Today's News Clips March 2, 2020
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Today’s News Clips March 2, 2020 Chicago Tribune Calvin de Haan threw himself into creating a craft beer for charity while recovering from a shoulder injury. The result is Loud Barn Lager, a tribute to Blackhawks fans Phil Thompson Feb. 29, 2020 Who knew beer could be part of the process for recovering from a hockey injury? Blackhawks defenseman Calvin de Haan started a brewery as a business and later had an idea to make a specialty beer for charity. But along the way he found the charity project helped him endure a demoralizing third season-ending right shoulder injury. “I’d obviously rather be playing than focusing on this, but it’s been really helping me pass the time and keep my mind focused on other things,” he said. “I’ve (had) three shoulder surgeries in the past three years, so it’s been a grind mentally. It’s keeping me a little bit more occupied, focusing on being a human versus a robot at the rink.” The beer, Loud Barn Lager, made its public debut Saturday at Goose Island Taproom, about a half-mile from the United Center. It will be sold the night of every Hawks home game in March until supplies run out, and all proceeds benefit the team’s foundation. De Haan brought down brewmaster Jamie Maxwell from his company, Ridge Rock Brewing in Carp, Ontario, to work with Goose Island on the beer, though de Haan did plenty of taste testing. T.J. Annerino, Goose’s Island experiential market director, described the flavor as “easy drinking.” “They actually took the hop character down a bit right before they brewed it, and it came out very approachable, not crazy bitter,” Annerino said. “I like to think of it as just a good hockey beer.” Annerino and his team worked with de Haan on the name. “The reason we picked that (‘Loud Barn Lager’) is it’s a tribute to the Blackhawk fans, the consecutive sellouts, the anthem — it’s an iconic rink to play in,” de Haan said. “I remember coming here as an opposing player and hearing Jim Cornelison belt out the national anthem as loud as he can, the fans are standing up, then you see Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Corey Crawford and you’re like, ‘I gotta play tonight,’ like this is surreal.” It also was a nod to de Haan’s roots. “We took some Canadian slang because we’re hillbillies back home and the rink is ‘the barn,’ ” he said. Three years ago, de Haan and three buddies started the brewery on a lark to fulfill a “pipe dream” and provide a watering hole in their hometown of Carp. They converted an old building that become something of an eyesore but had a quirky history. It had been used as a bank, a pharmacy and a gas station, among other things, but there are legends associated with the building. “We have a conference room in the basement that we call the ‘Vault Room,’ ” de Haan said. “But back in the day, the biggest bank heist in Canada, in like the ’30s or something, was planned and executed in that building, like tunneled up underneath into the bank in our small little hillbilly town back home. … No one knows where the money went.” Now it’s the social venue for the small community, where residents pull up in snowmobiles. He wanted to set down roots in Chicago and thought establishing a signature charity event — similar to Duncan Keith’s concert and Brent Seabrook’s bowling event — would be a good first step. Despite starting a brewery and partnering with Goose Island, de Haan doesn’t know much about the brewing process. But, he said, “since I’ve been hurt, I’ve been doing a lot of reading and research on it to try to understand everything. It’s cool. Beer’s a good way to bring people together. That’s kind of how T.J. and I have become buddies.” They bond over beer and their love of hockey. Annerino plays amateur-league hockey — a defenseman just like de Haan. Four years ago, when Goose Island had a corporate team, several coworkers attended a game at McFetridge Sports Center on the North Side during which Annerino took a stick to the face, resulting in a split forehead and a trip to the emergency room. “They thought it was the coolest thing that they’ve ever seen,” Annerino said of his coworkers. Annerino now plays at Morgan Park Sports Center. But standing next de Haan behind the taproom’s bar, he blushed at the mention of his own dabbling in hockey. “Don’t model your game after me,” de Haan joked. “That’s probably not the smart thing to do.” De Haan has had plenty of such lighthearted moments with Annerino and the Goose Island staff, such as playing video games with brewmasters. It’s part of his healing process, and de Haan shared his passion for beer with teammates as well. “We’re out on the road and he’s like, ‘Hey, let’s go grab a beer here and try all these different beers,’ ” said Drake Caggiula, who calls de Haan a mentor. “So I know he’s definitely into that, and it’s kind of cool to see that he’s doing this for charity.” Caggiula and de Haan met last summer at the wedding of Ryan Strome (Hawks teammate Dylan Strome’s brother), and now they live in the same building in Chicago, often riding to the airport and the rink together. And beer was a natural for the Ontario natives — Goose Island’s 312 Urban Wheat Ale is Caggiula’s local favorite. “He’s great at ‘Call of Duty,’ he’s very outgoing, he’s super easy to talk to,” Caggiula said of de Haan. “He likes to run and mess around and be a little bit quirky. That’s kind of what I’m like too.” Caggiula and de Haan also have been part of each other’s support systems while each dealt with injuries. Caggiula missed most of November and all of December while in concussion protocol. “He’s had his shoulder injuries and he’s been out for lengthy periods of time, and he’s been able to help me deal with that and get through that mentally,” Caggiula said. “And (when) he got hurt (in December), we were kind of going through it together.” De Haan said his recovery from shoulder surgery has been going well (“no complaints”) and he feels good. “It’s just a slow process, that’s all. Part of the grind,” he said. “I’ve done it so many times now, it’s almost become clockwork. Just trying to stay positive. Trying to not think ‘woe is me’ and everyone’s not out to get you is the hardest part. (But) doing something like this with T.J. and Goose Island has been a cool venture.” Chicago Tribune The goal-horn operator. The ‘Split the Pot’ seller. The Zamboni driver. Meet 8 behind-the-scenes people who make things go during Blackhawks games at the United Center. Jimmy Greenfield March 2, 2020 Fans attending Blackhawks games at the United Center look at the video board, hear the game horn and gaze adoringly at the ice. But they don’t know who programs the video board or how it’s done, who pushes the button for the game horn or how the ice is kept in such pristine shape. The working people who make the United Center go night after night might not be as famous as the players, but they play a huge role in creating a memorable experience for the 21,000-plus people who attend games. Here’s a look at the game-day experience through the eyes of eight people whose work touches fans — but whom you might not necessarily see. Mike Horn, Goal-horn operator If you conjured a cartoon image of how the goal horn goes off at the United Center, you would have a hard time coming up with something better than the real thing. First of all, the name of the man who hits the horn is ... Mike Horn. No joke. The button Horn pushes when the Hawks score is large, red and says “Goal!” on top, and the urge to give it a push the second you see it is enticing — which is partially why the button is “protected” in lockdown mode until needed. A key is required to activate the button, and Horn is very careful about not turning it before the time is right. “You’ve got to be pretty sure about it when you go,” Horn said. “It’s turn the key and go. I’ll cheat sometimes if it looks like it’s going to be a good opportunity for us — I’ll have it halfway there so I’m ready to go.” Being the keeper of the goal horn is just one of Horn’s duties. As the team’s senior manager of game presentation, he plays a pivotal role in what appears on the video boards all around the United Center and calls for certain replays of game action if he sees a need. The main rule for replays — one the NHL put forth — is not to show anything that might incite the crowd and create a hostile environment. “We can show them, but they don’t want us to repeatedly show it,” Horn said. “In other words, if a guy gets cross- checked in the face and he’s lying on the ice and they don’t call anything, I can’t show that four times because all that’s going to do is incite the crowd.” The horn isn’t used exclusively for goals.