Sports Guy North

An LA of a Night

I don't know about you, but my TV was filled with Los Angelas sports tonight. The first game involved the Phoenix Suns guaranteeing themselves 14 games against Los Angelas teams in this years playoffs by failing to get anything going all night. That may sound like an unfair thing to say about a team that scored 106 points, but if you watched the game you know what i mean. 80% of the Suns points came at times where they weren't in striking distance of the Clippers. If they got within 9 points, Elton Brand just threw down 6 straight points and so on. That's pretty much how the entire game felt. The Suns were never in this one, and they only got 106 points because the Clippers decided they were allowed to. Not the kind of performance that they'll need to bring in game 7 if we're going to get the Nash Dirk semi-final battle that we're all hoping for. I've already lost all hope of any NHL series that I was hoping for, don't take this one away from me now for the sake of Sam Cassel. Dude looks like a frikkin alien, I know that I'm not the only one tired of looking at him by this point.

In the second game, the Blue Jays were taking on the Los Angelas Angels of Anaheim to end the night. The Jays looked down and out in this one, tied 4-4 in the bottom of the 9th, and the Angels with a runner on first and third with no one out. Instead Scott Downs came in and got Kennedy to fly out to left, followed by Frasor getting Cabrera to pop out to first. After then intentionally walking Vlad, Frasor struck out Tim Salmon looking to end the inning. The Blue Jays then went on to score 4 runs in the top of the tenth to take the matchup 8-4.

With that win the Blue Jays have won 6 of their last 8 games to move to 23-17 on the season. This is the kind of improvement those of us tired of the Red Sox/Yankees dominance were hoping to see this season. Just 40 games in, and the Jays are already 6 games over .500, a mark they never reached through all 162 games last year. Their success lately also puts them just a half game back of the Yankees, and only 1 game off of first place Boston. To be in that position despite early season pitching struggles with both injuries and Towers (who is 1-7 with an ERA of about a billion) bodes well for the rest of the season. In the short run, however, they've called up Ty Taubenheim to make his major league debut on Saturday at Coors Field. Not the best park to make your debut in, but the ball hasn't been flying out of there as much as in the past, so here's hoping for the best. Chacin's absence is a hole they'll need a lot of help to fill. If all goes well, when Chacin comes back maybe a replacement for Towers will finally be found. Hopefully the team will also finally realize they need one.

Dan Cloutier: An Alanah History

Sports Guy North prides itself on being accurate in it's reporting. It was pointed out to us that there may have been a few errors in our in depth report on the life and times of Dan Cloutier. For the sake of accuracy, those errors are listed as follows:

LeMar was not Daniel Cloutiers middle name.
Daniel was not 6 years old at birth.
Some people know that Mont-Laurier exists. I assume Daniel is one of them.
Cloutiers comparisons had nothing to do with his relative height compared to me. In fact in his early years his style of play did earn him the comparisons. It also helped earn him a Memorial Cup, something that even the best of teams would require a high calibre CHL goaltender for.
Cloutiers selection at the end of the first round, while surprising, was not in the same realm of unbelievability as Araujo's early first round selection. Cloutier was a highly touted goaltender, and was ranked higher than Theodore in most scouting reports at the time. His career has seen him as the number one goalie in Vancouver for a few years now. Halfa-man, on the other hand, wasn't even supposed to be taken in the first round, and will never make a significant contribution to any NBA team.
While it may be said that he lacks focus, Daniel has the size, speed and competitive nature to be successful in the NHL.
Cloutier did not purposely let Potvin and the Kings catch up in the standings, they accomplished that feat on their own. Trading Felix was the real issue, and that had nothing to do with Cloots.
I'm fairly certain Daniel did not purposely get in the way of Niedermayer. His injury hurt the Canucks chances this year, as over the previous 4 regular seasons Dan's numbers consistently improved, likely more so than anyone else in the league.
Finally, the chosen career highlights may not have portrayed Clootier as accurately as could have been. A different list of career highlites are as follows:

-Named to Ontario Hockey League All-Star Second Team, 1995-96.
-Winner, Dave Pinkney Trophy, 1995-96.
-Named to American Hockey League All-Rookie Team, 1996-97.
-Rated New York Rangers' top prospect, The Sports Forecaster 1997-98.
-Rated New York Rangers' top prospect, The Hockey News 1998-99 Yearbook.
-Named National Hockey League Player of the Week, March 18, 2002.
-Named National Hockey League Player of the Week, February 17, 2003.

Hopefully these errors and omissions won't alter your view on our quality media outlet in the future. We will continue to do our best going forward to prevent such errors, and correct them as they occur. Thank you for your understanding.

Rawk the Bawl Finals

It's been about ten days since I remembered this existed, so I guess that means that it's time to move our Rawk the Bawl competition onto the much anticipated finals. The semi-finals were not as close as the previous round, as Run DMC destroyed Ron Artest, and Redman easily took down D12 (finally).This means that the NBA finals, hip hop style, go down as follows:

(3) New Jersey Redman - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redman - How high indeed. Redman faced down the odds and took out powerhouses Kanye West and D12 to squeak New Jersey in the the finals. Red will be in tough in the finals, though, going up against the grand-daddies of Rap. It'll take a lot of magic brownies to get high enough to get over this hurdle.

(7) LA Lakers Run DMC - http://pages.sbcglobal.net/tmoren/rundmc/ - For the last time, AGAIN, yes I know that Run DMC isn't from LA. As I said THRICE already, since the Lakers were unable to buy up aging talent to help Kobe this year, I thought I would do it for them in this medium. Lakers fans need some sort of consolation this year, and they seem to be easily taking steps towards it behind the power of old skool. Redman should be the toughest competition so far, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Run walk away with this competition. Agree or disagree as you will, either way get your votes in for Rawk the Bawl's champion today.

Cloots was born Danielle LeMar Cloutier (pronounced KLOO-tee-YAY) on April 22, 1982. He was 6 years old at time of birth. LeMar was born in Mont-Laurier, Quebec, a town known for not being known by anyone. In his time there, he managed to grow nearly as tall as me, which helped to garner early comparisons to a young Ron Hextall. Apparently his combative, fiery nature may have added to the illusions, as can be seen in the video at the end of this post.

Always one to defy all odds, despite mediocre numbers in being carried by a strong team to the Memorial Cup, Cloutier was the surprising Halfa-man Araujo pick of the first round of the 1994 NHL entry draft, taken 26th overall by the New York Rangers. His potential was seen by the Rangers as being greater than Jose Theodore, Patrick Elias, Milan Hejduk and Daniel Alfredson, who were all still available at the time of his choice. Even before his career started, Cloots was already more successful than 4 potential Hall of Famers. A sure sign of things to come.

As his career got underway, a few roadblocks stood in the way. Most notably were his lack of focus, inability to find a puck in crowds, and his lack of winning games. After being traded from the Rangers to the Lightning, the Sports Forecaster in 2000 had this to say about LeMar:

"Counted upon as an emerging star and No. 1 netminder via the Rangers, Cloutier's first year in Tampa as the go-to guy was good at first but miserable shortly thereafter. So miserable that the Lightning dealt for another "goalie of the future" when they acquired Kevin Weekes from the Islanders during the past summer. While the Lightning's defensive shortcomings didn't help his cause, Cloutier's .885 save percentage made matters even worse. A spirited and fiery competitor, his humbling 1999-2000 season may help in the long run. Too early in his career to count him down and out, but he'll now have to work his way back up as the No. 1 man, a job Weekes also has his eyes set on. A warrior, Cloutier is destined to a nice future nonetheless."

And it certainly was too early to count him down and out. Despite following the season described above with a 3-13 start and a 3.52 GAA, his career wasn't headed down the road to obscurity as many with better numbers had before him. Despite the fact that he no longer fit into the Lightning plans, nor did he have any apparent trade value, Cloots stood up against the odds again. Against all odds and logic, the Vancouver Canucks saw enough value in his less than mediocre numbers to trade both a top defenseman (who would go on to play nearly 30 minutes a game with the Islanders) as well as a second round draft pick for his services.

Always the selfless hero, Cloots inclusion in the Canucks ranks allowed them to move Felix Potvin, something that gave a new life to his career. Wanting to see Felix get back on his feet in LA, Cloutier laid the forces down, allowing Potvin to miraculously catch the Canucks in the standings by going 13-5-5 compared to cloutiers sub-.500 record. As a result, the Canucks had to face the eventual Cup winning Avalanche in the first round of the playoffs A classy move from a classy guy who just wanted to see his former teammate succeed.

In his first 4 seasons in Vancouver, Cloutiers production steadily increased along with the talent of the team in front of him. His GAA consistently decreased from 2.43 to 2.27, and his save % steadily increased from .894 to .914. At the same time, a young Alex Auld was looking good in starts with the Canucks, putting up a save % in the .930's and a GAA under 2.00 in limited play. Despite failed playoffs after failed playoffs under Cloutiers distracted watch, the Canucks brass still had faith in Cloots and refused to look elsewhere for help. Showing yet again that he's always the team player, after starting the 2005 season with a 3.17 GAA and .892 save %, Cloutier knew the time was right for Auldy to get his chance in the NHL. Knowing that the team would never give up on him, for no discernible reason, Cloutier did the only thing he could, and on November 20th he purposely got in Rob Niedermayers way, partially-tearing his ACL. Despite the fact that a partial-tear need not end someone's season, Dan elected for surgery, thus paving the way for Alex's emergence as a bonefide #1 goaltender.

Career Highlites

1999-2000 - Career High for Separate Injuries in one season: Strained Groin Nov, Strained Groin Feb, Strained Neck Mar, Strained MCL Mar
1999-2000 - Suspended 4 games for always classy move of purposely kicking someone in the head
2000-2001 - Got losing down to such an art that he managed to lose a game without facing a single shot. Seriously, it was Oct 18 against Minnesota. Look it up if you don't believe me.
2000-2001 - Furthered Kevin Weekes and Felix Potvin's Careers
2001-2002 - Furthered Niklas Lidstroms Career
2002-2003 - Allowed Joe Sakic's 500th career goal
2005-2006 - Furthered Alex Auld's Career
2005-2006 - Wasn't responsible for either the Devils or the Sharks elimination from the playoffs, making him relatively harmless enough now to have his own post on SGN.

You're so wise. You're like a miniature Buddha, covered with hair

This one goes out to Rasheed Wallace, and no it's not just a commentary on that ever expanding monk-like bald spot that's taking over his head. No, this one goes out to his always wise words. After guaranteeing a victory in game four, and having his Pistons come up short 74-72, a wise man knows better than to admit defeat and try to regroup. No no, a true wise man looks within himself and comes up with something profound to ridicule the people who just handed them their pants. Something like:

"The sun shines on a dog's ass every once in a while, doesn't it?... I ain't worried about these cats, there's no way in hell they beat us in a series."

Graceful in defeat as always, and certainly smart in setting more fire to spark a team that's already on a roll. Well done big man.

That's Science

What makes this somewhat eerie is what a blogger at Undisclosed Location wrote about Cleveland sports back in 2004:

"Cleveland tops the list of the 15 most tortured sports cities, and Graham Hays of ESPN2 predicts that our torture will continue for the next 100 years. Sad part is, with all that I've seen in Cleveland sports some of these ridiculous scenarios he describes could actually happen to some degree. We were already screwed over by Boozer this year, who decided to renig on his verbal agreement and bolt to the Utah Jazz (He did it all for the money. There is no other explanation. How do they have a better shot of winning than us with LeBron and Z?).
Despite all the crushing disappointments, I have faith that someday it'll turn around for this city. The sun shines on a dog's ass every once and a while doesn't it?"

So, either 'Sheed is a Undisclosed Location reader with a long long memory, or maybe the Cleveland prophecies are coming true. Maybe this one game, this one time defeat of a "guaransheed" will be the only sunshine on the dogs ass that is the Forest City, and they are still in for another 100 years of torture. I guess only the next century will tell, but hey, that's science.

Excuse me... is that 'sex panther' you're wearing?

No, it's not sex panther, but it is as close as you can get - Chacin! I found it really hard to believe that a cologne would be named after one of the ugliest men in sports who's best known for pitching in sun glasses whether he's indoors or in a thunder storm. I know that the idea come from a recurring skit on Toronto sports radio station FAN 590, and that at the June 27th game 10,000 fans will receive a sample of "Chacin Cologne", but is it actually going to be something that's sold in stores? It's pretty funny as a one time gag, and great that Chacin has enough sense of humour to go along with it, but if Leslie Cosmetics are actually planning on going forward with this in sales then someone there really has no understanding of either baseball fans, or women. There is nothing that makes sense about this product.

I'm in a glass case of emotion

I knew the Devil's were finished after that 20 second complete destruction early in the series, but I really didn't see the Sharks coming apart the way that they have. 3 straight losses to the lowly and hated Oilers, without even putting up anything that resembles a fight. It's like an annual ritual in the NHL now - all the Western Conference teams lay down to let a far inferior Alberta team waltz into the finals. I'm really getting that feeling now that God has taken up a Spring residence in the Princess Province, because nothing else makes sense at this point. Hopefully Joey and the Rucchin have enough pentagrams in their pockets to take on the big man in the next two matches. Dropping a series to a questionable playoff team after having a 2-0 lead is a horrible way to end one of the best second halves in history, and certainly no way for Joe to have to end one of the best seasons I've seen. They have to do something different to make that happen, though, as Joe said:

"We didn't put up too big of a fight in the last two games. I don't know what you've got to do, but just grab whatever confidence you can get and just go out and play the game of your life."

You know, times are changing. Ladies can do stuff now and you're going to learn how to deal with it.

They sure can, and even better than the rest of us, as evidenced by the nominees in my Miss Sports Blogger 2006 contest. Any one of them could easily write me under the table, and I'm by far the best male sports blogger out there. Hands down even. So that speaks volumes for all of these women. In the end, though, there could only be one winner, and your votes have spoken.

Second Runner Up (and lucky that I didn't pull her from contention after the last round of the playoffs), with 23% of the vote was Carolina Hurricaines-backer Acid Queen over at Sweet Tea, Barbeque and Bodychecks. At least the Hurricaines didn't manage to steal everything this week.

First Runner Up, with 27% of the vote was Christy (feel better and entertain us again soon!) Hammond over at Behind the Jersey. She may be the one person out there that was hurt more by the Red Wings first round shut down than I was. Instead of calling it the consolation prize, we'll say it's the Presidents Trophy. Wings fans are used to settling for that booby prize by now.

Finally, your winner of the 2006 Miss Sports Blogger contest, receiving 41% of the vote, was Alanah from Vancouver Canucks Op Ed fame. As you all wish, she is now Miss Sports Guy North (Jeff - please note that it's Miss not Mrs). We all know that in any good relationship it's the woman who's really in control, so along with the prestigious title, Miss SGN will get to decide what I post once a week until the end of the NHL and NBA playoffs, which should be 6 weeks. She can decide whatever freedoms i will or wont have with her themes, supply pictures, tell me to do the whole thing talking about how great her and the Canucks are, whatever she wants. The sky is the limit, Miss SGN, you've earned it!

Sorry for the lack of post lately, but i got really sick the last few days. I haven't even left my bed for a little while. I think I've worked up enough strength, though, to put something together again for my loyal readers. Hopefully it'll make a little more sense than that last Colevelando Cavalanche post, but I make no promises. Anyway, here is my attempt at summarizing the playoffs so far for all 32 teams that made an appearance. I'll start tonight with the 16 first round losers and continue once the second rounds are completed. I thought I could handle it all, but sitting up that long apparently isn't going to happen.

New York Rangers - Jaromir Jagr's selfish and pathetic attempt at being a goon cost him his shoulder and his team their best chance at winning a playoff series in a long time.

Memphis Grizzlies - Oh.... COVER Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitski... we thought you said let them do every single thing that they want to. Our bad.

Denver Nuggets - We got the Clippers in the first round? Sweet, that means we don't have to try. I mean, it's just the Clippers, right?

Milwaukee Bucks - Holy crap, we scored 124 points in a game against the Pistons. Moral victories count too, right?

Nashville Preditors - Take one team whose success relies entirely on a goalie, add to that a series against the hottest team in the league and a pinch of an injury to said goalie, and you have the recipe for a disastrous end to a break out season.

Dallas Stars - Well, as long as the old Jose Theodore doesn't show up and steal 3 overtimes, we should be fine.

Tampa Bay Lightning - three goals on four shots!

Philadelphia Flyers - Buffalo scored 27 goals on us? That will make this years annual using a goalie as a scapegoat much easier than normal!

Montreal Canadiens - Their playoffs turned around in the blink of an eye, so to speak.

Detroit Red Wings - It's not bad enough that they found a way to annoyingly lose to the Oilers, but the Canadian dollar went up so much in the past little while that I actually lost $32 when my tickets were refunded to my account. Punks.

Washington Wizzards - Maybe Lebron does finally have what it takes. No answer for that in DC.

Indiana Pacers - We traded Ron for what now?

Chicago Bulls - Shaq and Wade vs Hinrich and Chandler. That's the first round of the NBA playoffs for ya.

Sacremento Kings - When we brought in Ron, we didn't factor on having to play the Spurs so early in the playoffs. We thought if we did, though, we'd at least get 3 games out of him before he had to elbow Manu Ginobli in the face. We did know he'd get there eventually, though, how could he not?

Calgary Flames - Phew, that was a close one. I love you, Ilya, you are my hero!

LA Lakers - A 3-1 lead and the only guy who can cover Kobe suspended. Kobe can even start playing a little bit selfishly, and we'll still be alright, right? Right!?!?!?!


On a somewhat related note, i was watching the Cavs game tonight and all I could think was that LeBron doesn't actually quite have enough yet. They may have won this game, but taking a low percentage, long shot with 9 seconds left, and 5 on the shot clock in a one point lead wasn't the best move. Somehow this series is tied at 2, and while I hope the Cavs can pull it out, even after winning 2 straight I wouldn't be putting my money on them.

I've been a little bit out of it this week, between getting really sick and failing miserably at working towards a deadline, so I may have missed a few things, and gotten confused many times over. Even in my weakened, confused and misinformed state, however, I still feel it's my duty to explain my views on this weeks events, no matter how out of touch they may be. Hey, maybe I do have a future in sports broadcasting after all.

NFL Expansion Announced for Toronto

In an unexpected turn of events, it appears as though the National Football League announced an expansion franchise to begin playing in Toronto for the 2007 season. Despite claims that the NFL had no plans to expand to Toronto in the near future, it was announced this week that the Toronto Football Club, or FC for short, would start play next year. I had heard rumours of maybe a Major League Soccer team coming to Toronto, but a football team is so much better. 2007 can't come soon enough now!

NBA Pre Playoff Wrap-Up

The NBA playoffs finally got underway this week after a 2 week break which followed the regular season. As expected, and as is customary in the NBA, the 8 teams I said would be around at the start of the playoffs are the 8 teams that are there. Despite this fact, people all over the place were still calling the pre-playoffs the best first round in NBA history. Best ever, and it still resulted in the 8 obvious winners pulling off their series. That's the NBA for you.

The Second Rounds

Western Conferences

Detroit Mighty Duckstons vs Colevelando Cavalanche

Big Ben Ilya has been huge in this series, absolutely closing the door on the Cavalanche. Definitely the most entertaining big man in the game, he never ceases to entertain, and has easily carried half of the team on a sweep to the semi-finals, with the other half sure to follow soon. This series was just over before is started, and currently sits at 6-0.

Miami Sharks vs New Jersey Oilers

With the big man and his little buddy tearing up the league, most people didn't give the NJ Oilers a chance against Shaq Thornton and Dwayne Cheechoo. Those people clearly underestimated the speed of Pisani Kidd and company, as well as the resurgence of once washed-up power forward Sergeince Cartersonov, as they have roared back to make this a series at 4-3. Its a good start if they want to be able to have the fan base to pay for their new $78 billion arena in Brooklyn.

Eastern Conferences

Carizona Sunicaines vs Los Angelas New jersey Metro Clipvels

This one's ugly. Carizona came in as the higher seeds, but still no one respected how they got their, with most people calling the underdogs to win easily. With this series sitting now 5-1 for the favourites, it's easy to see just how wrong we all were. And it's sickening. Actually, I realize now I'm still not ready to talk about this one. It's really just not ever going to happen. I blame that game for being the reason I got so sick. My body just refused to go on after that absolute and disgusting phoning it in. If ever there was a reason to fire a coach that shouldn't really be fired, that game was it.

San Ottawa Senaspurs vs Dallalo Sabricks

The preseason favourite in most peoples books, versus the well rounded team that doesn't get the respect it deserves. If it weren't for Manuartin Ginoblavlat being on the SOS they would be a lot easier to watch, but just one jackass is enough to destroy even the best played games for me. Surprisingly, this series now sits at 4-2 in favour of the team no one gave a chance to win. Once they got 113 points and 7 goals against the supposed best teams in the league, however, all bets were out the window. Look (and pray) for the underdogs to come out on top in this one. The less Ginoblavat I have to watch, the healthier I'll be. And Right now, all I can think about is feeling better again, so I'll take all the help I can get.

Sorry about the lack of posts lately, but it will only continue for another day. My Friday deadline will have passed soon enough, and I'll be able to find the time again to properly update you on the world of sports. It's not Friday yet, though, so I have been busy, and suddenly it's 2:30 in the morning. It's late and I'm tired, so you all know what that means by now. It's time for the great nation of Hungary's favourite new feature: Notes of Note. Sadly, however, it won't resemble what you're familiar with. I have no time to elaborate, so it's all point form all the time today, baby!


- I'm sitting here waiting for triple overtime, and I'm loving it. You all have to admit, this game is WAY more entertaining than any Calgary Edmonton game would have been.

- Vesa Toskola has officially become my favourite player right now. I can't even begin to say enough great things about his game, not to mention how entertaining he is off the ice. The league needs a player like this right now, he'll work wonders for them.

- Buffalo up 3-0. Who could have possibly predicted that they'd win the series? Oh wait, that's right, I did.

- Has Daniel Briere always been this good? He was never bad, but he also wasn't ever an elite player. There's no other way to describe him this year, though.

- You'll notice as I'm writing here that there is a certain series I'm not mentioning. My heart, just like a certain teams game, just hasn't recovered from the Game 2 mental lapses yet. Neither of those things likely ever will.

- Lupul had 4 goals in one game to secure a 4-3 overtime win. That's huge. Absolutely huge. I know you're probably sick of people mentioning it by now, but I can't underestimate huge huge and historic that performance was. Oh sure, 4 out of 4 of the goals were either flukes of nice set ups by someone else that my mom could have put in the net, but come on, 4 of them went in. That must mean that he's a superstar, right?

- The longer and longer the playoffs go, the less and less Jonathan Cheechoo is looking like a Rucchin, and the more and more he is looking like a marginal player just trying to stay up with a team by hitting everything that moves for no reason and skating all over the place without a set position. But damn he's really trying his little heart out, you have to respect that.

- Horcoff just scored to keep every series from going to 3-0. They deserved this game, the Sharks barely showed up and just relied on Toskala the entire time.

- The footage of the Oilers cheering and congratulating each other in the hallway on the way to the dressing room is one of the best shots of team elation that I've ever seen. Quality shot.

- Why oh why oh why are the Blue Jays still committed to keeping Josh Towers in the starting lineup? They are far and away the division leaders without him, but throw in his 0-7 record and they are 2 games back. Coaching and office moves on Toronto will never cease to boggle the mind it seems.

- It looks like the Toronto MLS franchise is going to be called Inter Toronto. That's awful. Why did they switch over to European names in that league a couple years ago? Doesn't anyone else miss the New York New Jersey Metro Stars? There is nothing wrong with bringing back the Toronto Blizzard name, and everything wrong with Inter Toronto. Of course, this is the city with great team names like the Maple Leafs and Blue Jays, and a basketball team named after a character in a movie that was popular at the time, so I guess it's fitting. Luckily it's just the MLS anyway, so no one will ever notice.

- Well, that's it for me tonight as my week of punishment continues. So that I don't feel like I'm the only one suffering, here is a clip to let me know some others are in pain too. Good night everybody!

Today, at the 19:57 mark of the third period, Sports Guy North, aka Kent MacDonald, aka Graham Kent aka Miguel Sanchez, died of a heart attack induced by a case of the worst phoning it in by a defense in history. He was 26 years old.

Well, this wasn't the best weekend for sports, at least not in my view. Luckily it ended off with the Sharks and Ducks both looking great again tonight. Nothing helps brighten up a dreary couple of days than being proven right, that really is my favourite thing in the world. The Ducks/Sharks battle that I foresaw when they were longing for a playoff spot seems inevitable at this point, and it's really thanks to a few key players. Actually, all the ups and downs this weekend can be chalked up that way.

To start with, there is Ilya Bryzgalov, who is quickly becoming one of my favourite athletes out there. In the 3-0 Ducks victory, Bryzgalov tied the NHL record for consecutive shutouts in the playoffs at 3. The original record was set by another rookie goaltender, the baby-faced Leaf Legend Frank McCool, who managed the feat against the Red Wings in 1945. When asked about his record feat, Ilya replied in his non-shalent manner that is becoming refreshingly familiar by this point, saying "It's not a big deal for me. It's fun because we won the game". How can you not love this guy? This is the same goalie, who after knocking the Flames out in game 7 in the first round said "It's not a big deal, it's just a game. A game you want to win, yes, but just a game." He's an amazing goalie, cool as a cucumber, hilarious in the media and instantly becoming a fan favourite. He's almost enough for me to want to cheer for the Ducks against the Sharks next round, even.

Speaking of whom, Joe Thornton has been drawing 100% of his opponents defensive attention so far these playoffs, and you have to wonder when teams are going to learn that won't cut it. Joe is proving yet again that he is a team player, and is happily seeing his numbers decline as his teammates benefit from the open ice and light up the nets. Marleau was happy to step up yet again, as somehow his opponents keep forgetting that he would be good enough to be a #1 center on most other teams. If the focus is on defending Joe at the cost of everything else, then Marleau will get a couple points and the Oilers will only get 15 shots every game, and this one will be over faster than even I thought. Another player note from the game - Ville Nieminen was absolutely ridiculous out there, throwing 15 body checks that registered in the books, and probably a few more that didn't. The physical, but clean game that the Sharks through at the Oilers was something they had no answer for, and Ville had everything to do with that. I can't imagine a way in which the Oilers can recover from this game. The series is over at this point.

One series over, and one not started yet, and the Devils and Hurricaines get their series underway Monday night. That's right, there was no game on Saturday as scheduled. There just wasn't, and I don't want to hear anyone claiming that there was.

Switching sports now, I'm going to skip right over all the Spurs wins. I've never been able to stand that team, ESPECIALLY Ginobli. I can't even watch any games where he's playing. It just can't be done, and hence I obviously can't comment on the games. Moving on then, Kobe Bryant took a double hit this weekend as the Suns completed their comeback, knocking out the Lakers in game 7 on Saturday. This was followed Sunday afternoon by Steve Nash being named league MVP, an award many (including yours truly) thought should have gone to Mamba this year. Not only did he not win, but he didn't even end up in the top 3 in voting. I really don't understand how this happened. Statistically, he was far and away the league leader this year. In a value to his team sense, Kobe also made the biggest difference. I can't picture that team winning even 14 games without Kobe in the lineup. I'm going to guess that his off-court antics in recent years helped deter many votes from coming up beside his name, and that's just not right. I can see the argument for Nash, but there is no reason for Dirk to be finishing ahead of Kobe. Probably not Lebron either. And as much as I dislike Kobe and the Lakers, this whole situation just isn't right. Just isn't right at all.

Alright, one last note before I go to bed - it's time to move our Rawk the Bawl competition to the semi-finals. The second round was a lot closer than the first, and there were a coupld of ridiculous results as D12 beat out DMX, and Ron Artest inexplicably beat out Chamillionaire. in the other series, Redman beat out Kanye West, and Run DMC took down my favourites Hed PE. This all means that the semi-finals come together as follows:

East

(1) Detroit D12 - www.d12online.com - These guys are solid right through, except for that white guy that's finally gone (Darco) and that fat guy who doesn't get much playing time (Cato). You still see how it relates.

(3) New Jersey Redman - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redman - He can go higher and higher and higher, apparently. Even Kanye West was no match for Redmans skillz. Hopefully he can pull off another surprise this week as he goes up against Eminems rag tag crew.

West

(8)Sacremento Ron Artest - http://sportsguynorth.blogspot.com/2006/02/dream-son-dream.html - Ron's wish came true, and he somehow managed to beat Cham in the second round. My guess is no one has ever heard a Ron Artest song, and they were just voting for him based on his bball skills. If somehow he takes out Run DMC I'll know that somethign fishy is going on.

(7) LA Lakers Run DMC - http://pages.sbcglobal.net/tmoren/rundmc/ - For the last time, yes I know that Run DMC isn't from LA. As I said TWICE already, since the Lakers were unable to buy up aging talent to help Kobe this year, I thought I would do it for them in this medium. Lakers fans need some sort of consolation this year. I really get the impression that you guys all purposely just do what I say not to do. I'm going to have to learn how to use this knowledge to my advantage. Stay tuned, and get your votes for Rawk the Bawl's semi-finals in today!

The NHL released the complete list of award finalists on Thursday for the NHL awards ceremony on June 22 in Vancouver. As I'm sure you know by now, there was no way I was going to agree with their selections, so here now are the NHL nominees, my nominees, and who I think should/will win the awards.

Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy
League Leader in Goals
2006 Award Winner: Jonathan Cheechoo

This isn't one of the awards that's voted on, obviously, it's based on statistics. Against all odds, the man you all voted Rucchin of the Year came out of nowhere (some would say carried in the shadow of Joe Thornton) to pull ahead of Jagr in the end with 56 goals. Jagr finished in second place with 54, followed by Ovechkin and Kovalchuk tied for third with 52.

Lester B. Pearson Award
MVP As Voted By the Players Association
NHL Nominees: Jaromir Jagr, Alexander Ovechkin, Joe Thornton
SGN Nominees: Jaromir Jagr, Alexander Ovechkin, Joe Thornton

The main contenders for this award are Jaromir Jagr, whose Rangers slipped at the end of the season all the way to the #6 seed, Alex Ovechkin whose Capitals were out of the playoffs in early October, and Joe Thornton who took the Sharks from well out of the playoffs to one of the top 2 teams (along with the Ducks) in the west going into the playoffs. For this reason, among many others, he is the one and only MVP this year. Hands down. The Russian President was a close second, and may have won the award if his team made the playoffs, as he fell just short of the ultimate dream of having more goals (52) and assists (54) than anyone else on his team had points (Zubrus finished with 57). In the end Thornton wins easily.

Frank J. Selke Trophy
Best Defensive Forward
NHL Nominees: Rod Brind'Amour, Mike Fisher, Jere Lehtinen
SGN Nominees: Brenden Morrow, Mike Fisher, Martin Gelinas

These awards are always all over the place, and I don't think anyone ever really knows what they're based on in the end. That's why I'm pretty surprised that we had an overlap between my nominees and the actual NHL nominees at all. For that reason, obviously my pick for this award is Mike Fisher. If I were picking from my nominees, Morrow would be the man, as I know that personally I'd rather go in 1 on 1 against 90% of the defensemen in the league than on Morrow. Fisher's career year was a pretty close second, though, so I'm not too disappointed with his pick. Lehtinen wasn't even top three on his team in terms of this award this year. His inclusion was truly baffling. I really hate dinosaur picks based on their names alone. Morrow and Modano were leagues ahead of him this year, along with about 50 or more other players in the league. His selection was a huge slap in Morrow's face.

Jack Adams Award
Coach of the Year
NHL Nominees: Peter Laviolette (Car), Tom Renney (NYR), Lindy Ruff (Buf)
SGN Nominees: Mike Babcock (Det), Tom Renney (NYR), Lindy Ruff (Buf)

Lindy Ruff has done way too much with way too little. There is no other explanation than him for the Sabres success, and it's really no surprise. He has been coaching Buffalo since 1997, and in that time has had a better than .500 record with a complete lack of talent outside of the crease. He gets a strong effort out of every player every night. When the team was in trouble near the end of the season, he did what he had to, grabbed onto the Tucker incident and used it to propel the team again. You may or may not agree with what he said, but you can't argue with the results. Hands down winner, with special mention also to Tom Renney for doing something other coaches have failed to do: get Jaromir Jagr to seem interested in playing day-in and day-out. He managed to do it all year, even, but the slide to 6th will be enough to keep him from the award. Ruff hangs on to as predicted at mid-season. How Babcock got left off the ballot in taking a team to the Presidents Trophy, when people were openly questioning their ability to make the playoffs before the season started is beyond me. How quickly people forget their own ridiculous assumptions they made just 7 months ago.

King Clancy Memorial Trophy
On and Off Ice Leadership
NHL Nominees: Mark Messier, Mark Messier, Mark Messier
SGN Nominees: Mark Messier, Mark Messier, Mark Messier

Leadership of his godly levels survives retirement. He will be the true, and only leader forever. I only hope to one day bask in such leadership. Feel free to continue donating money to my cause: The Send Kent to Messier Leadership Camp Fund. Paypal your donations to CSULBHockey@netscape.net. We thank you in advance for your kindness. With your help, one day this dream will come true.

Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
Perseverance and Dedication to Hockey
SGN Winner: Patrick Elias

This award always goes to someone coming off of an injury of some sort. If there is a disease involved then it is a mortal lock. Elias was bound to both come back, and to dominate at some point during the year. When he did come back, he turned around a team battling for the last playoff spot to the #3 seed. He elevated everyone's play, and scored as he is known to do. Had he played all year, he too would be in the MVP consideration. The award was, and is, obviously his.

William M. Jennings Trophy
Goalies on Team with Fewest Goals Against
2006 Award Winner: Miikka Kiprusoff

Kiprusoff rode Haseks injury, and some solid play down the stretch, to steal this award from the Hasek/Emery tandem. The Patrick Roy trophy appeared to be on its way back to Hasek this year, but the boring play of the Calgary Flames helped solidify this result. Luckily there won't be 4 rounds of watching them play this year, as the Ducks were the perfect first round opponant to take the boys down.

Vezina Trophy
Outstanding Goalkeeper
NHL Nominees: Martin Brodeur, Mikka Kiprusoff, Henrik Lundqvist
SGN Nominees: Manny Fernandez, Mikka Kiprusof, Manny Legace

It's somewhat surprising that we only agree on one of the three nominees here, but at least the one we agree on is the clear cut winner. I can see the argument for Lundqvists inclusion, but Brodeur in the regular season was not himself this year. His 2.57 GAA and .911 SV% were destroyed by Legace's 2.19 and .915, and Fernandez's 2.29 and .919. Overall, however, they were all overshadowed by one man, and as much as it pains me to say it, Mikka is the Vezina winner this year. There's no way around it.

Conn Smythe Trophy
Playoffs MVP
SGN Picks: Joe Thornton, Patrick Elias, Daniel Briere

The result of this one, obviously, will depend on who ends up with the real trophy to end the year. So far, these three players are head and shoulders over everyone else in their quests for the Conn. I know that I don't have to tell you just how excited I am to say that a first two picks. You've all pointed out my alleged "man-crushes" many times by this point, so you know.

Calder Memorial Trophy
Rookie of the Year
NHL Nominees: Sidney Crosby, Dion Phaneuf, Alex Ovechkin
SGN Nominees: Sidney Crosby, Henrick Lundqvist, Alex Ovechkin

So here it is, the award with the nominations that you knew would bother me the most. And you're right - it's killing me. How the hell did Phaneuf get the third nomination? He is not great on defense, and most of his game out of the offensive zone is just cheating. On the other hand, Lundqvist did enough to be nominated for the Vezina. So what happened here? Well, the media was in desperate need of a new Chris Pronger, and did they ever find one. I've never seen someone so undeservedly built up in the media. It's actually worse than Chris Pronger's MVP season at this point, because quite frankly he wasn't even close to being the best rookie defenseman in the league. Meszaros looked like a seasoned veteran, while Phaneuf made mistake upon mistake in the defensive end, and ended up with a plus minus 29 points lower than Mesz's. It's just not right what kind of power the media has when they make their decisions about stuff. Long live the New Prong!

Oh yeah, as for the winner, Crosby was probably everybody's pre-season front-runner, but Vechky quickly took control. Have you heard anyone mention Crosby's name in MVP talks? Not likely. This is the clear difference between their rookie campaigns. Ovechkin is the rookie of the year, but Crosby's run to nearly catch Alex in scoring will make the vote a close one. As for the battle for runner up, Lundqvist, Meszaros (a defenseman at +34 in a rookie season is ridiculous), Svatos and Crosby would easily be winners in any other season. That's not to mention Michalek, Steen, Tyutin, Seabrook, Vanek, Prucha, Boyes, Wellwood, Vorobiev, Whitney, Ouellet, et Al. I have never seen a rookie crop like this years. Nothing but great hope for the future here (ignoring my future struggle with the media over the New Prong, that is).

Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
Biggest Pussy
NHL Nominees: Pavel Datsyuk, Patrick Marleau, Brad Richards
SGN Nominees: Pavel Datsyuk, Brad Richards, Steve Rucchin

Who cares? (Rucchin was robbed!)



James Norris Memorial Trophy
Best Defenseman
NHL Nominees: Niklas Lidstrom, Scott Niedermayer, Sergei Zubov
SGN Nominees: Niklas Lidstrom, Lubomir Visnovsky, Sergei Zubov

Wade Redden is strong defensively, and offensively, and being on a team that was such a clear front-runner for the Cup made him the early favourite. Injuries late in the year took him out of the running for what should have been his award after Bryan McCabe's injury set in. Lubomir Visnovsky's played slowed down in the second half as well, with all of this coming together to open the door for Lidstrom to walk away with this award. Zubov may give him a run in the voting, but Lidstorm averaged over 28 minutes of ice time this season, and had over 100 more shots on net than Zubov. Zubov may steal it, but it should be Lidstrom's award to lose at this point.

Hart Memorial Trophy
MVP
NHL Nominees: Jaromir Jagr, Mikka Kiprusof, Joe Thornton
SGN Nominees: Jaromir Jagr, Eric Staal, Joe Thornton

This is pretty much the same as the Lester B Pearson award because I'm speaking in both cases. When it's not player votes, however, Jagr may have a better chance at coming out on top. I figured Staal might get more votes this way, but apparently not. It was Kipper that did instead. This is why I prefer the Pearson award. The players know much better than anyone else what's happening on the ice. They recognize easier who they have to look out for on a game to game basis. They recognize Ovechkin, and that means something.

Art Ross Trophy
League Leader in Points
2006 Award Winner: Joe Thonton
Thornton found the perfect Rucchin, and soared to the top of the standings with 125 points, followed closely by Jagr at 123. Ovechkin lead the rookies, finishing third with 106 points, and linemates Alfredson and Heatley tied for 4th with 103.

Stanley Cup
League Champs
SGN Stanley Cup Champions: San Jose Sharks

I just left this award in here to remind people of how I saw the playoffs coming together, and here is what I said:

No matter what I write here, you're all going to question it. So I'm not going to bother. My ranks for odds to win are 1. San Jose 2. Detroit 3. New Jersey 4. Anaheim 5. Ottawa. Sorry Carolina, Calgary and Dallas fans, it just isn't in the cards this year.

As predicted, Calgary and Dallas have already booked tee times, and outside of Detroit, my top 5 are all still in it. Top five that were highly questioned, I might add, especially the San Jose New Jersey final. The lesson here; Never doubt Sports Guy North when it comes to hockey. It just won't pay off.

As Predicted Here - Ducks In 7

The brackets for the second round of the NHL playoffs are set, as the final game of the first round came to a close tonight. And I must say - what a relief. Thanks to my new hero's in Anaheim, and the fact that no one reminded the Flames that they had a game tonight, there will be no battle of Alberta to suffer through this year. The Calgary Flames were sent packing with a 3-0 shut out loss at the hands of the Ducks and their rookie goaltender it what couldn't be described as anything other than an all around boring affair. I am anything but glad that I said yesterday I would set the time aside today to watch this game, but at least it'll give me a greater appreciation for the Flamesless playoffs going forward. Speaking of which, lets look ahead now at the upcoming playoff series.



Eastern Conference

(1) Ottawa vs (4) Buffalo - Starts Friday

No upsets in the East, and you would be hard pressed to find anyone that's surprised by that. These are the 4 Eastern teams, and this is where they belong. This series will be a doozy. Their season series went as follows:

Ottawa 5 Buffalo 0
Ottawa 10 Buffalo 4
Ottawa 6 Buffalo 1
Buffalo 2 Ottawa 1
Ottawa 4 Buffalo 2
Ottawa 3 Buffalo 1
Buffalo 5 Ottawa 4
Buffalo 6 Ottawa 2

That's 56 goals in 8 games. On average that works out to a 5-2 game. Briere looked amazing in the first round, but so did the big line in Ottawa. Logic says that the Sens should walk away with this one. More big names, the number 1 seed, winning record head to head, better defense, etc. On top of that, I'm not exactly sure how the Sabres are able to win. But they keep winning, and the keep winning big. Lindy Ruff has clearly shown that he is the best regular season coach in the NHL, and has carried that into surprise playoff success in the past. I'm going to give Lindy and Ryan Miller (I have yet to hear a suitable explanation for how the best American goalie by far was not added to the Olympic team) the edge in this one, and pick a huge upset. For once, I can't wait for a Sabres series. This one will be something. Sabres in 7.


(2) Carolina vs (3) New Jersey - Starts Saturday

Patrick Elias had 11 points in their 4 game sweep. Brodeur allowed 4 goals on 118 shots. He is reminding me right now of the 2003 playoffs where he finished with 7 shutouts and a .934 save percentage. Only right now it's at .965. Cam Ward looked decent in his starts, but Montreal without Koivu in the lineup is not the same as New Jersey. Not even close. Devils in 5.

Western Conference

(5) San Jose vs (8) Edmonton - Starts Sunday

For the first time I can remember, the "underdogs" won all 4 of the series in the West. I say that in parenthesis because in my mind the Sharks and the Ducks were actually the favourites in their series. They had the better teams, and the better performances in the months leading up to the playoffs and their victories are no surprise to me. Despite everyone disagreeing with me, I picked the Sharks to be the Western Conference Champions, and now they seem to be set up to have the easiest route possible to the finals. No Detroit. No Dallas. No Calgary. A first round match up against a weak team whose strength in net was injured for the playoffs. A second round match against a team that barely got into the playoffs, and plays a weak defensive defenseman nearly 30 minutes a game. Marleaus line loves coming out of the corners, they will have a field day with him. The Oilers had a big upset in the first round, but their high wont carry them further than 5 games against a team they just don't match up well with. Dwayner may get them into game six, but I'm still going to say Sharks in 5.


(6) Anaheim vs (7) Colorado - Starts Friday

Imagine being the number 6 seed and having home ice advantage in the second round of the playoffs. I don't have the stats, but I don't remember this ever happening before. Luckily, though, the Ducks and Sharks were the best Western Conference teams in the second half of the season, so it is anything but undeserved. As I said before "the Ducks and Sharks are probably the best teams in the West", and that Detroit and Dallas aren't going to want any part of them in the playoffs. As it turns out, they'll never even get the chance. Colorado, on the other hand, are finally playing like the team they should have been all year. Playoff Theodore has also made an appearance, It's hard to pick a rookie over playoff Theodore, even with Selanne and McDonald flying high. Calgary with it's weak scoring options took the Ducks to 7 games. There are 10 guys on the Av's that can score on you in a number of different ways. As much as I hate to do it, if Theo holds up I'm going to go with the Av's in 6. I like the Ducks lineup, and if they keep it together it will be them and the Sharks battling it out for a few years in the West, but I think the Av's have one more shot at it this year. You bet Sakic will be on his game for sure. He'd love to show he can go all the way without Forsberg before he retires. That should be enough to take the Mighty out of the Ducks forever. Avalanche in 6.

Notes of Note

The night has managed to disappear yet again without me writing anything. It's already late, and as you all know that can mean only one thing; It's time for the great nation of Hungary's favourite new feature - Notes of Note.

I'm working towards a huge deadline next Friday, so there may be a lot of Hungary pleasing between now and then. Either that, or a lot of missed posts. Either way, just bare with me. The deadline will be met, and I'll find the free time to spend on annoying Pronger fans properly again shortly after. Until then, it's going to be all about Hungarians.

Selfish, Spoiled Brats

What is with the over-abundance of selfish plays this year? The obvious ones were Jagr injuring himself in a missed attack, and Iginla looking like an idiot at the end of the last Flames game. Tonight now I'm watching the Phoenix Lakers game, and with 10 minutes left in a game where the Suns didn't have a secure lead, and face elimination with a loss, Raja Bell took selfishness to a whole nother level again. Upset about a non-call on Kobe for some minor interference, and then an elbow that Kobe caught him in the face with, a short while later he actually close-lined Kobe to the ground. Seriously. Obviously that was a double technical, and resulted in his ejection from the game. There will also probably be further disciplinary action from the league. That's exactly what the Suns need being down as they are in the series. For those of you not familiar with the Suns this year, they have almost worthless defensive habits. There is no one outside of Raja who could possibly dream of covering Kobe. The Suns managed to hold on tonight to bring the series to 3-2 for the Lakers (Kobe took a second technical later on to solidify that result), but if Raja is suspended for game 6, then Kobe scores at least 40 and the series is likely over. Such selfish disrespect for your team in the playoffs is inexcusable, and it keeps happening over and over again these days. Someone needs to teach the kids of today the difference between playing an emotional, strong game, and being selfishly undisciplined. More and more this is seeming like a lost trait, and it's sad. There just is no need for selfishness in the playoffs. I for one long for the days where that just went without saying.

The only saving grace from the play was the look that Steve Nash gave Bell immediately afterwards. It was exactly the look that your mom always gave when instead of punishing you for something, she just said that she was "really disappointed in you". That was all over Nash's face. It was priceless.

Boris Props

Props go out to Boris Diaw who is continuing his surprising career season. He finished tonight one assist short of a triple double, and scored 25 points. The real question at this point is what were the Hawks doing using Diaw at guard last year? He is tall and solid enough to play inside, and it's not like the Hawks really had anyone of note on their team to step in above him. Maybe it has a lot to do with playing with Nash, but he is really coming into his own and is showing signs of a promising career. No matter what, you have to respect his effort.

USA Hockey?

The Americans have assembled a powerhouse team for the world championships. If you haven't seen yet, their first 15 players are:

F - Dustin Brown, Marty Reasoner, Ryan Malone, Andy Hilbert, Richard Park, Ryan Kesler, Jim Slater, Drew Stafford

D - Joe Corvo, Hal Gil, Andrew Alberts

G - Craig Anderson, Jason Bacashihua

Honestly, I didn't make that up. Those are the 15 players they announced for their World Championship team. It's not bad enough that Ryan Malone is their best player (unless Drew Stafford is better than his merely playing at the University of North Dakota would suggest he is), but their goalies were the back ups on the two worst teams in the league. Actually, Bacashihua was really St.Louis' third or fourth string option. I knew American hockey had gotten sad recently, but this is ridiculous. These guys would get blown out ban AHL team.

Souray With A Fringe On Top

Don Cherry tonight mentioned the Norris Trophy and Sheldon Souray in the same sentence. I didn't know what to do with that thought, so I just moved on and tried to pretend it never happened. I think you all should do the same.

Battle of Alberta

I have set aside time to watch the Calgary Anaheim game. That's right, I'm actually going to attempt to sit through an entire Flames hockey game without falling asleep. I think I can do it just out of shear fear over the possibility of a Super-Hero MVP for life Pronger versus snore-fest Flames series haunting my future. You just know it is all that you're ever going to hear about in Canada if it does happen, and there is only so much Pronger for MVP talk that I can stand. I also can't decide how to pick which is the lesser of two evils. I'm inclined to say the Oilers since I always had a soft spot for them, and they brought in one of my favourite goalies at the trade deadline. But they also traded my buddy Eric for my nemesis Chris, and that's tough to get over. Calgary is so boring, though, and they have the sure to be new Pronger on their defense (another player with weak positioning, and relies on cheating but has already been mentioned as a future Norris winner for no reason I can understand. He really is Prong 2). I seriously wouldn't know how to pick if this series sadly comes up. So, when in doubt, I turn to the one soure I can always rely on - Sunshine Girls.



They both make great cases, but as you can see Calgary is apparently who I'll have to cheer for. I think that would be the better bet for getting the Sharks to the finals anyway. Edmonton could actually give them some troubles with their speed, but we'll see how it all plays out. I'm fairly certain at this point that my much-maligned pick of San Jose in the finals will certainly be realized no matter which remaining Western teams they have to face.

If you want your own 14-month Sunshine Girls Calendar call Toll Free 1-877-624-1463 to place your order. The price is $19.99 including shipping and taxes. Be sure to mention Sports Guy North to receive absolutely no special offers. (By the way, I figured that I was allowed to post this section based on the Karma I earned with my pro-female sports blogger posts of late. Speaking of which, remember to vote for Miss Sports Blogger 2006 in the poll to the right. These ladies talents need to be recognized. I know that they provide a great deal of my daily entertainment at the very least.)

More Cowbell

Speaking of Pronger, I've received a mixed bag of emails about what I've said about him. What I received from Adam was my favourite, though, and since it's one of the many that support my side, it'll be the only one I post here. I think it says enough on it's own.

"oh man, that really sucks!!... I never would have seen that coming. EDMONTON...
even with pronger in the line-up. man, i've been watching him since you
mentioned how bad he is, and holy crap, he is never in position... it's nuts"

Yes, it is nuts. What's even more nuts is that no one seems to notice or care. I just don't get it.

So Angry

So Very Very Very Very angry tonight. I don't know that I can actually write I'm so wound up. I'll do my best, but if I just have to bail at some point then so be it.

When exactly did God move to Alberta? Why did he move there? Was he sick of paying taxes? Is he a huge rodeo fan? Someone tell me this as I sit here with my now void second round Red Wings tickets, dreaming of yet another Wings Av's battle. Voided at the hands of the lowly Edmonton Oilers of all teams. Pisani got 2 goals in under 4 minutes. PISANI. This kind of stuff isn't right.

I didn't see the game tonight, but the highlights sickened me. When we got home I put on the Score channel, and I had to let the result come and go by 3 times before it registered. Chris Pronger was moving on. As I let this event sent in, I flipped over to the Calgary Anaheim game just in time to see the Ducks score, giving me momentary relief. Perhaps I could forfeit seeing a playoff game in Detroit in exchange for not having to see any more series with Calgary's horrible boring play. That feeling, however, was short lived. On the play Anaheim distinctly scored, then after the puck was in a couple Calgary players ran into the goalie, and somehow the ref disallowed the goal and gave a penalty to Anaheim for a play that occurred after the puck was in.

Shortly after I got a message on msn from my parents, who saw that I just got home. The conversation went as follows:

john and donna says: :'(
1G - SSY! says: I am SOOOOO angry :@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@
john and donna says: so you know what I am talking about?
1G - SSY! says: SCORES
1G - SSY! says: yes I effin do
1G - SSY! says: and now the goal doesnt effin count
1G - SSY! says: effin eff
1G - SSY! says: EFF
john and donna says: Detroit is like Buffalo Bills, they fold in the playoffs
1G - SSY! says: THAT WAS WAY AFTER THE GOAL
1G - SSY! says: WHAT A HORRIBLE CALL
john and donna says: on a more positive note....I am back in 2nd place ...one point out of first...
1G - SSY! says: :@:@:@:@:@
john and donna says: well you will have to get tickets for Toronto for next years playoffs
1G - SSY! says: so... angry...
john and donna says: which call do you think was wrong?
1G - SSY! says: in the anaheim calgary game
john and donna says: not watching that game.....what is the score
1G - SSY! says: 1-0 calgary
1G - SSY! says: anaheim just scored, then after the puck was in someone ran into the goalie and they disallowed the goal and gave a penalty... but it was after it was in!
john and donna says: are you cheering for annaheim
1G - SSY! says: I hate calgary
1G - SSY! says: hate them so much
john and donna says: why?
1G - SSY! says: cuz I hate their style of play, and their coach, and their players
john and donna says: imagine a calogary edmonton series is next
1G - SSY! says: :@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@:@
1G - SSY! says: @:@:@:@:#@#:"23qk;'21
1G - SSY! says: 3
1G - SSY! says: ards
1G - SSY! says: FD
1G - SSY! says: 'g fd' rdo
1G - SSY! says: th d
1G - SSY! says: r
john and donna says: potty mouth
1G - SSY! says: so angry.... so very very angry....
john and donna says: angry is not good
john and donna says: disappointed maybe but not angry....
1G - SSY! says: ANGRY
1G - SSY! says: what if you had leaf tickets for the second round, and they were the #1 seed and then they lost to the #8....
john and donna says: mildly annoyed at best.....
1G - SSY! says: this is dad now, not mom, isnt it?
john and donna says: no.....its ALF
1G - SSY! says: go ask mom that question and type to me her exact answer please
john and donna says: she said she would be PO'd (another potty mouth)
1G - SSY! says: exactly
1G - SSY! says: so mad.

So there you have it, my take on tonight happenings. It's a little bit gruff and unpolished, but I thought that my feelings at the time would best describe the actual emotion brought on by the evening. Anaheim has managed to come back, and look like they're going to force another game, so there is some relief. But if there is a Calgary Edmonton series in the second round, mark my words - it will never be acknowledged on my blog. Not to make fun of Pronger, not to take joy in a Calgary loss, not ever.

Well, now there's Iginla being a selfish ass again at the end of the game. A lovely close to a lovely Calgary game.

Worst day ever.


Miss Sports Blogger 2006

On a hopefully more positive note, I'll close with a reminder to vote for Miss Sports Blogger 2006 in the poll to the right. Alanah got off to a quick start, but a couple of the other contenders are coming on strong. If you want to check out the writing that you are voting on, here are the links to their sites again. Get your vote in today, it's still anybody's game.

Anne Ursu aka Batgirl

Acid Queen over at Sweet Tea, Barbeque and Bodychecks

Alanah, part ofVancouver Canucks Oped

Christy at Behind the Jersey

Stephanie the Zany Sports Lady