Sports Guy North

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.