Canuck suck

By Michael J.W. Stickings

I'm not a Canucks fan, and I don't automatically root for any Canadian team no matter what, but I was certainly rooting for the Canucks against the detestable, thuggish Bruins.

But... alas.

Boston hoisted the Cup tonight, and they deserved it. Vancouver may have had too many injuries to overcome, but when it came down to it they just didn't show up when it mattered, notably their best players (where were the Sedins exactly?), losing badly three times in Boston and then being completely outmatched tonight in Game 7.

Though I continue to note that Montreal really should have beaten them in the first round, going up 2-0 with two wins in Boston and ultimately losing three games in OT. I hate the Bruins enough already. But to see them with the Cup after the Canadiens let it slip away... Ugh.

Anyway, it's been a great time for hockey in this country. The Canucks' loss takes nothing away from that. But it would have been nice.

The Stanley Cup finals, the Vancouver Canucks, and hockey in Canada

By Michael J.W. Stickings

I grew up in Montreal and, as you might imagine (if you know anything about hockey), am a Habs fan, but when it comes to this year's Stanley Cup finals between Boston and Vancouver, the choice for me is clear. It's the Canucks all the way. Partly it's ABB -- Anyone But Boston. I despise the Bruins. But it would also be nice for a Canadian team to win the Cup. It hasn't happened since the Canadiens won for the 24th time in 1993.

As you may have heard, if you didn't see the game, Vancouver won the series opener 1-0 last night with the deciding goal scored late in the third period -- actually, with just 18.5 second left.

Actually, these are extremely good times for hockey in Canada. (And it's about time.) We won the men's and women's Olympic gold medals in Vancouver last year. We have the Canucks. And now we also have a new team, the Winnipeg somethings (Jets?), with the announcement just this week that the Atlanta Thrashers, struggling in a virtually non-existent hockey market, had been sold and would move to Manitoba.

The NHL's -- and specifically commissioner Gary Bettman's -- ridiculous expansion plan into non-hockey markets in the U.S., all to secure revenue (mostly from a TV deal) that hasn't come, has been, for the most part, an embarrassing failure. While some franchises have done fairly well, like Dallas, others have struggled badly, like Atlanta, Phoenix, Nashville, and the two Florida teams. (To be fair, other franchises even in major markets have struggled as well, like the Islanders, on Long Island.)

Instead of trying to make it where hockey barely registers, it would be far better for the NHL to focus on traditional hockey markets with committed fan bases. Winnipeg is a start, but Quebec City should have a team again (the Nordiques became the Colorado Avalanche, just as the Winnipeg Jets became the Phoenix Coyotes) and the Toronto area, the most important hockey market in the world, should have a second team, either in Hamilton, a city roughly halfway between Toronto and Buffalo, or somewhere even closer to Toronto. We could certainly sustain both the Maple Leafs and another team.

Other than Toronto/Hamilton, these Canadian cities, like Winnipeg and Quebec City, may be smaller than Atlanta and Phoenix, but it's not the size of the city or metropolitan area, it's the commitment to hockey. And we have it. Oh, do we have it.

But back to the game...

I have one team and one team only: the Montreal Canadiens. I grew up with them, I idolized Lafleur and Robinson and Dryden and the rest of the players on those great teams of the '70s, and I was there with my dad, at the old Forum, when they won the Cup against the Rangers in 1979. We've won the Cup twice since then, but it's been a challenging time in recent years for the greatest, most glorious franchise in the history of hockey.

I don't always root for the Canadian teams next -- I also despise the Maple Leafs, for example, and I wouldn't always go for the Canadian team over the American -- but this year I really do hope we get the Cup back. Go Canucks!

(photo)

Habs win! Habs win! Habs win!

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Unbelievable.

After an up-and-down season, I didn't exactly have high hopes for the Canadiens heading into the playoffs. Surely the high-flying Capitals would trounce them. Washington vanquished in seven, surely the Stanley Cup champion Penguins would put an end to their Cinderella run.

Not so fast.

Missing Andrei Markov, their top defencemen (and one of the best in the league) and possibly their best player (outside of goaltender Jaroslav Halak, who has been largely brilliant in the playoffs thus far), the Habs, my team since I was a small child growing up in Montreal, jumped out to a huge 4-0 lead, silencing the crowd and putting an obviously nervous Pittsburgh squad on their heels. The Penguins put on the pressure, however, and scored twice to make it 4-2 after two. And it looked at that point, with Pittsburgh coming on strong, that the next goal would mean the win. And it was the Habs who scored. Brian Gionta knocked in Montreal's fifth goal exactly halfway through the third, assisted by Scott Gomez and Mike Cammalleri, who scored the team's third goal and now has 12 so far in the playoffs.

And that was that. Halak was excellent the rest of the way, the defence, which has been dealing with injuries, including to shutdown stalwart Hal Gill, solidified, and the Habs went on to an amazing 5-2 victory, another Game 7 win on the road against one of the top teams in the East.

And now it's off to the Eastern Conference finals against either Boston or Philadelphia, who have come back from 3-0 down to tie the series up at three.

Montreal is celebrating tonight, the streets teeming with cheering fans. Myself, I'm just ecstatic. This has been an unexpected run, with victories over two supposedly dominant teams, but the Habs certainly have a chance to beat either team in the next round. They may even be the favourite.

The run may end, and likely will, if not against Boston or Philadelphia then certainly against the winner of the Western Conference finals, either San Jose or Chicago, two really strong teams, but there's no use worrying about that now. The greatest franchise in the history of sports has made it to the NHL's final four. I'll succumb to anxiety once the next round gets under way, but, for now, let's just enjoy the ride.

A big, bad night -- NHL playoffs and British politics

By Michael J.W. Stickings

No blogging from me today -- well, until now. A bad headache sidelined me last night and continued into today, which otherwise turned out to be a busy day.

But we do have new contributor Distributorcap's second post, a poignant look back at the killing at Kent State ("four dead in Ohio"), a post by JTD on Fritz Lang's Metropolis (a fine film, if not at the level of Lang's magnificent M), and four short, sharp, snappy posts from Creature.

I'll be back later with more, and I'll have more tomorrow as well, but right now I'm focused on:

a) Habs-Pens Game 4; and

b) British election returns.

As for the former, it's not going well. Pittsburgh's up 2-1 and I just don't think Montreal can keep up. The win over Washington was amazing, but the Penguins are a stronger team than the Capitals, more relentless overall, a solid team, where the Caps were all individual talent that the Habs were able to neutralize. But I'd say this is a bonus. I didn't expect us to get past Ovechkin et al., and so I'm just happy we're here, and happy that there seems to be hope for the future. Also, I'm a huge Crosby fan, and so if we can't win the Cup, I wouldn't mind seeing Pittsburgh repeat. Though I'd probably root for Vancouver over Pittsburgh this year. (Though Chicago may beat Vancouver anyway.)

As for the latter, it's also not going well. Well, it is, with Labour up 8-3-2 over the Tories and LibDems, but it looks like Cameron's Conservatives will pull off a victory and end up with a minority government. I can't say I care much for Labour these days, but I actually like Brown despite his foibles/failings and see him and Labour as the least bad option of the three. Ideologically, I like a lot about the LibDems, but I just don't think Clegg's ready for #10. (For the latest results, see here. For my thoughts on the election from last week, see here.)

Okay, blog to you later.

**********

UPDATE: First, the Habs won! 3-2. Awesome. And unexpected. At least we're sure to go at least six games now.

Second, the story in the U.K. tonight is that the LibDems are lagging way behind in third place despite doing well in the popular vote (such is what happens in first-past-the-post systems) and that the Conservatives have a solid lead over Labour, so far winning most of the home counties -- in fact, if it weren't for Scotland, this would be a Tory landslide. England is blue today, and it looks like Cameron will be the next PM.

Canada-United States 2010

By Michael J.W. Stickings

UPDATED BELOW.

Well, we're just a few minutes away from the start of the game.

This is probably the biggest sporting event for this country since, well, ever maybe. The 1972 Canada-Soviet Union Summit Series was big, as were some of the Canada Cup series, notably 1987, but this is the Olympics, at home, and hockey is much more competitive internationally now. I cannot even describe how much this game means to this country, how important it is, and how, from coast to coast, Canadians are stopping everything this afternoon to watch.

And I'm worried. Canada is the better team on paper, but the U.S. has been the surprise team in Vancouver. I expected them to have trouble making the semis, but they swept through the round-robin, beating us 5-3, then edging Switzerland in the quarters before destroying Finland in the first period of the semis, winning that game 6-1. And they have Ryan Miller in net, the best goaltender in the tournament. He stole the last game against. Will he do the same now?

Here we go...

I'll be back with some comments, and I'll also be on Twitter.

**********

Oh, a couple of advantages for the U.S.:

-- It's a day game. It's Canada's first day game at the Olympics, whereas the U.S. has played several, including the semifinal game against Finland on Friday.

-- The U.S. gets last change as the higher-ranked team (based on earlier performance in the tournament). This means Canada will have to change on the fly to match lines.

**********

All I can say is, Canada needs to play with the relentless pressure and aggression it brought to the first two periods against Russia. If we play like we did in the third period against Slovakia, running around, chasing, lazy and disorganized, we're in big, big trouble.

And we need Sidney Crosby to step up. He's had solid moments in Vancouver, but he hasn't played like one of the supposedly best players in the world.

**********

This U.S. team continues to impress me. A lot of youth, but they're fast, scrappy, and opportunistic. You can't let down against them. Canada dominated the first game against them, but they scored early, defended well, got amazing goaltending, and took advantage of mistakes.

**********

Almost five minutes done in the first...

**********

Well, that was a fairly even period. 1-0 Canada, but it could just as easily have been the other way.

Still nothing from Crosby, who really needs to pick up his game and make something happen. I said it before and I'll say it again. The Americans are young, tough, and fast. They may not be a team of NHL all-stars -- a few of them are, but not all that many -- but they seem to click together. Watch out for Kane and Parise, with the speed and stick-handling, but it's Kesler who really impresses me. And I wonder if Kessel, who plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs, will break out. Anyway, there's a lot of talent there. I figured before the tournament started that they had a chance, and I thought they were grossly underrated, but they're still much better than I thought.

As for Canada... Niedermayer's been a rock on D. After a rough start to the tournament, especially against the U.S., he's taken over as our top defenceman again, though the Keith-Doughty combo is also excellent.

Where's the San Jose line? I like that we're getting production from Getzlaf-Perry-Morrow and from Toews-Richards-Nash, but our top two lines need to lead.

**********

Well, 2-1 Canada after two. Another fairly even period, though the U.S. really picked it up after Perry made it 2-0. Another thing to worry about: Canada's awful on face-offs, especially in the defensive zone, where a couple of U.S. wins led to scoring chances.

It's the energy the U.S. brings that concerns me most, though. When the U.S. has the puck in our zone, we do a lot of running around and chasing. When we have the puck in their zone, they're all over us. I haven't seen the hits stat, but the Americans just seem a bit more physical, a bit more aggressive, faster.

But it's fairly even overall, and it's been a game of momentum shifts. Canada can't play cute, can't try to make the perfect, pretty play. To beat Miller, it has to be about shots, rebounds, and crashing the net. Because the Americans are playing really, really well defensively and don't give up many openings.

And where the hell's Crosby?! Ultimately, if we're going to win this, we need our supposedly top players, the veterans, to pick their game up: Iginla, Nash, Thornton, Heatley, Marleau, Staal.

**********

Well, what to say? 2-2. Canada had the game, but the relentless U.S. pressure won out, and we looked a bit disorganized there at the end. All it would have taken was a last clear of the zone.

Now? Who knows? It's sudden-death OT. It could go either way. It just concerns me that Canada didn't have many scoring chances in the the third. The U.S. clearly has the momentum.

**********

It never should have come to that. Ultimately, the first two periods against Russia aside, this has been a fairly disappointing effort by Canada. Not just today, I mean though the entire tournament. We're just not getting anything from the guys who need to score, who need to take over the game.

Bob Mackenzie's right: Canada was playing not to lose, not to win. And, I add, when you play not to lose, you often end up losing, especially against such pressure.

And now... 4 on 4. So whatever. All I know is, Miller has the advantage over Luongo, and that could make all the difference here.

Canada has to come out strong and take the play right into the U.S. zone. Otherwise, the Americans will use their speed and forechecking to win.

I'm slowly resigning myself to defeat. This sucks.

**********

Oh, there's Crosby.

Gooooooooaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

**********

We did it. 3-2 in OT. Wow.

What an amazing game. I suppose we were the better team, by a bit, though we sat back again near the end and let the U.S. tie it up. In the end, an OT victory was only fitting.

And it was Crosby, after doing so little else of note during the tournament, who scored, assisted by Iginla. After Henderson's goal in '72 and Lemieux's goal in '87, is that now the third most famous goal in Canadian hockey history?

**********

Full credit to the U.S., though. They proved themselves to be one of the world's best, ahead even of Sweden and Finland, far surpassing expectations. They have a bright future. (I would have liked to have seen a U.S.-Russia game along the way.)

**********

A friend of mine e-mailed me a while ago calling this the defining sports moment/event of our generation. In terms of international competition, and from a hockey perspective -- and, more significantly, in terms of what it means for this country -- it probably is. It's our '72 Summit Series win, our Canada Cup '87 win. It seems so much more meaningful than our win over the U.S. in Salt Lake City eight years ago. That was fantastic, of course, but this is transcendent.

**********

And what an Olympics for us! Aside from the fact that Vancouver put on a great Games, a few glitches aside, we ended up with 26 medals, two more than in Turin four years ago. And 14 of them were gold, a record for the Winter Olympics. (For more on this, and on our "Own the Podium" program, see my post from last night.) And we almost had a 27th in the men's 50K mass start race today, the marathon of the Winter Games. Sure, we could have had more, and there were a number of disappointments, with some expected medalists falling short, but that's the Olympics. It's agony, and it's agonizing, and it doesn't usually go as planned.

But, in the end, we did astoundingly well. We deserve to be proud, Canada, we really do. We put on a great event for the world, and we performed at the highest level.

It's been awesome.

Canada-Slovakia 2010

By Michael J.W. Stickings

The semifinal match between Canada and Slovakia is underway. The winner gets the U.S., which smashed Finland 6-1 this afternoon, all six goals scored in the first period.

Strangely enough, this may actually be tougher for Canada than the Russia game. I expect Slovakia to play cautiously, wait for openings, and rely on their excellent special teams play.

If Slovakia can keep the game close, the way the Swiss did against Canada in round-robin play, they have a shot, not least given all their experience up front (Gaborik, Palffy, Stumpel, Hossa, Zednik, Handzus, etc.), one of the best defencemen in the world back on the blue line (Chara), and an excellent young goalie (Halak, who's the #1 backstop for my beloved Habs).

It's just over seven minutes into the game. Canada's had some good chances, but it's still 0-0.

It's unlikely we'll be able to dominate the play the way we did in the first two periods against the Russians, but we need to keep pushing and pushing aggressively like we did in that game. It was that relentless offense, with great forechecking and cycling, that kept the Russians on their heels, and we can't let up here. (Alhough we also need to watch for, and avoid, broken plays and giveaways/takeaways that lead to rushes the other way. That's what hurt us against the Swiss and the Americans. We certainly don't want to be playing from behind against a hot goalie and a team that collapses into a trapping, stymieing D.)

Now under eight minutes left in the first. A stat just came up showing only four hits by Canada so far. Not good. Not good at all. We had something like 16 in the first against Russia.

Scored! Patrick Marleau! 1-0 Canada -- unless it was a high stick? Looks okay... They're going to video review... And it's a goal. Excellent. 

Okay, I'll be back with more comments later. In the meantime, as always, you can follow me on Twitter. I posted quite a few tweets during Canada's appalling loss to the Swedes in women's curling. I'll tweet a bit during this game, too.

**********

Well. That was intense. And way, way, way too close for comfort. After a strong first period and a solid second one, the third was almost a disaster for Canada. We were lazy, disorganized, and far too relaxed, and we ended up chasing the puck around, and tripping ourselves up, when the speedy, talented Slovaks finally asserted themselves. We're in big trouble against the U.S. if we play like that. (And we need to get a lot more from Sidney Crosby, who was invisible at times tonight. Indeed, other than Getzlaf, Toews, and Morrow, I can't think of another forward who did all that much.)

But. We did what we needed to do, and let's give credit where it's due: this Slovak team is pretty good, and it helps that they have a lot of experience playing together, and they really stepped up in the third period, almost tying it up in the dying seconds.

Ultimately, I'll take the 3-2 victory, but Canada needs to get back to what worked against Russia if it wants to put away the speedy, talented Americans.

We shall see. On Sunday.

Canada-Russia 2010

By Michael J.W. Stickings

This is big. Very, very, very big. The entire country seems to be in a state of anxious anticipation. Some are calling it Canada's biggest hockey game since '72, when Canada barely beat the Soviet Union in the Summit Series. In Game 8, with the series tied 3-3-1, Paul Henderson scored "the goal heard around the world," the most famous goal in Canadian hockey history, maybe in all of hockey history.

The '87 Canada Cup, with a Team Canada led by Gretzky, Lemieux, and Messier, was significant, too, with Canada winning the final series 2-1 over the Soviet Union with an incredible 6-5 victory in the third game, maybe the greatest hockey game ever played, Gretzky passing to Lemieux for the tie-breaking goal with just 1:26 left in the third period. This after the Soviet Union had won the first game 6-5 in overtime and after Canada had won the second game 6-5 in double overtime.

And now? A loss would mean a second straight Olympic quarterfinal loss to Russia, another failure, another occasion for national self-doubt and misery.

These two teams don't like each other. It's Crosby vs. Ovechkin, but the rivalry and intensity go much deeper than that. It goes back to '72, and it's been tense and intense ever since.

And so here we go...

I'll add to this post later -- and tweeting during the game. In the meantime, I and an entire country are tuning in. It's a national event, and we're probably more unified tonight than we have been in a long, long time. There's something very special about that.

Go Canada!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

********** 

8:25 pm -- 4-1 Canada after 1. What an awesome period for Canada, some of the best hockey I've ever seen. Aside from those couple of solid shifts for Russia that produced the goal, Canada totally dominated.

Alright, let's get back to it. We can't let up, can't give the Russians an opening.

********** 

8:59 pm -- Alright, Canada, take a deep breath.

7-3 after 2, but Russia will have some time on the power play when the third period starts. Overall, so far, a brilliant game by the Canadians, who have managed to control most of the play and have done some fantastic cycling in the Russian zone. That's the way to keep the puck away from Ovechkin, Malkin, Kovalchuk, Datsyuk, Semin, et al., and that's what they need to keep doing in the third. No letting up. No sitting back. Relentless, aggressive play, pushing the puck up and keeping the Russians on their heels.

********** 

10:03 pm -- Wow.

Wow.

Wow.

I know it was only the quarterfinals, but that was a historic statement game against our main hockey rival. It wasn't even close.

The top Russian players, including Ovechkin, were non-factors. And every Canadian player was solid, with some standing out with exceptional games. Too many to name, in fact, but I want to single out Doughty, who has emerged as perhaps Canada's top defenceman. What a fantastic player. Even Pronger was okay tonight, and I generally can't stand him. And up front... the San Jose line wasn't great, but how about Toews? He was the 12th or 13th forward selected, and not expected to play much, but he's been amazing, and tonight was his best game.

I'm just in awe of how Canada played tonight, one of the best games a Team Canada has ever played.

But it's not over yet. Now it's on to the semis to face the Swedes (probably), who aren't exactly pushovers.

For now, though, let's savour the moment. What a team. What a game.

O Canada, what utter brilliance.

A nation bummed: Canada loses 5-3 to the U.S. in Olympic men's hockey

By Michael J.W. Stickings

SEVERAL DAYS LATER: We did it! We did it! What an incredible performance against the Russians. But it's not over yet.

**********

UPDATED BELOW.

Canada's 5-3 loss to the U.S. in men's hockey earlier this evening bummed me out and probably bummed out most of this country. (I tweeted throughout the game. You can find those tweets, and follow me, here.)

It's not over yet, though. Canada will play Germany on Tuesday and a win would put them in the quarterfinals against Russia. And while most of us expected a possible Canada-Russia matchup later in the tournament, it's certainly a game that Canada could win. We might not be the favourite, given our performance in the first few games, but Russia hasn't exactly been terribly strong either.

As for the game against the U.S., well, without taking anything away from the Americans, Canada dominated most of the game and outshot the U.S. by a wide margin. I won't say that the better team lost, because, in this case, the better team was the one that put up five goals against us, but the U.S. won largely because its goalie, Ryan Miller, played outstandingly well. And, as can happen in a tournament like this, a hot goalie can make all the difference.

Canada looked really good at times, but the speed and hustle of the Americans seemed to surprise us, to put us on our heels, especially throughout much of the third period (when Canada took some bad penalties).

But the real weakness was in net, where Martin Brodeur, long Canada's #1 goalie, played a horrible game, at least by the standard one expects of a Canadian goalie at the Olympics and certainly by the standard Brodeur himself has set throughout his distinguished career. It'll likely be Roberto Luongo in net against Germany, and a strong performance there should give him the nod against Russia.

I would also add that some of Canada's players just haven't shown up, or have shown up and played poorly. In the latter category I'd put Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer, both of whom looked terrible against the U.S. In the former category I'd put most of the forwards. The San Jose line -- Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, and Patrick Marleau -- has been excellent, but beyond that we haven't gotten much out of anyone, including Sidney Crosby, who played much better tonight than against Switzerland but who still hasn't shown himself to be the on-ice force we need him to be. I thought Rick Nash and Mike Richards played fairly well as Crosby's starting linemates, and Jonathan Toews and Brendan Morrow were strong, but what about Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, Eric Staal and Jerome Iginla. Seriously, this team isn't going to score a lot if all it's got up front is one effective scoring line.

Other than Pronger and Niedermayer, the defence was fine, especially Duncan Keith and Drew Doughty. But too many errors produce too many scoring chances for the opposition, and Canada simply gave away far too much to a U.S. team that was generally outmatched all game.

I try to remain positive. Again, there were stretches of total domination against the U.S., and of course it takes time even (or especially) for a group of superstars to click.

But it starts in net, where Luongo will have to be solid, and then more than solid against Russia, and there will have to be significant improvement up front.

Ultimately, what matters is putting the puck in the net, and thus far, against both the Swiss and the Americans, Canada just hasn't been able to do that nearly enough.

Canada can do it, of course. There's just so much talent on this team. But we've put ourselves in a tough spot, and it'll be a tough climb up into medal contention.

Thankfully, for an entire nation bummed out, it's not over yet.

********** 

Update: I'm calmer than I was last night. Basically, this is still the team that was one of the favourites going in, and they're still pretty solid from top to bottom. And while I'm concerned about the lack of goal scoring, their performance last night, minus those few horrendous gaffes, was generally excellent. There's just only so much even a great team can do against an even greater goalie, and Miller was simply greater than they were.

It looks like it'll be Luongo against Germany tomorrow, and then hopefully against Russia the next night.

Above all, though, for all the talent this team has, it needs to want this. We talk often about Canadian heart. Well, it's time for that heart to shine through, and to be backed up with a determination we haven't seen this team yet.

There's a lot of second-guessing going on all over Canada. Should a Tampa Bay line -- Stamkos, St. Louis, Lecavalier -- have been chosen. What's up with Getzlaf and Perry? Is Iginla right? Was Morrow necessary? What's up with Staal? Why is Pronger so awful? Is Niedermayer done? Have we seen the last of Brodeur as our top netminder? Etc.

Well, fine. But think back to the day this team was announced. Aside from a peripheral selection or two (Bergeron over St. Louis, the Carter omission, Doughty over Bouwmeester), we all pretty much agreed with Yzerman's choices. Sure, we lack the sort of dominant playmaking sniper the Russians have in Ovechkin and Kovalchuk, the sort of player who can make things happen on his own, but there just aren't many weaknesses on Team Canada. And what we lack in the sniper department we make up for with four potentially fantastic lines and, Pronger aside, some solid defence led by a new generation of stars: Doughty, Keith, Seabrook, Weber.

And, really, the U.S. didn't play all that well last night. They were solid, especially on defence and the penalty kill, but, as I wrote, Canada dominated for long stretches. It's just that goaltending can win games on its own, whether it's a Hasek for the Czechs, a Gerber for the Swiss, or a Miller for the Americans. It's that simple.

Which is not to say Canada will get past Russia. That'll be a tough one, and we'll have to play a much more solid game from top to bottom, as well as much more spirited one, to beat what is probably the co-favourite with Sweden.

But there's no reason we can't do it, and there were enough positives last night to build on, to take into the game against Germany, which should be a unifying experience, and then into what should be an intense and hard-fought match against Ovy & Co.

He shoots... he scores!

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Not much blogging from me tonight. I have the draft for my very serious, very competitive fantasy hockey league in half an hour -- we're now in our eighth year -- and I'm doing some much-needed prep.

I have the #1 pick. I'm a huge Sid Crosby fan, and I like Malkin, too, but I'm going to have to go with Alexander Ovechkin, the top offensive threat in the game. But do I really want to spend my year rooting for Ovy? I suppose so. I'm in it to win, after all. (Though, when it comes to hockey, I want nothing more than my beloved Habs to do well this year.)

But then I don't pick again until the end of the second round, #24. Maybe Staal, maybe St. Louis, or maybe, just maybe, a top blueliner like Lidstrom or Chara. We'll see.

Alright, enjoy your evening, everyone. I'll be back with the political stuff later.

SEAN AVERY "Sloppy Seconds" ???

Avery has been suspended indefinitely for taking shots at fellow players and his ex-girlfriends. The morning of his game against the Calgary Flames, Avery spoke to reporters (after making sure a camera was present): "I'm just going to say one thing. I'm really happy to be back in Calgary; I love Canada. I just want to comment on how it's become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my sloppy seconds. I don't know what that's about, but enjoy the game tonight."

A little background: Avery used to date both actress Elisha Cuthbert (24, Old School, an episode of MTV Cribs featuring Avery) and model Rachel Hunter (ex of Rod Stewart and Stacy's Mom). Now Cuthbert is dating Calgary defenseman Dion Phaneuf (ESPN adds she was "romantically linked to Mike Komisarek of the Montreal Canadiens) and Hunter is dating Jarret Stoll of the L.A. Kings. So, while fighting isn't a big deal, talking smack is, so the NHL suspended him for "inappropriate public comments, not pertaining to the game."

The Stars agreed, with their owner Tom Hicks saying, "Had the league not have suspended him, the Dallas Stars would have. This organization will not tolerate such behavior, especially from a member of our hockey team. We hold our team to a higher standard and will continue to do so." Hey, Hicks, at least he didn't shoot himself in the thigh accidentally...right?



A crass pornographic sexual reference may get you suspended by the NHL, but it also gets you inducted in the MIENFOKS HAll of FAME !!! - Congratulations Sean well done
Welcome to the Mienfoks Hall of Fame !

DEF LEPPARD DISSES THE STANLEY CUP ?

This is why we come to rehearsal !

Hockey mom?

By Carl

I happened to watch the Flyers-Rangers game from Philadelphia last night, being the Rangers fan that I am. The special guest to drop the ceremonial first puck (think throw out the first ball at a baseball game) was Sarah Palin, perhaps the best known hockey mom in America right now.

I thought I had heard boos, but then the mic pick up switched to the PA system, which was playing some really bad song about hockey moms or something, and even tho I could still hear a smattering of boos, I figured the crowd, which is usually pretty polite to politicians and women, overpowered the few who jumped ugly early.

But I forgot: these were Philadelphia fans, who once booed Santa Claus...

When Sarah Palin dropped the ceremonial first puck at the Flyers’ opener on Saturday night at the Wachovia Center, she was greeted by resounding (almost deafening) boos. Ed Snider, owner of the Flyers, had her introduced to the crowd more as a hockey mom than as the Republican candidate for vice president. She was flanked by Scott Gomez (ed. note: also Alaskan. They actually kissed.), the Rangers center, and Mike Richards, the Flyers center.

While Philadelphia fans are known for not being shy about voicing disapproval, the question has been raised — including by me in an earlier version of this post — whether the appearance was appropriate at a sports event like this.

Note the word "deafening" -- hockey fans know a fraud when they see one!

Oh... that Santa booing? It was at a football game:

Philadelphians did boo Santa Claus -- well, what was a sad excuse for one, anyway. The original Claus (not Kris Kringle) failed to report, and the replacement was a skinny, drunken fan from the crowd at an Eagles game.

(Cross-posted to Simply Left Behind.)

Another round of boos: Palin drops the puck in Philadelphia

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Sarah Palin, abuser of power, was in Philly this evening ceremonially dropping the puck before the Flyers home opener against the Rangers. Ryan Cormier at Delaware Online (i.e., The News Journal):

So, how did Philadelphia Flyers fans greet Sarah Palin, who was on hand tonight for the ceremonial puck-drop?

Watching on Comcast, it seemed like there was an avalanche of boos when she walked out -- boos that were almost immediately drowned out by blaring, bombastic music.

There is no doubt in my mind that that the music was ordered up to help tamp down what could have been an even more embarrassing moment.

The clip below. It's hard to tell just how loud the music was, but it sounds as if it was intentionally turned up to drown out the boos. And Palin just seems completely oblivious to reality. As usual.

I realize that Philly sports fans are notorious for being, if I may put it euphemistically, ill-mannered, but it's pretty clear what they think of America's self-styled #1 hockey mom.

Cormier's colleague Adam Taylor was at the game and reports here: "At best, the reaction could be described as mixed." The booing started right away, but then "there was a competition among chanters."

Lynn Zinser of Slap Shot, the NYT's hockey blog, has more here:

The biggest problem: when Palin came out onto the Wachovia Center ice Saturday night -- greeted by resounding (almost deafening) boos from the Flyers crowd -- the two hockey players who had no choice but to appear with her in that photo op were turned into props in a political campaign. If Rangers center Scott Gomez [who's from Alaska] or Flyers center Mike Richards wanted to make some sort of political statement, that would be fine, but in this case, they were thrust into a situation not of their choosing. [Flyers owner Ed] Snider put them there with his ill-advised mixing of politics and sports.

Note here that the reaction isn't described as mixed. Palin was "greeted by resounding (almost deafening) boos from the Flyers crowd."

And, yes, I agree. There was no need to politicize the event like this, no need to force politics into hockey, no need to put the players, including Gomez and fellow Ranger and Alaska native Brandon Dubinsky, in a difficult and uncomfortable position.

And the effort to drown out the boos with "blaring, bombastic music" was simply ridiculous.

Can't handle the truth, Mr. Snider?

The mayor of Montreal is an idiot

By Michael J.W. Stickings

I was born in Montreal. I spent much of my youth there. I played hockey. And I became a passionate, life-long fan of the Montreal Canadiens. (They and the Pittsburgh Steelers are my two great sports loves.) My favourite player was Guy Lafleur, #10, the great right-winger. I went to many games at the old Forum, usually with my dad, and I watched some of the greatest teams of all time win Stanley Cup after Stanley Cup, four in a row, in the late-'70s. I was even at Game 5 of the 1979 Stanley Cup finals between the Canadiens and New York Rangers. The Habs (les Habitants), as they are affectionately called, won the game, and the series, 4-1. And I saw them carry the Stanley Cup around the ice. It was incredible.

The Habs have won the Cup two times since then, in 1986 and in 1993. We've had some good teams over the years, since those great teams of the '70s, and the 1993 run was genuinely impressive, but there hasn't been as much excitement as there is now in a long time. The Habs finished first in the Eastern Conference after an improbably successful regular season, surpassing even such recent powerhouses as the Ottawa Senators. Before the season, some of the so-called experts didn't even think the Habs would make the playoffs (which is to say, finish in the top 8 in the conference). I watched the game Thursday night, the first game of their first round series against old foes the Boston Bruins, a decisive 4-1 victory, and, even on TV, the energy at the Bell Centre, the Habs' new home, was amazing to behold. Montreal is the best hockey city in the world. Habs fans are the best hockey fans in the world. And it was incredible. Even if they don't win the Cup, even if they don't make it to the finals, even if they don't make it that far in hockey's second season, it will have been a great year. There is excitement now, but there is even more promise for the future.

And yet:

The city's mayor is seeing red -- and white and blue -- after firefighters painted several fire stations to show their
support for the Montreal Canadiens.

As the Habs prepared to face the Boston Bruins in the first game of their playoff series on Thursday, Mayor Gerald Tremblay was getting ready to send in work crews to clean up the impromptu paint jobs.

"And we're going to send the bill to the (firefighters') union... it's tolerance zero," he said.

As far as I'm concerned, the people of Montreal, and Habs fans everywhere, should have zero tolerance for such idiocy. Tremblay insists he has "Habs fever," it's just that he doesn't "put graffiti or paint in the windows of [his] house." Nonsense. It's not vandalism, it's the healthy spiritedness of the genuine fan. "It was simply to get caught in the hockey fever that's now sweeping Montreal," said one firefighter, and he's absolutely right. This isn't about the union, and no damage was done. "We just wanted to lighten the atmosphere," he said. Well, both the mayor and the city should lighten up. The people of Montreal and Habs fans everywhere are excited about their team. And rightly so.

Go Habs go!

Below, from the Globe: "Firefighters show their support for the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup playoffs at a fire station in east-central Montreal. The station has been ordered by the city to remove the 'graffiti.'"

HOCKEY FANS TOSS 20K TEDDYEARS ON THE ICE !!!

STEVE CARELL "THE GOALIE" HOCKEY COMMERCIAL

glumbert.com - Steve Carell is The Dedicated Goalie

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (06-07) SEASON HIGHLIGHT