Along with \u201cThrill of Defeat\u201d host and Pittsburgh guy Dan Hopper, we remember Dick Tarnstrom, who turned getting waived by the Islanders into a starring role on some bad transitional Penguins teams.<\/p>\n
While the Penguins have had some all time great players in their history, the periods between those players were pretty dire. Bankruptcies, empty buildings and lots of losses were not uncommon for one of the NHL\u2019s now-marquee teams. Into one of these eras stepped Dick Tarnstrom, a very late round pick of the Islanders who found himself squeezed out of Long Island during one of their rare fertile periods of the early 2000\u2019s and onto a Penguins team desperate for anyone who could put the puck into a net. Tarnstrom was competent on a bereft squad, which means he got comparisons to Hall of Famers, and Hart and Norris Trophy votes from the win-starved writers covering it. The Penguins\u2019 \u201cX-Generation\u201d might have featured a lot of weird players, but thanks to cheap tickets and EXTREME marketing, it actually succeeded in creating a new wave of fans. To those kids, guys like Dick Tarnstrom felt like superstars of tomorrow.<\/p>\n
Dan takes us through the Full Tarnstrom Experience and tells us what it was like watching the Penguins between the Lemieux\/Jagr and Crosby\/Malkin eras. We learn about the \u201cRic and Dick Show,\u201d attending Ryan Malone\u2019s hockey camp as a kid, the Woodstock 99 flavor of the \u201cX-Generation\u201d ads and how Tarnstrom was able to capture hearts in the Steel City. We also wonder how we forgot he played for the Oilers during their 2006 Cup final run and why he was put on waivers in the first place (it probably had something to do with being Swedish and having Mike Milbury as a general manager). It\u2019s the deepest dive you\u2019ll find on the man who is surely the last \u201cDick\u201d in NHL history.<\/p>\n
What makes a \u201cWeird Islander?\u201d<\/p>\n
We\u2019re always open to suggestions about other Weird Islanders to discuss. Remember the criteria. Candidates must fulfill one of the two of the following:<\/p>\n