Just like your favorite musicians, NHL GMs also have peculiar requests when setting up shop abroad. Take a look at some of the items that  general managers have requested for the upcoming NHL draft:

Boston Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli requested that his table be stocked with gifts that he can hand over to Brian Burke every 15 minutes on Friday…

George McPhee hopes that the custom-made milk cartons he requested will help aid in his search for a Russian who went missing in April…

Steve Tambellini was pressured by the city to bring thousands of these Edmonton Tourism pamphlets to distribute around the arena, since Friday will be the first time in 20 years that Edmonton actually matters…

Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman requested an eye-catching banner which he plans to park a bunch of his players under in hopes of enticing other GMs…

Since May, Canucks GM Mike Gillis won’t go anywhere without his dart board, so naturally this was his only request…

With lots of time to kill on Friday, Brian Burke requested his table be stocked with something that he can use to keep himself busy, and still make himself the center of attention…

Panthers GM Dale Tallon requested the services of the Travelocity gnome for his table. We believe he needs assistance to coordinate the massive exodus of dead weight out of Florida…

Lou Lamoriello requested a table up front and a case of projectiles which he can throw on stage whenever another team drafts a player he wanted…

Looks like Calgary Flames fans doctored their team’s rider with the hopes of giving Darryl Sutter something productive to do during the first round, rather than him using that time to make “schrewd” Darryl Sutter moves…

Finally, on the heels of trading Halak and giving Plekanec a 6 year term at $5 million per, it’s little wonder that the Montreal Canadiens requested what they requested…

More Blades of Funny available on Twitter. 657 followers can’t be wrong (even if half are marketers of enlargement pills).

By now, I’m sure you’ve heard about “Sandgate.” If not, here’s the story to bring you up to date:

The issue of whether or not there was sand in the hallway outside the Flyers dressing room at the Bell Centre which dulled some skates was a topic of conversation after the Flyers 3-0 win for a 3-1 series lead. Several Flyers had to have their skates sharpened numerous times during the game and a television report mentioned the possibility of sand in the area of the Flyers’ room.

Luckily for you, Blades of Funny had a well placed camera by the Howie Morenz statue that stands in front an entrance to the Bell Centre. We managed to get snapshots of the prime suspects in this caper:

The associates of the Kostitsyn brothers caught our eye as possible suspects…

We caught a glimpse of Dion Phaneuf and his girlfriend, who just flew in from Mexico to catch the game. They may have tracked some sand into the arena…

George Laraque was outside doing some weird yoga exercises with a punching bag which was leaking sand…

We caught Carey Price with some friends. He was holding the gift Jacques Martin gave him to keep him entertained while sitting on the bench. Maybe he dropped it and it broke?

Then again, Sandgate could have been the Flyers own doing after their devious plan to turn Michael Leighton into a playoff hero…

Follow Blades of Funny on Twitter and let us know who you’d like to see charged in this crime.

There’s the dumb jock who is up for anything as long as it’s not studying:

The drama club guy who has b&w headshots of himself in his locker:

The slacker who is all about his music:

The goofy looking redhead kid:

The dramatic jock who’s all business:

The bad boy who does things his way:

The guy with the really milfalicious mom:

The slacker who is always high:

The guy who lives in a trailer with his welfare collecting mother:

The kid who works as a waiter at his family’s restaurant:

The cocky rich kid with a trust fund:

The wacky exchange student who ends up rupturing a testicle:

The weird twin brothers:

The party animal who has a serious problem but everyone finds funny:

The uptight principal:

The grizzly superintendent:

The grumpy math teacher:

And finally, the divorced teacher who attempts to stay hip by partying with his students:

Jose Theodore’s moment of rage:

The part of the Andy Sutton interview that viewers did not see:

Lastly, here is an appearance by #doanface:

A recent news story about Theo Fleury planning to put out a country music album took many hockey fans by surprise. However, at Blades of Funny headquarters we were not the least bit shocked by a hockey player’s attempt to cross-over into music. This is because for the past few years we have become enthralled collectors of music sung by current and former NHLers .

In case you don’t know, hockey players have been putting out mixtapes and covering hit singles for decades. You may laugh, but if you ever heard Mark Messier’s rendition of Celion Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On”, those laughs would turn into tears of joy.

In order to educate the hockey public, we’ve scanned some of the CD’s in our collection. Behold the wonderful world of NHL underground music…

Kyle Wellwood – “Can I Borrow A Feeling?”

Kyle has a reputation around the league as someone who is devoid of emotion and thus comes across like he doesn’t have a care in the world. In his private life however, Kyle is a gentle soul who is searching for something that he lost along the way. Nobody quite knows what inspired him to record his own version of Kirk Van Houten’s “Can I borrow a feeling?”, but the raw emotion it exudes cleanses one’s soul.

Sample lyrics:

Can I borrow a feeling?
Can you lend me a jar of love?
Hurtin’ hearts need some healin’
Take my hand with your glove of love

Dany Heatley – “California Love”

The 2009 saga between Dany Heatley, the Senators, and the Oilers stunned and angered many hockey fans. However, devout hip-hop fanatics were not the least bit surprised by Dany’s insistence to play for a team based in California. This is because they no doubt heard the 2008 mixtape that took Ottawa’s underground hip-hop scene by storm. On the tape, using the moniker “D-Heat”, Dany belts out a lyrical assault to the tune of Tupac’s “California Love”. The song feverishly professed Dany’s love for the Golden State.

Sample lyrics:

Out on bail fresh outta jail, California dreamin
Soon as I stepped on the scene, I’m hearin hoochies screamin
Fiendin for money and alcohol
the life of a west side playa where cowards die
it’s all war

Wayne Gretzky – “Bubbles of Fun”

The granddaddy of underground NHL music. This album is a highly sought after item amongst Gretzky collectors because of its rarity. Only 23 copies are known to exist after most were destroyed prior to his 1988 marriage. Not much is known about how this album came to be, but reports date it back to a mid-80′s summer he spent in San Francisco with Oilers teammate Glenn Anderson.

Sample lyrics:

It’s Raining Men! Hallelujah! – It’s Raining Men! Amen!
I’m gonna go out to run and let myself get
Absolutely soaking wet!
It’s Raining Men! Hallelujah!

Martin Brodeur – “Your Sister”

We don’t exactly know why Martin Brodeur chose to release a cover of TQ’s underground cult hit “Your Sister”, but his passion comes through loud and clear as he belts out this raw and thought-provoking ballad.  Most critics that reviewed the song were left speechless, the rest just found it creepy. Take a listen for yourself…

Sample lyrics:

Now we’ve been messin’ round a long long time
Now I wanna f#@k your sister
I now it sound foul but that’s alright
Cause why should I have to bulls#%it cha
I can’t help it if she’s the one that’s on my mind
Every time that I’m wit cha (yeah, yeah)
I know we messed around a long long time
Now I wanna f#@k your sister

Mats Sundin – “Poker Face”

The hockey world could not escape following the Mats Sundin saga during the second half of 2008. What North American fans did not know is that the reason for Sundin’s absence from hockey was due to the phenomenal success of this album in his home country of Sweden. Mats’ european-techno-discotheque remix of Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” took the country by storm and spawned a country-wide tour. The “PokerStars Poker Face With Mats” roadshow finally came to halt on December 15th in the city of Kristianstad and Mats was free to return to pro-hockey.

Sample lyrics…

Mum mum mum mah
Mum mum mum mah
Mum mum mum mah
Mum mum mum mah
Mum mum mum mah

We hope this post has opened a few eyes and showcased hockey players as more than just brute athletes. If you wish to find out more about the wonderful hobby of hockey player music collecting, please follow the Blades of Funny twitter feed. I plan on putting together a collector’s expo where we will buy/sell/trade these wonderful works of art. Scheduled date is sometime in August of 2064, but that may change.