
more than 2,000 penalty minutes in junior hockey and the minor leagues, he
landed not only a full-time job in the NHL but folk hero status among Blue
Jackets fans.
"Great memories,'' Shelley said.
But they are just that, he assured.
"It was kind of neat going home (to Nova Scotia). I saw a lot of my
friends who have been with me all the way, and they wanted to know what it was
like to play with Lyle Odelein or to play against this guy or that guy. That was
a blast.
"But I don't want to dwell on last season. A lot of guys have done it
for one year. The guys you respect are the ones who do it year after year and
keep getting better. I want to get better. I want more.''
In other words, look out NHL.
"This kid wants to be king of the kingdom,'' Blue Jackets director of
scouting Bob Strumm said. "And the way he's going, I think he's going to
get there.''
Strumm is referring, of course, to Shelley's ability to fight. He took 38
major penalties for fighting last season, and his name quickly spread among the
NHL's tough guys.
But the rest of his game is creating a stir in the Blue Jackets' training
camp as well.
Shelley spent most of the off-season skating in Edmonton with fellow Blue
Jackets Ray Whitney and Geoff Sanderson, as well as NHL scoring leader Jarome
Iginla of the Calgary Flames and rising star Mike Comrie of the Edmonton Oilers.
"Those are some of the best skaters in the NHL,'' Shelley said. "It
was all I could do to keep up, but that's what I wanted. I wanted that kind of
challenge because that's what it will take to get better.''
That's not all he did.
Five days a week, he went through two three-hour workouts with a personal
trainer, playing 18 holes of golf between each session. Mondays and Thursdays he
worked on building up his lower body. Tuesdays and Fridays were for the upper
body. Wednesday was for his shoulders.
"I worked out with him for a couple of days,'' Sanderson said. "I
tried to, anyway. No way I could keep up.
"We took our skates off and ran six (110-yard races). I couldn't believe
how fast that guy is. I couldn't finish within 15 or 20 yards of him. It wasn't
even close.''
Whitney didn't even try.
"I don't like to chew dust,'' he said.
"Jody's work ethic is unmatched by anybody I've ever seen in this game.
Some guys get complacent after they make it, and Jody made it with such a bang
last season. The fans here really took to him.
"I don't see him letting up at all, though. All I see is him working
harder. He's going to be even better this season, I guarantee it.''
Shelley has gained 5 pounds of muscles since the end of last season. He now
weighs 227 pounds.
"It's hard to believe a guy could be in better shape than he was last
year, but that's a tribute to how hard Jody works,'' coach Dave King said.
"He was one of our bright spots this year, and we're expecting even better
things from him this time around.''
Slap shots
After workouts and a scrimmage yesterday, the boys left for Prince Edward
Island, where they'll have camp for four days until the preseason schedule
starts Friday. . . . Forward Don MacLean will get at least a second opinion on a
neck injury. An MRI on Saturday revealed that he might need season-ending
surgery. . . . Grant Marshall broke a 1-1 tie with 1:34 left in the scrimmage
yesterday, giving the White team a victory. A crowd of about 600 watched in
CoreComm.
SHELLEY'S JOURNEY TO NHL TRULY AN
INSPIRATIONAL STORY
by Jason Simmonds, Summerside Journal-Pioneer
Filed 09.19.2002
SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. -- Jody Shelley is an inspiration for all young
minor hockey players to never surrender their dreams of playing in the NHL.
A Bantam 'C' and Midget 'B' player in Yarmouth, N.S., Shelley never lost his
true passion for the sport. He always maintained a phenomenal work ethic and an
excellent attitude . . . and all of a sudden the leftwinger found himself
working his way up hockey's ladder. Today, Shelley, 26, has reached the
pinnacle; he is a fan favourite with the Columbus Blue Jackets for his
never-say-die and enforcer-style of play.
And now that the undrafted six-foot-four, 225-pound leftwinger has made it to
The Show, his immediate focus is to become a more complete player while not
displacing what got him there.
"The situation is you can't survive in the NHL as just a fighter,"
said Doug MacLean, Blue Jackets president and general manager. "We've
talked a fair amount with Jody about that and I give him big-time credit."
Shelley appeared in 52 games with the Blue Jackets last season and led the
team with 206 penalty minutes and 38 fighting majors. He had three goals and
three assists . . . but a true illustration of his development is a plus-one
rating.
"In Syracuse (AHL) he became a real important player on their team and
he came up with us last year and became an important player on our team,"
said MacLean. "He has to develop now so he can play more minutes and he's
well on his way to that."
Blue Jackets associate coach Newell Brown feels Shelley's "overall
hockey ability" is getting better.
"He's a good skater, he's a good fore-checker and is a real physical
player," said Brown.
But what Brown really likes about Shelley is he doesn't try to do things he's
not capable of.
"He knows what he is and goes to the well everyday with his own kind of
game," said Brown. "Some players try to play a fancier game (than
they're capable of) and that's when they find themselves out of the league. Jody
knows what he has to do and he takes care of it everyday."
At one time the bright lights of the NHL seemed so unattainable for Shelley.
He admits he finds it hard to believe how far he's progressed!
"Even this summer in July, I'm sitting there and saying, 'Did last
season really happen?," said Shelley referring to when he became a regular
in the Columbus lineup. "Even today it's incredible. "You're out there
with guys you watched all your life growing up and now you're buddies with them
and trying to contribute on the team with them."
Shelley was born in Thompson, Man. He later moved to B.C. and then Yarmouth,
where he attended junior and senior high school. He now resides in Edmonton
during the summers.
For his final year of Midget hockey, Shelley said: "I was going to go
play for the South Shore Mustangs in Bridgewater (N.S.), but my Mom and Dad
said, 'No, we want you to stay in high school with your friends. My Dad was the
coach of the Midget 'B' team so it was perfect.
"I wanted to go (to Bridgewater) because it was Midget AAA and a higher
profile."
Shelley ended up staying in Yarmouth to finish his minor hockey career and
was prepared to focus on his education. He enrolled in the science program at
Dalhousie University.
Then he received an invitation to attend training camp of the Quebec Major
Junior Hockey League's newest franchise at the time, the Halifax Mooseheads.
After cracking the roster he opted to take elective arts courses instead of the
time-consuming sciences. Shelley's leadership earned him team captaincy in his
third year before a serious knee injury cut his season short.
Following junior, "I went back to Dal for six months and in February
(1998) I decided to go to Saint John (of the AHL) on a tryout agreement and
finished (the year) there," said Shelley. "From there I signed a
two-year American (Hockey) League/East Coast (Hockey League deal with Calgary)
and finished that out.
"Then Columbus signed me to an American League (contract in 2000) and I
worked my way up to a two-way NHL/American League (deal)." Blue Jackets
executive vice-president and assistant general manager Jim Clark scouted and
signed Shelley.
"I knew Jim Clark had a couple of guys in mind he wanted," said
Shelley. "I talked to Jim and he asked me if I could handle the load and I
said, 'I know I can.'
"He said, 'Jody, we have some young guys coming in and we need someone
there who is going to take care of them.'
"I said, 'That's something I'd love to be able to do for you.' "Jim
Clark really gave me a chance. He was really patient with me. An opportunity is
something you need in any business."
Shelley took full advantage of his.
He worked his way up to full-time status in the AHL from the East Coast
Hockey League's Johnstown Chiefs.
"The old Slapshot (movie) town," said Shelley with a smile.
"I'll tell you what, that was an experience every hockey player should go
through at the start of their career. It really makes you decide if you really
want to play hockey, or do you want to do something else? "There's no golf
courses and there's no posh resorts to live in you hear about down south. You
grind it out and it's one of those things that's good for you."
In Syracuse, Shelley said, there is a good feeling among the players.
"What's great about being in Syracuse is you see Jim Clark, you see the
scouts, you see Doug MacLean from time to time and you hear from the coaches
that they're watching," said Shelley. "They have their finger right in
there so it's easy to get up in the morning and go to work. Some places you go
you feel out of touch because there is no real upside."
One thing coaches and players admire about Shelley is he has not let success
swell his ego. He still works as hard as ever and regularly stays after practice
to work on his skills.
"The coaches here (Columbus) are great," said Shelley. "Turk
(assistant coach Gerard Gallant) always has time for anyone and he'll stay out
there all day, the same as (head) coach (Dave) King. "He'll (Gallant) stand
there and help me with my stick-handling, skating or anything like that. I think
just even practicing here for a year helps you develop; the speed is a little
better, the passes are a little better. These guys are teachers and to have them
around is a great opportunity too."
Shelley was asked what lessons he's learned on his journey from cold
community arenas in southern Nova Scotia to the modern-day NHL arenas?
"I've learned a lot of lessons," he answered. "I think you have
to set short-term goals. I learned that when I thought I was going to play in
the American League and I was in Johnstown.
"I realized this is where I'm supposed to be and my goal was to play in
the American League. Then you get to play in the American League and you get a
bigger role.
"When you see the guy next to you go up (to the NHL), you think maybe
your goal is to go to the NHL; it's not to come out of college or junior and
think you're going to play in the NHL.
"The scouts and general managers and coaches place you where you're at
for a reason. If you're in the East Coast you're there to get better so you can
play in the American League. The thing is to take your short-term goals and work
at those and don't look at the big picture right away. A lot of these guys are
19, 20-years-old and because they're not in the NHL they're devastated."
Shelley delights
paying customers
September 21, 2002
BUD POLIQUIN
POST-STANDARD COLUMNIST
They'd plunked down their $30 apiece, and $24 for each of their kids, to come
inside on a warm late-summer night. And they hadn't done so - the bulk of them,
anyway - to watch anybody waltz out there on the ice. What the fans, who
numbered 4,579, wanted, simply, was their money's worth. You know, skating ...
checking... board-rattling. Those sorts
of things. Oh, and maybe a good fight or two. Yeah, that would be nice.
Never mind that Friday evening's affair at the War Memorial was the first NHL
preseason exhibition contest for both the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Buffalo
Sabres. Never mind that one could then have anticipated that both clubs might
need a little time to work out their vacation kinks. Thirty bucks was 30 bucks,
and 24 bucks was 24 bucks.
And so, Jody Shelley delivered. And he did it sooner than later.
Uh huh. Shelley was back in the very barn that he helped to rock while
wearing Syracuse Crunch threads through all or parts of the 2000-2001 and
2001-2002 AHL campaigns. And he wasn't there to sip from a teacup with his pinky
raised.
"There's no secret about what I do," Shelley had said even before
he laced up his skates. "I fight. That's my job. That's what I do. That's
what got me here. Fighting."
He's with the Crunch's mother ship these days. Jody Shelley is with Columbus,
serving the Blue Jackets as a left wing on the roster sheet but as a tough guy
in reality. And on Friday, it took him just 11½ minutes of game time to
announce his arrival.
That's right. Jody Shelley got busy being Jody Shelley very, very early by
throwing hands with Buffalo's Eric Boulton. And as each was led to the penalty
box there in the middle of the first period for five minutes of quarantine, the
folks in the stands rose and roared.
Jody. Good ol' Jody. The locals wouldn't have known him any other way.
"My job is to provide energy," explained the 6-foot-4 Shelley, who
at 227 pounds is a bit bigger than he was when he departed Syracuse last
December for Columbus ... and never came back until Friday. "I guess that
would be one way to put it. As a fourth-line player, you've got to go out there
and have a big hit or a big bang or a good fight. And that's what I provide for
this team."
For sure, there were other reasons to have dug deep for this thing.
Specifically, Baldwinsville native Tim Connolly - just 21, but beginning his
fourth season in the NHL ... and think about that for a moment - was in the
joint, skating (and collecting an assist) for the Sabres. And Crunch treasure
Jean-Francois Labbe, who turned aside 17 of the 18 shots he saw, tended goal for
the Blue Jackets during the final 30 minutes of Columbus' eventual 5-3 victory.
Moreover, there was the genuine attraction of seeing two live NHL outfits in
our town for a third consecutive preseason, which is pretty cool ... especially
when you consider that the Toronto Blue Jays, the parent club of the SkyChiefs,
no longer grant us the same courtesy.
But it may have been the sight of Shelley, more than any other, that most
wowed the crowd. It's not for nothing, after all, that the Crunch has handed out
commemorative bobblehead dolls of only one player in its eight-year history ...
and that one player was Jody Shelley.
"I think the Syracuse fans like me for the same reason they liked John
Badduke," said Shelley, referring to the only Crunch athlete, an
old-fashioned goon, to have his number hanging from the rafters. "I think
people enjoy that aspect of the game. You have a guy who'll go out and fight ...
play is stopped ... and everybody is watching the fight. It makes it exciting.
And guys like me get singled out for it."
Well ... yeah. Shelley, who's scored just 29 goals in his five professional
seasons (including three NHL ones last season with Columbus), isn't exactly
Wayne Gretzky. But because he's accumulated 1,683 penalty minutes during that
time, which computes to a penalty-to-goal ratio of 58-1, Jody has become a
compelling, if welted, figure.
This is hockey, remember. And good manners are left at the door, which
explains Shelley's rowdy behavior with the Blue Jackets, for whom he happily
took 38 major penalties for fighting as a rookie to thus fortify the bruiser
reputation he lugged with him from our burg. Furthermore, be advised that only
nine brutes in all of the NHL had more penalty minutes than did Jody last
season. And he played in just 52 games, loving every noogie - given and received
- along the way.
"It's the challenge of the fight that's the enjoyable part," said
Shelley, who is 26 and as friendly as a barber off the ice. "There's the
mental part of fighting, and then there's the physical part. You're challenging
yourself and you're being challenged by the other guy all at once. There is a
sense of accomplishment when you deal with that ... especially at the end of
fight when things go the way you wanted them to go."
NHL's Jody Shelley Nears
Being Labeled 'Top Brawler'
Wall Street Journal 3/6/03
Down in the locker room of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Jody Shelley is giving
a guided tour of his face. That is, what's left of it.
He's got lumps and welts the size of macadamia nuts, a crooked nose and a
gap where one of his front teeth used to be. But ever since he made it to
the National Hockey League, he says he never regrets looking in the mirror.
"I'll take as many scars as I can get."
In only his second full season, the left winger is on the verge of claiming
one of the most dubious, if not dangerous, titles in sports: hockey's top
brawler. So far this season, he leads the league comfortably in fights and
penalty minutes. He's broken at least two noses (one his own), doled out a
concussion and taken down some of the league's most fearsome pugilists. In
fact, he's so quick to bare his knuckles on the ice that, according to
interim coach Doug MacLean, "we've had to discourage him from it."
Of course, hockey teams have always used enforcers to intimidate the skill
players and retaliate for cheap shots. But the enthusiastic Mr. Shelley
(6-feet, 4-inches tall, 225 pounds) comes along at a time when the NHL,
fighting its own battles with bankruptcies and labor troubles, is trying to
make its game more fluid, elegant and palatable to polite society. The
result: This season's crackdown has reduced the number of fights by 22%, to
the lowest level in 26 years.
'Repeat Offender'
That said, Mr. Shelley isn't very popular over at NHL headquarters. The
league has labeled him a "repeat offender" and hit him with two
suspensions
and more than $20,000 in fines. The new rules have also cut into his ice
time, giving him an average of just six minutes per game. He's also earning
a reputation as something of a goon . Said defenseman Brad Stuart of San
Jose, a recent beating victim: "He's an embarrassment to the game."
Old-time hockey: Columbus enforcer Jody Shelley.
Before you slap a pair of thick glasses on this Manitoba native and trot him
out for Hanson Brothers Appreciation Night, take a closer look. This "goon
"
is a pretty articulate guy who spent some time at university. Other than the
occasional bar tussle back home, he's a puppy dog who sings karaoke (badly)
and reads books to kids at elementary schools. "I don't walk around with a
pork chop around my neck looking for a fight," he says. "I'm a pretty
mild-mannered guy."
He's also wildly popular. Walk into Nationwide Arena and he glowers down
from two giant banners. During games, the team shows a takeoff on "The
Sopranos," where he stars as bodyguard to the team's mascot. And Shelley
jerseys are top sellers at the team store.
All this puts the franchise in an awkward position. As pro sports markets
go, Columbus is a backwater, and it's not even much of a hockey town: Before
the expansion Blue Jackets arrived here three years ago, only a handful of
high schools fielded teams. The sport took a serious blow here last season
when a young fan was killed by a stray puck. The formula for success: Give
existing fans some gratuitous violence without scaring away the newcomers.
So far, so good. The Blue Jackets sell out on a regular basis, the suites
are booked, the beer taps are busy and every open surface on the concourse
has been claimed by sponsors. Even though Columbus sits at the bottom of the
Western Conference, the building still buzzes. Especially when Jody Shelley
and his linemates hop over the boards.
"He's the man," says season-ticket-holder Doug Carpenter, a computer
programmer who came to this week's game wearing a Columbus jersey and a
giant foam puck on his head. When Mr. Shelley takes the ice, he says, "you
get the feeling something big is about to happen."
As for the violence, Mr. Carpenter looks down at his young daughter, who's
doing pirouettes beside him, and says he's not too worried. In some ways,
hockey helps reinforce discipline: If you do something bad, you take a time
out in the penalty box. But the moment a fight breaks out and the place goes
berserk, he says, "I'm holding her up to get a better view. Don't ask me
how
that helps."
No Meatheads, Please
To some extent, hockey has already evolved. Modern tough guys still bust
heads, but they're also expected to be decent skaters, a notion that's not
lost on Mr. Shelley: "You can't just be a meathead anymore." And if
league
officials don't find a way to temper the mayhem, some fans might. When the
punches start flying in Columbus, Nick Stevens, a physician, says he covers
the eyes of his young son, James. "I don't know how to address this when he
gets older."
As you might expect, Mr. Shelley takes a different view. "You have to have
a
way to settle a score," he says, dressed in jeans and sneakers and sipping
water after practice. To hone his punches, he works out with a speed bag.
And if he goes fightless for a few games, he says, "I start to get
restless."
As for his mug shots, well, don't expect them to get any prettier. When he
broke his nose in a fight in November, he told the doctors not to fuss. Just
crack it back in place and make sure the pipes are clean, he said. "I'm
pretty sure it won't be the last time."
Shelley gains shot at expanded role
Enforcer getting more time to shine
Friday, February 27, 2004
Michael Arace
Of late, Blue Jackets left winger Jody Shelley is getting
more gloves-on work. On Wednesday night in Nationwide Arena, in fact,
Shelley was spotted pulling a power-play shift late in the third period of a
one-goal game.
The Blue Jackets are experimenting right now. (Come on out
and see the kids!) Although they don’t necessarily foresee Shelley
developing into Keith Primeau, they do want to see how Shelley handles more
ice time in crucial situations. They want to rate him. They want to see
whether he can be called upon, in a pinch, to do more than make sure his
shirt is tied down in back.
They also want to reward him when it’s merited.
"I think Jody Shelley, the last four or five games, has
been one of our better players," interim coach Gerard Gallant said. "He’s
going to the net hard. He’s handling the puck better. He’s doing a good
job."
In the last six games, Shelley has averaged nearly nine
minutes, which represents a significant bump. In this same span, he has been
plus-3 with one goal on 13 shots.
In a 4-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday,
Shelley was dispatched to wreak havoc in front of the net during a late-game
power play. Shelley again was sent out after Gallant pulled his goaltender
for an extra attacker in the final minute.
"When people don’t do the job — I’m not saying they’re not
doing the job — but when the power play doesn’t go well, you’ve got to try
different people, and I think Jody deserves a chance. I sent him out there
when the net was empty to get him in front of the net. Jody’s a big, strong
guy and he takes up some space there. He scored a goal two games ago and he
almost scored again (against Chicago). It’s something you can do to change
things up and make the other team think about him."
Shelley offered the usual proviso: "We lost, so what the
(heck). Nothing got accomplished."
At the same time, he’s relishing his newfound opportunity.
"Any time a guy like me gets a chance to do something
different, you know that it’s not going to be a very big window," he said.
"It’s so important. There are 19 games left. We’ve got to get something
going as a team. At the same time, you’ve got to be able to step up and show
what you’re made of, especially when you get thrown out in situations you’re
not used to, or that people maybe don’t expect of you, or think you can do."
Shelley is the Blue Jackets’ enforcer. He’s clear on his
primary role, which comes with its own incongruities. Fighters tend to play
on the fourth line and generally pull three to seven minutes per game.
Usually, it’s more like three. Despite the paucity of ice time, the
spotlight shines brightly upon them and fans embrace them.
"I don’t even know what you might compare it to," Shelley
said. "The people who do it understand it. I think it’s an important part of
the game, and that’s not for the fans and the media, it’s for the guys in
the room. You see a guy battle, you come back into this room and look around
and there’s no better feeling than when somebody says, ‘Good job,’ and
they’re all fired up. You can see the hair stand up on a guy’s back. That’s
what our role is.
"It’s a role that’s so small and defined, yet you get so
much publicity and people perceive you a certain way. That’s great, but at
the same time you’ve got to come back tomorrow and make sure you’re even
better than you were yesterday."
Shelley makes the most of his celebrity. ("It’s when
people don’t come up and say ‘hi’ that you have a problem.") He tries to
stay well-grounded and has a personal touch about it. (He recently pulled
his car over on Rt. 33 to join a backyard hockey game.) On the ice, he
understands his role, and part of that role is rounding out his game with
more than roundhouses. Which is what he’s trying to accomplish as another
lost season winds down.
Shelley suspended three games for hitting Wild player
Friday, March 26, 2004
Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Jody Shelley’s latest punch will cost him three games and
more than $21,000 in salary.
The NHL yesterday suspended the Blue Jackets enforcer for
his blow to the head of Minnesota Wild defenseman Alex Henry on Tuesday in
Nationwide Arena. Henry was looking away when the punch was landed.
As a result, Shelley will not play tonight against the
Anaheim Mighty Ducks, as well as Saturday in Nashville and Monday in
Buffalo.
"It’s a tough situation," interim coach Gerard Gallant
said. "You hate to see a guy like Jody Shelley out of the lineup because
he’s played really well for us and he’s a big part of our hockey team.
"Plus, I know he’s not that type of player. As bad as it
looked (on videotape), Jody’s not that type of guy."
But, as Shelley noted yesterday, these are tough times to
seek mercy from the NHL.
In light of the Todd Bertuzzi incident, the league has
come down hard on several players lately. Bertuzzi, a Vancouver forward, put
Colorado’s Steve Moore in the hospital two weeks ago with a sucker punch
that was replayed over and over throughout North America and left hockey
with a black eye.
"Bad timing," Shelley said, "really bad timing."
The scene took place at 6:01 of the second period after
Blue Jackets right winger David Ling and Wild left winger Marian Gaborik got
tied up in front of the net. The scrum gradually made its way to the glass
just outside the right faceoff circle in the Wild zone.
Shelley described the rest of the scene from his view:
"Henry was skating right behind the two of them, and I
could hear him screaming, ‘Ling! Ling!’ Well, I wasn’t going to let two guys
go after Ling at the same time. No way.
"So I was right behind Henry. He knew it, too. When we got
by the glass, I shoved him up against the boards and he had his hands on
Linger. I felt him kind of lunge forward, and right then I thought we were
going to go.
"It looked bad on tape. That’s the first that I thought
when I saw it afterward in the dressing room. But it happened a lot quicker
out there. I thought we were going to fight. I’ve fought him before and I
thought we were going to go again. I hit him a little early."
The Wild was furious after the game, which the Jackets won
2-0. Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire called it "as bad as anything we’ve
seen."
Henry needed five stitches above his right eye, which was
badly swollen and bruised when the Wild left Nationwide.
"I respect the role (Shelley) has," Henry told the
Minneapolis Star-Tribune. "I’ve been in that role before, too. But when you
do something like that, you lose respect."
Shelley’s fine will go to the Players’ Emergency
Assistance Fund.
This is the third time he has been suspended by the NHL.
Last season, he lost two games for attempting to injure San Jose defenseman
Brad Stuart and one game for reaching over the bench to protect Ray Whitney
during a game against the New York Rangers.
An Old
Friend's Story
I was checking a few internet sites to see if i could get a look at Jody's
goal last night. The problem is that I slept in a little too late to catch
the morning highlights. As per usual it was a late Halifax night. I happened
on a link to this site and thought I'd check it out, I can't believe that
Jody has his own fan site. well, I have a whole gambit of stories about Jody
some of which may or may not be appropriate but this one we kind of tease
him about. last spring we were walking though a local bar which was packed
on a saturday night. As we pushed our way though the crowd this guy kind of
took exception to our pushing by. The guy with an intimidating look on his
face tried to start with me not noticing I was with Jody. Jody realizing
what was happening came over, pushed me out of the way, pointed at the guy
with his finger an inch from his nose calmly says," go call 911 then come
out side. The poor guy almost in tears quickly sauntered away. We've used
that line as a joke ever since. Not only is he a scrapper but he's got the
bad-action-movie-one-liners down pat to go with it. Anyone that reads this
and sees Jody tell him to "call 911 and come outside" ...he'd get a
laugh
out of it.
A Fan's Tale
Well, the story of Jody and I started when I wanted to meet the
radio
broadcasters for the Blue Jackets--George Matthews and Bill
Davidge. I
talked with the director of broadcasting, Russ Mollohan, and
we arranged
for me to meet them.
So during the
second period of the March 1 game, I got to sit in the
broadcast booth
for a bit while they called the game.
I first liked Rusty Klesla,
but I heard from someone that he has a GF,
and that he's not a very
personable guy, so I quickly lost interest.
During the third
period, I'm back at my seat listening to the game, and
they're
interviewing someone. It was Jody Shelley! He sounded so cute! I
turned
around, looked up, and yelled "Hi Jody!" a few times. To this day
I don't
know if he heard me.
After the game, we were invited to the
post game show in the Black and
Blue restaurant/bar at Nationwide Arena.
It was crowded, but we sat down
and hung out. I told everyone about how
cute I thought Jody sounded, and
what a good player I thought he was. I
wished that I could tell him in
person.
After the post game
show, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. It was
Russ, and he said he
had someone he wanted me to meet. I got up and
turned around. I put my
hand out, and a guy took it--a guy with a great
hand. "Chelsea, this is
Jody Shelley." he said. My response? Silence, and
then "Oh my
God!"
Jody "The Man" Shelley was standing right in front of me! I
could reach
out and touch him! (And I did, but that's later.)
:)
After standing there and looking stupid for a few seconds, I
told him how
thrilled I was to see him, and that I thought he was an
awesome player.
Then he tried to pet my Seeing Eye dog. I told him not to
pet him,
because he was working. Then, in a louder voice, I said: "If you
pet my
dog, you and me are gonna drop the gloves!" "Uh-oh! That sounds
like
trouble!" he said. We both got a good laugh out of the whole
thing.
I told him that I was blind, and I asked him if I could
feel what he
looked like. He said "Sure, go ahead, check me out." So, I
got a really
nice look at him. He's got a nice face, and nice shoulders
and chest.
He's v3ery well-built. Not only that, but he's a wonderful
man.
He had to leave to "see other people" as Russ Mollohan said,
so I asked
him for a hug. He said yes, and we hugged for a minute. It was
a nice
friendly hug. He's got great arms.
So he left, but
he's never left my mind. I've thought about him every day
since
then.
A month after we met, he re-injured his groin, so he was
out of action
again. I e-mailed George and Bill about him, and they
interviewed him and
read my e-mail to him. He laughed a little. He seemed
to remember who I
was, which is touching to say the least considering all
the people he
comes in contact with.
Jody, I don't know if
you read any of the posts your fans put on the web
about you, or if
anyone you know reads them, but I want you to know that
no matter what
happens, you'll always have a place in my heart. You're
truly a wonderful
person, inside and out. *Hug* Be careful out there, and
try not to get
into too much trouble.
Love,
Chelsea
BLUE JACKETS RE-SIGN LEFT WING JODY
SHELLEY TO MULTI-YEAR CONTRACT
Fan favorite and Blue Jackets' all-time penalty minutes
leader inks two-year deal
COLUMBUS, OHIO - The Columbus Blue Jackets have re-signed left wing
Jody Shelley to a two-year contract, club President and General Manager Doug
MacLean announced today. As is club policy, terms of the deal were not
disclosed.
Shelley, 28, has registered seven goals and 10 assists for 17 points with 693
penalty minutes in 197 career NHL games, all with the Blue Jackets. He joined
the organization as a free agent in 2000 and after splitting two seasons between
Columbus and Syracuse, the club's American Hockey League affiliate, Shelley has
been with the Jackets since the 2002-03 campaign.
In 2003-04, he tallied 3-3-6 and 228 penalty minutes in 76 games, ranking
fourth in the National Hockey League in penalty minutes. In his first full NHL
season, he picked up 1-4-5 in 68 games and led the league in penalty minutes
with 249 in 2002-03.
"Jody has been a real fan favorite since he has been with the Blue Jackets
and I am excited that he will continue to be a part of our organization and
community," said MacLean. "He is a tough competitor who has continued to work
hard to make himself a better hockey player and I'm confident that his continued
improvement will pay dividends for our hockey club."
The Yarmouth, Nova Scotia native spent most of his first four professional
seasons in the AHL. In 2000-01, he tallied 1-7-8 with an AHL-leading 357 penalty
minutes in 69 games with the Crunch. Prior to turning professional, he played
three seasons with Halifax of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, registering
48-50-98 and 933 penalty minutes in 181 games from 1994-97.
The Blue Jackets and Nationwide Arena are hosting Team USA's training camp in
preparation for the World Cup of Hockey 2004 from August 20-30. Tickets for Team
USA's pre-tournament games at Nationwide Arena vs. Canada (Monday, August 23)
and Russia (Friday, August 27) are on sale now at the Nationwide Arena Ticket
Office, the Chiller at Easton and the Chiller in Dublin and all Ticketmaster
ticket centers, by phone at (614) 431-3600 or online at www.BlueJackets.com and
ticketmaster.com.
Amanda Thompson and Jody Shelley |
Bob and Judy Thompson, of Laurelville, are announcing the engagement of
their daughter, Amanda Thompson, to Jody Shelley, son of Ned and Doreen
Shelley, of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Miss Thompson is a 1996 graduate of Logan Elm High School and a 2000
graduate of Shawnee State University with a bachelor of arts degree. She is
an elementary school teacher.
Mr. Shelley is a 1994 graduate of Yarmouth High School, Yarmouth, Nova
Scotia, Canada. He is a professional hockey player for the Columbus Blue
Jackets.
The wedding is planned for July in Laurelville. |
| |
|
| Wednesday, August 18, 2004: |
| Toughing
It Out |
| "He did
what he had to do to get noticed. We felt he had a lot of heart and he
developed into a very physical player" -Shawn MacKenzie Halifax
Mooseheads Head Coach |
|
He has battled hard, proved his critics wrong and has taken his lumps,
but Jody Shelley has managed to defy the odds through old-fashioned hard
work and plenty of heart.
Shawn MacKenzie can't help but chuckle when you mention Shelley's name,
not in jest, but rather a heartfelt reaction from a junior coach for a
player that knows a thing or two about leaving a lasting impression.
As a member of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Halifax Mooseheads,
Shelley came to the club as a longshot prospect, a kid who sported a great
attitude, but decidedly less skill than many of his counterparts.
“When he came to us, he was raw, rough around the edges in terms of his
play,” said MacKenzie, of the Thompson, Manitoba native. “There were a few
times he was on the verge of being cut, but he had so much heart and a great
enthusiasm for the game.”
Along with a desire to make a difference.
While he was far from the fastest or most offensively-gifted member of
the Mooseheads, Shelley searched for ways to make an impact, whether it was
bowling over opponents, blocking shots or dropping the gloves.
All the more reason said MacKenzie, to root for the left winger.
“He really didn't know what type of role he would have to play when he
started his junior career,” said the coach who has been with the
organization since their inception into the ‘Q' in 1994. “He did what he had
to do to get noticed. We felt he had a lot of heart and he developed into a
very physical player. As his junior career went on, he was afforded a lot of
room and that helped him work on his skills.”
After a 10-goal rookie season in 1994-95, Shelley upped that total to 13
in his second year with Halifax and finished his junior career with 25
tallies in 1996-97. Not surprisingly, his robust style translated into a
steady increase in his penalty minutes each year, too, starting with 194 and
ending with 420.
And though he stands a solid 6'3”, 225-pounds these days, Shelley didn't
sport that same frame during his junior days. While he had the height to
match up with his opponents, there was a time when he gave away weight and
muscle to the competition.
Even so, Shelley didn't care about any disadvantages when it came time to
answer the bell.
“He plays old-time hockey,” offered MacKenzie, who played goal in the
Ontario Hockey League with both the Windsor Spitfires and Oshawa Generals
and later with the New Jersey Devils. “He's legit. He's got a nice story.
Jody's a big man now, but he wasn't always that way. He was a tall guy, but
he didn't always have that strength.”
“You want tough guys that can play the game and have some accountability
and responsibility when they take a shift,” continued MacKenzie. “It's one
thing to be a tough guy, but you also have to know how to play the game.”
Something not lost on Shelley, who went on to play in the Canadian
university ranks, as well as the East Coast Hockey League and American
Hockey League, prior to mak |
