Super Bowl Bizaro Style

It is interesting when you think of past champions and Dynasties in sports. How different would thinks look if you flipped the outcomes of say the NFL’s Super Bowl results? All those Iconic teams now relegated to runners up and also-rans. Suddenly legacy’s have changed and how we view teams and players would have changed dramatically.

Not to look into every Super Bowl but a few of the notable changes are interesting to look at.

Take for example the San Francisco 49’ers. One of the greatest franchises in NFL history. Now, in bizzaro world would only have 1 victory on their record and that win would come on the legs of Colin Kapernik…not Joe Montana. Montana would likely not be held in such high regard as one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the game.

The Dallas Cowboys and especially Troy Aikman would also be a team with a lot less shine on their star. America’s team would still have 3 championships but they would have come very early on in the first 15 years of the NFL.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are no longer a Dynasty and Terry Bradshaw is likely not on the Fox broadcasts each Sunday morning.

The New York Giants now have only 1 title, and it is not with Eli or Tom Coughlin.

Now lets look at some of the teams that have a much more favorable history now. Take a team like Minnesota.. 4 titles in the first 11 Super Bowls looks a lot more impressive now.

The next 3 teams would have made the biggest u-turn and greatly changed peoples perception of greatness.

The Denver Bronco’s and John Elway would now be 4-2 in the Super Bowl and Elway is probably heralded as the greatest QB in the history of the league.

The Buffalo Bills are now probably the greatest Dynasty in the NFL winning the Super Bowl 4 straight years. Jim Kelly is now probably pushing Elway for top spot on the QB list.

 The Miami Dolphins are interesting to look at now too. All of a sudden Dan Marino has his 1 championship and is elevated in the minds of fans and media alike. What is even more interesting to think about is that there would now not be an undefeated Miami team and all that narrative of them popping Champaign after the last undefeated teams takes a loss

Strangely .  it is in the New England Patriots that this flip may actually be a benefit to their legacy.  As strange as it sounds based on Tom Brady’s record/legacy and how the Patriots are perceived throughout the league they may actually come out even more impressive.  Brady would now be 2 and 4 respectable but not great. But now he also becomes the QB of the only team to go undefeated and win the Super Bowl, He beats Eli and the Giants twice. Is his legacy even more impressive despite losing 4 Super Bowls? Keeping in mind he gets to keep everything else that makes Tom Brady great.

It is an interesting debate to have not only for football but all sports. How much worse are the Toronto Maple Leafs now? 8-13 and no cups since 1960.

Montreal Canadians now 6-24 not such an impressive championship record either.

It is interesting to think about and some interesting debates could be had at the local sports bar. Both team and personal legacies would be greatly impacted. For those who value championships when evaluating players and their careers might be forced to change their tune. 

Dead Lock'd

NHL and Media Coverage should both be under a media blackout

As of September 15th at 11:59pm the NHL owners will lock out its players and "negotiations" will continue until a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (from here on known as the CBA) is finalized. The NHL has not had a good record of labour peace in the entire Gary Bettman era and that trend seems to be continuing. This time around it is not a fundamental change line last time. It more or less is the owners and players deciding on how best to divide a lot of money. It is too bad when millionaires and billionaires fight because the only people that loose are the fans of the game and the people who are employed in the organizations and at the arenas that essentially locked out as well.
The league has placed these artificial deadlines like September 15th in hopes to make it appear that there is something to loose right away. Training camp wouldn't plan to start until the 21st so what is the rush. What other organization or business would lock out its workers the minute a deal expires. Why not have training camp and continue to negotiate? Why not make an effort in good faith to get the players feel like they are a part of the grand plan and the owners are not trying to strong arm them. That also gives a good actual deadline to try and hammer out a deal. It doesn't hurt to give the players a feel for the ice and the game they love to play. By that point the players will be closer to missing the first paycheck and might encourage some more serious talks.

It seems like all these meaningless deadlines will come and go until there is something tangible to loose...paychecks, gate revenue and/or the Winter Classic game between the Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs.

It is interesting that the owners voted 100% to lock out the players because that way money is being shared. Just in the last few days 100's of million dollar contracts have been given out by these owners to players before the old deal expires. This CBA is essentially to protect the owners from themselves. If things were so bad why did the Wild spend nearly $100M for 2 players yet claim that they have a problem with the distribution of money? Bell/Rogers JUST took over MLSE as owners of the Leafs. How can they be in a position to vote for or against any proposed deal? Why when both own sports channels with hockey rights think it is either of their interest to not have hockey? They have programming hours to fill and no hockey will leave a big hole. Comcast (Ed Snider from the Philly Flyers) are in a joint venture with NBC who owns the NHL rights in the US. They have launched NBC Sports to compete with the CBS Sports, Fox Sports and the Mother Ship aka. ESPN. Hockey and hockey programming was and is key to the potential growth and viability of this new sports venture in an already saturated sports network landscape. How can this be good for them? I don't think it is or will be.

If any of these Media parties want to get hockey rolling then they should direct all of their sports channels to not report a single thing on the NHL or the lockout until there is an announcement from the league saying that a deal has been struck. No updates, no rumours of talks no mention of back room discussions nothing on Sportsnet Connected, Nothing on Sportscenter. Do not mention it or anything about it. Out of sight, out of mind then maybe there will be discussion in the board rooms and the two sides trying to WIN a PR war instead of negotiating a long term labour deal. The fans would not have to hear updates of items that are neither news or news worthy. Rumours and speculation would not exist and there would be a lot less bitter fans more willing to support the league when they do come back because they won't have a bitter taste in their mouths from having to listen to useless uninformative crap every day and night until a resolution is reached. Just like a judge who puts a media ban on a court case the same should happen in the case of this lockout...a media blackout may be the most productive thing to get this whole circus put to rest.

Time for the madness to stop...before it even starts. Lets only talk about on ice issues and rosters and not topics of discussions driven by accountants and the editors at financial magazines like Forbes.

Trade Winds Start To Blow

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.

Let The Rebuild Begin

The Toronto Maple Leafs are very close to the New York Yankees in the list of professional teams that I just have little or no use for. The coverage that they get in the media and the fans that they have don’t help their cause. I think that it is actually the fans that I have more of a problem with then the team itself. If they weren’t so ignorant and self-righteous I may not have the same destine for them. In an effort to be unbiased I am going to give credit where credit is due. Brian Burke has come in and put his stamp on the team in a very short period of time.

Pierre McGuire has said many times that this would be close to a 5 year re-build but in this cap system I am thinking that it may take far less time then that and they look to be off to a running start, especially when you have a little extra money to play with. Despite the fact that they currently have little or no one that can put the puck in the net they also won’t be allowing too many in their own. It may come down to a lot of 2-1 losses and/or shootout games. So far in just 1 off season they have done a great job at building from the goal out. They have 2 solid options in goal with Vessa Toskala and Jonas Gustavsson that can split time and add a good level of competition between the two tenders for the number 1 job.

They currently have 9 + guys on defence and will have to whiddle that down to probably 7 so some of those guys may be available in deals that can acquire something up front that can step in and help out the offence. The pickups of: Francois Beauchemin, Michael Komisarek and Garnet Exelby add size and solid play. When you add in Jeff Finger, Tomas Kaberle, Luke Schenn, Ian White, Mike Van Ryn, Jay Harrison and Anton Stralman you have formidable back end.

Right now there is little or nothing in the cupboard up front in either the minors or on the roster. the Colton Orr pick up clearly does not fill that need but there are pieces in play that could be added through trade or a mid level free agent move. Don’t look for Jason Blake Alexei Ponikarovsky or Matt Stajan to become dynamic scorers anytime soon. They have already signed their first round pick from this year in Nazem Kadri.

I still hate those dirty Leafs, but again, coming from a neutral position you have to give ol’ Burkey at least a head nod for a good step forward. It makes you wonder how just about every other regime since ‘67 could have been so inept.

Quick Hits

The Tour De France is now in full force which means we should hear about a bunch of positive drug tests, Lance Armstrong allegations and criticisms, poor North American ratings and if all goes well 1 or 2 huge crashes. Other then that there is little to hold ones interest until the last day...when it is over.

The Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly shopping the service of ace Roy Halladay, guess that is the white towel we have been waiting for. Halladay is almost the only pitcher on the team without a broken wing and can actually throw strikes so I guess it is time for him to move on. It is too bad that they can’t rid themselves of the albatross that is Vernon Wells and his massive contract.

The Reds managed to loose last night 22-1 to the Phillies. That is the worst loss in team history. This is not an expansion team either that means it was the worst loss in some 119 years, not good. The Phillies plated 10 in the first inning, not a great way to set the table for the rest of the game.

Remarks by Maple Leafs’ head coach Ron Wilson on a Toronto radio station could prove to be very costly. The Leafs are being investigated for tampering as it relates to the Vancouver Canucks Sedin twins. Wilson stated "You’re hearing right now, and this sounds very contradictory but, there’s a real possibility, I would think, that we would be going after the Sedins. Let’s just speculate there."
This they investigate but they look the other way when Brian Burke was rumored to go to the Leafs as GM. Seems like the NHL only investigates things that they feel like sometimes. Guess that is how 1 owner can lend money to the prospective buyers of a team or another can buy a team with no money. Guess It is very selective and subjective.

Great Finish In NCAA Championship Final

Since it was going head to head versus Hockey Night in Canada with Toronto hosting Ottawa and Montreal playing Pittsburgh it would not a surprise that the game seen on The Score last night may have been overlooked by most hockey viewers but it may have been one of the best NCAA hockey games ever. If not the game itself at least the finish. Not too many people would watch an NCAA game at the best of times since there just isn’t too much coverage but this was for the National Championship. Miami (OH) was up 3-1 over Boston University in the 3rd period. With just over 3 minutes remaining Boston pulled the goalie for an extra attacker. With just over a minute left they scored to close the gap to 3-2. Inside a minute to play now and the goalie still out Boston managed to strike again and tie the game at 3-3. Now what was an almost sire win for Miami has come down to a next goal wins. In the overtime, On a shot from the point a Miami player went down to block the shot, it deflected and fluttered over the goalies shoulder and into the back of the net. It was one of the most unlikely and most exciting finishes to a hockey game that you are ever going to get.

The fact that it was Boston U that made the comeback and won their 5th title you almost have to agree that Boston must have a stranglehold on the title of City of Champions. Between this game the Patriots Super Bowl wins and record and success of late, The Red Sox World Series’, The Celtics being NBA Champions...heck even the Bruins had the best record in the Eastern Conference.

Almost A Done Deal Now- and not a moment too soon

Finally we can move on from the incessant Brian Burke rumors to Toronto, Burke agreed to terms yesterday and not a moment too soon. Burke will become the President and GM of the Leafs and have "complete autonomy". That, "It is what it is", "secondary scoring", "puck moving defenceman", "compete level" and "soccer mom" and all terms that in my opinion can’t stop soon enough. It is buzz phrases like that that just make you want to bang your head against the wall, but I digress...
But back to the complete autonomy. In the deal it is apparent that he wanted and it would appear that he would get the same type of deal that Bryan Colangelo gets for the same position with thee Raptors. Granted I am more comfortable with Colangelo then Burke, I mean clearly "Bryan" with a "Y" carries more respect then one with an "I". Apparently Burke will get up to $3.1M per year if he reaches incentives listed in the contract and have the final say with only Richard Peddie to report to on the MLSE Board. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for him to put his stamp on the team and purge Europeans and high ticket players.
Now if we can just get Mats Sundin to sign somewhere maybe people can go back to talking about the games and end all the speculation talk for a while.

In a side note Luke Richardson was waived by the Sens and all but ends his long career. If not claimed it is likely he becomes a coach in some capacity with the organization and would be a valuable addition to young defenceman in the system. It also allows for a little more cost flexibility or the team...Is this just the first move? Is something in the works? We will just have to keep an eye on that pipeline.

Around the Horn

Brian Griese threw it up 67 times in Sunday’s game. (38-67, 407)
Says very little for the running game for Tampa Bay, says a lot for the prestigious Michigan Wolverines pedigree for QB’s

Former Michigan QB Tom Brady is my early season MVP candidate.
After watching New England play, Brady hasn’t even played a full quarter and is out for the year and clearly he is the most valuable to his team.

The Mets, after last years collapse or choke job or whatever you want to call it look like they want to make it an annual event.
Sure it isn’t of historic proportions as it was last year but they seem to be trying to do everything in their power to give it away again. As a Braves fan, I will watch and enjoy.

Kyle Busch was dominant in Dover Nationwide race
Kyle Busch was first eliminated in Dover Sprint Cup race with engine failure.
Looks like Kyle chose the wrong race as he has dug himself into a hole in the Chase Championship that will be tough to get out of...No, No, dig up stupid!

Yankee Stadium saw its last game on Sunday.
Did anyone else think that it was a little odd and frankly unjust that it was a game involving the Baltimore Orioles and not the Boston Red Sox?

Blues defenseman Erik Johnson suffered a knee injury. Johnson is a promising young defenseman and high prospect. He was attempting to stop his golf cart and step out to hit his next shot when he jammed his right foot between the accelerator and brake.
This would never happen to a Toronto Maple Leafs player as they have had more then enough practice on the golf course after missing the playoffs the last 3 years.

John Ferguson Junior has been hired as pro scout director in San Jose
Yes, that sound you just heard was Joe Thornton flipping pages looking for that opt-out clause in his contract