When the good life gets better

Luckiest men through the ages . . .

Ringo, naturally.

(And this is stated so often it has almost become a cliche.)

Of course, there’s no shortage of sports candidates jockeying for position on any top-10 list. But the latest man to skate forward is a bit different -- not completely lacking in talent, then landing in an extremely advantageous position through sheer luck.

It would be hard to beat the weekend double submitted by Kristian Huselius.

The Calgary Flames forward and horse owner won a $1-million harness racing payout on Saturday in his native Sweden, then had an assist on the game-winning goal the next day in Calgary’s 2-0 playoff victory over the San Jose Sharks, forcing Tuesday night’s Game 7.

“That’s not bad, eh?” teammate Jarome Iginla told reporters after Game 6 in Calgary. “He’s the luckiest man we know. That’s pretty wild. It’s hard to believe. I have a good feeling for him.”

Incidentally, the gambling proposition was called V75. Huselius picked at least five winners out of seven races.

And no, V75 does not refer to the number of households in this country getting Versus.

(Double) Trivia time

What was the year and who was the winner of the first Kentucky Derby?

When did the winner first receive roses?

Being dopey

Former Kings and current Sharks player Jeremy Roenick was recently asked what he would have said if someone had told him last year that he would not be retired and, on top of that, taking part in these NHL playoffs.

“I would have laughed at you,” he said. “I would have thought you were crazy, doing something illegal.”

Legend buster

Welsh boxer Joe Calzaghe, speaking to reporters about Bernard Hopkins after their bout Saturday in Las Vegas:

“He still thinks he’s a legend. Roy Jones, he’s also a legend, isn’t he? But I’m a legend killer. Send in another one, and I’ll send them all packing.”

Bad blood

Arsenal goalkeepers Manuel Almunia and Jens Lehmann might be teammates, but they are also rivals.

Bitter ones.

“To have someone here who hates me is just amazing,” Almunia said in British news reports. “I know he hates me.’

Well, we don’t know about that, but we do know a “He Hate Me.” He played in the now-defunct XFL and is also known as Rod Smart, a former running back for the Oakland Raiders.

Trivia answer(s)

Aristides in 1875, when the distance of the race was 1 1/2 miles.

As for the roses, Ben Brush, in 1896, was the first Kentucky Derby winner to receive the floral honor.

And finally

Fully knowing his audience, golfer Jay Williamson had this to say to reporters after he recorded five consecutive birdies to open the first round of the Verizon Heritage on Thursday:

“I already know what you guys were saying, you thought it was a typo. Scorer’s error.

“I don’t know if I was thinking 59, but I don’t know if I’ve ever started out -- I’m not sure I ever started out with three birdies in a row at the start of the tournament. Let alone five. And at six I had about a 20-footer and I thought I made it. The ball went all around the hole.”

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lisa.dillman@latimes.com