(Editor's Note: DNC.com remembers the Good, the Bad and the Ugly in Duffy/NC hockey history. Since this is an era of full disclosure and transparency, we begin with the ugly.  Please submit your story ideas to www.dicknolanclassic.com

Archive-1 - The worst team ever

Archive-2 - The greatest player

Class of '81 Still Insists: "We're Number 1"

Despite solid evidence to the contrary, the NC Class of '81 continues to insist that it is Number 1. A quick examination of graduation rates, jail records and credit scores reveals that the Class of 81 ranks near the bottom in almost every category.

For a brief moment, back in '81, they actually we're Number 1 according to Class historian Richard Moscati. "Then things started to fall apart after 9/11 and we really couldn't make fun of Dougie "Abu" Jowdy anymore. It kinda sucked the life right out of everything."

Researchers attribute the Class of '81 delusion to the sudden and unforeseen passing of Led Zeppelin drummer John 'Bonzo' Bonham, whose accidental death caused the cancellation of the group's appearance at War Memorial Auditorium in 1980 in support of the just released In Through the Out Door tour.

Many members of the Class of '81 had purchased tickets to the concert, and researchers believe the sudden
cancellation induced a collective post-traumatic-stress disorder-type reaction, prompting the continued claim to be Number 1.

That is what the Dick Nolan Classic is all about.

When Victoria Spanbauer belts out the opening to "O, Canada", I feel privileged to have known her father, a good man and a great practical joker in his heyday. When I see the faces of all the kids who come out to skate after the game, I know that there are glory days only in front of us, not behind, as long as we all stay healthy and can see each other the next year.

And as for the debate about who was the greatest hockey player in school history, I'll stake my claim on B. Gruarin. Now there was a hockey player.

VJ McConeghy