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SPORTS Wednesday 28 august 2019
Hockey's ultimate journeyman goalie calls it a career

By STEPHEN WHYNO with 15 organizations to go
AP Hockey Writer through."
Mike McKenna isn't sure McKenna said his eldest
where to start on the crazi- daughter being in school
est stories from his long and changed the equation.
winding road of a career. The 36-year-old had been
"We could be here forever," open to playing another
he said. "I mean, do you season but wanted to be
want to talk about me, or rooted in one place and
do you want to talk about joked that he would've
when the bus caught on been the only No. 3 goalie
fire? Or do you want to in the league with a no-
talk about swiping a Volvo movement clause.
on the Chesapeake Bay Instead, he will move on
Bridge? These are things after playing 15 games for
that have happened. You the Lightning, 10 for the
can't make that up." Senators, four for the Blue
McKenna's path through Jackets, two each for the
hockey looks stranger than Stars and Devils, and one
fiction. The journeyman apiece for the Coyotes
goaltender announced his and Flyers. Since being
retirement Tuesday after a sixth-round pick of the
stints with 15 NHL organiza- Nashville Predators in 2002,
tions and 22 professional he played in the NCAA,
teams in all, enough mate- ECHL, American Hockey
rial to fill a novel. League and NHL.
"I never expected this, and McKenna spent a vast
it turned into my career majority of that time in the
path and that's just the way AHL, which gave him some
it was," McKenna said in an colorful stories. He thinks it's
interview during the Stan- hard to top the Portland Pi-
ley Cup Final earlier this rates' bus catching on fire In this Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019 file photo, Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Mike McKenna (56) stands
year. "To me, yeah, it was on the way to a game. on the ice during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals in
crazy. There has been a lot "We had a right rear (tire) Washington.
of stops along the way. But blow and I don't why it hap- Associated Press
I just made so many friends, pened, but something lit up
I've been in so many places a hydraulic line or some- and the flames were licking in Rhode Island or Mass or by Philadelphia gave him
and got to experience so thing," McKenna said. "Next over the side of it and our whoever we were: 'Every- three teams in four days.
much, I feel like I've had a thing you know, the right bus driver got off and told body off! We're on fire!'" "I've never done that be-
pretty full life in the game rear of the bus was on fire us in the middle of the road McKenna and his team- fore," McKenna said. "With
mates had to play that goalies, this can happen.
Jakobsen tops Bennett in photo night and lost. He blames it You order some white gear
and hope it shows up soon."
on smoke inhalation.
finish, wins 4th Vuelta stage So many stops along the McKenna and his fam-
way provided McKenna ily have had a house in St.
with 18 different masks, all Louis for a decade now
of which he still has. The jer- and will make it home. The
EL PUIG, Spain (AP) — With stage win for the Dutch rid- Roche, an Irishman with seys? Well, that was more need for white gear and a
his eyes closed, Fabio Ja- er from team Deceuninck- Team Sunweb, finished difficult. new mask is over, but not
kobsen beat Sam Bennett Quiock Step. safely in the peloton. He "You don't get to keep jer- before he could indulge in
in a photo finish to win the "To win in a Grand Tour will carry a two-second seys from teams. They don't some self-professed "dark
fourth stage of the Spanish is one of the things you lead over Quintana en- give you those," McKenna comedy" about bounc-
Vuelta on Tuesday, while dream of as a sprinter," Ja- tering Wednesday's fifth said. "I have most of my ing around like a puck on
Nicolas Roche kept the kobsen said. "In my head I stage, which will take riders jerseys, and I've probably choppy ice.
overall lead ahead of Nai- thought I could do it, but 170 kilometers (105 miles) been given a jersey by a "There's probably a lot of
ro Quintana. you never know for sure. from the city of L'Eliana to half-dozen teams I would punch lines out there asso-
Jakobsen fended off a To win a stage of La Vuelta a finish by an astronomical say, but the other ones I've ciated with what I've done
strong charge by Bennett wearing the colors of your observatory in Arcos de las either had to pay for or and you have to be able to
in the final meters (yards) of country is amazing." Salinas. have traded to get."It takes laugh at yourself in life," he
the 175-kilometer (109-mile) Bennett won Monday's "I had to make sure we time just to list the teams said.q
ride from Cullera to El Puig third stage with team Bora- were out of trouble," Roche he's played for profession-
on Spain's eastern coast. Hansgrohe. said. "Tomorrow will be a ally: Las Vegas, Norfolk, Mil-
"I couldn't see because I "This one hurts a lot," the completely different sce- waukee, Omaha, Portland,
closed my eyes, Sam was Irishman said. "It was re- nario. I expect fireworks Tampa Bay, Lowell, Albany,
so close," said Jakobsen, ally hard to position myself from the Colombian rid- New Jersey, Binghamton,
who will turn 23 on Satur- in the final kilometers. On ers. I know it is going to be Peoria, Springfield, Co-
day. "I went for the line the last roundabout I lost very difficult to keep the lumbus, Arizona, Syracuse,
and threw my bike. When I many positions because I red jersey, it might be very Texas, Dallas, Belleville, Ot-
saw people from the team chose the wrong side. I re- ambitious to aim at doing tawa, Philadelphia and Le-
cheering I knew I had won. ally forced this one to hap- so, but I am going to do my high Valley.
This is a big one." pen but it just didn't go as I best and fight until the last Last season, a trade and
It was the first Grand Tour hoped for." meter."q subsequent waiver claim