Sports Guy North

Conversations On Ice

The JF brought to my attention a conversation that was overheard in the Blackhawks Penguins "game" the other day. Lapointe was wearing a mic, and this exchange was actually caught on TV:

Crosby: why are you trippin on me when Barnaby's trippin on me?
Lapointe: Why don't you play a little, no? You can do that. Just play

Later on, Lapointe is shown over at the bench talking to Barnaby:
Lapointe: Did you give Crosby an elbow?
Barnaby: No
Lapointe: Well, he told me you did.
Barns: Who did?
LaP: Crosby did. Said you gave him an elbow. That's why he was whining a bit. I said "Well, that's not the first one you're gonna get"
Barny: Oh, ya ya. I saw him on the boards. I got him.


Some things struck me as funny in this conversation. First off, Crosby uses the phrase "trippin on me". Secondly, does he really think that he's only going to have to worry about one guy a game during his career? Last time I checked, Recchi wasn't McSorely. Those days are gone. Sid, you're on your own, and you're going to have to get used to it. Someone with your hype will always be a main target every game, you've got 20 years of elbows ahead of you.

Also, though, if Lapointe really told him "that's not the first one you're gonna get", what exactly did he mean. Does he have a time machine back home that he and Barnaby ordered off the internet? I hope he tried it out already before making such big claims. Or his next mic'ed conversation might go a little more like this "Ow! Ow! Ow! It kills! My pack! Ow! Turn it off! It's a piece of crap and it doesn't work!" But really, though, I know what he meant to say, and he's right. It's not the only elbow he's going to get. Every corner he goes into should find an elbow, and that is the way the game should be played. You can't give the best players in the league all the ice and time they want. If they don't have a McSorely to help them earn it, then they are going to have to fight through a lot of pain to get it. And that is the way that it should be. Increased scoring is nice, and I am loving this season, but if they start cutting down on cheap moves in the corners as well, then they will have gone too far. So far I don't have too many complaints in that area, though. They seem to still be concentrating on the interference-type infractions. For now.

Elias watch: well, I guess this is an offshoot of coming off of a debilitating disease. A cold can weaken you enough to keep you out of the lineup. Tough luck for the Devils and Patrick, but I still think he'll manage a point a game from here on in. Just hard to tell how many games exactly that will include.

Mogilny Watch: 1 game in the AHL, and already 1 game winning goal. Most players of Alex's stature would never report to the minor league team. What Alex has done in reporting is very admirable, and should not be ignored. This is a real team player, and a huge talent. How he can not be in the NHL is beyond me. Something is seriously wrong in the swamp. It's time to clean house, this is beyond unacceptable at this point. Even bringing in Rob Babcock right now would be an improvement. At least his huge mistakes can still make a playoff team.