A Bit Of Everything Sports

The Man In White - You Play To Win The Game

2011-08-11T09:19:00.003-04:00

If you ain’t Cheat’n you ain’t Try’n.

So now there is "Spy-Dome". Really? Really? Even if this is true I don’t see much of a story here. I understand that if you are on the field of play and you can intercept signs then more power to you. I suppose that there is another one of those unwritten rules in baseball that stealing signs is wrong, or is it? If you are smart enough or have the ability to steal another teams signs then that is an advantage you have. Just like having better players then the other team will give you an advantage. It does not mean you will necessarily win but it may give you an edge. Into the
alligations to the Blue Jays having a "Man in White" getting signals from another guy in center field and relaying them to the batter who has to focus on the pitcher who is going to throw a ball between 84 and 98 MPH and giving you a fraction of a second to react? Sound tough? Yeah, that is some kind of engineering, and that might just be giving Blue Jays batters too much credit to just how quick and/or smart they are. That is an awful lot to happen in a very condensed time period. Maybe there was someone doing what the "anonymous" bull pen sources from the unnamed team did. But maybe it was just a fan in the stands. Maybe it is no different then the 2 guys that sit in on home games at Rogers Centre with the umpire gear and mimic the actions of the home plate ump. Are they tipping balls a strikes to the pitcher? Stealing second or third base is stealing too, is that as bad?

J.P. Arencibia had a good line when asked about it and basically he said that if they had a method to steal signs and it was making a difference he wouldn’t be batting .200 right now. I say if you are going to use signs then it is on you to protect them. Catchers use a series when there is a man on second base. If they are that worried about stealing do that regardless of the situation.

If it happened cool, if not whatever, but chances are if they were cheating they should be a better team. if you are gong to cheat the least you can do is win.

The True Beautiful Game - BASEBALL

2011-08-08T19:20:00.004-04:00

I love baseball. Some people call it slow and boring and I can see their point. If you just look at it superficially i can see your point. I, however love the game and I watch it as not only a fan but also a someone who played the game.

When I played, and admittedly not at a super high level but played and played hard. I tried to pride myself on the details. I played the game with competitiveness and for a true passion for the game. Regardless of the level of play, be it Fastball (or windmill) Hardball (traditional baseball) or just a Men’s League Lob Ball (that one is self explanatory). I loved to think the game on the field. As a defensive specialist and Short-Stop I played it as the captain of the infield. I would remember what players did during past at bats, tendencies from past games and align players in positioning and any shifts that needed to be made. It was also a point of emphasis to know where to be at various times during game play. No matter where the ball was hit there is always a place for each player to be. It may be backing up a base or rotating around to cover possible angled throws. I would try to put myself in those positions and also other players as well. There is nothing more annoying when you know you could have gotten an out if a player had they just been in the right position and had their head in the game. It is these nuances that make me appreciate the game both playing an watching. For those who do not have that level of appreciation for the game I can see how watching an entire game may become tedious. Granted a nice cold beer and a hot dog while sitting in the stands does enhance the live experience.

TV slots games to fall into a 3 hour window. Usually a typical game will run about 2 1/2 hours. Get a good pitchers duel or a game with a Roy Halladay type and you can shave nearly a half hour off of that. Those are the games that are fun to watch and are wrapped up into a tight little package. Those are the games that you wish would go longer because they have good pace and are compelling. The better the flow the better the show. It seems that for whatever reason a Red Sox vs Yankee’s game can not go less then 4 hours. It is just the way it is. When those two teams play it is like watching paint dry... but not, that is what makes it strange. The games are usually fun and entertaining and it may not feel like the game is dragging but it still seems to take a ling time to get a game in. Heaven forbid the game goes into extra innings like it did Sunday Night and ended near 12:30am in the East. Maybe it is two many trips to the mound, two many big name players stepping out every pitch so they can be on camera more or longer. Sure it is usually two of the best teams scrapping it out in a fight for first place in the division but that should mean the game should go quicker with the best players available.

I hope that it does not become a trend that baseball losses its young fan base based on games that take to long to be completed. Kids and now even grown ups are in an instant gratification cycle now and everything has to be fast. This ADD/ADHD mentality (TWITTER and TEXTING i am looking in your direction) could be harmful to this beautiful sport and the fate of this great pass time.

A Glance at the Big Four

2011-07-08T15:48:00.005-04:00

It was great to see that even at age 39 my boy Chipper Jones was named to the MLB All Star Team. After coming off knee surgery last year and multiple injuries over the last few and couple with that talk of retirement it is good that he can add some more numbers to his Hall of Fame Career.

The NFL Lockout looks like thay might just get a deal done without missing any games. That would be a good thing for all parties. The fans don’t care who wins or who loses, just make sure that they are on the field in September.

The NBA also is in a lookout but their situation looks a lot more bleak. Even though it is still early there is little optimism that it will come to an end anytime in the foreseeable future. Not good for players who may not have overseas options like they may have thought and not good for the league which has had an image issue for years now. Even worse that after such a good playoffs this year that any good favour that was gained will go right down the drain.

The NHL may actually get a chance to gain back some market foothold if the NBA is out for any period of time. In the US and A the networks are going to have to fill airtime on radio and tv and if the NHL can start getting players and get some game discussion on these shows can only help grow the league. Jim Rome and Dan Patrick (who has NBC ties and guess who has NHL rights???) are both hockey guys and can talk the game if need be and be knowledgeable. It is just a matter of getting their listeners involved. This could be a very critical time in the acceptance of the game in the US.

MLB All Star game is next Tuesday. The game itself is the best of all the major sports because it lends itself to being played close to real game action. I still hate that it decides home field advantage in the World Series. If the game actually counts then: Not every team should be represented, fans should not get the ability to vote, Managers need to choose the most deserving players not just his own guys (see Tommy Hanson -vs- Tim Linsicum) and not every player should get to play or pitchers only going 1 inning. If the game is to mean something, play it and manage it like it does. If it is truly just for the fans that is fine but don’t put something on the line as important as home field.

Happy Canada Day!

2011-07-01T22:51:00.004-04:00

Quick Hits for this Holiday Evening.

~Free agency in the NHL is interesting when the only teams able to go out and spend money are the ones that can't afford it and just need to get to the cap floor.
~I have 3 teams that are fav's to cheer for/follow and none did much of anything today. That is not a bad thing as some of the signings were a bit suspect. Just not as exciting from a fan point of view. A new day and a clear head may not be the worse thing for those GM's.
~NBA Locked out players today...Prediction: NCAA basketball ratings will go through the roof and the NCAA tournament will be bigger then ever. To bad after such a classic NBA Championship Finals that now there is nothing positive in the near future.
~NFL also Locked Out
~NHL over half the team losing money and nearly $300M spent by teams on players today alone...yeah that is a great economic model well worth the lockout that they had a few years back.

THE NEXT TIGER?

2011-06-20T22:23:00.002-04:00

First off, lets not loose our heads here. As awesome and historic as Rory McIlroy's performance was at the US Open lets not have him chasing Tiger Woods or Nack Nicklaus down just yet. There have been some good performances by good young golfers in the past but few that have panned out into what we would call superstars who consistently do well in Majors or just on the PGA Tour.

Now what Rory did manage to do was unbelievable, especially how soon after his major collapse at Agusta in the Masters 4th round this was. For him to bounce back and not only play well, play consistent but also to go wire to wire for the victory gives us clear hope that maybe this kid can be one of those generational players that we can latch onto.

When he suffered such a disappointing round he did not hide, did not avoid the media, the questions nothing he owned it. He stood there and took everything that came at him like a man, no not even, took it like a PRO. This kid is 22 and there was questions on wether he would EVER be able to bounce back from such a devastating loss. Here we are just a few mere months removed from that event and he is holding the US Open trophy over his head....and it was never even close. He did it the hard way even. He went wire to wire and never shot above par once and all his rounds were in the 60’s. Granted he did not have a last round pairing with El Tiger but he stayed aggressive and ran away with the tournament.

Now we don’t want to get too far ahed of ourselves, lets let him win a second major before we put him up with the greats. Remember he has as many as Justin Rose does. The poise he showed all weekend and his behavior, his body language and his charm and his personality just seems to draw people to him. He is not a robot out there he seems to have fun but remain serious at the same time. Lets hope this is just the beginning for this young man as it could be a treat to watch him play for years to come

Mav's Take Their Tallents To South Beach

2011-06-13T22:14:00.005-04:00

It is a sad state of affairs when the one event that looks to have gotten me to begin blogging again is the NBA Finals. The NBA, the same league that will likely be in a lockout next year and unless there are some big concessions could be in jeopardy of missing not only the season but the playoffs too.

If that happens it will be terrible, but we can at least take with us the memories of one of the best NBA Finals in recent memory. This bad boy had everything. A historic comeback, the "Big 3", the under-rated superstar, the oldest player since Kareem to win in the finals and a sick superstar who played his best game of the series with a 103 degree temperature. I hate to use this word but it was Epic.

I was happy for Dirk, I was happy for Jason Terry and Jason Kidd, heck I was happy for Dallas in general but I think I was most happy for Mav’s owner Mark Cuban.
Cuban is probably to most outspoken owner of any of the major sports. He is also likley one of the most fined owner for his actions and comments. Usually people hate billionaires, but people love Cuban. What made the Mav’s win was how he sidestepped the limelight and let the playes and coaches take all the credit. He even had the original owner of the Mav’s accept the Larry O’Brien Trophy from the commissioner. He was all class and so was his entire team.

RICK CARLISLE: - Did a masterful almost ‘zen-like’ coaching job in this series. Every time Miami made an adjustment he countered it with something even better

LEBRON JAMES - Seemed to do what he has been criticized in past playoff games with both the Cav’s and the Heat for mailing it in. People be hate’n LeBron for his actions in coming to Miami and his actions and comments leaving after the finals. His post game comments showed that he is still either very immature, a snob or just on a different planet and just doesn’t get it. He may be the best skilled player in the league but he is not close to being the best player at this point in time.

DWAYNE WADE- The Heat are his team but not even his skill could will this team to a championship. Injuries didn’t help matters either.
Dirk drinks lke a champ too!!

DIRK NOWITZKI- Soft? NOPE, can’t say that anymore. His ‘Jordan Like’ game with a 103 degree fever and injured finger couldn’t even slow him down. Mr. 4th Quarter came up at money time and delivered. He was a machine, A leader on the court, a beast. He was made in Germany and you know that the Germans make good things, you know what I am saying camera guy?? Hmmm, maybe Sham WOW should become the exclusive suppliers for those guys who mop the floors under the basket after a player falls and needs those big mops to clean up the sweat.

For not being overly engaged with basketball this past season, the finals may have rekindled my interest in the pro game. I always like the NCAA and the Madness but now the Pros are making a strong push forward.

Well this felt good to get my first blog in after a way too long time off. Looks like I may just be back on the horse and I hope that all the people who have followed me consistently in the past will continue to do so again. I now also have a Twitter Account so I may look into that for update of new content on the blog but there will be more on that once I figure out how best to utilize it. Thanks for coming back and come back soon for hopefully regular updates again.

Drive for five complete

2010-11-21T18:58:00.003-05:00

Jimmie Johnson finished second at Homestead to win his fifth consecutive Cup Series title.

Time To Reconnect - A Blog's Return

2010-11-19T09:54:00.004-05:00

First off I need to make the following statement:

As it has been said by one of the great wordsmiths of our generation " Don’t call it a comeback I been here for years, Rockin’ my peers, Puttin’ suckers in fear, Makin’ the tears rain down like a monsoon - Listen to the bass go boom" - LL Cool J

The last month or so has been rough and I have just not had the energy to be creative as it relates to this Blog and for that I apologies. To those loyal readers I am sorry for the lack of content and updates and I will try my best to supply you with more sports news and opinions and maybe if all goes well some laughs too going forward. Time got away from me but I am back on the horse and It is time for some brief updates just to ease back into the game as it were.

My boy Jimmie Johnson is only a few points behind leader Denny Hamlin in the NASCAR Sprint Cup going into the last race of the season at Homestead Miami Speedway. This is the closest that the series’ Championship race has been since they changed to the "Chase" format. Also in contention is Kevin Harvick who, despite being more of a dark horse is still in a very good position to sneak up and take the lead an win his first Cup Championship. Jimmie Johnson is going for an unprecedented 5th straight championship and if he was able to pull of that minor miracle he would have to be in the discussion as the greatest driver ever. Sure he is probably one of the tops of all time but to string together a run for "Cinco" would be epic. I love the dynasty and seeing historic moments so I am rooting for that story line to play out but as a realist I think that unfortunately it may now be time for Denny Hamlin’s time to shine.

The World Series was taken again by the team with the best pitching and a surprising timely offence. This time it was the San Francisco Giants. What is the worst most sad aspect of this is that my Braves were 3 Brooks Conrad errors away from ousting the Giants in the Wild Card Round. Who knows what might have happened had they managed that final victory in Bobby Cox’s final playoff appearance...oh what could have been. But it what the "Mitch Kramer" look alike Tim Lincecum that led the team to the victory.

The Lakers are who we thought they were so if you want to crown them, then crown their asses. Kobe is still the man and lets just hope they have enough talent to take the title again. In that same line of thought lets hope the Heat don’t even get a sniff at the finals so we don’t have to deal with LeBron, Dwayne, and their tag along little brother like forward Chris Bosh. They could have saved them self a lot of trouble by just keeping Michael Beasley whom they gave away for nothing and is virtually the same player as Bosh. Granted the Raptors should have got Beasley in the sign and trade but that is just another bad personnel move by people at MLSE.

As for the Ottawa Senators they are in the middle of the pack, right where I figured they'd be. At the beginning of the season I was worried where the offence was going to come from and thus far I still have the same concern. They have a lot of depth on the team but without a true trigger man or two it is hard to get consistent scoring, even from the top players. It has been better of late but there is plenty of room for an upgrade on the first two lines. Only problem with that is that it is so hard to make deals. Getting what they need is far easier said then done. The defence is starting to help out offensively so that is good but you can't presume that that kind of help is going to consistently be there. We are near game 20, a traditional measuring point for a teams success going forward and it is what it is. Guess we will see where the team is at in another 15-20 and re-assess.

A Brave Celebration - Part 2 of 2

2010-10-06T11:00:00.001-04:00

So my Atlanta Braves only needed to win 2 games on the final weekend or win one and San Diego to lose 1 and they would clinch the Wild Card. The Padres needed to sweep San Francisco to force a tie and a one game playoff for the West Division Title. The loser of that game would then play the Braves in a Wild Card Playoff the next day. OK, so the Braves controlled their own destiny, can’t ask for much more then that...unless you decide to get the crap kicked out of you on Friday, get basically shut down completely on Saturday... neither of the games were started by Halladay or Oswalt either. Not a good position to be in going into a Sunday needing a victory to not only prolong the season for the team and the fans but also to do just that for the storied career of manager Bobby Cox.

As I do not have the MLB package and PeachtreeTV still being classified as a movie channel I was unable to watch the game. If I am not going to watch I don’t want to see updates during either of the two crucial ball games. 100% focus on Football where coverage is all NFL and nothing else.

While watching the game the out of town scores were up in the corner and in a glance I saw the score Braves 8 Phillies 2, it would have been around midway through the game. This was a relief and gave a sense of calm... cautious optimistic one might say. I continued with this until I felt like the game must be about done based on the elapsed time so I decided to check on the outcome of the game. The only problem with that was the game was not over and was in the top of the 9th and somehow the score had tightened up to a nerve wracking 8-7. You could almost feel it all just slipping off of the fingertips. The only "saving" grace was that old man Wagner came in to shut the door in the 9th with 3 nasty cutters that sealed the deal and but the Braves in a Wild Card position pending the outcome of the San Diego San Francisco game.
Yeah, there was more drama then that was needed, but that is what happens when you blow the two previous weekend games.

So It is off to San Fran and that game. This one I kept an eye on the score a little more closely. 2-0 for the majority of the game, but in the back of the mind I was just waiting for that Trolly to fall off the tracks. Buster Posey added a little insurance with a solo home run and Brian Wilson - not that one - came in to save the game looking like a cross between Jeff Reardon and Ricky Vaughn. He slammed the door shut on the Padres season clinching the West for San Francisco and setting up a first round match up between the Giants and the Braves.

So despite all the drama and all the critical injuries to a couple of the top Braves players (Chipper Jones & Martin Prado) everything is now set and right. The Braves are in the Playoffs and kicks things off on Thursday and Bobby Cox can continue to do what he does and lead his team.

GO BRAVES!!

A Brave(s) Celebration - Part 1 of 2

2010-10-05T10:03:00.003-04:00

Well, my Atlanta Braves had a nice ceremony before a packed house at Turner Field before the game Saturday versus the Philadelphia Phillies. The attendance was the most for a baseball game in either Atlanta Foulton County Stadium or Turner Field of all time. I was nice to see a packed house in Atlanta, It has been a long time. The occasion was to celebrate the career and contributions of their manager Bobby Cox. Cox will be retiring at the end of the season, which was prolonged by some gut wrenching baseball, but I will get to that.

Cox is the only manager that I gave really ever known since I began following the Braves in the Early 90’s. Until that point I was Blue Jays thru and thru but there was something about the Braves when I was first exposed to them in 1991 when they went to the World Series versus the Twins.
Bobby was hired as manager first in 1978 but was fired in 1981 and replaced by Joe Torre who led the team to their first divisional title since 1969. Cox landed with the Blue Jays in 82 and managed until 1985. At that time Cox went back to Atlanta as the General Manager. Bobby began to build his team over the next few years and in 1990 decided to replace Russ Nixon with himself, where the team ended with the worst record in baseball, at 65–97. Apparently Bobby knew what type of team he was building and figured he was the best person to lead them. Apparently he was right because for 14 straight years (OK a strike may have gotten in the way and maybe the Expos would have won the World Series but unfortunately we will never know) the Braves won their division and won one World Series. I don’t know what it was that attracted me to the team but I am glad that I attached my fan cart to that teams horse.

The Braves, in celebrating Cox presented him with a very nice portrait of him up on the top step of the dugout, a bench that was made of baseball bats and balls (autographed by the team) and a nice new car. Apparently he has enough pickup trucks that they thought he should also have a car. My favorite player, one Mr. Chipper Jones, who does not do a lot of talking, presented a nice speech to commemorate Bobby and his time with the Braves and all his years in Baseball.
This is the conclusion to part 1 of the end of the Braves 2010 Regular Season. Part 2 will be the gut wrenching way the Braves extended their season and managed to obtain the Wild Card birth on the last day of the season. Stay tuned for that soon.

Around The Horn

2010-09-30T15:18:00.003-04:00

Google Images saved Troy Woolfolk a Michigan Football Player From Going ‘to Jail’. Woolfork forgot his license and had to rely on his smartphone to "Google" himself to prove to police his identification. Had he not done so he would have been taken to jail.
As it was stated...The real lesson is that it’s okay to forget your license or your smart phone, but not both.

Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant was in the news during training camp for not carrying Roy Williams pads, not knowing the rookie ritual. To make up for that misstep he took on paying for dinner for the entire team to make amends. A few more players then he may have thought showed up or maybe he knew what he was getting into. In any event the damage of the meal was reported to be $54,896. Bryant is making $2.8 million this season so no one should feel too bad for him.

Until today I was unaware that Chad Ochocinco had a cereal, now I am glad he does. There is a number on the box that directs customers to donate to help feed the children...however the phone number is supposed to connect callers to the charity, which benefits from sales of the Cincinnati Bungles wide receiver’s cereal was incorrect and it sends callers to a Sex Line. On Wednesday, Chad had urged fans to go to his web site to order the cereal and "Start your day with a lil suga!!!". New boxes are to be in production soon and the incorrect boxes have been taken off the shelves. What are the odds that something like this would happen to Ochocinco... too funny!
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday that he is against kicking women’s hockey out of the Olympics and it would be a "huge mistake," Based on his popularity with the IOC and the IIHF this may be like the "vote of confidence" that a GM will give a coach. Bettman can only do more harm then good sow trying to stick up for the woman’s game is probably more harmful. If it does get to stay as an Olympic sport it may be in spite of his comments. The guy just seems to be toxic to anyone who isn’t an owner of an NHL Team.

Quick Hits

2010-09-29T14:16:00.003-04:00

It has been too long since I have updated the blog. I will have to be more diligent in the future. With the NHL getting ready to start up its regular season I am sure that more regular updates will be made. Once the teams break camp there will likely be something to comment on on a regular basis. Some good, some bad but that is the fun of it. As for right now just a few "Quick Hits" from around the various sports as we all hold our collective breaths for some real game action in hockey and post season baseball (the kind of ball that is meant to be played and every pitch is watched and scrutinized as a potential turning point or momentum changer)...almost getting goose bumps just thinking about it.

And now the Quick Hits:

~ Ben Roethlisberger is one week away from completing his suspension. I say leave him on the bench and let ex-Lion Charlie Batch keep playing. He’s paid his due playing in Detroit and holding a clipboard for the last several years.

~David Frost of the Frost/Danton fame is in LA selling Hockey equipment under an alias that is his wife’s maiden name. Even if it is above board it still leaves a bad taste in people’s mouths.

~On the TSN Site, Jesse Palmer shares his thoughts on Eli Manning committing the biggest no-no for a quarterback and with a straight face did not bring up going on the Bachelor. For a guy who was the backup for the Giants to say anything is just funny.

~The sad reality is that we are getting closer and closer to basketball starting. I love watching basketball but I am already Lebron’d out and they haven’t even hit camp yet.

~My Braves are trying as best they can to play their way out of the playoffs and the Wild Card hunt. I want the team to do well on a selfish level as a fan, but more so for Bobby Cox who will be retiring at the end of the season. A nice gift would be a return to the post season for one of the true greats all time in baseball. Lets home they can pick it up in the last few games and give their bench boss a proper send off. The Jays couldn't do it for Cito so maybe the Tomahawk has a little magic left in it.

Lions and Stafford and Andrews, OH My

2010-09-16T10:25:00.005-04:00

The hard luck Detroit Lions lost yet another game on a blown call. Calvin Johnson’s apparent game winning reception was ruled incomplete for no reason and even by the letter of the rule I still don’t believe that the correct call was "interpreted" by the referees. He clearly had the ball palmed the ball across the plane of the end zone both feet in bounds, arm down, sitting on his butt. At that point he got up using the ball for leverage and then willingly and on purpose let go of the ball...sounds like a catch in my books. The Lions needed this win and for that call to go their way for many reasons; a) they are the Lions and they never get a break, b) It is a bad rule and an even worse interpretation c) I have Calvin Johnson on my fantasy team and I REALLY could have used those points d) Not only did they loose the game but they lost their starting QB Matt Stafford after he was injured and will now be missing likely 1-6 weeks due to an injured shoulder. He doesn’t seem to need surgery but this could prove to be a big red flag for the lions as Stafford ended last season on IR.

Stafford went down to Alabama and met with a man that needs no introduction in the sports community and is probably one of the most famous doctors in the world. All you have to do is hear his name and you can almost diagnose the problem yourself and what is going to be done with many of your favorite players. I speak of course to the doctor with the Rock Star status...Dr. James Andrews. Dr. Andrews is an orthopedic surgeon and is regarded in the sports world as the leading expert on shoulders, elbows and forearms...just about the entire arm and sometimes he will even branch out and have a look see at the occasional knee; ACL, MCL, PCL...he does not discriminate.

Dr. Andrews who is currently approaching 70 and is getting older. What happens when he retires? Where will everyone go, what will players do? How will the fans know what is going on with their stars and who will become the new go to guy in the world of orthopedic surgery. Who will do all the Tommy John Surgeries?

It is almost funny that Dr. Andrews name is nearly as famous as the procedures that he preforms when doing Tommy John reconstruction.

* Bob Sanders has undergone surgery to repair the torn right biceps muscle that he suffered in the season-opener against Houston. Famed orthopedist Dr. James Andrews performed the operation on Sanders

The Beach Is Closed

2010-09-09T13:48:00.006-04:00

THE AVP

July 21, 1983 - August 13,2010

It was a sad day on a personal level when I learned the news that the AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) was forced to suspend operations and prematurely end the 2010 season due to financial hardships.

Commissioner Mike Dodd had this statement following the announcement:
"Through the course of this investor search we have encountered individuals and groups with intelligence, common sense and a passion for the game of beach volleyball," said Mike Dodd, AVP commissioner. "Unfortunately, the time constraints were such that pulling the trigger on the amount of money necessary to salvage this season were too great. Ironically this sad news comes as we approach the 50th anniversary of the Manhattan Open, our sport’s crown jewel and the one event that showed us all we could dream big. The Open has seen its ups and downs over the years and always persevered. I’m sure our sport will do the same."

This was a tough thing to hear but also a tough thing to learn. It was nearly a week before I was even aware that this decision was made which I was a little put off by. The first that I had heard of this news was that I got an SI alert that involved Keri Walsh’s name when she threatened to boycott the revamped Manhattan Beach Open because the beach volleyball tournament won’t be played under the accepted international rules.

Until that point I was unaware that the AVP was no more. The fact that there was no news reports I guess speaks to just how niche the sport really is. Volleyball is far from easy to find on the TV dial and only for 1-2 hours every few weeks could you find one or the other Men’s or Women's finals on ABC. You can almost never find Indoor matches even during the times when the World Championships are on.

Unfortunately for the sport people only see it every 4 years at the Olympics and when it is out of sight it is out of mind. It is too bad I always looked forward to when there were games on the tube. Hopefully some more FIVB tour games will be televised in Canada/US but only time will tell. It would be best if they could get a real strong title sponsor and could make the AVP financially viable but that could be tough.

Beach volleyball became an Olympic sport in 1996 and it was helped by the quality of play and players on the AVP tour that helped bring the sport to the foreground.

A committed group, a strong title sponsor and network help will all have to come together to get this back up and running and keep it strong. There is a lot of talent on the beach and unless these games are going to be played on North American TV and on North American soil and not just overseas.

As a fan and a televised sports viewer I cross my fingers that there will be more Volleyball on TV, ether on the beach, indoor, NCAA, International - whatever.

Woman's Hockey - The Fight For Survival

2010-08-30T12:00:00.000-04:00

Late last week the 4 day summit on the state of hockey on various levels and both the men's and woman's games drew to a close. The day 4 focus was where the game is more so internationally in the woman's game. We all know that there are really just 2 teams at the top of the mountain, Canada and the USA then there are the rest. Sure there are some countries that are making some great strides over the last few years to make their woman's programs a little more competitive but there is still a big gap. The big question continues to be how big is this gap and is there enough ground being made up on a year by year basis by the lesser countries to make woman's hockey a viable option in the Olympics.

It is great when you are Canadian and you know that the worst you are going to finish is 2nd but if it all goes by the waste side what is the point. When you get 2 good teams like Canada and the USA play you get a good game and they put on a good product. If the other countries can make a solid effort and keep growing then the game will make it on its own merit and this won't be an issue after the next Olympics.

The woman are looking to create a strong "pro league" and that can only help grow not only the sport but the overall awareness and maybe get more players involved at younger ages if they know that there is actually something to aspire to and shoot for. I look at a woman's North American Pro League like that of junior hockey. When we see players on the national team, either on the USA or Canada we can choose our favorites but after that tournament they are gone from our sports viewing. if they went back to club teams then you can follow them better and become fans. It is similar to professional wrestling, in the past there were all these regional promotions and splinter cells all around. Then they were all eventually absorbed into bigger more national entities. then you get a WCW/WWE type production which is big. Bigger names, more recognisable players and teams and a stronger more structured set up (provided that it is done correctly). I think that there would be a market for that and with the right amount of team in the right markets it could not grow the game and thrive but help good players from other countries have a chance to not only play with better players but also and maybe more importantly practice with better players and coaches.

I like the men's game for the tough and skilled play, but I also like the woman's game with little or no hitting because it make the game faster and more free flowing. the less contact the less obstruction and the faster the pace. The skill can still be there and tempers can still get high but it doesn't happen as often or needlessly. If there are 2 things that I just can't stand is every time there is a whistle that all the players have to skate into a pile and start face-washing each other and the other is every time a player gets hit there has to be a fight. Even if the hit is clean players seem to think that everything needs to looked at as being predatory and "If you are a good teammate you'll stick up for your guy". What a load of crap...clean is clean, just play the game. It is a collision game, collisions will happen.

Both men's and woman's games have pros and cons but one thing they have in common is they both deserve to stay as Olympic Sports.

What Is Wrong With Today's Youth?

2010-08-24T14:26:00.003-04:00

The Little League World Series is going on in Williamsport, Pennsylvania was on ABC this past weekend. Since, once again Canada has not sent a team that is in a position to compete for the title (especially after loosing to Taiwan 23-0). This is fun baseball to watch even though the field looks sooooo tiny.

Sadly what stuck out to me the most was the uniforms that the kids were wearing. Lets get one thing straight - It is NOT OK for the little douche slacker kids walking around the streets with their ironed flat billed hats, especially if they are ones that sport the logo of real teams, even worse when it is "blinged" out NY or LA hats with a picture of the skyline ion them. It is even worse when this look moves to the playing field. These Justin Beiber Looking M-F’ers wearing their hats like this on the playing field is not only annoying but is mocking the uniform and the integrity of the game. If I were the manager I would have these kids bending the brim and looking like they belong on the team and the field.

I blame the C.C. Sabathia’s of the sport for wearing their hats like this. Thankfully in the majors it is the exception not the rule that players are adopting this ridiculous look. In any event, someone needs to get to the youth of today and put a stop to the straight brimmed hipster doufaced slacker look, not just on the streets but more importantly on the baseball field.

The Sounds of Baseball - Can You Feel It?

2010-08-05T15:33:00.010-04:00

"The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America is ruled by it like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and that could be again. Oh, people will come, Ray. People will come most definitely come."
--James Earl Jones,
from Field of Dreams (1989)

Baseball is America’s pass time. Sure, through the years and the growth of technology it has had a more difficult time staying on top of the cultural landscape but to those who have either been in the bridge period and have experienced both the electronic age and the days where it was not uncommon to only get 1 game a week on TV or only be able to enjoy baseball games on the radio using the skill of the broadcaster and your own imagination to really appreciate how special the game is. It is a game with distinctive sounds that is en grained in us. Whether it is from the voices on the radio like the icons from the past like Ernie Harwell, Jack Buck, Mel Allen, Harry Caray, Red Barber and Vin Scully. Baseball just seems to have its own personality and also be home of great personalities.

"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving infant’s life, she will choose to save the infant’s life without even considering if there is a man on base."
– Dave Barry

I recall the sounds of the game while listening to Blue Jays Baseball with Tom Cheek and Jerry Howarth on the radio. At the time it was the main source of play by play that you could get. Jays games were covered well on radio and were available. You were lucky if CTV had a Sunday and maybe a Wednesday game on, but that was VERY RARE. There was usually a game of the week but unless you were a Yankee’s fan that was all you were going to get. It was regional games and that was your region.

I then got cable and that was the beginning of more exposure. More exposure and more games led to more variety. It was then that I began to embrace America’s team as my own and they quickly became my favorite team. These were the Atlanta Braves. It was the TBS Superstation that had a big part to play in this. It was a team that had its own network and was shown all over and had just about every game (granted the 14 consecutive division titles didn’t hurt either). They employed 4 of the classic voices that I now associate with baseball. The late Skip Carey, Pete Van Wieren, Joe Simpson and Don Sutton.

For me it always comes down to the sounds, the sounds of the game and the music that is associated with it. It is strange how a few chimes of music can take you back to a simpler time, a time when the most important thing was turning a double play or getting that timely. The Atlanta Braves Tomahawk Chop, and various ‘pump up the crowd organ music. The theme music when certain players enter (eg. Chipper Jones and Crazy Train or Mariano Rivera and Enter Sandman). Perhaps even to a lesser extent OK, Blue Jays. The intro to Blue Jays Baseball, The MLB Theme from FOX, the Sunday Night Baseball Theme from ESPN and the one that takes me back to when I was just a kid the theme music from TWIB (This Week In Baseball), that still sometimes gives me goose-bumps. Oh, and let us not forget the most famous of them all... ‘Take Me Out To The Ballgame’.

"Why does everybody stand up and sing ‘Take Me Out to the Ballgame’ when they’re already there?"
--Larry Andersen

Even music from baseball movies have a special feeling to them and their ties to the game. The music from The Natural-when Roy Hobbs hits that epic home run. Just about every 3rd scene from Field of Dreams. It seemed that even the background music from that move made you "feel baseball". Even hearing ‘Wild Thing’ and seeing Charlie Sheen with those skull black glasses.

"Baseball statistics are like a girl in a bikini. They show a lot, but not everything."
-- Toby Harrah

In a game that is more a game then a sport it has captivated fans and has survived the test of time. Sure there has been many a dark day but they always seem to get through it. The 1919 Black Sox scandal, the exclusion of negro players and how long it took for those ballplayers to not only get to play but actually get a fair shake. Now, more then anytime before the cloud over the game has cast a very ugly shadow. Steroids, Amphetamines , HGH, PEDS have tainted the purity of the game and it is just now looking to be getting clean or cleaner the cheats are always a few steps ahead of the good guys.

Just remember:
"A hot dog at the ballgame beats roast beef at the Ritz."
-- Humphrey Bogart

A SIMPLE EXPLANATION OF BASEBALL

2010-08-02T13:14:00.003-04:00

This is a game played by two teams, one out the other in. The one that’s in, sends players out one at a time, to see if they can get in before they get out. If they get out before they get in, they come in, but it doesn’t count. If they get in before they get out it does count. When the ones outget three outs from the ones in before they get in without being out, the team that’s out comes in and the team in goes out to get those going in out before they get in without being out. When both teams have been in and out nine times the game is over. The team with the most in without being out before coming in wins unless the ones in are equal. In which case, the last ones in go out to get the ones in out before they get in without being out. The game will end when each team has the same number of ins out but one team has more in without being out before coming in.

Sportsnet ONE to launch on August 14

2010-07-28T20:51:00.005-04:00

Here is the storey on Sportsnet regarding their new channel... I will give my opinion on this soon but in the mean time read this and gear up for more live sports...It may not be ESPN but it may be a start or at least an improvement.

http://www.sportsnet.ca/one/

Sportsnet ONE to launch on August 14

Canadian sports fans will have another channel -- and hours of more live sports -- to choose from when Sportsnet ONE launches on Aug. 14.

More than 800 hours of live sports programming -- featuring the Toronto Blue Jays, Toronto Raptors and Barclays Premier League soccer -- will be available to viewers across the country, the bulk of it in high definition, on the 24-hour national sports digital channel.

Also scheduled to be broadcast are other MLB games, including the Seattle Mariners, and various NBA games.

"We know there is an incredible appetite for live-event sports, and we plan to fulfill that need," Doug Beeforth, president of Rogers Sportsnet, said Tuesday. "We are confident that Sportsnet will be a must watch for Canadian sports fans, and a great addition to the sports broadcasting landscape in Canada."

Sportsnet ONE launches Aug.14 at 12 noon, beginning with a Barclays Premier League match featuring defending champion Chelsea and West Brom, followed by a 4 pm ET / 1 pm PT MLB game and then the Blue Jays vs. Los Angeles Angels at 9 pm ET / 6 pm PT.

"Sportsnet ONE is the perfect complement to our four regional channels," said Beeforth. "We have established a reputation for live events on Rogers Sportsnet, and Sportsnet ONE continues that tradition."

Rogers Media, which owns Sportsnet ONE as well as the existing four Sportsnet channels (East, Ontario, West and Pacific), received approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) for a category mainstream sports channel license in March. Sportsnet ONE will be a national channel with the ability to broadcast regional content.

The Le-Gong Show

2010-07-09T10:29:00.003-04:00

Wow, what a sceptical and what a joke last nights LeBron infomercial was. That was the most un-necessary, over hyped egotistical and poorly produced thing they could have done. It is bad enough that ESPN, who usually prides itself as being at the very least as a network that does a good job at the programs they put on the air, failed miserably. Softball questions, no before and after reaction from the towns an array of interviews with LeBron by different people asking the same questions and not getting very satisfying answers.

It was a dick move to put yourself ahead of not only the league but to hold the other teams hostage, to not let them know was one of many poor decisions from the James camp. Not letting the Heat know (Allegedly) until minutes before. Doing it the way he did it was just one big giant middle finger to the Cavs fans, the team and maybe even the state.

Sure it may be an exciting team to watch now with James, Bosh and Wade but it would have been easier to accept if done professionally and through the correct and regular channels. I will root for Wade to succeed but as of now Lebron is so far down my depth chart of athletes that I like it will be hard to recapture his original standing. He is a huge talent for sure but in my eyes...and many others he is just a spoiled rich kid looking for camera time.

If you are going to move move, thats fine. It is a business and this does give the best chance for Championships but just be humble about it. He went from the most popular person in the league to probably, unless you are a Heat Fan as one of the most disliked. I relate it to the WWE where the once good guy bashes another good guy in the head with a chair and instantly turns into a heal (or bad guy), and the people say "Why? You used to be so good, why would you disappoint us like this?"

At least the Heat will get a boost in ticket sales and NBA merchandising money

LeBron-A-Thon

2010-07-08T10:49:00.003-04:00

The LeBron-A-Thon has almost reached the climax and it could not have come any sooner. This media driven hype factory has been more aggravating then the annual Brett Favre saga that we have to sit through every year. Now, on the plus side with other terrible events going on like the world cup, at least some of the focus has been deflected from it.

So tonight is the night that it is all to go down with an hour long "Selection Show" on the ‘Mother Ship’ aka. ESPN. This is an unprecedented move for a free agent to take up an hours worth of network programming to make an announcement of this nature. They say that the money raised will be going to the Boys and Girls Club of America. A transparent attempt to cover a narcissistic, self indulgent, 1 hour infomercial. Nothing says needy kids like The Boys and Girls Club in Greenwich Connecticut. If you wasn’t to help the kids donate some of your millions that you are going to make under this new contract or better yet some of your time. Not everything needs to be a sceptical. If you are trying to grow a Global Brand in LeBron Inc. This type of behavior and action is not going to help public image.

The other 2 big players were Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. Wade seemed to do things right and did his other meetings with other teams but didn’t make a show of it. Bosh on the other hand took a camera crew to his interviews with all the teams for a documentary his production company is going to make. That with all the tweets and what not was aggravating but not to the level LeBron took it. Wade and Bosh have decided to land in South Beach with the Heat so at least that ended that. Now if James goes there it will be interesting to see what other pieces they add to them to take a run at some championships.

Question: Does Will Smith make some money on royalties tonight when Lebron grabs the Heat Hat and "I'm going too Miami" starts playing and the light show and confetti begins?

It is funny that at the end of the day, if all 3 end up with the Heat that the one that was the quietest and most professional will be the leader of the team. Make no mistake this is WADE’s Team. If LeBron wanted to be the Michael Jordan type guy he would be the leader of his own team like Mike was, like Kobe is, not just a complementary player...an All Star and maybe talent wise one of the best ever but not the face of the team.

The Neverending Match Ended

2010-06-24T12:05:00.005-04:00

Love Tennis? Hate Tennis? Don’t care about Tennis? It doesn’t matter in this case. This is one of those stories that is just something that transcends the sport. This is not just an achievement in terms of an athletic feat but it is just captivating in terms of the magnitude of this one match.

The longest match up to this point was 6 hours, 33 minutes, set at the 2004 French Open, and the previous record for longest-ever fifth set was a mere 40 games. That pales in comparison to today’s match between American and 23rd seeded John Isner and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut. This match has not only been suspended once due to darkness When the score was 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7-9), 7-6 (7-3) . Then they came back for the 5th and deciding set the next day. That 5th set made for the longest match in history and then it also got suspended due to darkness when the match was ties 59-59 in games. Each player has held serve the entire set and just keep going back and forth.

The two greatest match I have seen have both been at Wimbledon. One was Roger Federer vs Nadal and the other was Federer vs Andy Roddick. No one is accusing this as being games of that nature. Those were exciting well played edge of your seat action with the trophy on the line. This is more like a boxing match without a 12 or 15 round limit. This is where both guys are getting their shots in and it is just back and forth shot for shot and the first mistake will likely cost one of these young men the game.

The thing with this game is that we may not remember the names of these guys 5 years from now but we will remember the match as the "Lamb Chop Match"....the one that ‘Will never end, yes it goes on and on my friends, some people started singing it, not knowing what it was, and they’ll continue singing it forever just because...’ it is an unbelievable feat not just in terms of time but of games played and the will of these two athletes.

And it is over 70-68 for the 23rd ranked John Isner and his 112 aces. And thus concludes one of the craziest tennis matches that you may ever see or hear about again in 11+ hours. For a first round match a lot of effort and energy was extended.
To put it all in perspective the first 4 sets went 2h 54min the 5th set alone lasted longer then the LONGEST MATCH EVER 8h 11min over 3 days...cricket matches end faster then this did...WOW.
note: I am usually wrong when it comes to making wagers on the Proline but I will throw this out there...bet on whomever either of these guys plays in the next round...these gentlemen will almost have to be spent after this and after 3 days of play for one match there may be some scheduling issues that may creep into play. Also look to see these dudes in some Degree, AXE or Old Spice Deodorant/antiperspirant commercial in the near future!

The Wizard of Westwood

2010-06-17T12:59:00.004-04:00

It has been close to 2 weeks now but I didn’t want to not touch on the passing of arguably one of the best coaches, not just in basketball but in any major team sport.
UCLA’s icon John Wooden passed away June 4th in his 99th year. He is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player (inducted in 1961) and as a coach (inducted in 1973). He was the first person ever enshrined in both categories. Only two others since have had that honour.

All he did as a coach was win. This is shown by the ten NCAA National Championships in a 12-year period while at UCLA. 3 of his tems went through perfect and undefeated. Also he was a winner off the court in his teaching of his players and just regular people alike. His Pyramid of Success is part of what made him so great as a teacher of both basketball and life.The Pyramid of Success consists of philosophical building blocks for winning at basketball and at life. In his later years he was hired by corporations to deliver inspirational lectures and even appeared in commercials for Hartford Insurance and the NCAA.

Some of Woodens Maxims include:
• Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.
• Flexibility is the key to stability.
• Be quick, but don’t hurry.

I am glad to say that I was able to get this All Time Greats autograph before he passed away and also received a card with information about the Pyramid of Success and his 7 point creed. Pretty cool to get something like that from a legend.

Seven Up-In LA

2010-06-16T11:02:00.004-04:00

It is a nice thing to see a good team actually play as a team, play with effort and play with heart. The Lakers are a good team and when they show up and play with some urgency they make shots, force turnovers, get rebounds, play good defence and force good luck and good bounces.

While watching the Lakers-Celtics game 6 last night, although one-sided it was still good to watch, especially as a Kobe and Lakers fan. When the team you are rooting for manages a victory in the double digits and the game never in doubt you can sit back and watch a game and enjoy it for what it is and not fear that this could be the end of the line.

The Lakers bench and rest of the team for that matter actually showed up to play and played with a little fire. Ron Artest looked focused and didn’t try to force things. Lamar Odom looked at least a little less laid back and was a solid contributor and Pau Gasol gave a good solid game. The team actually helped Kobe and gave him the option of using them...but more importantly trusting them. Kobe has not taken more then 30 shots in an game win or lose. For him to be criticized for jacking up too many shots in game 5 and not using his team is silly. If your team isn’t helping you, sometimes you have to take over. It is not selfish to put the team on your back, sometimes the best have to be the best. The unfortunate thing for Kobe is he can’t win unless he wins. IF they lose and he put up 40 he is a ball hog, if he only get 18 then he had a bad game or was contained. If they win and he has the same numbers he was a leader on the court with 40 or he made his teammates better with 18...damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

All I know now is there is going to be a Game 7 at the Staples Centre on Thursday night and it is for all the marbles and should be a tight well played game and will likely go down to the wire...and I have no idea what happen, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the Celtics came out and take the game.

We will see how it all goes down on the court.

Chipper To Talk To Braves Management

2010-06-15T15:05:00.002-04:00

Chipper Jones has hinted that his retirement could be near. It looks like the 38-year-old, six-time All-Star might be ready to make that call when he sits down today with the Braves.

More on this when I hear more.... Chipper is my favorite player and I fear that his end may be near with my Braves. This might be a tough one to take.

World Cup? I'll Pass...Since That Is All They Do Anyway

2010-06-11T12:53:00.006-04:00

All signs are pointing to this being the end. Yes it has in fact been 4 years already and unfortunately that means that the World Cup of Soccer is now at hand, silly FIFA. Now there is some saving grace that the games are during the morning hours so I shouldn’t accidental trip over a broadcast but that doesn’t save me from the ‘highlights’ on shows like SportsCenter. Even the local sports radio station, the Team 1200 is bending over for this event. Not only are they bringing in the Team 990 soccer guy in the mornings, Noel Butler (who’s show by the way is called Oranges at Halftime..brutal), They are having a former employee call in the afternoon show to talk footy, they are picking up the ESPN soccer wrap up show in the evenings as well. Then there is the regular ‘new’ show called ‘Corner Kicks’ on Thursdays. This is just not cool. You can hardly get baseball coverage on the ‘all sports format’ but your airways are polluted with this garbage, where is the justice.

The only thing worse then watching soccer is listening to people talk about soccer. I understand the interests as it related to kids, it is inexpensive and is good exercise TO PLAY. To follow as a competition, no thanks. Even to gamble on it is not fun, half the time the games look not to be on the up and up and with the probability of a nil-nil draw on the pitch so high one never sees the offensive explosion of a 2-1 game happening, those bastards come out of nowhere!

Here is the soccer breakdown for this month long margarine known as the World Cup in 3...2...1

‘Blake kicks the ball with high hopes that it will enter the goal, but it does not.’

I know we promised you soccer highlights, so let me just tell you that England beat USA one-nothing, Ivory Coast beat South Africa one-nothing, Uruguay beat South Korea one-nothing, and Italy beat Brazil 2-1 in an offensive slug fest. A modest proposal - make the nets bigger.

A tip of the cap to the character Dan Rydell for the inspiration and partial quotes as it relates to soccer.

Remember here at abitofeverythingsports.blogspot.com I’ll bring you the thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat, and because we’ve got soccer highlights, the sheer pointlessness of a zero-zero tie.

It's Strasmus in Washington

2010-06-09T12:43:00.003-04:00

Stephen Strasburg, the Washington Nationals young pitcher and last year’s No. 1 overall draft pick who went on to sign a record US $15.1 million contract before stepping onto a major League Diamond, went beyond the hype by striking out 14 batters in his electric major league debut. Unfortunately that may have been the worse thing he could have done. You always want to make your first game memorable but that in itself comes with a lot of extra baggage.

With a standing-room-only crowd cheering every pitch, the Washington Nationals phenom put on a dazzling display of pitching power Tuesday night in a 5-2 win over Pittsburgh. He was only touched up once on a 2 run home run but the rest of the time looked virtually untouchable. His fastballs topped 100 mph., and his nasty curves fell off the table and made opposing batters look silly standing in the box. What was equally as impressive was that he managed to do it in 94 pitches - just shy of the limit imposed by management before the game -- and 65 were strikes. He threw strikes and worked fast.

Usually when there is this much hype it doesn’t live up to it...not this time, the kid was SICK. That being said there is the fear that a) It was versus the Pirates sand that he still has yet to face a Major League Team and b) he may set the bar too high to soon. Every start from now on will be compared to this game...a tall order for a seasoned vet let alone a 21 year old fireballer. How does he respond when he gets roughed up in a start? There have been Phenoms before him that have looked good only to flame out (Mark Prior and Kerry Wood), lets hope that is not the case for this kid. Only time will tell if he has a Hall of Fame arm or is just a flash in the plan. In any event it was one of the most exciting regular season games, maybe ever. When each team plays 162 games a year it is rare that one has she sound and feel that there was in DC last night.

The 28-Out Perfect Game

2010-06-08T12:40:00.005-04:00

By now I am sure most people have heard about Armando Galarraga’s "Perfect Game" that was taken from him by a blown call from 1st Base Umpire Jim Joyce. Many people have had varied opinions on the subject to how this all should have been handled and was it indeed handled correctly.

Given the circumstances I think that mistakes were made on both sides but in the long run it may make this one games stand out and pass the test of time. This will likely be the game that changes baseball forever. This will most likely make baseball expand the use to some sort of new system for instant replay. No small feat for baseball who does not like to adopt change unless it is set in motion by them and on its own timetable. The 28-out perfect game proved to be in many ways a goodwill storey rather then the storm of controversy like the numerous blown calls in last years playoffs resulted in.

Why is this better? Joyce, upon seeing the replay said that he knew he blew the call and ‘kicked the shit’ out of the call. That the poor kid worked his butt off just to have it taken away from him. Most officials from any other sport would have not addressed the media and would have been ‘protected’ by the union. The fact that Joyce got ahead of it and also made a point to go to the tigers dressing room and apologize to Galarraga made a huge difference on how we perceive this mistake. Next is the way that Galarraga reacted while on the field and handled the situation. Most players would flip out and explode with rage, but not Armando, he smiled...smiled. Sure part was in disbelief but the level of maturity and sportsmanship that he showed is the attitude that kids should emulate. They say that athletes should not be role models, maybe but Galarraga may be the exception to that as well.

Did Bud Selig do the right thing by not overturning the call?? Unfortunately yes, you can’t change a call no matter when it happens in a game after the game, even if it ends play and nothing else is to be decided. Sure it is their fault for being too far behind and not dealing with this inevitability sooner in terms of a replay rule but baseball is never quick to make any change. Who is to say that a simmilar call that happened in the 3rd inning doesn't effect everything that happens going forward. The approach to a hitter will change as the circumstances do. What should have happened was there should have been a conference on the field at the time involving the 4 umpires. At that time of the game with a Perfect Game on the line, everyone in the stadium knew what they were seeing and that includes the other 3 umpires. One (or more) should have had the balls to get the 4 guys together and make the correct call. The second base umpire surely had a good view of the play, all eyes would be on first, someone in a position of authority should have stepped up and helped make the correct call, even if it may "embarrass" a colleague. When even the runner can't believe he was called safe chances are the call may not be correct.

There may have been only 20 perfect games ever thrown but it is the 3rd (had it counted) in less then a month. This one will have a lot more staying power for the way it went down then any other. If Galarraga is at all concerned about his place in history going forward he need not. This game will be linked with perfect games forever, some of his gear has been requested to go to the Hall of Fame, the Tigers organization rewarded him with a Corvette. He gets all the pub and knows what he did was the real deal and if he can handle all that he should be just fine.

The Weekend That Was

2010-05-31T16:50:00.011-04:00

It is too bad that the weekend produced nothing to talk about around the water cooler today, a rare miss for the sports world. Unless you count; Game 1 of the Stanley Cup that was a game full of mistakes but was by all accounts a very open game that, if you are a fan of goals you loved this game. 6-5 is not what anyone expected going into the game. You would have thought that with all the time between the Conference Finals and the finals you would have thought that there would be some rust on the teams, or at the very least some close checking as the teams felt each other out...Not So. It was high flying and high scoring, maybe game 2 will settle things down but if the goals still are netted at the rate they were in game one, however and whom ever wins the games will be sure to be great.

Oh, then there was game 6 of the NBA Western Conference Finals where the good Canadian Steve Nash all but guaranteed that the Suns would take Game 6 and force the Series back to LA. That did not sit well with the Lakers as a team but perhaps more importantly Kobe Bryant. He was not going to allow that kind of talk to come true, not on his watch. Kobe dropped 37 points in guiding his team to a road victory to clinch the West and set up a match up versus the Boston Celtics. When your teammates say things like teammate Lamar Odom said; "Kobe’s so good," "He makes incredible normal for us." It is hard to argue that he is the straw that stirs the drink in the City of Angles. The Black Mamba may once again be on the loose and have his eyes set on the Celtics.

Not enough drama yet? Ok, lets factor in former Ace of the Blue Jays staff, Roy Halladay. We all know that he was one of the best pitchers in the game, a horse, a guy you want on the mound for you. This guy eats up innings as well as opposing batters. It is only fitting that he of all people secured his place in history as one of the greatest by throwing only the 20th Perfect game in Major League history. Zero Hits, Zero runs, Zero Errors and Zero base runners...he faced the minimum 27 batters and none reached first base. Thankfully the currently offensively struggling Phillies managed to put up 1 run for their teammate and even it was on a misplay by the Marlins defence. After all the years in Toronto I guess Doc Halladay learned that without a lot of run support, sometimes you have to do things yourself, and he did! Well done!

Sticking with baseball. Most of us when we were kids imagined being up in the ninth inning with the bases loads looking for a chance to win the game with a walk off - just imagine that dream coming true as a major leaguer. Wouldn’t it be awesome, wouldn’t it feel great!? You bet it would, unless you are Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim first baseman Kendry Morales (not to be confused with Esai or Bob Morales) who, after hitting his first career grand slam, fractured his lower left leg, landing awkwardly on home plate while being mobbed by teammates. Maybe this will change the dog pile mentality that teams have after teammates do something to win a game. Maybe stick with the high 5 and not "Jump Around" like they are featured in a House of Pain Video!

The potential for a tragedy was nearly avoided in the Indy 500 when Mike Conway was flown to an Indianapolis hospital for evaluation following a horrific crash at the end of the Indy 500. Conway was battling Ryan Hunter-Reay for position between turns three and four when the two collided. The 24 car flew up into the catch fence then fell back toward the track the car disintegrated while he was strapped into the "fuselage" and managed just a leg injury. It was horrible looking and for the car that drove under the air born 24 nearly taking out that drivers head. It is a wonder that there was no fatalities after this crash.

Battle For The Cup

2010-05-27T12:21:00.004-04:00

The Stanley Cup is set to begin on Saturday night..novel idea I know! After a long layoff things are getting set to begin, and better yet, all the games are slated to be played at 8pm Eastern - no afternoon games!

Philadelphia will take on Chicago in a battle that on paper looks to be a very good match up. Throw out the fact that the Flyers are a 7th seed the teams seem to stack up well versus each other. Both are deep teams but Chicago looks like they may have just a little deeper skilled bench. What the Flyers may not have in speed they make up for in tough physical play. The Blackhawks have a lot of skill and speed and will need every bit of it to get away from the bruising attack from Philly. The showdown between the two young star captains Mike Richards and Jonathan Toews should be epic. One of these guys is going to complete a good year captaining their team to a championship and going home to polish the Olympic Gold Medal that they both have from the Vancouver Games...not too bad for 2 guys in their early 20’s.

There will be plenty to watch with all the little battles between players and lines. There will be some great match ups on the ice and the team that does better in those situations will likely take the Cup.

I am looking for Chicago to take it in 5 or 6 very close games. After 2 years of game 7’s I don’t think that we will see that again and despite both teams having questions in net, I think the Chicago bench may be a little more talented 1 thru 6.

Also in a less important factor but one that needs to be mentioned It would be best for Chicago to win as an original 6 team, a team that has not won since 1961 and most importantly the team with probably the best Ice Crew in the game. I think that those lovely ladies should get the chance to celebrate a championship!

Quick Hits

2010-05-26T16:26:00.001-04:00

National Football League star Albert Haynesworth is being sued for $10 million by an exotic dancer who claims he impregnated her and then abandoned her, the New York Post reported.
The NFL is not catching a break during the off season again. Each year it is almost worth the effort to get into, as the comish calls it, "personal conduct" pool. Between this story the Rothlesburger situation and the regular drug issues the NFL continues to be shown in a bad light. Luckily it is the one sport that fan’s don’t care what happens as long as the product on the field is still good...the cheaters and bad guys are usually the ones that get rewarded.

Reigning champion Roger Federer was a second-round winner Wednesday at the French Open. One can only presume that this is setting up for yet another showdown between himself and the clay specialist Rafael Nadal. Nadal’s dominance on clay is only matched by his record vs Federer something in the neighbourhood of 14-7.

The Ottawa Seantors have signed Brodeur!!! Correction, Senators have re-signed goaltender Mike Brodeur to a 2 way contract. Hey it is something at least. Gotta find the silver lining as it looks like the team will be losing Anton Volchenkov as a free agent July 1 unless rights get traded but that is unlikely to happen. Lets just hope that the youngsters Patrick Wiercioch and Jared Cowen are able to make the team and be an unlikely surprise.

Thanks to NBC for not allowing the Stanley Cup to start until Saturday night. Seems like a network that has no "real money" invested in the NHL holds so much power on when it starts. This experiment to get it in view of more Americans may be better off to try and mend the fences with ESPN and ABC family and get some coverage that way and away from Versus and NBC. A Thursday start would have made sense, which is why it is starting on Saturday...Logic and common sense is not the network or Leagues strong suit.

What Castle Will The King Be In Next Year?

2010-05-21T16:20:00.000-04:00

If you thought that the Brett Favre saga the last 3 or so years (including this year where he said that that if The Southern Miss Golden Eagles baseball team can make it back to the College World Series for the second straight year, he will return for one more season in the NFL) was annoying and just kept dragging on just wait for the LeBron James storey to get into full swing. Now that the Cavs have been ousted by the Celtics in the NBA Payoffs it is now open season on what Lebron is going to do. There has been ample of speculation for both sides staying and going. Some say if he won this year he would definitely stay, other said he’d definitely go. Same thing if he lost.

Truth is no one knows and there is a good chance that even LeBron doesn’t know at this point. Being one of the top 2 players in the game, and at his age there will be every team in the league at least asking for his services. Some teams are in a better position to make a real push for him, but there are teams that have been clearing space for not only him but Dwayne Wade and to a lesser extent Chris Bosh.

It is going to be a long month and a half ahead with everyone and their dog giving their opinion on where he is going to end up next season. Someone is going to be right but it is going to be a long and painful process until July when he can actually put pen to paper and officially make his decision on the team, price and term that he is looking for.

It is fun to speculate where players will go when they get to free agency, just look at the NHL here in Canada. July 1st is not only Canada Day but also marks the first day of the free agent frenzy. The difference here is that there is going to be constant "news" just about him. Saying news is kind of misleading as there will be very little new to report until he actually signs, and the coverage and questions will be plentiful, annoying and no doubt redundant.

More Madness May Be A Good Thing - NCAA Tourny To Expand

2010-05-20T12:45:00.000-04:00

I don’t know where the games are going to be played. I don’t know what teams are going to be involved but what I do know is that the NCAA March Madness Tournament is set to hold the First and Second Rounds on March 17-20, 2011. In addition the field has been extended to 68 from the current 65 where the "opening round" is essentially a play in game between 64 and 65. How this new change will affect the dates and times is yet to be determined. This change comes on the heals of a brand new TV deal that the NCAA is entering into with partners CBS and Turner (TBS and TNT) worth a reported $10.8 billion.

What this means for fans is The NCAA’s agreement with CBS and Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting System Inc, which runs from 2011 through 2024 is that every game next March will be shown live on CBS, TBS, TNT or truTV this will mark the first time this will happen in the tournament’s 73-year history.

It looks like the partnership will morph over time to a similar set up to what NASCAR has with Fox and now ESPN/ABC (formerly dealing with NBC and TNT). Beginning in 2016, coverage of the regional finals will be split by CBS and Turner; the Final Four and the championship game will alternate every year between CBS and TBS. Under the agreement, the NCAA and CBSSports.com will again provide live streaming video of games, though Turner secured rights for any player it develops.

There was very heavy talks to expand to a 96-team field but that would have likely enveloped the 32-team NIT, the NCAA’s other, independently run season-ending tournament. and all but eliminated it. Sure it is less followed and less known, especially here in Canada. Sure it is the equivalent to a B Pool final but it is a little extra revenue for the NCAA, this may be the best of both worlds...at least for the time being.

Time to start planning vacation time around the tournament. Maybe not the play-in game but the first round I try to make my "Masters" a tradition Unlike Any Other!

No House Call For Doc This Year

2010-05-19T15:30:00.000-04:00

You can blame the economy and you can blame global politics for a lot of things but I didn't think that they would be blamed for not allowing the "Doc" Roy Halladay to make his big return to Toronto. After being traded in the off season to the National League Phillies, by luck of the draw they were scheduled to play an inter-league series versus each other...that unfortunately is not to be.

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig announced that the Phillies-Jays series will be played in Philadelphia because of the G20 Summit. The three-game series scheduled for June 25-27 will be relocated from Toronto's Rogers Centre to Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park because of security issues for the G20 Summit. World leaders will gather at a convention center near the Toronto ballpark.

It is too bad that a) Fans won't be able to give their salute to a player who not only did a lot for the team on the field but maybe just as much of it off it, along with his wife in their charitable work in the community. and b) a chance to draw a very big crowd to the Rogers Center which has seen some of the lowest attendance in the majors and all time low in the stadium's history be lost with this re-location. Having the Doc in town for 3 days would likly been a good shot in the arm for the turn styles at the Rogers Centre.

Maybe the schedule maker will provide a make good next year and have the Phillies come to TO so Doc can get the reception that he deserves.

Another Case Of The Mondays

2010-05-18T12:12:00.004-04:00

In a rare "Dark Night" for the NHL and their playoffs with no games on the schedule it was a very entertaining night with plenty of selection, especially for a Monday night. The LA Lakers had their own version of lights out as they usually do during home games as they play with the house lights down (looks cool when all the spotlight is on the court, and Jack Nicholson of course). In keeping with the "light" theme here, the Lakers, specifically Kobe Bryant shot the lights out in a blowout victory over the Phoenix Suns in the first game of the Western Final. Bryant scored 21 of 40 in the 3rd quarter and Pau Gasol and Lamar Odem actually both showed up in the same game as the Lakers cruised. LeBron may be younger and a phenom but I still back Kobe as the most entertaining player in the Association. Maybe it is the way he carries himself, or the effortless way that he moves on the court but he is the best, most entertaining player to watch. He can take over a game just about anytime he wants but also has the ability to use the players he has around him and make them better.

In addition to the NBA Playoff game there was still some hockey on, CHL Junior’s Style. The Hitmen from Calgary played the Spitfires from Windsor in each teams second game at the Memorial Cup. The game was close and competitive after Windsor got up by 3 early but Calgary came back to make things interesting before the Spitfires managed to pull away in the third. If it was Kobe in the basketball game it was potential #1 draft pick Taylor Hall who took centre stage and showed why he is regarded as one of the best junior players. Hall seems to share some similar traits with Kobe. He is a winner, he makes his team and teammates better, he has sick moves and great hands and will not back down. Both will go through a wall if he has to (in fact in the first game Hall almost went face first through the end boards, got a few gashes but was right back out there blocking shots, a warrior on the ice).

If that doesn’t scratch the itch in terms of Sports Entertainment there was also TNA Global Impact as well as RAW from the Air Canada Centre available on TV, if you are a Pro Wrestling fan. Plenty of options for good entertaining sports on a "Dark Night".

Give the Kid A Break

2010-05-14T11:30:00.007-04:00

For the record I am not the worlds biggest Sidney Crosby fan. That being said I am still a fan and the one thing that I can’t stand is that there are a lot of people who seem to unjustly jump on him for everything that he does. It doesn’t matter if it is the right thing, the wrong thing, or even the same thing that 99% of other players do, people (usually the media and hockey followers that think they know more then they do) try to spin everything that is said or done in a negative light. Sure it is easy to take pot shots at him because he is the face of the game (a title he did not run for but was appointed to, just for being good) but sometimes he deserves a break from the criticism. People say he’s a whiner that he complains too much...ok that may be the case but maybe the reason is because as the best he is targeted by the other team and when you constantly have an Iso-cam on you at all times everything is caught. You not think that Jarkko Ruutu or Dan Carcillo or even Jerome Iginla cherp as much as he does?

People will again argue that as a play of his stature he is held in even higher regard and should act accordingly. I agree, but again everyone has a breaking point and for the most part he does fight through an awful lot, and after all he is only 22.

One thing I did hear this morning was an ignorant radio host trying to blame Crosby for not being "Patriotic" enough in declining a spot to play for Canada at the World Hockey Championships. First off, there are many players each year that decline invitations to this tournament who don’t even make the playoffs to single him out after playing in the finals 2 years ago -2 full seasons -a Stanley cup last year and 2 rounds of playoffs this year, oh yeah and mix in the Olympics as well. That is a lot of hockey.

If you watched any of that series he looked like a guy who was either physically and mentally worn down or a guy who was injured. Either way not up to flying to Germany to play in this tournament. The team only has one member of the Olympic team on it and that is Corey Perry so to single out Crosby is just ridiculous. What about Luongo then, should he not be questioned, or every other player on the team??

It is sad when people and the media build someone up so much and then when they get to a point where they are covered so much that they begin to get scrutinized for every little thing it is just a shame. Crosby gets more negative attention because he is the first and last person people see or hear about and that makes him an easy, but undeserving target.

No one was criticizing him in February when he potted the "Golden Goal". How quickly some people forget.

In a related note, it is being reported that he will be moving out from Mario Lemieux’s home. He has apparently bought a home in Pittsburgh near Lemieux house...It looks like hockey’s most famous house guest is moving on up, no word as of yet if it is to the East Side.

Bad Impact

2010-05-13T11:59:00.001-04:00

Due to circumstances beyond my control I was unable to watch the beginning of the Boston-Philadelphia game 6 match up so when I was able to get to the car to look for an update on the local Sports Radio station, Team 1200 they had Network programming on from the US. Usually I like the variety that the out of market shows give because you can only hear about hockey so much that It begins to get annoying. There are other sports that need to be mentioned from time to time.

This time all I wanted was a quick update and that was clearly not going to happen on the US show so I ventured back down the dial to the TEAM 990 out of Montreal and I heard what I have determined to be the WORST sporting event coverage that I have ever heard...no it wasn’t a Habs radio call in show which will usually make your ears bleed by two faced wishy washy Canadians bandwagon jumping fan. No, this was a live" athletic event" (notice I did not say sporting event?). There was Soccer being called on the radio, Soccer. This was a all new low. All I could think of was Kent Brockman from The Simpsons doing play by play for a Soccer game "Half back passes to the center, back to the wing, back to the center. Center holds it. Holds it. Holds it..." Not a sport for radio. Needless to say I got no update there.

I don’t care if the Montreal Impact are to be the next MLS Team or not. Watching soccer is only surpassed in boaringness with listening to soccer.

Speaking of Soccer Montreal Canadian Fans should leave the soccer chants where it belongs, on the pitch. Ole, Ole, Ole is the most aggravating chant in the history of chants. It makes Pepsi’s forced Team Canada Chant " Eh, Oh Canada Go" seem like Stairway to Heaven. Maybe if the fans knew when to use it, it would be better, but probably not.

I noticed that there were also a few people out on the Streets of Montreal last night and again the Simpsons show us the way.... "What began as a traditional soccer riot, has escalated into a city-wide orgy of destruction". You gotta love the bandwagon jumpers.

Around The Horn

2010-05-12T11:35:00.000-04:00

The NCAA Tournament is Awesome! Regular Basketball is good to watch. Playoff Basketball is even better, but if they are not careful they will alienate their fans and drive away viewers by trying to accommodate the TV networks. Ironic as it may be, it is funny that postponing the starts of series to fit the TV lineups better there are large gaps in the time between the end of one series and the beginning of another. Granted, when a team sweeps and the other series goes 7 there is going to be a long layoff, that can’t be helped. For instance Orlando is waiting for the winner of the Celtics and the Cavs (2-2) but the Lakers and Suns are both done and ready for the Conference Finals but that doesn’t begin until next Monday, a 6 day layoff. That is a lot of time for rust and a long time for fans to stay interested. Especially when the weather is starting to get nice. The NBA is playing with fire and does so every year.

3 teams have been down this round in the Stanley Cup Playoffs 3-0 or 3-1. 2 of the 3 series are still going on and in each one it is/ or was very conceivably the team that moves onuntil last night when the Canucks failed to show up and got blown out 5-1. The Canadiens, Canucks and Flyers have all been on the brink of elimination but now 2 of the 3 have a legitimate chance in making the improbable comeback. At the very least they are ensuring that we get to see some more games, but they are also adding to the excitement of an already great playoffs so far. The first round was good, and the second is holding serve and keeping the quality and entertainment level high.

Just when you think that they are starting to do things right the Bengals make a questionable move to bring in Pacman Jones. The team was bad on the field for a long time. Then they got better on the field, then a bunch of players started to get arrested. At one point it was like you couldn’t go a couple of days without hearing about a player in some hot water. Production began to drop on the field and now it is like they are just looking for players with checked pasts to fill out the lineup. The thinking in Cincinnati is anyone’s guess. If Michigan plays in the Big House I guess that the Cincinnati Bengals play in the Half Way House.

A New Zealander gave new meaning to the golfing term ‘hazard’ when he fell from a cliff while searching for his ball. The 66-year-old sustained serious injuries but was in a stable condition. The man fell 30 metres onto seaside boulders and was only discovered a good time later after his golf cart was noticed. The man was playing alone at the time. Between cliff’s in New Zealand and Gators in Florida nobody can say that golf is not a dangerous game.

Time is Killing The Radio Star

2010-05-10T20:00:00.000-04:00

Is there anything better then sitting out on the patio in the summertime with a nice cold beverage listening to America’s Pastime (even if you are Canadian...don’t be so PC!)? There is something soothing about listening to the theatre of the mind with the context of a sporting event. If done well it is very entertaining and relaxing. That unfortunately is beginning to be more and more difficult. Sure with Satellite radio and laptops equipped with MLB on demand you can get just about any game if you were so inclined to sign up and pay for the service. The Only real problem with that is the quality of broadcast that you will get. Most are done well, professional and informative but it isn’t like the past. Sure what is anymore I guess. With the recent passing of legendary announcer for the Detroit Tigers, Ernie Harwell at age 92. He was part of the crew that called Bobby Thompson’s "shot heard ‘round the world" in the 1951 playoff game that determined the winner of the National League pennant. The number of all time greats are getting smaller and smaller, the Vern Scully’s for the world and the like. These were the guys that came up calling the game some before widely viewed TV and before the boom of not only all sports radio and TV but also the internet. It is that technique that we are beginning to loose. A lot of the announcers are from the new school and call games like they were doing tv, the style lacks the descriptive nature and a kind of storytelling style that made all these older guys great. There are a few out there that I really do like, I am used to hearing Jays games so I grew up on Tom Cheek and Gerry Howarth so because of that they rate decently for me. I don’t get to hear a lot of out of market games to judge them all but based on being a Braves fan I liked and was always impressed with Joe Simpson, Peter Van Wiren, Don Sutton and the Late Skip Caray. Of the newer guys I think the best I have heard is ESPN’s Dan Shulman, his is probably one of the best in the biz. The fact that he can go seamlessly between basketball and baseball is a credit to his versatility but also his ability.

The Use Of "Los"

2010-05-06T13:32:00.005-04:00

A lot of people has gone PC and sure it is annoying that you almost can’t say anything anymore without having to worry about people getting offended, Even if there is no racial or stereotype meant people get overly touchy and look to find a perceived slight on them personally whether one exists or not. Apparently the exception to the rule is "Los". Apparently you can use the word "Los" to make anything you want Spanish/Mexican. I for one love it! Regardless if it is the San Antonio becoming "Los Spurs", Phoenix becoming "Los Suns" or New York becoming "Los Mets" is apparently is just that easy. It seems to be very respectful for pro sports teams so I guess it is OK for the little kid to ask his father (or PaPa) if he can have "Los Hamburger", after all it is just showing support for the hamburger right? Treating it with the true respect that it deserves.

Granted for the most part when that term is used it is to show support and like Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire said, "to let the Latin community know that we’re behind them 100 percent." The Suns decided to break out the "Los Suns" jerseys for Cinco de Mayo (also known as the 5th day of Mayo). They also were in part making a political statement in regards to the law passed by the Arizona Legislature and signed by Gov. Jan Brewer that has drawn widespread criticism from Latino organizations and civil rights groups that say it could lead to racial profiling of Hispanics. The law itself has also been criticized by President Barack Obama has called the law "misguided.’’

The Suns owner, Robert Sarver who was born and raised in Tucson wanted to voice his opinion and frustration with the federal government’s failure to deal with the illegal immigration issue led to the passage of what he called "a flawed state law.’’ Sarver left it to the players to decide if they were comfortable with the jerseys and the seemed to be on board. Apparently Steve Nash said "I think it’s fantastic,’’

So with that I will end Los Blog post,
Gracias

Fear The Boogieman!

2010-05-05T13:07:00.007-04:00

If you didn't need another reason to fear "The Boogieman" here is another reason. Bob Boughner, The Windsor Spitfires coach has taken his team to victory in the OHL Championship.In an interesting conclusion to the OHL final the Windsor Spitfires did in fact finish off the sweep of the veteran Barrie Colts to take the OHL Title. That was the 7th straight victory for Windsor, who are looking to repeat as Memorial Cup Champions.

Where this gets even more interesting is the increasing bad blood between the two teams. After a Barrie player took a dirty run at the Windsor goaltender behind the net at the end of game three, Boughner took his goaltender out of the game for his own protection and was yelling at the Barrie coach. By all accounts he looked like he may live up to his nickname "The Boogieman" and jump the boards and go after the coach. There was also some rough play at the end of the game that resulted in 3 player being suspended indefinitely. This has now seemed to deteriorate any good feelings between the two teams. Bob Boughner, Spitfires Coach chose not to shake hands with the Barrie Coach after the series. Was this because of the shenanigans from the play on the ice or the shenanigans from the boardroom where there was a chance that there could be more blood shed there then on the ice?

At the recently held OHL Draft Owner/GM Warren Rychel made it known that he intended in drafting his son in the second round. Usually there is a gentleman’s agreement that if a family member is available in the draft that teams would let them fall in specific slots in the rounds that they were expected to go in. For example the Foligno’s were allowed to land in Sudbury and the Hunters were allowed to land in London. Rychel sent a memo to all teams with this request and all seemed fine with it, all except for Barrie. They took Rychel’s son at the end of the first round. Was this because he was that good a player or was it spite for what was happening on the ice between the two teams? Barrie has a reputation for playing a little fast and loose and this doesn’t help their rep.

In Barrie’s defence Rychel may have been looking to have his cake and eat it too and may have gotten a little greedy. He traded down in the draft to acquire more picks and better his team (that has been very good the last few years), thus allowing him to potentially get his son at an even better value. So that may not have been on the up and up either. Barrie has a veteran team that will need to rebuild and may look at this as a way to hold up Kerby Rychel for a kings ransom to Windsor in order to fast track them in rebuilding the team.

As a side note, there was no contact between Barrie and the Rychel’s before the draft and calls to Kerby to congratulate him upon being drafted to Barrie have yet to be returned.

This is like hockey, WWE Wrestling, Prime Time Drama and Soap Opera all rolled into one.
All it is missing is the relationships and love interests and love triangles to make it complete. I look forward to seeing how it all plays out regardless of how Windsor does in the Memorial Cup.

Around The Horn

2010-05-03T12:41:00.005-04:00

Don’t Call It A Comeback, He’s Been Here For Years! Roy Halladay can now be pencilled in as the National League Cy Young winner. Since moving to the Phillies in an off season trade with the Blue Jays he has amassed a record of 5 wins-1 Loss,1.47 ERA in 49 innings - 3 Complete Games and 2 shutouts with 39 strikeouts.
I wouldn’t be shocked to see him get into the 20’s in wins with the lineup he has around him. If only Toronto could have fielded a better team in his time there. His numbers would likely be out of this world. He has even learned how to handle a bat a little bit. After looking awkward and tentative early on he looks a little better in the box and now has managed 4 hits.

The Windsor Spitfires were on a 3 game losing streak going down 0-3 versus the Kitchener Rangers then after an amazing comeback they took the series 4-3. Now in the OHL Final the Spitfires have won the first 3 and are on a 7 game winning streak and are up 3-0 in the series versus The favoured Barrie Colts. They might be a tough team to face should they advance to the Memorial Cup as they look to defend the title they won last year in comeback fashion.

Floyd "Money" Mayweather took down "Sugar" Shane Mosley on the weekend in decisive fashion. Sure he may be pound for pound the best fighter out there, and after this bout it is hard to dispute. All that is left is for Mayweather to take on Manny Pacquiao. Just to put any critics and fans questions to rest this match needs to happen. Either Mayweather needs to drop his demand for a blood and urine test or Pacquiao needs to suck up his "Fear of Needles" and just get this done. Quit the ducking and just fight. Boxing is in enough trouble with MMA on its heals it needs to keep any momentum that has going.

The Thorpedo may be looking to make a comeback in the pool for the 2012 Olympics.
Ian Thorpe was the world’s highest-profile and at the time the best swimmer in the sport until American Michael Phelps came onto the scene, and had a list of lucrative endorsement deals. He admitted in February that he had financial problems after his personal savings were affected by the global economic crisis, This was most likely his motivation for a possible comeback. It was reported that Thorpe talked to several of Australia’s leading sprinters recently about a potential return for the 400-metre freestyle relay. Thorpe retired after the 2006 Olympics and is now 27. It would be interesting to see both he and Phelps in a pool at the same time.

Talk About Comeback Kids!

2010-04-27T11:19:00.005-04:00

Down 3-0, The Windsor Spitfires became only the third team in history to win a playoff series after losing the first three games. Windsor defeated The Kitchener Rangers to move on to face the Barrie Colts in the OHL Final for the Championship and the right to represent the OHL at the 2010 Memorial Cup. That’s right, Memorial Cup NOT Mem.Cup.

Their improbable comeback is topped only by last year’s improbable run where they became the first team to capture the Memorial Cup after losing the first two games and needing to go through the tiebreaker. The Spitfires are my adopted Western Conference team as I feel the need to like the 67’s but that is primarily a geographic thing. The Spitfires have just a wealth of notable named players that makes the team easy to follow. This is either as a result of being a good prospect or as a by-product of the World Juniors Tournament. When you can float players out like possible top draft pick Taylor Hall, Ryan Ellis (Nash), Adam Henrique (NJ), Greg Neimez (CGY), Cam Fowler Top 5 potential, Zack Kassian (Buf), Eric Wellwood (Phi) Scott Timmins (Fla) and Dale Mitchell (Tor) it makes it surprising that they fell down 0-3 but also explains how they managed to fight back to take the series.

When the Spitfires match up versus the Colts it is going to be a good series, these are both highly rated and highly skilled teams. It is a shame that these teams can’t both move on. With the host being from the WHL they get the benefit of the extra team. It would be a good story to have Windsor move on to defend their title but after such an emotional comeback it will be interesting to see how they respond in the OHL Finals.

If your teams happens to be eliminated in the NHL, maybe have a look into this series and the other CHL games on the road to the Memorial Cup.

Barrie Colts vs. Windsor Spitfires:
Game 1 – Tuesday April 27 at 7:35 pm – Windsor at Barrie
Game 2 – Thursday April 29 at 7:35 pm – Windsor at Barrie
Game 3 – Sunday May 2 at 4:05 pm – Barrie at Windsor
Game 4 – Tuesday May 4 at 7:05 pm – Barrie at Windsor
Game 5 – Thursday May 6 at 7:35 pm – Windsor at Barrie*
Game 6 – Saturday May 8 at 7:05 pm – Barrie at Windsor*
Game 7 – Monday May 10 at 7:35 pm – Windsor at Barrie*

The View From The Top

2010-04-26T12:22:00.004-04:00

So after local boy Matt Carkner scored the winning goal in game 5 versus the Penguins and Pascall LeClaire decided to be a wall and become a quality goaltender helped make my decision to get a ticket for game 6 back in Ottawa. As soon as the puck crossed the line I was on the computer and attempting to connect to capital tickets. After a few slow periods I managed to get through and after a little panic of forgetting my log in information I managed to get in and secure a seat. That seat was in the Home end in the upper 300’s. Upper being an understatement. It was the last row before standing room but it was one of the best worst seats in the house. It was like being on an isle because I was right beside a pillar and there was an opening from the ledge behind so I only had 1 person to the right and open space to the left so that was a bonus.

I was expecting for there to be a lot of people out early at the Red Zone since it was such a nice day and it was a Saturday playoff game so I figured that I should go early and get situated in the lot and avoid traffic as best I could. So I decided that being in Kanata I couldn’t not get my pre-game meal at Arby’s so with a quick detour I procured a succulent Med Roast Beef Combo including beverage and well seasoned Curly Fries. With that in had I made my way to Scotiabank Place or a mini tailgate with a delicious Arby Sandwich!

Once that was done and listened to the pregame for a bit I made my way to the festivities. Basically I just took it all In but didn’t get too involved as most of the stuff were for the kids and the tent, was not a option as time did not permit it also it was pretty full by that point. (I took a few pics with the cell phone which I will try to post later on). Then entered the building for what I hoped was a successful and entertaining game.

Got to the seat and was pleased to find a nice white Playoff Rally towel on the back of my chair (so it was a good thing that I decided to spring for a seat and not standing room). Little did I know at the time that it would be more for dabbing the eyes after the game rather then waving it in celebration.

Anyone who say the game knows that it started out great and the team came out strong, looked good and looked poised to take the game. Only problem with that is that after a 3-0 lead they seemed to take their foot off the gas and things took a turn for the worse. 1 went in, then another, now we are only up 1 and you could see the ice beginning to slope and the Penguins were gaining momentum and began to out shoot the Sens and Ottawa looked to go into a prevent defence. If we have learned anything from a prevent defence is that all it does is prevent a team from winning. Then the 3rd goal went in late in the third and you could feel that the ceiling was starting to cave in.

At this point things got rough in section 328- There are in fact something worse then French Montreal Canadian fans... I know I wouldn’t have believed it either had I not seen it with my own eyes and heard it for myself. Turns out that French Pittsburgh Penguins fans with Canadian Tallboys are worse. It is one thing to cheer, it is another to be obnoxious little SOB’s. I hate to use stereotypes but these were your typical greasy looking scruffy faced punks that looked like they should be out drinking on the farm, not at a hockey game. Just when I was able to come to grips with that and figured if that was the worse we were doing ok... then it happened, the French guys were topped by a surprising source... This was none other then "Ridiculous Hyper Old Lady Who Thinks She Knows Hockey" This lady was not only opinionated but wrong. The high pitch Squeal did nothing to help her case either. Yelling Shoot when they don’t have the puck is not helpful. Telling them to stop hitting is not the answer to playing aggressive. How she managed from even further up then I was to be so sure that a goal was scored during the second lengthy review was amazing, as she felt the need to make a call on her phone to voice he displeasure to one of her bitty old friends. Worst of all was the yelling/screeching of "SHIT, SHIT, SHIT" every time the Penguins touched the puck like she had a case of Tourette’s syndrome. It was almost as bad as sitting in front of a kid questioning everything at a Globetrotters show. It almost came to the point where I was felt forced to turn around and let her know how classy a lady she was. I don’t know if it was too much wine or not enough but It was trying on the nerves for sure.

As soon as the overtime goal went in was quiet and people began to file out. It wasn’t a bitter or bitchy crowd, just somber. The Sens were the underdogs going in and despite 3 major injuries stood tall versus the defending champs. All in all they played hard and left little on the table, fans seemed to be more forgiving this time around, maybe it was because they missed the playoffs last year and it was good to be back but also the team showed progress and fought strong. Hopefully going forward they can use this to continue to improve.

The final saving grace was that I shot out of the parking lot in record time. It was well timed and well maneuvered and I was in line and out in 4 minutes, a far cry from 1/2 hour, probably a benefit to arriving early.

On a side note the only thing harder to watching you team get eliminated from the first round in 6 games is watching your newly adopted Favorite(s) Western Conference team The Los Angeles Kings also get eliminated in 6 games. Hopefully going forward they can use this to continue to improve as well...but I do loves me some Doughty

Kings In Their Castle

2010-04-23T18:00:00.000-04:00

With the Senators looking like they are on their way out of the playoffs and the St. Louis Blues deciding to start to play well after they had already been all but eliminated from the playoffs it is nice to see those Kings in LA at least putting up a fight versus the Vancouver Canucks. They are currently 2 games a piece but there are lots of hockey left to be played between these two teams. The Kings Power Play is keeping the team in the games but unfortunately scoring at 5 on 5 is proving to be a difficult task for this team with not a whole lot of natural goal scoring. I usually root for the Canadian teams to succeed during the run for the Cup but since I have adopted both the St. Louis Blues and the LA Kings as my Western favorite teams I have to put all them cheering behind the somewhat surprising Kings. Sure it is early and I will be very difficult for them to get past Vancouver but after the struggles they had finishing out the season and the difficulty to score 5 on 5 it is nice to see them doing so well.

Watching games at the Staples Center in LA is a nice treat. The fans may not be for lack of a better term knowledgeable as the die hard Canadian fans but give them a winner or something to cheer for and they are just as loud and passionate as any building in the league. After being starved for playoff hockey during a lengthy rebuilding period they have made it back to the post season, not only with a decent team but also an organization with depth. A rare thing for the Kings. There is a pipeline of young players and prospects at both the AHL and junior level and hopefully they will have a successful draft this year to further solidify the coffers. The youth may prove to be both cap busters for value and talent but also may be used as leverage to acquire some legitimate scoring threats in the top 2 lines. They do have a bit of flexibility in terms of the cap as well so hopefully they use that space wisely in the off season and continue to get stronger deeper and better.

It’s A Walk Off!!

2010-04-22T11:00:00.000-04:00

Not since Zoolander have I seen a walkoff like this! This is not only terrific and cocky because it was done by my Braves but because it was new, it was inspired and it was just plain awesome!! On Tuesday night the Braves center fielder Nate McLouth completed the Braves’ comeback with a walk-off blast in the 10th inning. Maybe he should have listed to his friend Billy Zaine, he’s a cool dude. Winning a game for your team is usually a great thing and a great feeling but this time the cherry on the top of this sundae is the celebration that happened in its wake. As it turned out it was more of a prank, a baseball version of the ding dong ditch and not the head-pounding and back-slapping by teammates. I choose to view it as a cocky move over a rival then a joke on a teammate. In any event it is funny.

Traditionally a team will rush the plate after a blast like that and just pile on the guy when he crossed the plate. No this time! As soon as that ball cleared the wall the Braves dugout emptied down the tunnel like someone pulled the fire alarm, but this was no drill, this was the real thing. McLouth rounded the bases and when he reached the plate he was not greeted by raving teammates or even the catcher, just the home plate umpire. After touching the plate he went directly to the dugout and straight down the tunnel to where there, your of the eyes of the fans and the Phillies celebrated and congratulated him there.

Cocky? YES. Arrogant? YES! Showing up the pitcher and the opposing team? YES! Epic? YES. That is like shaking hands with the team that you just beat in the middle of the diamond and saying "Thanks for coming out" the "How’s you momma? We went out" to the pitcher.
Granted, he or someone else on the team is likely to get dinged in the next game, but let me tell you it is worth it...to execute a move like that is a bold move by both him and the team. Clearly there was a plan in place by the team should such a situation arise so the fact that it was planned makes it even better that they decided to do this. For it to happen to the Phillies is just a double bonus

Quality Zebra's Becoming Extinct?

2010-04-21T12:13:00.005-04:00

With the first round of playoffs well in hand it is just great for the fans. There are a handful of games on every night. You can pick the game/teams that you want to see or you can be the flipper, where you go back and forth between all or some on any given night. With the games being so well contested you are almost assured of getting to see a decently entertaining game whether you like the outcome or not is a matter of personal preference.

With every series being available and seeing most of the teams play one thing is becoming even more and more evident. The refereeing is very poor. It is poor in terms of quality, consistency and the ability to control the game. After watching the Sens game last night I am even more convinced. Now, it has been bad in the Montreal series as well and only marginally better in any of the other series but on the whole... not good. If there is one thing players coaches and fans want is consistency. You can adjust to a tightly called game and you can adjust to a game with little or no calls but it is the grey areas when you don’t know from shift to shift what will be called and what is going to be overlooked. It hamstrings the players from playing aggressive and takes away from the flow of the game. It is frustrating for all involved.

There are some veteran referees that are retiring this year and that is not a good thing. When they moved to the two referee system they had to double the referees that were working in the league and the curve has proved to be steeper then maybe the league would have thought or hoped. A guy like Kerry Frasier may not be well liked but you knew what you were going to get and that goes a long way. When the talent pool is already shallow and not good and you are taking out some of the veterans you are just watering it down even more with rookies. That is not a recipe for success. I fear that it is going to get worse before it gets better.

I don’t know how they are going to fix this when they can’t even decide what some penalty’s are. In the referee’s defence; What is a head shot?? If the league doesn’t know how can the referees? What is a kicked in goal? There is no way that you can direct a puck into the net with your skate and have it not called a direct kicking motion. In slow motion every movement of the leg looks like it is a kick,,, at full speed it is usually just a matter of inches. If a player can make the puck go into the net with your foot I say count it.. provided that the blade stays on the ice, the hinge of that knee can not be the determining factor. Lifting the blade of the skate will need to be looked at like a batter in baseball on a check swing, there can be motion but the wrist has to break and/or the barrel to cross the plate. This is clearly only an argument during video replay because as we have seen the refs on the ice are already missing enough calls to have to add this into the mix.

Braves At A Glance

2010-04-20T15:00:00.000-04:00

2010 marks the end of an era for the Atlanta Braves. After nearly 2 decades this will be the last Spring Training that will be run by manager Bobby Cox. Cox is set to finish out the year and then retire as manager of the Braves. He leaves a legacy of excellence that will be difficult for the next person in line for sure. Tough to follow in a legends footsteps. The Brave are not regarded to win the East this year (which would have been a fitting send off for the man who guided the Braves to 14 straight division titles). The Phillies have the team to beat in the East but the Braves may just be dark horse for maybe a Wild Card. If the Phillies sputter maybe they can make a run. The Braves still have a decent rotation even after trading Javier Vasquez provided everyone stays healthy. The Braves are looking to throw out; J. Jurrjens, D. Lowe, T. Hanson, T. Hudson and K. Kawakami. Not a bad top 5, again only if they manage to hold up health wise.

For the first time in a while the lineup actually looks like it may be able to help out the pitchers with some run support every now and again. The addition of Milkey Cabrera and Troy Glaus are question marks but could provide to be nice surprises should they pan out. It will be interesting to see how long it will take for rookie sensation Jason Heyward to take over right field from Matt Diaz and he moves over to split time with Milkey in left. Heywood has been the talk of Spring Training throughout the league and in the media. I gotta say it is nice to have the number one prospect in baseball coming through the Braves system. Heyward was named the Minor League Player of the Year both by Baseball America and USA Today. This is a guy who seemingly has all the tools, offence - defence - and a head on his shoulders. This spring Heyward hit two notable batting practice home runs that garnered much attention. One hit and damaged a Coca-Cola truck in the parking lot, and another broke the sunroof of Atlanta Braves’ assistant GM Bruce Manno’s car in the same lot. People are having to move their cars from lots just to be safe. That is the kind of power that has been missing for years with the Braves. Between he and Glaus could help solve that.

Up the middle they look to have good defence with solid bats between Escobar, Prado, and Infante. If Brian McCann keeps up to his all star play they should be good behind the plate and if the table-setter Chipper can bounce back from a tough year last season he could once again be the straw that stirs the drink. The Future Hall of Fame member, Jones has said that if he can’t play at the level he is comfortable with he will retire. So selfishly I want my favorite player to keep playing so I can continue to watch him, and if he stays then he is producing and that can only help the team score some runs.

There would be nao better retirement gift for Bobby Cox then another trip to the playoffs. Well Maybe a World Series but even rose coloured glasses can’t make me see that.

What a Game / Games!!!

2010-04-17T23:22:00.004-04:00

Now that was a game! It had everything you could want. Drama, intrigue, great defence and extra time!! As a Canadian during playoff time you'd think I was talking about the Montreal Canadians playoff game versus the Capitals....I am not. Although apparently that game was interesting and did go to OT ending on a quick strike goal by the Caps. I slept through that game and by all accounts am just as pleased that I did. I Will always have a soft spot for the Habs, they were my favorite team as a kid but now they have slid down my list. For the most part it is because of their fans and not the team. The majority of fans are just two faced which makes them insufferable. They will bash their own players to cover themselves when the team is bad then at the first sign of a decent of significant play that same player is elevated to legend status. Bash, Bash, Cheer, Bash, Cheer, Cheer. you jut want to slap the poutine from their mouths. It is worse when they actually win and they think that a minor victory means plan the parade! And since we are here they can take their soccer song and stuff that in a sack...it is annoying and should stay where it belongs..on the pitch. Just because the players fall down easier then an English Premiere League player doesn't make it right. If you are going to sing Ole Ole at least learn when to use it. Nothing better then the fans singing that song and having them shut right up after a comeback from the other team.

Wow, that was not where I was planning on going with this post, kinda went off on a tangent.
The game i was referring to was the baseball game with the Mets and the Cardinals. I only saw 4 innings of it and by all accounts that was all I needed to see. In that short time I saw an overthrow and a throw out, hit batter, a caught stealing, an intentional walk, 3 sick defensive plays, 2 position players pitch 3 innings for the Cards and 3 runs. Not bad since I saw it all after 10pm...THE GAME STARTED AT 3:10 pm - the length of the game was 6 HOURS and 53 MINUTES and ended in the 20th inning it was 0-0 through 18 innings and that is Awesome! That is 2 full games and 2 extra innings It went right through prime time for FOX. There must be some bitter people who missed Cops and America's Most Wanted.

My Bad

2010-04-16T23:37:00.003-04:00

Thanks to all the loyal lookers on my blog. I have been a little negligent with updates and takes. It is especially bad now that the playoffs in hockey are now on as well. I will work to make a greater effort to keep getting some updates up and out!

My only excuse right now, in honour of the playoffs is to say that I have been sick the last week and not a lot of energy to churn out the quality that you are accustom to! So lets chalk that up to an Upper Body Injury and list me as Day to Day. I will get back to the goods as soon as possible.

In the mean time lets Cheer on the Sens and the Los Angeles Kings in their respective playoff series'

Thanks and keep checking back!

Quick Hits

2010-04-08T12:27:00.003-04:00

The Toronto Raptors season is hanging on by a thread as they are a mere .5 game above the Bulls for the 8th and final playoff position in the Eastern Conference. The other night, All Star and the teams best player Chris Bosh suffered a broken bone in his face. Isn’t it just fitting that a shattered grill could also could shatter Toronto’s playoffs dreams. To make matters worse for the Raps’ their version of the Ottawa Senators enigma Alexi Kovalev - Hedo Turkoglu- suffered a nasal contusion in a loss to Boston the next night. The season seems to be in the balance with only a handful of games remaining and a once sure playoff birth hanging precariously in the balance.

Tiger Woods will make his long awaited return to the ranks of professional golf in this weeks Major, The Masters. The way I am looking at it the only story here is how will he manage a difficult and newly changed course layout after being away from the game for so long. What rust will he have and will he be able to "flip the switch and jump right back to being the most dominant player of all time. There is sure to be rust in terms of playing with the pressure of a tournament but the advantage to golf is that unlike other sports you play head to head vs the course and not other players. You can only affect how you play not anyone else in the field. Sure there are psychological advantages just in terms of intimidation of how good he is and the gallery that will be following him but he has put a lot of time in on the range and practice rounds so he should be ready. He always seemed pretty focused when he was living a huge lie, just imagine how much better he could be when he can actually enjoy himself. As long as his transgressions and lies aren’t the source of his focus like it was Samson’s hair he should be fine. I just hope the weekend is about the golf and not an extended version of the Insider or TMZ.

The Champs Are Back- UConn women stay perfect

2010-04-07T10:33:00.003-04:00

The WNBA may be a bit of a joke/novelty. It is difficult to watch even without the comparison to the men game but that is not the case as it relates to NCAA Woman’s basketball. OK, let me clarify that; the UCONN Huskies Woman’s Basketball Team. They are currently on a streak that ranks about on the same level as the UCLA John Wooden teams of the 70’s. UCONN managed to pull out a 53-47 victory last night versus Stanford to give the Huskies their 78th straight victory and an NCAA Championship at the same time. That is a LONG winning streak. I am sure that there was some worried people in the house last night as they were in tough versus Stanford but still they managed to eak it out.

UCONN coach Geno Auriemma has managed to put together a program that is just consistently dominating and just seems to be able to roll over players and stay at the top year in and year out. He has managed to make UCONN the destination for top level recruits to go. The UCONN team has lost only 2 games in the past 3 seasons. Not too shabby. Regardless of your views about basketball or woman’s sports in general you have to give credit where credit is due and these ladies deserve all the accolades that they get. Led by their coach, they have been lights out and look to add to the 78 game streak next season.

Certainly, Duke is Duke...

2010-04-06T12:31:00.004-04:00

This time the Butler didn’t do it! Itwas the little Devils from Duke that have once again climbed to the top of the Mountain, but it wasn’t without a lot of drama. It came down to the wire and down to the last 3.6 seconds and a Hail Mary half court shot that just rimmed out and was mere inches from rattling in and taking over the video of "The Shot" that CBS would play every March of Christian Laettner taking that in bound pass from Grant Hill in the 1992 NCAA Tournament vs Kentucky.

The National Championship game was one of the best finals that has been played in recent memory. Not only was it a close game but it was also a well played game. There was offence, defence and grit. If you look at the game from just a seedings point of view this was a mismatch but Butler came into the game with a win streak in the high 20’s and were the hottest team in the nation..Butler. The coach looked younger then half the players on his team, he makes a respectable $400,000 a year but put up vs Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski’s $4.4 Million there is a slight discrepancy. In that same light Duke spends $400k per player on the basketball team, Butler spends $400k for their entire team. I think coach may be in for a bit of a raise in the very near future. The good thing for Butler going as far as they did is all the good coaching vacancy’s are filled so they shouldn’t have to worry about loosing theirs...at least this season. I am guessing a 33 year old who just took a "Small" school to the finals would and will be in high demand.

Kyle Singler was the difference in the game offensively and it was the contributions that Zoubek gave as the big man in the middle for Duke that clogged things up and changed the game in Duke’s favour. What Butler has going for it is that they can return a majority of their team and if Hayward stays they may be even better next year. A scary thought even if the tournament expands to the proposed 96 teams next season.

I guess that there now has to be a question to the average fan: What will you remember the national title game for? Duke winning their 4th title or Butler losing?

Either way this was one of the best tournaments in recent memory. It is always great but this one seemed to be a bit of a topper. This is why it is the greatest self contained tournament/sporting event.

Opening Day - PLAY BALL!!

2010-04-05T10:59:00.003-04:00

After last nights comeback win by the Boston Red Sox over the Evil Empire aka The New York Yankees in the Play-in game they have now a stranglehold of the American League East. All the other teams are in the rear view mirror. All the other teams in the league are all on even footing, at least in terms of their record. Projections and reality might differ but this is the time of the season that just about all is square and everyone still has a shot...yes even the Pirates and Jays.

After another Spring Training has come and gone and another off season of free agents and trades have been completed. It is time to see what all teams have done to make themselves better and be contenders come September and October. It is always fun at this time to see who comes out hot, who is the sleeper guy nobody thought would be as good as he is and what new rookie or prospect is going to break through and become the next big one. (As a Braves fan I hope Jason Heyward is that guy).

With last nights first pitch and today’s matinee games we can now officially consider it to be spring and sunny summer days at the ballpark are only a few months away!

On the 'Heels

2010-04-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

The Tar Heels are looking to cut down the nets for a second straight season as winners of the post season tournament. Unfortunately for them this one is not the one that they want, this year they are in the finals for the NIT tournament (the dirty red headed stepchild of the NCAA post season). Last year they won the National Championship but for the most part the team either graduated or moved to the next level, leaving the team more "green" then baby blue.

Thursday night North Carolina will face off versus the Dayton Flyers in the finals of the NIT. Dayton reached the finals after taking down Ole Miss for the right to face the Heels. It may sound like a big miss match with the big bad Tar Heels versus the little Flyers but NC has struggled (obviously they are in the NIT) all season but also in this tournament. Just to save face NC needs this win. Should be an interesting game and serves as a good Thursday appetizer for the grand daddy- The Final Four on Saturday.

Arguments That NCAA Basketball is better then NBA Basketball

2010-03-30T12:58:00.006-04:00

Basketball is basketball....not always. Both the NCAA brand and the NBA brand have their pros and cons and their own features and benefits. Sure beauty is in the eye of the Beer-holder but it is the subtle differences that give each their own unique feeling. It all comes down to personal preference.

The regular season is very comparable. Both are anti-climatic for most of the good teams where they are just going through the motions because they are assured of being involved in the "post season" of their respective leagues. Tor the lesser known smaller schools every game could become a do or die game if they hope to move to the big dance. Invites are few and far between if you are a mid major or a small school. Same thing in the NBA The Lakers and Cav’s just need to do enough to stay on top of the league or division and try to be healthy enough going into the playoffs, and the weak inconsistent teams like the Raptors need to scratch and claw for everything just to squeak in.

In the NBA they have "Professional Dancers" that do a good job and are very attractive for the most part but that is all they are, dancers. Sure they can shake to Pump It but that is about it.

In the Collage game they have actual cheerleaders. Cheers and pom-poms and all that good stuff. Again personal preference but there is something more wholesome and entertaining about a cheerleader then a dancer.

The NBA plays Pop, R&B and Rock music blasted over the speakers.

The NCAA has school bands that play the fight songs and popular music with the collegiate touch with trombones, trumpets and big drums. When you hear the sounds of the live bands you can feel that collegiate atmosphere which is pretty cool.

NBA Playoffs last some 2+ months and sometimes seem to drag a bit towards the end when you hit late May and games still don’t have an end in sight. The plus at that time is the games are now intense and for the most part the cream has risen to the top and the game is now a showcase for the top tier talent.

The NCAA and the March Madness Tournament is the greatest self contained annual sporting event in the nation. Not only are the games for the most part entertaining but you are assured an 5-12 upset, a Cinderella team or two that comes out of nowhere to win a few games. Shocking last minute shots...some that go in and some that don’t and that is half the fun.

The NBA you see the playoff schedule and it is what it is, you never know when games are going to happen, dates times and locations are all a crap-shoot. It all comes down to the TV networks on how the games are slotted. There could be back to back games or there could be 8 days in-between. It is hard to hold viewers interest in cases like that. Even for the avid fan it can be tough to stay super jazzed.

The NCAA you know the first 2 rounds are the first weekend noon-midnight...wall to wall madness. Sweet 16 and Elite 8 take up Thursday-Sunday. The Final 4 and National Championship games take week 3. You know when and where to find it, you can plan for it, you can just sit back and enjoy it.

The NBA has "playoffs"

The NCAA has cool catch names that draw in fans like The Sweet 16, Elite 8 and Final Four. They just fall a little short with The National Championship Game.

Upsets-A-Plenty

2010-03-22T20:20:00.003-04:00

With the first 2 rounds in the book and all the tickets punched to to Sweet 16, this years NCAA tournament may be one of the best ever. There are so many upsets that have happened over the last 4 days of play. There is only one number 1 that has been ousted (Kansas) but there are a lot of mid seeded teams that have been involved in some of the best games best finishes and biggest upsets. If you had a bracket it is likely good for nothing better then a coaster for your beer, but that is good thing.

If your bracket is busted you can just enjoy the greatest self-contained sporting even in the world. You can enjoy the best games for the games themselves regardless of the teams involved. It doesn't matter that you you don't know that Robert Morris and Sam Houston aren't players on one of the teams but actually schools that were actually in the tournament.

The beauty of this tournament is that part of the fun is to root for the underdog or the Cinderella Story. Usually that happens when the low seed faces one of the big boys like Kentucky or Duke. Granted the way this is shaking down there may be other big seeds to fall and if it comes to the point where there is a match up, lets say in the final 4 with 2 teams where there are 2 underdogs facing each other will that affect peoples viewing? can 2 good guys put on a show that people want to watch or does there need to be a Goliath to root against?

The great thing is there is plenty of more games left to find out...Let the Madness continue!!

Opening Games

2010-03-18T15:15:00.003-04:00

WOW, if this is any indicatoin of the way the tournament is going to go it is going to be exciting.
Last year thre were 2 overtime games. Out of the first 3 games today 2 games went to overtime.

Villenova, a 2 seed almost was upset by a 15 seed Robert Morris. Nova's Scottie Reynolds was 2for 15 for 20 points....good thing he was able to hit his free throws.

Notre Dame ios upset and out. St. Pats is officially over, no luck for the Fighing Irish on this day.

Madness Baby!!

On The Verge of Madness

2010-03-18T12:23:00.002-04:00

Ok tip off is only moments away with 3 12:30 games

FLORIDA 10 vs BYU 7
OLD DOMINION 11 vs Notre Dame 6
ROBERT MORRIS 15 vs VILLINOVA 2

Gotts my fries cooked, Pepsi chilled, couple pints cold(if need be). Good for a start anyway.
TV is ready, March Madness on Demand is hooked up on the computer for the games that are not on the local CBS channels or on The Score for the live streaming.

This will be no sprint it is a marathon. Pace is the way to go. When Greg Gumble rests so will I. There are always a little time between games, going to have to make an effort to use that brief time wisely.

Ok! lets do this thing!

Jay Look South For Help

2010-03-16T11:25:00.004-04:00

Cuban prospect, SS Adeinis Hechavarria is near signing a four-year, $10 million contract with the Blue Jays. That’s right, the Blue Jays. I am sure many are as shocked as I am that a top prospect Cuban player would choose the Jays. Hechavarria was heavily linked to the New York Yankees (as is just about every other player that may be available) Perhaps there is a concern that Jeter will re-up and sign an extension and there is a better opportunity to step right in an play in TO and not have to be in Jeeet’s shadow or wait another season for Robinson Cano to become a free agent next year and then take over at 2nd Base.

I guess that it is a good fit not only on the field but off. We have a decent relationship with Cuba and can get him cigars without difficulty and President Paul Beeston has been known to enjoy the odd cigar himself so I am sure that the convenience is there. If he gets homesick then at least he can get a taste with a genuine Cohiba.

It is clear that the team is in full rebuild mode after the repeated botches in judgement and re-started 5 year plans put in place buy former GM and Oakley spokesman (maybe not, I just always say him hanging out wearing his sunglasses, shielding his eyes from all his critics) J. P. Ricciardi.

New GM, young Alex Anthopoulos seemed to get as much as he could in the Roy Halliday deal and by all accounts Kyle Drebek has looked good so that is something on the bright side and Travis D’Arnaud may be a decent catching prospect. Couple that with many young but decent pitchers and a young core that include Aaron Hill Travis Snyder and Adam Lind.

At least some of the pitching rotation that has been decimated by injury may actually be getting closer to being healthy. Who knows maybe the team can grow with some youth and catch lightning in a bottle like Tampa Bay did that one year. Maybe they can sneak up from behind in the next few years. Ok, probably not but. It is always nice to dream the impossible dream.

March Madness Bracket

2010-03-14T13:57:00.004-04:00

I am setting up a bracket for the NCAA Tournament with yahoo.
If you wish to join the fun feel free to join. The more the merrier

The name of the group is
abitofeverythingsports

http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/t1
group ID# is 62538.

Hope to see you there!

Ramon Has Retired

2010-03-12T09:00:00.001-05:00

Mr. Mia Hamm has hung up his cleats for the final time after signing a one day contract with the Boston Red Sox. After a 14-year career in which he was a six-time All-Star and two-time batting champion he has decided to hit the mic as an analyst for ESPN.

Nomar Garciaparra was the 1997 rookie of the year and had many good seasons with Boston until his departure in 2004 when he was traded mid-season to the Cubs. Nomar rejected a four-year, $60 million offer from the Red Sox that helped Boston GM Theo Epstine make the decision to ship him out of town. Nomar left town and the Red Sox won the World Series for the first time since 1918.

- SI Cover from 2001 -

I was never a big No-Mah fan and never understood why people thought he was as good as they did. He put up some god numbers for a short span but I never would put him in the league with ARod and Derek Jeter. He was a good player, not a great player. When the 3 of them were the big 3 shortstops in the game I saw a big drop off between DJ and ARod to Ramon. Maybe it was the way he carried himself, maybe it was that redonkulous finicky gimmick/superstition that he had at the plate with his gloves and toe-tapping. After he left Boston it seemed that he was never 100% healthy again and never was able to reach the numbers that people rightly or wrongly expected for him to produce. Is seemed like he was always injured and just kept getting rewarded with big contracts that I didn’t think he deserved in the first place let alone after his string of injuries. It seemed like he should be wearing a mask because he was stealing money from the teams that were paying him.

It was good of the Red Sox to sign him to the minor league deal and show that there were no hard feelings between the two parties. If nothing else the divorce between themselves and Nomar seemed amicable and this is a nice send off to a players that was popular with Red Sox Nation (just remember it became "Nomar Who" as soon as that last out was made on that groundout to Keith Foulke)

Jones Joins The WNBA

2010-03-11T10:22:00.002-05:00

From the files of " You Gots To Be Kidding Me"

Disgraced sprinter once called the world’s fastest woman was introduced Wednesday as the newest member of the WNBA’s Tulsa Shock. Marion Jones who once starred at the Sydney Olympics, winning gold in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 1,600-meter relay, and bronze in the long jump and 400-meter relay. Jones was stripped of all five medals after admitting in 2007 that she was using performance-enhancing drugs -- It was the same drug that has been linked to Barry Bonds and the whole BALCO fiasco. The drug in question is known as the "clear". In addition to that she spent about six months in prison for lying to federal prosecutors about doping and her role in a check-fraud scam. Now she is looking to "redeem" her career by joining the - and lets be gentle here, less then popular WNBA.

The WNBA is not well supported in the stands, on TV or for the most part even respected as a league by most media outlets. The only people who seem to care are those in the NBA who are financially linked to the league and have little choice but to try to make it look better then it is. The NBA is like a parent of a delinquent child but have to love them because they are family. I guess even the WNBA can jump the shark Fonzie style - If nothing else, Jones could be a draw.

3D TV- The Future Of Sports Viewing?

2010-03-10T13:44:00.004-05:00

There already looks to be a new wave coming to the way we not only enjoy TV and Movies but also the way that we will be able to watch sports. Just when you begin to get a taste of HD and see how superior it is to the SD that we have been accustom to they decide to take it one step further. Samsung and Panasonic will start selling 3-D TVs in U.S. stores this week, inaugurating what TV makers hope is the era of 3-D viewing in the living room. Samsung Electronics Co. announced Tuesday that it is selling two 3-D sets. Combined with the required glasses and a 3-D Blu-ray player, the prices start at about $3,000 for a 46-inch screen. Now this is just at the inception of the technology and it is very limited to the content that would be available right now but is it worth getting now if you are in the market for a TV now? Hard to tell, it is always an issue be the first to upgrade, the first of anything is a risky proposition. Bugs and issues have yet to be found or worked out and you never know if it will catch on (see BetaMax, Laser Disc or DVD HD).

The 3-D effect will require the viewers to wear relatively bulky glasses. You will need to have multiple glasses as well because they need to be recharged and you are going to always want to have a pair ready to go and also have enough if you ever have company over. They’re not like the cheap throwaways that have been used in theatres since the 1950s or available in a box of Lucky Charms Cereal. When you’re wearing these 3-D TV glasses, room lights and computer screens may look like they’re flickering, making it difficult to combine 3-D viewing with other household activities.
From all accounts though, I have heard reports from people who have seen NFL games in 3-D and they have said it is like being at the game...but better because you have better angles, viewpoints and of course convenience. The only thing it can’t give is the atmosphere of the crowd. It is supposed to be so good that it may be too good and may take away from fans wanting to go to games live and just take it in on their own home theatre system. ESPN has said it will start a channel that will broadcast live events using the technology, starting with FIFA World Cup soccer in June. I know this may be a bit of a deterrent to the technology as people may want to check out soccer in 3-D, but that would mean that they would be forced to watch soccer. I can only imagine that a lot of those special glasses will be tossed at those TV’s enraged by unwatchable soccer.

How Physical Is Too Physical?

2010-03-09T14:12:00.002-05:00

They always say that sex sells. I guess they can add violence to that as well. After seeing the amount of head shots and hits from behind that are taking place in the NHL and the league not doing anything about it helps prove that point. The GM’s are meeting in Florida and are to discuss the issue of head shots and unsuspecting hits. There is no doubt that nothing will come from it except for maybe a slight change in language and a lot of lip service that will do nothing to change anything. So these hits will continue until something tragic happens or players wise up and show a little respect for each other on the ice. It doesn’t help that archaic media types are so thick headed that they are scared that the "game they grew up with" will be anything different. Maybe that isn’t a bad thing maybe a quicker game that has either lesser fights and clean hits is better. Maybe stopping play every time there is a good clean hit because some guy thinks that he needs to punish the opposition from playing the game hard and by the rules by starting a fight isn’t a bad idea. A 1 minute scrum in front of the net every time after a goalie freezes the puck probably isn’t needed either.

Football is a collision sport and as or more physical then hockey and you step one toe over the line.. Sweet Jesus, you are down 15 yards and probably kicked out of the game. Basketball is a contact sport...no fighting either. You do, and your gone for the game and probably suspended. Maybe 5 and a game in hockey is the way to go...Goons would be out of the league because it isn’t worth wasting a roster spot on a nonproductive player who is good for 1 fight and 16 seconds of playing time and it will make sure that if an average or good player or even great player gets into a fight it better be well worth it because they will be out for the match.

It is hard to dispute after watching the World Juniors and the Olympics that a fast flowing, hard, clean hitting game is not entertaining. Sure over the course of 82 games there is going to be a difference then that of a 2 week tournament but it is a good model to at least strive for. It is fun to watch good players be allowed to be good and let skill take over. Players will adapt quickly to rule changes, look at the changes that were made after the lockout, it took a bit of time, but it happened. The NFL tweaks rules almost every year and it is proactive, players pick those up pretty quick too.

Welcome To The iMPACT Zone

2010-03-08T16:42:00.002-05:00

Monday nights will never be the same! Sure we have heard that before but it will sure be nice to see 2 competing rival and separate companies compete head to head in the world of Professional Wrestling. Total Nonstop Action (TNA) wrestling’s flagship series will air live every other week from Universal Studios in Orlando, Fl.

"TNA iMPACT!," Spike TV’s highly-rated two-hour weekly series, is moving from Thursday nights to Monday nights beginning Monday, March 8 (9:00-11:00pm), it was announced by TNA President Dixie Carter and legendary pop culture icon Hulk Hogan at a press conference. The TNA Brand has been around since 2002 when it was founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. TNA was established after the fall of WCW and the sale of the company from Ted Turner and his media companies to the WWE and Vince McMahon. It was a nice little alternative to WWE but had a low budget and not a huge following. As the company grew it soon has become the world’s fastest growing professional wrestling company, currently airing in over 120 countries worldwide.

The first ever Monday live "TNA iMPACT" ran as a three-hour special head-to-head against WWE RAW on Monday, January 4, 2010. It managed to draw a franchise-record 2.2 million viewers. Two wrestling companies have not broadcast head-to-head weekly since the "Monday Night Wars" in the late 1990’s between WWE and WCW. A lot of names you will recognise for either past work in the WWE and some older names that fans have seen back in the WCW days. For example,"The Icon" Sting has signed a new contract and will be involved in tonight’s broadcast. If that wasn’t enough to make not only the wrestling fan flip over at lest for a peak the main event is slated to feature Hulk Hogan’s return to the ring as he teams with Abyss to face TNA World Heavyweight Champion "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles and the legendary "Nature Boy" Ric Flair!

What TNA also has going for it is a solid group of youth sprinkled with some vets with name recognition to draw in the fans that may have been lost from the WCW days and also they have a Women’s Knockout division which are not only decent on the mic but for the most part can handle themselves decently in the ring.

This comes at a much needed time for the sports entertainment world. The flagship show for the WWE - RAW has become uninteresting of late using guest hosts that are on to pimp their upcoming projects and except for a very select few have been big flops that are uninspired and attempt to be funny but fall well short. There seems to be more crap and filler then actual matches and decent plot lines. Hopefully the WWE is using this time to set up some good storey lines as they may need it if the new Monday TNA Impact lives up to it’s name and actually makes an Impact. Cool Pyro and a nice set can only keep the viewer for so long.

It will be interesting to see how a head to head showdown will push both WWE and TNA Products and take it back to a time when it was so strong.

Spring Is In The Air - Play Ball!

2010-03-04T15:33:00.003-05:00

March is here and even though the Madness is yet to start up in terms of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, Spring Training is up and running in full force. That’s right, baseball is right around the corner. They have already started playing games. With guys wearing number 67 and 83 trying hard to get noticed and in hopes of planting a seed in managers heads for later in the season when they will become potential call ups. Many teams have a pretty good idea who they will break camp with in regards to already signed players there are always a few jobs that can be won or lost. There is usually the most player movement among the pitchers but occasionally there are some positions open for the highly toughed prospects to step in and instantly make a difference on the team and earn a roster spot.

Spring Training games are for the hard core fans, it is like pre season NFL games except the seats are not $150 a pop minimum. Like football the players in the lineups are that of the unknown for the most part and players looking to make an impression. The regulars will play a couple of innings and pitchers will take the mound for maybe an inning, 3 at the most. If you are looking to see your favorite player either watch for them early or if you happen to be at the stadium you may see them running on the warning track during the game. (Not too many sports allow players not in the game to go out for a tour on the field while play is going on)

Right now every team is in first place and anyone has a chance to make the playoffs and win the World Series. Guys are ready to go and the excitement of games and the summer are right around the corner...Opening day is not that far away now!

Closing Time

2010-03-03T14:22:00.002-05:00

So the Olympics are now over and the Flame has been extinguished. It was a great 17 days of athletics and a great show of national pride by all of Canada from Coast to Coast. You would usually see an outpouring of support by the US given similar circumstances but it was nice to see the passion that all the people in the streets wearing red and white HBC fashions. They might actually be the big winners of the games. The Olympic apparel was stunning (I know how that sounds, and no I am not trying to play Mr. Blackwell), but it was very well designed and made all of our athletes not only look like a winning team but made us look professional. When the average person is clamoring for the same stuff and not being able to get it because it is in such high demand and sold out says a lot.

Back to sports...The, I don’t want to say fringe sports, lets call them niche sports, managed to showcase themselves and their sports in front of the world. It is too bad that it will more then likely be 4 more years before we get excited for the luge or 4 man bobsleigh again. Similar to the Summer Olympics where people who have no knowledge or interest in gymnastics become super fans of the sport and 16 year old’s become bigger then professional baseball players. It is almost funny how we get so excited for people we have never heard of in sports that we never follow just because they are wearing the Maple Leaf. I guess the old adage is true... You play for the crest on the front not the name on the back.

It is almost funny that a bunch of media outlets report that we are expected to medal in whatever sport or discipline and if the athlete doesn’t perform we are disappointed. If someone we haven’t heard of comes out of nowhere and are successful they become the pride of a nation and morph instantly into rock stars.

We were also treated to great coverage by the "Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium" who offered some 4800 total hours of programming on CTV, TSN, RDS and RIS, APTN and Rogers Media’s Omni Television, Rogers Sportsnet, OLN and on radio on the Fan 590. The commentators were all pretty good and even Jamie Campbell did a good job in becoming the voice of the ski hill at Cypress Mountain. Canada was treated with live events when they happened. NBC in the USA have taken a lot of heat for their plan of holding events on tape delay for prime time and other events on MSNBC and CNBC (which are not available to a lot of viewers). In an age where now is almost too late, tape delayed sports is not a good model to continue with. Imagine the 3pm Gold Medal Hockey game between Canada and the USA being held until 8pm est.

See you in London in 2012 and Sochi, Russia in 2014

Canada Defeats USA In Ice Hockey...They're Our Rivals

2010-03-01T17:46:00.005-05:00

As a collective sigh of relief rang out over an entire nation it was then replaced by a whole new sound. That sound was booming screams and ecstatic yelling. In the hockey game that was anticipated by many to be a showdown between Canada and their old rivals Team Russia became yet another chapter of the new number one rivals of Canada on the ice Team USA. This has been a rivalry that has blossomed from 1996 when the US beat Canada in the World Cup and has continued to grow on the international stage after the 2002 Olympics that was won by Canada in Salt Lake City. From then the reigns were handed over to the under 20 team during the World Junior tournament. After 3 years of epic games the rivalry has grown strong. 3 epic wins by Canada in the last 2 on last second heroics and then this year on an overtime goal by Team USA just solidified them as our new number 1 rivals.

Going into the game there was a lot of optimism that winning was just an inevitability for Canada, I was nearly convinced that it was going to go the other way. There seemed to be way too much hype by not only the TV media but of the fans as well. It felt like they were putting all their Olympic eggs in one basket and if the unthinkable happened then the entire Olympics would have been a failure even with a record tying amount of gold medals that Canada brought home. This isn’t Vegas and putting everything on Red is a ballsy move at best.

As the game went on Team Canada looked good, fast and strong. The most important thing in my mind was they needed to score first. It sounds like an obvious thing to say (in the same ilk as ‘I think the team that scores more will win the game" or "he can see better when his glasses are on") but it felt just like watching an Ottawa Senators game back in the day, you knew once they scored one the floodgates could open but until that first one went in there was a good chance that they would either get shut out or score meaningless goals after the game was all but decided. This felt even more apparent after seeing what USA goaltender Ryan Miller had done during the duration of the tournament and why he was the one reason why they were in the position they were in. Jonathan Toews opened the scoring with a nice goal from the "dirty area" on a rebound, just what was needed to get the ball rolling. Corry Perry made the game 2-0 on a nice play deep in USA territory that Miller had very little chance on. At that point there was a little breathing room. Then came the inevitable, a strike back by the US on a beautiful tip by Ryan Kessler that managed to squeak by his Vancouver teammate Roberto Luongo. That is when things were about to get interesting.

During the third period both the team and the crowd seemed to get a bit tight and a little bit nervous. As much as Canada had fed off the crowd earlier in the game as well as others in the tournament it also took on the same characteristic that were less then positive. When you see 2 posts and a breakaway by Canada go the wrong way you had to feel like this was ramping up to be a monumental finish and maybe not a positive one. It seemed like in the last 12-15 minutes they went into a kind of prevent defence like in football. I don’t like it there and I don’t like it here. As far as I am concerned, all a prevent defence does is prevent you from winning. That is why a team can not be able to move the ball in an NFL game until the 2-minute drill and then they manage to be the best quick strike offence and manage to look unstoppable as the other team backs off the pressure. Right on cue that happened and Zach Parise netted the tying goal with 25 seconds and that was when the collective gasp was taken by and entire arena and with that a nation of passionate hockey fans.

I think that the saving grace was that there was no real intermission but just enough of a break that they were able to regain their composure and focus on the overtime going forward. Had that goal been scored with 5 minutes left the momentum would have flipped and I believe to outcome would have been different.

In the overtime there was truly a sense of the unknown, you wanted Canada to push for the goal but at the same time you were weary about the counter punch if you missed. That is how the World Juniors ended when Alex Pietrangelo pinched and almost won the game only to give up an odd man rush back the other way and it ended up behind goaltender Jake Allen and in the back of the Canadian net. The steady smooth Scott Niedermayer who was one of the best players on Team Canada nearly made a costly miscue in his own end and relied on Roberto Luongo to bail him out. If i am not mistaken I am pretty sure that the youngest player on the team playing one of the toughest positions on the ice was 20 year old Drew Doughty. Right after that Sidney Crosby and Jerome Iginla gained the US zone and just like that a quick strike move on a relatively harmless looking play became one of the biggest and most important or defining moments in the history of hockey in Canada.

It was well called by Chris Cuthbert "Crosby scores! The golden goal! And Canada has won a once-in-a-lifetime Olympic gold!" and later added "These golden games have their crowning moment!". 16.6 Million people took in at least a bit of the game - nearly 80% of all Canadians.

It's A Celebration!

2010-02-26T21:20:00.004-05:00

The Canadian Woman's Hockey Team were victorious in their Gold Medal game versus the only real rival that they have in the world and the only team that can play at their level, Team USA.
I am not going to get into the politics involved in woman's hockey right now and whether or not it should be an Olympic Sport as the other countries are slow in developing programs in their respective countries. Finland does seems to be making an effort and china is a lot better they they have been but if they aren't careful it could spell the end of Olympic Woman’s Hockey...but I have deviated away from my original theme.

The Canadian Woman won a spirited and well played game versus the Americans where they managed a 2-0 shutout victory. 18 year old phenom Marie-Philip Poulin was the lone goal scorer and Olympic rookie Shannon Szabados pitched the shutout for Canada. This years team was a healthy mix of young and old and have come a long way since their camp in Calgary last summer and played over 50 games versus many Midget Boys AAA teams and international friendlies versus the same team they beast for the gold, Team USA.

Going into the tournament I knew that, as everyone else did, it was going to be a USA Canada Final. There were a few players that I was excited to watch and see how they would do; Captain Hayley Wickenheiser was one as she was the leader and the most recognizable player on the team. The young Szabados in net as the Canadians had 3 goaltender that could very well have been #1’s. Marie-Philip Poulin was the third (in the summer Lightning Captain Vincent Lecavalier saw her on the ice and remarked that she skated and shot the puck well enough to be in the NHL...and he was not joking). Last but not least was Meghan Agosta from Mercyhurst College - she was the most pleasant of all. Agosta was named tournament MVP with 15 points.

Like I said I was looking forward toward seeing Meghan Agosta play, she did not disappoint on the ice...or after the game. The Woman had a bit of an unscheduled party on the ice at Canada Hockey Place that got caught on “film” where some members of the team were on the ice enjoying beer and smoking cigars in celebration. They worked hard, they came up big, and then they played hard — the way athletes so often do.I don’t have a problem with this as much as some have. Boys may be Boys, but Woman can be Woman and there should be no double standard. If this were a men’s team it probably isn’t as big a deal. Sure it was not a good idea to be doing it in the arena, the lit cigars inside may have been a little above and beyond and maybe the alcohol should have been left in the locker room but come on, hockey players have done worse.

I say no harm no foul. Would I say the same thing if it was USA who won and did the same thing...i don’t know, and thankfully I don’t have to make that decision. I probably would have called them out and said it was a cocky US thing and was in bad taste...but Canada won, so it is OK. Canadians are often criticized for not being patriotic enough or wave the flag enough or pound our chests enough. It wasn’t the best decision but it is done and we are all still proud of our Canadian Woman.

Canada Takes The Next Step

2010-02-24T22:44:00.004-05:00

“Hope nobody hurt their ankle jumping off the bandwagon. Miller stood on his head and Canada was in line to play Russia at some point, it may just be a little earlier then we may have wanted. Stop bitching and try to enjoy the extra game” ...

This is what I wrote on Sunday when Canada lost to the USA in the Round Robin portion of the tournament. Then there was the German game where Canada managed to beat Germany 8-2 on Tuesday. Some people were crying that they wern’t shooting the puck enough...they still managed 8 goals not bad for not shooting. In any event they moved on to face the Russians in a game where I would bet no one had any idea which way it was going to go. It was my belief that the team with the first goal would likely take the game, maybe in overtime or in the shootout but not in a 7-3 drubbing.

Mike Babcock proved that he can out-coach the Russian coach. Questionable decisions or lack of decisions were very costly to the Russians. Lines and match up adjustments needed to be made...they were not. Nabakov needed to be pulled after 20min...he was not (Russia outscored Canada 2-1 after Bryzgalov came in).

Now Canada is is still a long way from a possible Gold medal and regardless of who they play (Sweden or Slovakia) in the next round they have at least put themselves in position to play for a podium placement. A step up from the last Olympics where they ended up in a similar position to where Russia is in now.
It will be interesting to see how the rest of the tournament plays out but at least for one night Canada can hold its head high and celebrate a great win and a well played game. I just hope that they know that there are still 2 games left until the job is done. The next game has to be played with the same physicality and passion that they had tonight.

I love Pepsi but lets be real, “Go Canada Go” still is a lot better then “eh-oh-Canada-go” and I am glad that it did not catch on. Also they can cut the Ole-Ole music in Canada Hockey Place this isn’t a “Footie” or “Soccer” match.

Duff & Comrie Engaged

2010-02-21T10:19:00.003-05:00

I think that is is just a little bit funny when opening up Yahoo Canada that the headline reads: Hilary Duff engaged to Canadian NHL star
I am not sure what sources they are using but I find it a little far fetched to classify Mike Comrie as a hockey star. Sure it makes for a more enticing headline then to say serviceable hockey player but it is way too much of a stretch to say star.

I will extend a congratulations to the two on their impending nuptials as confirmed by Duffs PR people. "Hilary Duff & Mike Comrie were engaged this weekend while vacationing in Hawaii," the rep said in a statement to Access. "After having been together for over two years, they are very excited to share this happy news. They are thankful for all of your warm wishes."

The two shouldn't have any difficulty in furnishing a home together as his uncles Fred Comrie and John Comrie, and his father, Bill Comrie, are the founders of The Brick furniture company.

In any event I am sure that Hillary will make a nice little hockey wife. (Comrie during an interview on The Team 1200 said that she was a good little hockey girlfriend)

It Is February - Time to Talk Favre?

2010-02-17T14:01:00.004-05:00

I don’t know who Dave Carroll- TSN.ca columnist is but I am not pleased with his recent work. 4 days into the Olympics and basketball in mid-season and coming out of the All Star Brake, and pitchers and catchers are very close to reporting for Spring Training and this guy has already written a column on "WILL FAVRE PLAY ANOTHER SEASON OR RETIRE?". You have got to be kidding!!!

The only upside to a possible NFL lockout is that it will assure people that Brett won’t be back...well even that probably isn’t true, he will probably end up in the CFL...he is still younger then Damon Allen.

This is why people are getting sick of the Favre saga every year. It is bad enough that he milks the situation and aggravates everyone on his own he doesn’t need media help. What makes it worse is that the media keeps trying to find a storey where there is no story. Until he commits one way or another any speculation is a waste of time and effort and all it accomplishes is aggravates fans. When it is news, report it, until that happens leave it be.

I Got A Fever! And The Only Cure Is More Olympics

2010-02-16T17:10:00.003-05:00

I watched Beijing and I got hooked and bought into the whole Summer Olympic experience. I watched all I could and enjoyed most of it. Sure I am not going to watch the 3m springboard or the 200m backstroke again until the London Olympics but for those 2 weeks I was in. The same looks to be holding true for the Winter Olympic in Vancouver. I knew that they had me when I watched the entire ski jumping completion including the qualifying. After the announcer explained how they generated the speed and power to launch themselves down the hill, I began to try to break it down myself to see if I could tell if it was a good jump or not (I will admit that I am still no further ahead but that isn’t going to stop me). Luge-cool.....alpine-sure why not....speed skating - close so it is compelling...snowboarding- gnarly. The only thing so far that just isn’t holding water is cross country skiing. They don’t even race. There is a staggered start and they race the clock and then just sit back and hope that their cardio brethren doesn’t match their time. Then at the end to drop like they were hit by a sniper. Yeah, your tired, you sold out and left it all on the course...we get it, so does just about every other athlete in their sport. Marathon runners manage to stay on their feet you’d think that these guys could do the same.

The only down side is just what a Cluster F%#@ the first few days of the games have been. When you start off with a tragic storey like the death of a Luger even before the Opening Ceremony that casts a pretty somber shadow over the games. Then you go to the Opening Ceremony itself it was not as big a success as it could have been. All in all the show was great but there were a few exceptions. The singing of O Canada was sung by a girl with a great voice but she butchered the anthem. She tried to over "Pop" it like she was at the Grammy’s or something. Bryan Adams? Really? Where was Rush? The giant falic symbols were interesting and got some snickers from our brothers to the south. Couple that with the hydraulics not working and only 4 of the 5 sides of the Olympic Indoor Flame structure coming out of the floor.
The Electric "Green" Zamboni that kept dropping hot water on the ice at the long track oval causing countless delays (It didn’t help that the racers kept kicking chunks of ice up). Thankfully a gas one is on the way from Calgary.

Then you have to look at all the events out at Whistler where events are being postponed on a daily basis. Practices, qualifying and finals are being put on hold due to rain, fog, warm weather, snow...pretty much whatever happens it is bad for the hills. Some Snowboard competitions have been postponed as well and spectator tickets have had to be refunded.

Yep That is right people, pack your winter jacket and head to Canada’s warmest city!! Good for golf in February maybe not the best for Nordic events.
Either way I will watch the filler material and catch whatever events come up first.

Go Canada Eh! I’m OOOUT!

SI's Cover Girl

2010-02-09T13:41:00.005-05:00

Sports Illustrated has made a young girls dream come true and at the same time will have brought great joy young boys and men alike. Oh yeah and some woman who are looking for the new fashion in Swimsuits (although they may be in the minority).

Last night it was revealed that this years cover girl of SI’s annual and always anticipated Swimsuit Edition is none other then the lovely Brooklyn Decker. Decker has been working with SI for a few years now and she has finally made it to the pinnacle and is now donning the cover, joining the likes of .. Bar Refaeli, Marisa Miller, Kathy Ireland, Elle Macpherson, and Rachel Hunter, Rebecca Romijn, Cheryl Tiegs and others.

Brooklyn is not only known for being ridiculously good looking and by all accounts (based on interviews that I have heard with her) a very nice person who is surprisingly down to earth considering who she is. What adds to her celebrity is the fact that she is married to the top rated USA male tennis player and former World #1 and US Open champion Andy Roddick.

Roddick is known for having a great serve and was involved in the epic Wimbledon match versus Roger Federer that clinched the 15th Grand Slam of Federer’s career in one of the best matches of all time last year. A fiery competitor he has been known to get over emotional on the court but that did result in one of my favorite quotes ‘You aren’t good enough to be this cocky!’...Classic. He also dropped the "You’re an idiot! Stay in school kids, or you’ll end up being an umpire." Not a bad little power couple and will likely have the most beautiful children ever created. Just wait for a few years when their child hooks up with David and Victoria (Posh) Beckham’s kid and creates the ultimate super child that will one day rule the world.

(Little known fact: This year if/when there is a wardrobe issue the word "Pepperoni" is said as a discreet way of letting the girls know that they need to adjust themselves.)

Good call by SI and congrats to Brooklyn.

Super Bowl Sunday

2010-02-07T10:38:00.008-05:00

Super Bowl Sunday is here and all the hype over the last two weeks is coming to a head. Thankfully they moved the Pro Bowl to the bye week in between the Conference Championships. Because everyone was able to complain about how useless the Pro Bowl is that enabled the media from breaking down the game to the point where the length of the shoelaces of the players will play a factor on crowning a champion, or about Dwight Freeney's ankle, or Peyton Manning taking on the team that his father played for for all those years.

With the two most explosive offences in the league it only stands to reason that this will be an old fashioned shoot out and be end to end rushes. Due to that expect a lower scoring game with surprising defensive stops and uncharacteristic turnovers...by both sides. The Colts are favoured big and by all accounts should win big; therefore it will be a close game and will likely come down to whether veteran kicker Matt Stover makes or misses a field goal.

The Saints defence are not bad by any stretch and if Reggie Bush manages to break a punt or kick return could provide the spark that New Orleans needs to propel them to victory. What they have going against them is the MVP of the league and that is Peyton Manning. He is going to want this win to help build a case for the best QB ever. He probably is already and is a first ballot Hall of Fame player but no matter what he does those whispers from the negative uninformed or ignorant people is still 'he can't win the big game'. Couldn't beat Florida in college, couldn't win this one in the big game, can't win a Super Bowl. Then he wins a Super Bowl and now they say, yeah but he only has one. Can't please everyone I guess.

The Colts Should win 35-24, and control the game all the way. That will not happen.

If the Colts do win it will likely take a comeback as I suspect that New Orleans will come out flying, and get up by 14 early either on a defensive stand or a special teams play that will swing momentum.

The final will probably be 31-28. I'd like to see that score for the Colts so that means that will be the score for the Saints.

I am sure that in any event it will be a good game and at the very least The Who is performing at Half Time and that should be AWESOME...Love THE WHO so even if the game is a bust there will still be Roger Daltrey and Peter Townshend with a little Zack Starkey mixed in for good measure.

ENJOY!

When A Goaltender Is Not A Goaltender

2010-02-03T20:37:00.004-05:00

While watching the Ottawa Senators game, Chris Phillips took a goaltender interference penalty when the Buffalo goaltender Ryan Miller came out of his crease and made a play on the puck. In doing so he was handling the puck with his side to the oncoming Phillips. Phillips ran into the side of him, not with a violent or predatory hit but just a low impact body check that a Pee-Wee player could absorb.

At this point Tyler Meyers come to the 'aid' of his goaltender and somehow Phillips gets 4 minutes and Meyers gets 2 for roughing. I am all for protecting the goaltender but only when he is in his crease, you know the on painted BLUE. If a goaltender can't play the puck in the corners why is he overprotected behind the net. If those line are there to promote offence is what Phillips did not, by rule, a legal hit to a player playing the puck? If anything it should have been 2 for roughing and 2 for instigating on Meyers and nothing or at best 2 min to Phillips even though all he did was attempt to get away and/or defend himself.

If a goaltender is going to put himself in harms way then he needs to expect to be treated like a skater. Gary Galley said on the broadcast that it was the right call...I would argue that it was the convenient call and the one that always gets made, however, that does not make it the right call. Either fix this rule or don't let the goaltenders out of the crease at all. If it is a contact sport you have to allow contact. This is not as difficult to police as head shots, elbows and hits from behind.

Around The Horn

2010-02-02T16:30:00.000-05:00

NFL- The Super Bowl is less then a week away and that means we should only be subjected to 6 days of updates on Dwight Freeney and his ankle. Apparently a ‘grade 3 lower basketball sprain’ in fact means torn ligament. That is a little deceptive. Being the second most impactive player on the Colts the focus on Freeney and his injury will be covered closer then a Brett Favre retirement watch... Certainly Freeney’s ankle is Freeney’s ankle, it is on TV more then Leave It To BEAVER....RE-RUNS

NBA- Sunday the Lakers played the Celtics in a possible NBA Finals Preview. The cam came down to 1 point in the dying seconds of the game. The Lakers wound up victorious. Any idea who took the last shot for the Lakers and made it for the winning basket?? Yeah, figured...it was Kobe....again. When will teams learn. You make the Luke Walton or the Jordan Farmar’s of the world beat you. You can’t keep letting arguably the greatest clutch shooter/player the league has ever seen keep beating you. Coaching 101...Rookie Mistake Doc.

NASCAR- The DAYTONA 500, "The Great American Race". 43 of the best stock car drivers in the world take center stage February 14, 2010 in NASCAR’s biggest, richest and most prestigious race. I love the sport and am a HUGE Jimmie Johnson fan but I do fear looking in the stands to the type of people who will be in the grandstands celebrating St. Valentines Day at the Speedway. The old V-chip in the TV might kick in for inappropriate content by inappropriate fans and viewer discretion may be advised. Hope it is on a delay and any nudity is brief and tasteful (and has a weight limit).

CFL - Congratulations you have a league that not once but twice drafted a deceased person on the entry draft. They have had 2 teams with the same name at the same time (Roughriders and Rough Riders) Now they have made things look even more on the up and up as the Toronto Argos are all set to be sold to BC Lions owner David Braley. It is nice that the team will have an owner and not be in fear of folding but to have an owner own 1 team in the East and 1 team in the West is sketchy at best.

MLB- The Minnesota Twins and catcher Joe Mauer have apparently agreed to terms on a 10-year contract extension. Mauer, who became just the second catcher in the last 33 years to be named the American league’s MVP this past season, is slated to earn $12.5 million this coming season and could have become a free agent at the end of the year. For a small market team who is known for allowing their best player move on when they become stars because they can’t afford them it is nice to see that they actually have made a commitment to the player and the player to the team. A nice change of pace. It probably was made more possible that Maur is also a native of St. Paul, Minnesota.

NHL- The trade between the Calgary Flames and New York Rangers reportedly involving Olli Jokinen, Brandon Prust to New York and Ales Kotalik and Chris Higgins to Calgary. that was supposed to go down on Monday didn’t. The Flames played with Jokinen in the lineup in Mondays game in one of the most odd situations involving a players transaction. Nothing says motivation like knowing that you may be gone 2 minutes after the conclusion of your game. That didn’t seem to help as the Flames were shut out.

Trade Winds Start To Blow

2010-02-01T15:11:00.004-05:00

I may hate the team but I will give credit where credit is due. In a time in the NHL where it is so difficult to pull of deals off all let alone blockbusters I was pleased to see the beginning of movement. With the salary cap it is do hard to make a ‘hockey trade’ that works players for players as well as making the money in-money out work at the same time is no small task. This may not be the Flames/Leaf deal that brought Douggie G to the Big Smoke in the early 90’s but not the first time these team have come together.

Brian Burke, the Maple Leafs GM managed to swing 2 big deals that came out of nowhere. What is maybe even more impressive is that with this regime of Burke and Dave Nonis that the deal was kept under wraps until it happened and didn’t drag out in the media..a welcome change as well.

The Leafs pulled in some good players and managed to get rid of some players that either didn’t want to be there or that were expendable. Sure it clearly hurts them offensively but the good seems to outweigh the bad and if you take Burke at his word, and we have no reason not to they are ‘open for business’ and they are NOT DONE. To pull in good players (and in Toronto, name players) is a good place to start. Dion Phaneuf, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Fredrik Sjostrom and Keith Aulie (who played with Tyler Meyers in the World Jr.s).

Phaneuf is a wild card as he may come off as being a bit toxic right now as you don’t get rid of a player like that just because, he is clearly coming with baggage but a change of scenery can fix all that real fast. Some say that you get the best player in a deal you win that deal. Time will tell if that is in fact true.

Going the other way out of town to the Flames were Ian White and forwards Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman and Jamal Mayers, while goalie Vesa Toskala and winger Jason Blake were sent to the Ducks. The Flames need help scoring and should get help from Stajan and Hagman while White is under rated and should be helpful on the back end.

Blake was a bit of a shocker to be moved because of a terrible contract but you know what they say, if you can move a Scott Gomez contract you can move any contract. After the Ducks signed Jonas Hiller it made Giguere and his money expendable. How they were talked into taking on Blake coming back is a bit odd. Again I give Burke all the credit in the credit in the world. Remember he was the guy that danced all over Doug Mclean and conned him into taking on Sergi Federov in Columbus from the Ducks. The guy seems to be a decent salesman of nothing else.

Quick Hits

2010-01-27T14:45:00.005-05:00

When it was first announced three weeks ago that Andre Dawson would be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame, he hinted that he would like to enter as a Chicago Cub. Thankfully, as it has been reported that MLB has decided to send him to Cooperstown as a member of the now defunct Montreal Expos will be honoured along with Dawson. I don’t know how Andre feels about the situation but I, for once am glad that baseball are the ones deciding what hat he wears in. Dawson will likely be the one and only player that will be going into the Hall as a Montreal Expo. The book will very soon be closed on the team and having at lest some representation before it becomes a mere footnote.

HBO unveiled a 24/7 documentary on Jimmie Johnson last night. After being snubbed by SI as Sportsman of the year it is nice that HBO has created this show. It may be interesting to see what goes into being a NASCAR driving star and hopefully brings the deserved respect to not only the sport but more importantly to Jimmie himself. It is the best of the best right now and may be in the discussion as the best of all time. Even with his short body of work his star is still bright and accomplishments can be put up versus just about anyone else who has ever been in the sport.

After dropping the first set to Nikolay Davydenko, Roger Federer steam rolled to a 4-set victory in Australia. With Rafael Nadal out the road seems to have cleared a bit for yet another Grand Slam. Anything to add to his greatness is ok by me. Hopefully he can finish out this tournament on top and start working towards padding his already impressive career stats and achievements.

A HUGE thank you to the Canadian Networks who have finally decided to do the right thing and start showing more live US College Sports, namely college basketball. Unlike the NBA you may not know the players but for the most part the games are entertaining to watch and having the option to watch a live event is never a bad thing. Short of actually giving us the option of purchasing ESPN as part of our satellite packages it is nice to see that they are all making at least an effort. (A much smaller props to Sportsnet for showing at least little bits of some AVP beach tournaments, sure it isn’t a lot but one in a while they are actually throwing a few half hours here and there. Baby steps, at least for now and that hopefully is the start of more events more frequently)

Aborigines Offended By Ice Dance

2010-01-24T16:51:00.004-05:00

An Aboriginal-themed routine by two Russian ice dancers has stirred up a pre-Olympic controversy, with some indigenous Australians blasting the "rip off" of their culture and Canadian native leaders worrying about the insensitivity of the skaters.

Maybe it is because that is not my culture that i don't see this as a big deal. I don't see this duo mocking a culture, if anything it is showing appreciation for it. With that said I also don't know how accurate, or in-accurate it is or what amount of research went into the planning and choreography of the routine. Sure it is always a gutsy move for Russians to us this as an adaptation to work from but sometimes there are groups that are over sensitive about this type of cultural crossover.

This was my thought when Vancouver decided to go so heavy with their aboriginal tie in with this Olympics in Vancouver. Embrace Canada as a whole is fine by me, to segregate it is just asking for trouble. Just like the addition of aboriginal artwork to the Canadian Maple Leaf on the Hockey Teams Jerseys.

"The ripping off of our art and songs is not (respectful), and nor is this depiction of my culture," Manton wrote. "Our dance, our ceremony and ... our designs and images have evolved over 60,000 years. We're understandably fond of them, and we don't like seeing them ripped off and painted onto someones body for a sporting contest." a chairperson of the Aboriginal Land Council in New South Wales stated

Was this Dance relay that bad? You be the judge

Kings Of The Castle

2010-01-20T10:15:00.000-05:00

Los Angeles Kings have been accused of selling hope, and nothing else which may have made my decision to adopt them as one of my own a difficult one but so far this season they have proven that they were a worthy choice. Clearly the Blues have stumbled out of the gates and are having a tough time finding the back of the net. Injuries are a factor but can not be used as an excuse, just an explanation. Given time the youth will pick things up and get back to the place they were at the end of last season where they just started to click and just kept winning.

As for the Kings, the moves made in the off season so far have looked pretty good. I will admit that I was sceptical about the acquisition of Ryan Smyth but much to my pleasure he came in healthy and ready to contribute. He has slipped right into the top line and found some great chemistry with his line mates: Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar (let the record reflect that it is not An-zee.... It’s Ahn-jay). It doesn’t hurt that Kopitar is leafing the league in scoring and is probably the most underrated star in the league. The ability to be able to score so far this season I making all the difference. Sure they could use another shooter but as it stands now they are doing OK with what they have.

The balance on the lines is a benefit to have as they can roll their lines a little more and have confidence in spreading things out a little. Would I prefer to not see Raitis Ivanans in the lineup, sure but in the long run it is probably best to allow some of the younger players mature in the AHL and season a bit. Knowing that there are some good young talent in Manchester is a nice little bonus. With a little more experience to players like Oscar Moller, Andrei Loktionov, Justin Azevedo and still in Brandon with the Wheat Kings young Braden Schenn should help out offensively over time and on the back end having a Thomas Hickey almost making the team out of camp and Vyacheslav Voinov there as well and Colton Tuebert still in junior gives some nice options going forward. Jonathan Bernier (who was in nets for the AHL All Star Game last night) and Jeff Zatkoff as the goalies in the system it gives some good slid depth and the ability to use them as possible trade bait should the need arise in the future. How good Jonathan Quick continues to play in the future will likely dictate what the team chooses to do in the near future with these two. One can’t discount what depth and even a little bit of cap room can do. Flexibility going forward could become a big deal as this team grows together.

With all that is going on in Atlanta with the lack of attendance and the fact that there are ownership issues there and how long the team will be viable in that market may force the team to part with their superstar Ilya Kovalchuk. Should his services become available and they are allowed to negotiate a contract with him to ensure that he stays, a trade to the Kings could be a very interesting option. Depending on the cost and the players that would need to be involved, finally getting an established player that can elevate an already decent team and give them a legitimate scoring threat could do great things out on the coast. I am not saying that a deal would do what a Gretzky did when he came but marketing would have a field day, ticket sales would probably get a boost and best of all the product on the ice would likely improve. An addition like that could be just what the team needs. They do have some cap space to work with and depending on what would need to be involved in any possible deal may just be a viable option.

I will sit back and watch and see how this all plays down with one half of my new adopted teams. Or if Kovalchuk were to end up in the Blues (unlikely as it may be) then that may work out as well.

Sens Army...Wounded

2010-01-18T08:30:00.002-05:00

Mike Brodeur stepped into the Senators lineup and low and behold - pitched a shut out. The Sens took down the Rangers in a battle of struggling offensive teams. Lets not read too much into that. The Rangers have been shut out twice in the last 2 games both by goalies named Brodeur, although one may be a little more seasoned then the other. The next game he started again and he stoned the Habs in Montreal. Boarderline impressive. It was good to see the quick healing Captian Daniel Alfredsson back in the lineup.

The shutout win broke a 5 game losing streak by Ottawa that has seen them fall from a decent 6th place position to 8th and on the brink of falling out of a playoff position...if the season were to end today.... (I hate when people say that).

At this point I am resigned to the fact that the Sens are not the greatest team that they have ever fielded and that they really are not that good. Players at both the pro and minor league level are not top end and that is something that fans here in Ottawa are not used to. The rash of injuries that has hit the team has not done anything to help the situation. When you are not a great team and then you take out some $20 million from your a top scoring line in its entirety and you goal tending, struggling as it may be are out it is tough.

When you have a tough time scoring 2 or more goals a game and your goal tending is considered doing a better job when they allow 4 goals in a game it is no wonder why your team is in a big slide.

The fact that this team continues to lose man games due to injury makes it very hard for line to gel, players to click and in turn play a cohesive game. When, at one point or another you are missing a Spezza, Alfredsson, Michalek and throw in Brian Elliot, Pascal LeClair, Chris Neil and Nick Foligno for a spell it is of little wonder about the woes in Sens Army. It is getting to the point where maybe it is just worth playing out the string of games and become a seller not a buyer and maybe try and position yourself better for the draft and free up some money going into free agency. Clearly there needs to be a restocking of talent in the minors so when we need help some is available and they need some sort of a consistent scoring threat. Maybe that is too much for Bryan Muray to do but if that is not possible he may be closer to the hot seat then ever before.

I don’t want to see the team just give up and mail it in. Hard work and good games are a must but if they have a chance to better themselves for a quick turn around next season then maybe they need to look at that.

Big Mac Himself, Who’d Of Thunk It?

2010-01-12T16:30:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was the day that we all figured would come at some point, we just didn’t know when. Former Oakland A’s and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire finally admitted in a phone call with the Associated Press and followed by an interview with Bob Costas that he had in fact done steroids as well as HGH on and off over the course of his career. SHOCKER. This was not news to anyone. He was always suspected to have been involved in performance enhancing drugs but never admitted it nor did he ever test positive for anything. It is like a girlfriend accusing you of cheating ‘I know you did it, just admit it, I know you did it, just admit it, It’l be ok if you just admit it ’. Then you admit it and they flip out and start yelling at you saying ‘I didn’t believe it until I heard it come from you!

I am not an apologist for what he did, but what he did was perhaps not ‘legal’ but it wasn’t banned either, it was more of a moral issue then anything else. Should that exclude him from the Hall of Fame? Some say yes, some say no. I think he should be in. If there is no policy to break how can you punish him for breaking a policy...he was never suspended either. The only thing that isn’t going to help his case is the fact that he didn’t acknowledge that his use didn’t make him better. His natural talent may have been great but there was still room for enhancement and he got that from the steroids and HGH. The only thing he did was play by the ‘rules’ that were there or not there at the time. I hate to think that the idea of "if you aren’t cheating you aren’t trying" or "it is only cheating if you get caught" is true but it is hard to dispute that fact.

It is easy to sit back and judge the decision that he made, but it wasn’t just him that made that decision. If you take a serious look at it, a professional athlete will do what they need to do to become better. There were no steroids in the 1950’s, because they were not available. You can bet that if they were and it would have made a difference players then would have been all over it. Stimulants are a great example of that. Cold medication, caffeine and other like products were rampant in baseball dugouts throughout the years. Those were also performance enhancing, just not as ‘immoral’ as ‘roids and HGH, but at that point you are just splitting hairs. We now are beginning to see that this was and epidemic throughout the sport for a long time and if baseball wanted to do something about it they would have and could have done so. Truth is, steroids were good for baseball and good for the sport. After the strike in 1994 baseball’s image was in the dumps and any growth that may have come to get the game back into the good graces with fans came in the form of the Sosa/McGwire home run race of 1998. That chase of Roger Maris’ 61 home runs brought people back to the sport. From there baseball has continued to grow and has reached record attendance over the years.

It is clear that money greatly influenced the position that baseball has taken in regards to performance enhancing drugs. Even as a casual fan you can see that something wasn’t right with these players and that they were getting help from an outside source. It helped them and it helped sell the game so to turn a blind eye clearly was an easy thing to do. If you are concerned about the records that the hitters put up, just think about doing that versus pitchers that were doing the same thing. The only real issue is how fair it was for the ‘clean’ player to compete with those that were juicing. My question to that is if so many were on the juice, why would you play clean. If there was no rule to break how could you be breaking a rule? It truly was an internal code of conduct that governed the players that played clean...not baseball.

McGwire's admittance had to be done. He is looking to become the hitting coach for the Cardinals and for that to happen he had to say something before spring training to defuse the situation. Now that he has at least come out and admitted that he used, perhaps we can move on from him and any speculation. It seems like every player that has come out and admitted or have been outed for PEDs has been, not necessarily forgiven but the anger towards them has been greatly reduced. Only the ones that have continued to say nothing or deny are the one that people are still bitter at (Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds). Others such as Andy Pettitte, A-Rod...even Manny who was suspended for 50 games only last season seems to be much more accepted.

It is also interesting to mention that this is really just a baseball, track and cycling issue. This happens just as often in football but it gets nearly no play in the media. A headline that states a player in the NFL has been banned 4 games for a substance violation. They do their time and then are back and not another mention is made about it. A double standard for sure but it is what it is. You want to see bigger, stronger, faster in football and the majority of fans would be more upset if players weren’t doing everything at their disposal to become even better. Maybe it is because baseball is seen as more a game of numbers and is held in a higher regard, who knows.

IIHF World Junior Tournament - The Tradition Continues

2010-01-07T12:45:00.007-05:00

First lets just throw some names out and lay all the cards on the table: John Tavares, Matt Duschane, Evander Kane, Cody Hodgeson, Ryan O’Reilly, Tyler Myers Those are the names of some of the players that were elegable for Canada to come back and play for Canada this year...Zach Begosian was basicly the only USA player available to return. Put those guys on the team and it is probably another gold rush for Canada. I am not say’n i’m just say’n. Moving on.

Another World Junior Hockey tournament has come and gone. Much to chagrin of the proud Canadian hockey fans. Granted a loss in overtime to one of our newest building rivals, the USA, is a tough pill to swallow it can only fuel the fire for next years tournament in Buffalo.

Year in and year out this tournament continues to grow... at least in Canada. Maybe not as much to the average fan anywhere else but to Canadians it is must see TV and or event to take in live should the opportunity present itself. The gold medal game was an epic one with an audience to match. Tuesday night’s thrilling IIHF World Junior Championship gold medal game made television history for TSN. Some 5.3 million viewers tuned in to see some or all of the game. That is the highest rated event TSN has ever had. Some 1 in 3 Canadians watch some or all. It bettered this years Grey Cup and beat any other World Juniors telecast. I am not sure if that takes into account the live web streaming or not and probably doesn’t reflect the radio broadcast. I would like to know those totals as well. Either way it was huge and well represented.

For those 2 weeks or so between boxing day and the first week of the new year it is the showcase for not only the sport of hockey but a showcase for some of the great young players that people can look forward to seeing in the NHL soon. That is what is fun and educational about it. Now when your team drafts a player there is a good chance that you will know who it is. Not unlike the NCAAs March Madness tournament, people don’t pay much attention to the regular season of either college basketball or CHL hockey but when the respective tournaments are on the spotlight is there to shine on potential breakthrough players and that is fun to see.

The level of play is what you want to see in every hockey game, high skill, high speed and a passion for the game that only youthful exuberance can bring. The genuine love of the game, the thirst to be the best while continuing to get better and playing for the pride of a nation is a refreshing change from the professional sports that we are accustomed to watching. It almost makes it tolerable to earn a silver when you lose in a good hard fought game to a team that was surprisingly humble in victory and what seemed to be genuinely humble in victory (perhaps what you may not expect from a USA Team). Credit to the USA and their hockey program. They beat good teams and showed that speed and skill are hard to contain.

Canada entered the tournament winning 5 straight gold medals. It is not like they were handed any of them they have all been earned. The streak could and maybe even should have been stopped in any of the last 3 tournament but some kind of unbelievable event or puck luck fell in Canada’s favour and they had, until this year managed to claw their way to victory. Matt Halischuk’s OT goal saved Canada once and the new version of "Captain Clutch" Jordan Eberle went above and beyond the last 2 years with unbelievably timely goals and solid all around play to keep the team alive and take a country from devastation to jubilation in a heartbeat.

Eberle may well be a great prospect for the Edmonton Oilers and could go on to become a good NHL player and have a long and successful career in hockey but even if he were to walk away and peak as a teenager he has cemented himself as one of the greatest international performers in Canadian hockey history. Sure that would be tough but he is now in Canadian Hockey History highlight reel forever.

It will be interesting next year with the tournament being held in Buffalo. Canada had a good run with most of the tournament being played in Canada with a Pro-Canada crowd. Now the defending gold medalists USA will be defending on their home soil with hopefully a very focused and bitter team from Canada looking to avenge this years loss. Being in Buffalo will allow a lot of Canadians to take the tour over the boarder to help even out crowd support.

New 'Shooting' Guard - Gilbert Arenas 00 Agent

2010-01-05T09:30:00.000-05:00

The Washington Bullets, errrr, Wizards are the biggest fans of the morning 'Shoot around' of all teams in the NBA. Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton of the Washington Wizards have been implicated in a clubhouse dispute over a gambling debt where the two apparently pulled guns on each other. There was an investigation before this incident that Arenas was housing firearms in his locker at the Verizon Center. If any investigation finds that these allegations are true there is a good chance that they will face a stiff penalty from the league, likely a suspension of at least a few dozen games. The NBA under commissioner David Stern has worked overtime to clean up its image which is that it is more of a thug league and that there are severe character issues among a large number of its members.

Players may contest that they are targets more now then ever and they need these weapons for personal safety. Granted, with there position in society that they are held in a different regard but one must also take into account that if you are putting yourself in a bad position things can go the wrong way in a hurry. You would think the safest place should be the locker room, will all the building security and that security around the locker room that that would be the last place you would need to store your guns.

What makes this story just a little bit more funny is the team that they play for. It has been a while now but this was a team that had the name of the Washington Bullets but the owner thought that it sent a bad message to the league and its fans. Washington, DC has been known to be a violent city and this was a way of trying to distance themselves from rising gun violence. In one "foul" swoop all the good will of becoming the Wizards has just turned them back into the Bullets. Maybe it was throwback night and they got caught up in the festivities.

Arenas has tried to defuse the situation with humour implying it was all in jest and he was just a practical joker and nothing more then a joke went down. The NBA and other officials don’t seem to be buying into that explanation even if it was in jest it is a serious issue and at the very least relay bad PR for a league that is trying to project a positive image for itself.

Week 17 NFL Picks

2010-01-03T13:04:00.003-05:00

After 2 Weeks of + .500 picks I regressed back to the red when I went 7-9. I blame the way the NFL is set up and teams throw in the towel early to "rest players". Just like this week, only a few teams have anything to play for so picking winners vs the spread becomes even more difficult. Tough to make a choice when you don't know if a starter is going to play more then 1 series of not. So more so then any normal week I a just tossing out a guess and hoping that I am right. Lets see how that goes.

Happy New Years!

2010-01-01T13:36:00.002-05:00

A Happy New Years to all those who faithfully come back to my little blog day in and day out. I appreciate that you take a few seconds of your time to read my little musings and updates from personal sports stories to events in the news to breaking sports stories and the ones that are the most fun, the funny ( or attempted to be funny) postings on silly sports related topics.

I hope that everyone will continue to make A Bit Of Everything Sports part of their daily routine and I hope that I can at least keep up the same level of quality and hopefully raise the bar even higher in 2010.

All the best to you and yours in the New Year!

Holiday Season A Busy One

2009-12-30T11:00:00.001-05:00

This is a great time of the year to be a sports fan. There is a little something for everyone. You are treated to maybe a little bit more if you are a hockey fan, so this may be more directed to those in Canada and the upper East Coast. First we are right in the midst of the college football Bowl season. Granted with some 30 Bowls or something silly like that there are a lot of meaningless games out there but If you are just going to watch for the entertainment of the game or just want something to keep gambling on then you are in luck. All of the real important games don’t begin until New Years there is still plenty to fill the schedule.

You then have the regular season for both college basketball and the NBA. Both regular seasons are just a matter of jockeying for position for the playoffs and for the NCAA Tournament but there are still some entertainment to be had in watching either of these two distinctive versions of the same sport.

The final week of the NFL schedule is hear and teams are making the final push to make the playoffs, gain home field and to either rest star players or keep their foot on the gas. It can be a week where it is a real crap shoot of games. It depends on what teams come to play. 2 great teams facing off may become the worst games of a weekend. 2 terrible teams with players playing for jobs next year may be the most entertaining. Every year in the NFL the elite teams have nothing to play for...so they don’t. It is games like that that rob the fans of not only specific teams but the sport in general. This is the reason why an 18 game schedule is a bad idea....just more meaningless games.

Then there is hockey. Everywhere you look there is something to take in. You have the NHL regular schedule and it’s array of games, the Spengler Cup which most people in Canada don’t even realize that Canada has a team in that tournament. It is probably one of the most under the radar Major International Tournaments. It is a huge deal overseas but seems to get lost in the shuffle over here. Even with names like Alexandre Daigle and a coach like Craig McTavish. Then of course there is one of my personal favorites, the IIHF World Juniors Tournament. This is one event that I very much enjoy watching. I will be honest, it is a bonus that Canada is prolific and more often then not are one of the teams to win year in and year out (as shown by the 5 straight gold medals) but the style and tempo of play is enjoyable to watch. To see the stars of tomorrow in a competition where they are playing the most elite competition from each country is fun to watch. Sure when you beat a Latvia 16-0 that is not the greatest of games but good for the national pride. It is the games against the USA and the Swedes and the Russians that are the most fun.
And this year we get the added bonus of having the Team Canada Olympic Roster announced before New Years...

All of that equals an embarrassment of riches for the sports fan, whether your interest is sport specific or you just love them all and are a fan of the games

Team Canada Final Roster Prediction

2009-12-29T12:00:00.000-05:00

Noon on Wednesday will be the much anticipated time for Steve Yzerman and Team Canada. It will be at that time when they will unveil their final choice on who has made the Olympic squad. Well, in actuality, since it is a list and we are in Canada it will quickly turn to who didn't make the team. When you have enough quality to send 2 very capable medal contending teams there will be some deserving people left off.

Sure this "Final Team" will not be the team that suits up for Canada when the games begin but it will be close. You have to figure that there will at least be a few injuries that will effect the roster.

My final roster is who I think should be on the team but not necessarily whom I believe that Team Canada will select for their final roster.

As you can compare from my from my Last Update there has been some movement in just over a month and that one changed fro the orientation camp from August.

Forwards:
Jarome Iginla - Sidney Crosby- Jonathan Toews
Rick Nash - Ryan Getzlaf - Dany Heatley
Martin St. Louis - Joe Thornton - Steve Stamkos
E. Staal - Mike Fisher - Corey Perry
Brad Richards

Defence:
Scott Niedermayer - Shea Weber
Chris Pronger - Dan Boyle
Brent Seabrook - Drew Doughty
Duncan Keith

Goal:
Roberto Luongo, Martin Brodeur, Marc-André Fleury

Taxi Squad:
Mike Green, Jeff Carter, Patrick Marleau

How close I am will be interesting to see, I am just putting Fisher in as a long shot sentimental pic. If I was going to be completely objective he would not be on my list but I want to give him a little extra credit so I will include him. I think that it is more likely that Milan Lucic has a better chance of making the team, even with his recent string on injuries he serves a similar role but may be a little grittier. Maybe even a Mike Richards but without knowing how he gets along with Chris Pronger I amy not want the two of them in the same room.

We will just have to see what Stevie Y and his team has in mind on Wednesday...then we can begin the criticism.

Not So Perfect

2009-12-28T10:11:00.002-05:00

If there is any question that Peyton Manning is not only the MVP of the league but he is also a half decent actor. I guess that most of his endorsement commercials have prepared him for yesterdays game. Manning was taken out of the Jets game while the Colts were leading 15-10 in the third quarter and backup Curtis Painter was not up to the challenge and looked like a JV QB or worse, like JaMarcus Russell. Sure he didn’t look pleased but managed to maintain a decent demeanor on the sidelines, unlike Brett Favre and Brad Childresss the week before. You could tell by his face that he was not impressed with being taken but hid it fairly well. It only looked like someone injured his dog but not killed it. In the end he towed the company line and said that he knew it was a possibility that this could happen. Guess he figured that If he was going to come out they would have a greater then a 5 point lead.

Jim Caldwell, Colts Head Coach made the decision to "rest" at least 5 of his top offensive players, Manning included. There were also a few on the defensive side of the ball as well. Ordinarily I would agree with the concept that you won your games and you have the right to play the last 2 however you want. If resting players, you believe is in the best interest of your teams chances to win the Super Bowl then so be it. The only thing is that this was a different set of circumstances this was a 14-0 team that had a legitimate chance on going 16-0 and becoming the first team to do so and win the Super Bowl. New England came within a hair of achieving that a few years ago and would have done so had it not been for one of the luckiest BS catches of all time by David Tyree. Going undefeated in the regular season did not prevent them from winning, the team that was on a roll and got hot at the right time and then they just didn’t play well enough in one game at the end of the season.

I have made it clear in the past that I am a fan of history being made. A great story didn’t even make it off the ground because of a pre-emptive move by a rookie coach. This is a huge deal too, just look at how people remember the Dolphins team from the 70’s. People still talk about that team and how great they were and what they accomplished. Peyton is a guy who understands the history of football and he knows what it would have meant for his team to reach such a record. Caldwell also made the comment that they never had plans of going 16-0. ???????? That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard, what team doesn’t try to win every game? If you aren’t planning on going 16-0 you are planning on loosing, not the right attitude for one of the elite teams in the league.

With an offence like the Colts, they rely on timing and repetition. Staying in a flow and working like a well oiled unit is what they do, taking that away from them will likely hurt the teams chances going forward. You will have spotty work in the last 2 regular season games and then a bye then you have a rusty team entering a 1 and done elimination game versus a good team... a very dangerous situation, on that the Colts may live to regret.

Week 16 NFL Picks

2009-12-27T00:03:00.003-05:00

Another week and another 10-6 record. I am becoming the epitome of consistency. It was a tough week and will only get tougher as the season moves forward. Some teams have everything to play for and others have nothing...unless you count pride. We don't count pride. It is this dilemma that makes it tough to decide what team is going to show up for each game, what teams are going to rest players and who will keep the foot on the gas pedal. Lets see how my prognostication (guessing) works out this week

AP Athlete Of The Year

2009-12-21T17:46:00.008-05:00

It is nice to know that the The Associated Press has the pulse on the sports world when they named Jimmie Johnson as Male Athlete of the Year. They are at least better then the people at SI. SI named Derek Jeter as Sportsman of the year, I guess that is slightly different then Athlete of the Year but not relay that much. After not just winning the NASCAR title not Once, Twice or even Thrice but nailed down an unprecedented quad title to his resume. Finally that was enough to be recognized for what he managed to accomplish. Johnson received 42 votes from editors at U.S. newspapers which are members of the AP. Tennis star Roger Federer (30 votes) and Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt (29) were the only other athletes with totals in the double- digits.

It was too bad that SI couldn't get their lips off the "Ace" of the New York Yankees long enough to appreciate exactly how special Jimmie Johnson has been to not just his team but to the sport as a whole. This is probably even more impressive then winning all 4 Grand Slams in either golf or tennis in one year but for whatever reason does not get the same love in the media. Jimmie had the hurdle of proving that it wasn't just a car winning the award but that he was a worth candidate.

After NASCAR made up so much of the gap between itself and the rest of the main stream sports over the years you would think that it would be above being treated as a second class citizen. In the US it raised itself into the top 4 in the major Pro Sports landscape both in terms of fans but also main stream media and sponsors. I is also nice that New York City mayor’s office designated a "Jimmie Johnson Day" earlier this month, the champion suggested "everyone should have the day off and go have margaritas."

In any event I am glad that Jimmie is finally getting some good pub outside of just his sport and is being rewarded for just how special the run that he is on truly is. Congrats to Johnson and the entire Lowes 48 Team...with a special nod to Crew Chief Chad Knaus who is the architect of this dynasty. Perhaps Chad is overlooked in this whole thing but he is the driving force and the relationship between himself the owner the team and the driver.

Week 15 NFL Picks

2009-12-20T13:28:00.003-05:00

Last Weeks Picks would have probably gotten me into the playoffs. I went 10-6 vs the spread. It was a tough week for picks but i managed to fair not too bad. This weeks there are some very tough games to pick and I can say right off the top that I am not confident in these picks, so much so I am not even going to try to play Proline. That probably means I will go 16-0 but I just don't like the match ups. Lets see what Sunday brings.

Sad End To A Troubled Player

2009-12-17T12:24:00.003-05:00

This time the story about a pro athlete involved in a domestic disturbance/traffic incident has become more of a real story and more serious then that of the Tiger Woods situation. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police have said that Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chris Henry has died, one day after suffering serious injuries upon falling out of the back of a pickup truck. Authorities have describe the events that led to the accident as a domestic dispute with his fiancee.

Henry was suspended in 2007 for half of the season -- as part of a toughening of the league’s conduct policy. This came on the heals of his a fifth arrest. He had had trouble with the law and character issues dating back to his time in college. Throughout his career, his temper and poor decisions got him in trouble.

Henry was not with the team after he broke his left forearm during a win over Baltimore on Nov. 8. He had surgery and was placed on season-ending injured reserve following the game. That was the reason that he was in Charlotte at the home of his fiancee’s parents, where it is believed that the incident began.

It is sad at anytime that news like this happens, especially to a high profile athlete. Sure this type of thing probably happens a lot in one way or another in society and doesn’t even get second mention. Just because it was some what of a celebrity that it happened to that it gets the extra exposure but it is still a shame. For a player who had all the potential in the world to be a real star in the NFL he just couldn't shake his demons and maybe that could have ultimately led to this tragic end. Leaving behind his young children is also overlooked. It is also too bad that he will not be remembered for much of what he did on the football field but all his off field indiscretions and arrests. His tarnished image are unfortunately what people are going to remember.

Best And Worst Of The Weekend

2009-12-14T13:54:00.005-05:00

Best: The Indianapolis Colts passed two dynasties with one win. They have now won 22 straight games in the regular season Passing the New England Patriots and won their 114th this decade passing the mark set by the San Francisco 49ers. The only difference is they have won 1 Super Bowl vs a few more by the other 2 combined.

Worst: Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys lost again in December and are perfectly miserable in the most important month of the regular season. Maybe it is history repeating itself or maybe it is because the NFL wants teams to be in contention until at least Thanksgiving and give out more favorable beginnings of the schedule to have a bunch of wins stockpiled early and then they play better teams in December and are exposed. In any event a loss is a loss and the criticism of Romo are already starting to rumble and gain steam.

Best: Brandon Marshall snagged a record 21 catches. Marshall said after "I believe it was one of those games where, whenever you accomplish something like that, it definitely feels good," he said. "But we have goals, and our only goal is to win games. I’d definitely trade in a couple of those catches for a win."... I’d definitely trade in a couple of those catches for a win?? What does that even mean? I would give up the catches that didn’t go for touchdowns? I know he just meant that it would have meant more had his team won, but that doesn’t do much to change the perception that a Wide Receiver can be a bit of a diva.

Worst: It is basketball season and all I can find on TV is 1 Kentucky Game on Saturday and a Raptors game vs Houston on Sunday?? Granted that NCAA regular season basketball is a nameless and faceless sport, usually until March Madness come around but sometimes there are some engaging games on before that. You watch and game at Cameron Indoor at Duke or the Dean Dome in North Carolina and just the atmosphere of the crowd is enough to keep you interested. Yet another reason that we should have the option for ESPN to be shown or optioned in Canada and not have to purchase a specific pay per view NCAA package. Every time this issue comes up.

Best: NHL Center Ice free preview on Bell ExpressVu. Managed to take in 6 games at the same time on the TV Saturday night with the Ottawa game streamed on the Computer at CBC.ca. With the multi screen option that is offered, it gave a nice variety and options without having to change the channel. Sure each frame is a bit small then one might like but being able to see all the games live at the same time is cool. Having the little goal light with real time updates was an added benefit. It is still very sad that it was clearer to watch the Sens game on the computer then on the Standard Def feed on CBC Ottawa.

Worst: There were 2 scary injuries that were suffered by a couple athletes over the weekend. Former Senators goaltender Martin Gerber suffered a serious injury playing for Atlant Mytischi of the KHL. Apparently Gerber was involved in a collision during a game against Vityaz Chekhov and left the ice on a stretcher. He was diagnosed with a compression fracture of one of his cervical vertebra and could be in hospital for two months. Then there was Cowboys defensive stalwart DeMarcus Ware who was carted off the field on a stretcher during the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the Chargers with a reported sprained neck. He had full movement and gave several hand gestures but was otherwise immobilized for safety reasons. Both are collision games but you never want to see a stretcher on a playing surface.

Week 14 NFL Picks

2009-12-13T11:06:00.003-05:00

Last week I clawed my way to a solid 8-8 record. Not great but If this was baseball I would be up for the Hall of Fame. So with that said I will go for a second consecutive .500 or better record this week. Lets see how it goes

Tail Of The Tiger

2009-12-12T18:18:00.004-05:00

Like I said before, right after Tiger had that early morning accident and some of the tabloid stories that were floated just before that incident that it was something that was fine to mention in the news but that everyone should just let him be and deal with it internally. The only reason that this should even be brought up is when it affects him as a pro golfer. Unfortunately that happened late this week. This went from tabloid garbage and fodder for the night time talk shows to becoming a legitimate sports news story. With a number now up to a bakers dozen of woman that h has been linked to is now at a level that is irrelevant as 1 is too many, 13 shows a real either addiction or at least pattern of poor decisions as a married man.

His decision to take an indefinite leave from the game of professional golf again legitimizes this as a true sports story. Granted he needs to deal with all this in a private way but there now needs to be some public statements. A post on his website is nice to get the info out but he needs to make an in person public statement if nothing else but to show that he is actually remorseful and sincere. Tiger stated "I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father, and person," which is the right thing to say...but it needs to be said and not written.

Slowly some of his sponsors are now slightly distancing themselves from Woods and the story by ‘pulling back on marketing’. They are not dropping him right away just limiting some of the exposure that he gets. Some of his major sponsors include Nike, Gillette, AT&T, Gatorade and Tag Heuer. Of those 3 have already made some sort of modification regarding Woods.

It is interesting when you think of it. Maybe it is just poor decision making if you are a professional athlete to get married before you are 35. The likleyhood of there being ‘transgressions’ has got be be higher then that in regular society. sew your wild oats while young and rich...then settle down. That might lessen the sting of acting like a playboy.

It is a sad story all in all. Who would have thought that it would be a marriage and scandal that is going to derail one of the greatest careers of anything we have ever seen in sports. You would have thought that injury was the only thing that could stand in Tiger's way... Not even close, he won a Major title on a BROKEN LEG and this is what brings him down. It will be interesting to see what takes a bigger hit, Tiger's image or the PGA Tour without Tiger (bad economic times on tour is not going to be easy to overcome).

Building Towards October

2009-12-10T13:34:00.003-05:00

Phase 1 complete. The Atlanta Braves have shed $7M from the payroll after closer Rafael Soriano surprised the team by accepting salary arbitration. The Braves expected to let him go and pick up an early draft pick for him but instead had to find a trading partner. Tampa Bay Rays needed a closer and got one for a very reasonable price. The Rays only had to give up 26yr old Jesse Chavez. Hopefully with his addition and the recent signings of closer Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito that will help round out a bullpen that needed to be more consistent.

Hopefully that will free up GM Frank Wren and allow him to focus on other possible trades, most likely a starting pitcher for hopefully a decent and consistent bat. That can come in the form of a first baseman and/or one of the corner outfield positions. Those are the 3 positions that require the most immediate attention and upgrade.

The starting rotation was one of the best in baseball last year (surprise, surprise the Braves had a good rotation). It looks like they will have to give up some of that depth in attempts to either gain a player or free up some money to be able to go sign one from the free agent market. Right now it looks like it will have to be Derek Lowe or Javier Vazquez that have the most value but Lowe’s contract may be a bit tougher to move. It would have been great if one of the young prospects were a little closer to cracking the lineup and that would give more options to Wren but it looks like there are a few more holes to plug. Hopefully during the winter meetings that are going on that there is some ground work for possible deals being made.

I want to get back to the days that My Braves were rattling off 14 Division titles and not seeing the Phillies representing the NL East year after year. They had their run, now it is time for the market to self correct and go back to the way it should be.

Quick Hits

2009-12-09T14:09:00.007-05:00

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen have had a baby boy. Although the child is but 1 day old it already has the Brady 3 day beard growth.

Chad Ochocinco will be parting ways with some of his dinero as he has been fined yet again.
Ochocinco is being fined $30,000 for his latest "wardrobe malfunction". He was on the sidelines after scoring a touchdown donning a poncho and sombrero. Not sure if it was $15,000 per prop or just a standard 30G’s.

Danica Patrick recently announced that she will be joining NASCAR to race in the Nationwide series. While on the Dan Patrick Show today she was asked if she knows if she can race a NASCAR car, her response was a little surprising. "Nope, but we’re gonna find out," Patrick said. Danica said that she doesn’t know NASCAR-style cars, and that she drove one once seven or eight years ago she tried it out on a small track. One would think that before signing a two-year deal that one may hop into a car for a little ride, especially seeing that the deal is probably a fairly lucrative one.

The NBA seems to be getting a pass on the Tim Donaghy referee scandal. I guess if it isn’t sexy it won’t get covered. Donaghy has a book coming out soon and it is getting little or no press. He is linked to the Mob, how can that not be a big deal. David Stern must be loving that Tiger Woods is stealing all the highlights and newscasts and this seens to be slipping through the cracks. It is funny that the actual news story is buried and the one that should be left private is the one that went viral.

A guy told his Facebook friends that they could shoot his 60-inch television if the Redskins blew their lead against the Saints last Sunday...a 23 yard chip shot field goal that would have cinched the victory was missed by Shaun Suisham. Final Score: Saints 33 - Redskins 30 in OT. See What happened to the TV set here.