A Passion For A Game: Switchboard

As I walked around the Androscoggin Bank Colisee Friday night, I did a triple take as I ventured over near section one. There in the first row was one Raymond Dudley, a.k.a. Switchboard, who ventured up to Lewiston to take in his first MAINEiacs game.

For a minute, my mind went into a time warp back to the late 1970s when the Maine Mariners first graced the Cumberland County Civic Center ice in Portland. For nearly 30 years now, Raymond has been as much to do with going to a hockey game in Portland as the memories of Wayne Schabb, Dennis Patterson, Drew Callander, Al Hill, John Paddock, Mike Busniuk, Brian Burke, Terry Murray, the late Pelle Lindbergh, Murray Brumwell, Rich Chernomaz, Steve Tsjuira, Bud Stefanski, Bill Ranford, Gordie Clark, Gary Morrison, Glen Cochrane, Ken Daneyko, Alan Stewart, Paul Evans, Larry Floyd, Archie Henderson, Alan May, Bruce Shoebottom, and those are just the Mariner days.

In the midst of all of that, this young man by the nickname of Switchboard was all a part of the atmosphere. He’s as much a part of the fabric of the CCCC as the LA Twins and Maine Nordiques are to the old barn the MAINEiacs are in. Switchboard’s antics from putting the “hex” on teams to playing his toy instruments, to getting the crowd cheering and the wave cranked up is always expected every night.

And there he set.

In Lewiston. Of all nights, Friday night, in the one of biggest games to date in the MAINEiacs three-plus year existance. I was shocked, happy and proud all in a matter of seconds. The biggest hockey fan in Portland finally found his way to Lewiston with the help of a couple of old friends. He sat with his trademark helmet and Portland Pirates jersey on, looking out onto the ice while Last Fan Standing was being drawn in nearby section four.

Having been a part of that team down the road in the past in a minor capacity, seeing Raymond at the arena was like seeing another co-worker show up at the job everyday. When he was there, everything was alright. When he wasn’t there, I’d wonder where he was and if he was alright. He never missed a game unless he was ill, and seriously ill at that.

He’d be the first fan through the old turnstiles after saying hello to all in the front office across the street and at the souvenir stand in the lobby. Many times I would ride in to the game with Raymond on the METRO bus. He and I would sit together, and talk about the game, life and the scenery along the way. Once I moved from outer Washington Avenue into downtown Portland, I would miss those rides as I was within walking distance to the arena. But I would make sure that I said hello to him whenever I could, and when I wasn’t tied up with game responsibilities, I would make a point to talk to him at some point every night. When I left the organization back in the late 1990s for family and other life reasons, a piece of me was left void. Every game that I would attend, as sporadic as they would be, I made it a point to check in with him and say hello.

Raymond, being who he is, has had a rough time of it over the years. He gets taunted and teased by other fans from time to time. Teenage kids would pick on him. Others have physically tripped him or punched him. People would steal his bag that had his helmet, jersey, instruments and noise makers. As the club changed ownership, some owners were not kind to Raymond, viewing him as an “eye sore” and wanted him far away from people, and had his seat moved. Some fans complained of his antics, yet others were annoyed.

The only thing that Raymond Dudley is guilty of, is loving his team. He supports it no matter if there were 1,000 or 7,000 fans in the building, if the team is up or down by six goals, and if the club is in first or last place. Where other fans, players, coaches, and owners have came and went, he’s still there. Despite all the harassment, despite being treated like garbage by some owners and team brass, he’s kept going to the games. Where others have not returned to the arena over a parking charge or an increase in ticket prices, he still shows up on a nightly basis when his favorite team hits the ice.

Raymond is mentally disabled and has been all of his life. He’s viewed as being “different” by some and as a result has had to put up with the short end of the stick by the people in power of that team down the street. An anonymous person pays for Raymond’s season ticket every year. The good person that does that clearly gets what Switchboard is all about. He’s a passionate fan who is not afraid to show that passion. He’s as harmless as an ant, and loves life for what it is. In his mind, he’s not different… he’s just another fan who shows his true spirit.

Why society looks upon him differently is nothing short of a spirtual sickness. Just because we look different, act different, talk different and cheer loud and proud at a hockey game, doesn’t make anyone as less a fan, or less as a person. Being a spiritual person that I am, I look at Raymond as being a gift in my life, who shares the same love and passion that I do about a game that goes far beyond any description. I’ve learned a lot from Raymond over the years, and the big thing is loyalty. Chances are that in our lifetime, there will be no other person more dedicated to the game than him, no matter what others have done in trying to push him out the door.

When Marc Gosselin presented him with a MAINEiacs jersey during the third period of Friday nights game, I looked at Raymond with a great deal of pride. Thinking of all those conversations we had on the bus, before the game and after the game. Thinking of all the abuse that the man has put up with over the years, just because he shows his love and spirit for his team a little differently than most. After Raymond gave Marc a hug in appreciation for the jersey, I gave the man a hug, too. I looked right into his eyes, and under all those years of abuse and neglect, came a smile, a twinkle in his eyes, and genuine gratitude as a result of the gift. There is no doubt that made an indellible impression on him, and one that will last a lifetime.

From now on, Switchboard is an honourary member of MAINEiacs Nation, as it should be. No other person has supported hockey in the last 30 years in Southern Maine much like Raymond has. And with that honour, it is one that he will wear with love and pride at every opportunity. An instant fan for life, who I am sure will now return again… and he’s more than welcome in Lewiston anytime.

As I walked away after Marc gave him the jersey, a heard a heckler say, “Oh, why did they do that for Switchboard? We don’t want him around here!” Au contraire. Yes we do. I’d take 3000 Raymond Dudley’s in a heartbeat to be in the crowd, because every single one of them… gets it.

Ad Gate Causes Buzz

An interesting advertisement ran in Saturday mornings Lewiston Sun Journal C2 page (scroll to bottom) caused a buzz around Lewiston and Saint John prior to the matchup between the MAINEiacs and Sea Dogs later that night. The one question everyone had on their minds was “who did it?” and “why?” as the day moved along. Fingers pointed at both the Lewiston & Saint John organizations, and even fan conspiracies entered the picture. Some think that both clubs were in cahoots, still others thought maybe a fan with some bucks got involved to make sure the winning streak stayed alive for at least another night.

As far as the latest case of “whodunnit” still swirls around, everyone that I have come into contact with isn’t talking about who actually approved the art and had the Sun Journal run the print. To whomever is involved in this, the idea was a great one, say for Cape Breton, Halifax, maybe Moncton since the Wildcats have given the MAINEiacs fits for most of the season thus far. But Saint John?

Although there were rumours that surfaced in my inbox about some disagreements between MAINEiacs President and Governor Matt McKnight having issues with Saint John Governor Joe Richard over Sea Dog team financials and payments to the QMJHL at a recent Board of Governors meeting, neither executive is commenting on the issue, which is typical as league business remains private.

As it was well apparent in Saturday nights 6-1 runaway victory and a quick look at the standings, the teams are going in completely opposite directions. Lewiston is clearly in the hear and now and Saint John is looking at 2008-09 before being considered to do some postseason damage. It almost wasn’t fair to begin with.

From a marketing standpoint, sure the clubs play each other, and a lot. It’s a tough game for Saint John to sell because they know that they will get creamed most likely and the view from Lewiston is to improve upon weekday attendance, of which the Sea Dogs will be the opponent on one Tuesday (Dec 12th) and two Wednesday games (Jan 3rd and 31st) coming up, along with one Saturday game (Jan 20th) . Saint John only sees Lewiston twice the rest of the season, once on a Saturday (Dec 30th) and a Tuesday (Feb 7th).

From a hockey sense, last Saturday’s game was an easy one to sleep through (and we ultimately did) and could have very easily been a “trap game” for the MAINEiacs, and as history has indicated, it’s generally the weaker clubs that Lewiston traditionally struggles with and maybe someone found the idea to be an attention getter to say, “Don’t forget boys, you have to play this game, too.” As it was, David Perron’s beautiful second period sling-wrister woke both MAINEiacs TV play-by-play host Rob Kennedy and myself up as we called the game Saturday night for Time Warner Cable, after thirty minutes of verbal and mental fumbling of “what was the next right thing to say about nothing.” Sure, Tristan Manson and Charles Bergeron added some entertainment value in the first period until the lackluster line brawl at the tail end of the game. With the rivalry-esque tone of the advertisement, I get the idea that what the motivation was from that angle backfired. If there was a better game suited for that idea, it’s this weekend versus the Fog Devils. Perhaps someone messed up when they were thinking about the “John’s”?

The ad itself is a bit of a concern also. Great artwork, whoever did it is well versed in Photoshop. Despite the fact they deformed the Lewiston logo to make a point, the only thing troubling about the ad was the “Lewy Sucks” at the base of it. Great for adults, get a good laugh. Great for the team if they chose to take any motivation out of it. Not good for young kids, a market that the team has worked hard at building by going to schools and promoting “Lewy’s Read To Succeed” program. If indeed the ad was placed by someone involved in the Lewiston end of things, they might want to rethink about that approach. There would have been enough of a buzz generated without the “Lewy Sucks” part of it. If, for that reason alone, with the class normally displayed by this franchise here, I have my doubts that Lewiston would be behind the advertising to go to that level.

I am ALL for rivalries. In the new age of the QMJHL with the regionalized scheduling and seeing teams like Saint John another four times in the next eight weeks, I understand the difficulty of selling seats for games that are a tough enough sell for being where they are during the week (not to mention against inferior competition). However, history has also taught us that some of the best games this team has played in three-plus seasons have come during the week in front of some of the smallest crowds ever.

If there was ever a time to do a “guaranteed win” promotion, this is the year to do it. Could take it so far as a “guaranteed blowout” by X number of goals and if the team does it, fans get free food or coffee at an area sponsor. In the case of Saint John, if the team fails to win by a margin of five or more, give all walk-up fans a flex ticket to use for a free game in the future, or a $3 free parking pass for next time they come. Another idea is one that just happened Thanksgiving night in Nashville, as over 16,000 received free tacos when the Predaters blew out Vancouver 6-0. When the margin of victory is by 5 at the Gaylord Entertainment Center, the fans win also, and a concept like that could work here as well, and has done so in Portland in the past. There are many ways where marketing could get creative in order to help not only the team but area food businesses as well.

Whomever came up with the concept of doing this for whatever the motivation we may never know, and only they will know if it worked or not. One thing that is intriguing is what happens in Saint John at the end of December, and if the MAINEiacs may strike with an ad of their own there if this was strickly the work of Sea Dogs.

Bottom line here is no matter what gets printed in the newspaper, the boys on the ice really determine whether it is a rivalry or not, and the standings really are the final judge of where the emotion and energy comes in order to build the rivalry up. 

Good Reads

With the Thanksgiving holiday in the US this week, the NHL media writers here in the lower 48 took a bit of a break in observance of the holiday. That said, I was able to seek out a few good columns to share with you.

On SI.com, Allan Muir talks of his 20 biggest surprises at the NHL’s quarter season pole.

In USA Today, Kevin Allen discusses how the New York Islanders’ Alexi Yashin has started to live up to expectations under former Moncton Wildcats Head Coach Ted Nolan. Also on that subject, Pierre LeBrun of the Canadian Press looks at Nolan and his success on the island thus far on the year.

Also in USA Today, Ted Montgomery gives thanks to everything great in the sport of hockey.

Eleven in a row and counting… let the good times roll!

News, comments, articles, rumours, questions, bad advertising, you name it, I’ll take it. offthepost@lewistonhockey.com