- 07:38 PM
- 11/21/09
Cito Gaston with the Jays. Cliff Fletcher with the Leafs. Did I travel back to 1993?
posted by mkn at 11:24 PM on June 20
It was a good win. Made up for the disappointment at the Euros right after the race.
posted by mkn at 05:55 PM on June 08
I say just stick with the classic CBC Sports intro and leave it at that. I'd rather have that than an open contest for people to submit their shit -- knowing HNIC's love affair with super-rural Canada, you're going to get nothing but shitty wannabe rockbands from places like Wawa or Moosomin, Saskatchewan.
posted by mkn at 12:18 AM on June 07
There wouldn't be so much flopping around if the refs actually called offensive fouls. Which they rarely do. Especially with marquee players, which is total bullshit. I dunno. I've watched a lot of playoff games this season and a bunch of games down the regular season stretch and the thing that most bugs me about the NBA is the totally inconsistent refereeing.
posted by mkn at 01:34 AM on May 31
It's like that in the NHL. It's 4 on 4 followed by shoot-out... until you hit the playoffs where the games really matter and it's "play to win". Period. Of course, historically with the IIHF they never did the full intermission and full OT period anyway... just 10 minutes and a shootout. Whatever. I'd rather the game be settled in a weird 4-3 powerplay than a shootout. Great game though.
posted by mkn at 12:19 AM on May 20
It kind of does feel like you betrayed your country. Nationalism is stupid. What the Olympics should be about is athletes and sports and co-operation and fair play; not this nationalist bullshit and corporate sponsorship and politics (I'm looking at you Beijing). Yet there are people that think that athletes pursuing their dreams to play in the Olympics, even if it means going to another country, is what's wrong with the Olympics? THIS out of all things? No, to me that's what's right.
posted by mkn at 10:17 AM on April 10
Americans have no business sticking their noses in English football. It's a sport they do not understand. Blah blah blah. Canadians said the same thing about hockey when he purchased the Montreal Canadiens -- yet now they are one of the best teams in the league. You don't have to understand the nuances of the sport to own a team, you just hire people that do.
posted by mkn at 11:07 PM on March 29
I don't see it and I didn't see it in any of the other photos from the shoot. What do you think is the meaning of LeBron James looking angry on that cover? I didn't see the anger as well. I thought it was just intensity. You know, as happens in sport? Besides, if you see King Kong in this photo why is everyone trumping the fact that it's "racist" but nobody is saying that it's "sexist" in its portrayal of the female model as a helpless victim? Oh right, it's a FASHION MAGAZINE.
posted by mkn at 02:24 PM on March 27
Henrik Lundqvist logged a record six shut outs in a season Wha? Record? *ahem* 22-George Hainsworth, 1928-29 15-Alex Connell, 1925-26 15-Alex Connell, 1927-28 15-Hal Winkler, 1927-28 15-Tony Esposito, 1969-70 14-George Hainsworth, 1926-27
posted by mkn at 04:04 PM on March 05
So if you mandate that hockey players should wear neck protection because of two freak incidents in over twenty years, does that mean that javelin judges should wear steel toed boots all the time?
posted by mkn at 01:27 PM on February 12
In panning across the benches, all the players did look a little green afterward. They weren't the only ones. 
posted by mkn at 12:13 PM on February 11
Fan photos showing the extent of the blood loss. (by that way, that's a really lousy pun there!)
posted by mkn at 10:52 AM on February 11
He's from Ontario, and I think it's a sin in Canada to not acknowledge the creative genius that is Wayne Gretzky. I think it depends on whether you have or have not seen his Saturday Night Live appearance.
posted by mkn at 08:12 AM on February 11
Doesn't exactly seem like a congruent business with the NHL. But it does explain a lot about the state of the Leafs today. Ownership-by-committee is rarely a winning proposition. The Leafs make money hand over fist despite their shitty management and lousy on-ice product. It makes the pensioners a lot of money. The ownership has been the biggest problem with the Leafs over the last forty years.
posted by mkn at 04:36 PM on January 22
The amazing thing about Lacrosse players is that they really do it for the love of the sport. Their salaries are poor and often they need "real" jobs on the side to pay their bills. John Tavares, for example, was a math teacher at my high school (as well as coach for its lacrosse team, naturally). I never had him but some of my friends say he was a good teacher. Now, also an NLL record holder. Oh yeah, his nephew's a pretty good hockey player too.
posted by mkn at 04:44 PM on January 20
This remains my favourite Rick Nash goal.
posted by mkn at 05:37 PM on January 19
All-Star Games have always been, especially the fan voting parts, popularity contests. Only reason Yao Ming gets as many votes as he does is because half of China is voting for it. So things like this, clever little things that he obviously had fun making, are more than welcome. Save the debates for who's numbers are better and who's contributed more for the end of the season when the games actually matter.
posted by mkn at 03:42 PM on January 03
I think that's a bit of a misnomer. You have to realize that "THE TRAP" and all those defensive systems that we hate and despise all pretty much originated on the bigger ice surfaces and they make use of the bigger ice surfaces. Bigger ice does not mean more scoring. It seems counter intuitive, but the smaller surface actually makes for a FASTER game since there's less room to cover and a shorter distance to the net. A lot of the European grew-up-on-large-surface players prefer the smaller ice sheet.
posted by mkn at 10:19 AM on September 05
Seeing that Dallas ad made me wonder if the Phoenix Suns would use a similar tactic making fun of the whole Tocchet thing (you'd think that an assistant head coach running a gambling operation would get equal press), but then I realized: nobody cares about the Coyotes.
posted by mkn at 02:40 PM on September 04
The one thing that's stupid and I can't figure out is why, with Jordan Staal being under 21, did they not party north of the border (they weren't far as it was) where the drinking age is 19. Do they hate Thunder Bay that much? I can't blame them.
posted by mkn at 04:05 PM on July 26
Canada is useless to the NHL as a moneymaking operation. At the very least, it takes care of itself with the TSN and CBC dollars. And that's why they would much rather have a team in KC than Hamilton. The NHL got more money from TSN and CBC, because of the demand in the market here, than they got from NBC (zero dollars). Everything that Bettman does in trying to "expand the market" doesn't add up.
posted by mkn at 09:50 PM on July 21
Needs more mention of Curt Shilling's new... MMO!?
posted by mkn at 10:53 AM on July 18
This is a tourney that doesn't count, so why not give the younger players a shot at getting a cap and some experience? Well, the other thing to consider is that some of their star young players are currently playing in the U-20 World Cup, close to home in Canada.
posted by mkn at 01:55 PM on July 05
Six team tournament and not one of those teams is Canada? I can't figure that one out. Or is that Canada doesn't play American Football but, instead, plays Canadian Football?
posted by mkn at 05:38 PM on July 03
Not sure if you dicks know, but Raycroft used to tend goal for the Bruins. Ergo, he's awesome. Jim Carey awesome?
posted by mkn at 10:10 PM on June 22
Yeah, I'm with Weedy. Raycroft was definitely a problem. He had a good stretch in January, but was shaky for most of the rest of the year. As was linked in the locker room before (by grum?), Leafs Defence Doesn’t Suck. I wonder though. If a pretty good backup like Toskala is traded, what will happen to Bryzgalov? Giguere has been resigned and that's a team that can continue to be really good through next year and with Ilya, a pretty good goalie in his own right, they have trade bait that can make them even better. Kinda scary.
posted by mkn at 08:43 PM on June 22
I think this mock up sums it up best (courtesy of some nameless site).
posted by mkn at 07:28 PM on June 04
If the Ducks hold on and win the series, it will be a sad indictment of how little control the league has over it's image as a "dirty" league. I don't know about that, but it will certainly cause a trend to build "grittier" teams. Speedy, talented teams were successful in the regular season and, of course, success is emulated. If Anaheim wins the Cup, then it will give the impression that big and tough and a lot of fights is what gets you to the top. Then again, if Ottawa wins I'd never hear the end of it.
posted by mkn at 12:23 PM on June 04
CFL will never go bye bye. You honestly think the Canadian government would allow that? Is that a rhetorical question, because my answer is "yes".
posted by mkn at 08:29 PM on May 31
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=209227&hubname=
posted by mkn at 01:44 PM on May 29
Apparently RIM has purchased 26 acres of land just off the 401. That'd be a really shitty location for a third Ontario team. If a team would move to southern ontario, then being closer to the Hamilton core -- closer to GO Transit and the 403/QEW -- would be the most logical choice. Well, other than putting a second team in Toronto. But Bettman (or the Leafs) would never go for that.
posted by mkn at 01:49 PM on May 24
I'd youtube it, but work forbids such non-revenue generating shenanigans. Mine doesn't! http://youtube.com/watch?v=8ydbATVriqA with bonus typical YouTube retardocomments.
posted by mkn at 02:56 PM on May 16
And this is why I'm not doing so hot in the confidence pool.
posted by mkn at 12:01 AM on May 16
It's not that I think Detroit is going to lay down and die or collapse, it's just that I think Anaheim is going to improve and improve and ride that momentum into the finals. Of course, we'll see how much egg is on my face after tonight.
posted by mkn at 04:57 PM on May 15
Every team in the NHL should play both. I'd argue that every team in the NHL shouldn't play either one, but that's another topic. Anybody get the sense that the Ducks' OT goal in game two pretty much decided the series right there? If Detroit had one, they'd likely have won the series; but now that the Ducks won, even though they just tied the series, it feels as though they've guaranteed themselves a finals appearance. Don't mean to diminish the Red Wings, and it's by no means set in stone yet, but it did come across as the pivotal point in the series.
posted by mkn at 04:06 PM on May 14
That article is bizarre. BODE MILLER's cousin KILLS COP, with a Bode Miller photo right beside the headline.
posted by mkn at 11:21 AM on May 14
God the Raptors have disappointed me. After the home game split it was hopeful. They didn't play good AT ALL, but were still tied in the series. Things were looking up. I BOUGHT tickets for game 5. Then, not long after I bought those tickets, they played even worse than the shit they were calling "basketball" in their first two games. sigh.
posted by mkn at 02:29 PM on May 01
That would be like most of us getting slapped with a $100 fine...not that much when you put it in perspective. If I got fined for wearing a Pepsi had during Coke day, no matter whether it's $100 or $1, I'd be pissed.
posted by mkn at 12:14 PM on April 19
I think we should convince Mark Cuban to run the NHL. http://www.thestar.com/article/171418 Probably wouldn't be that bad of an idea (at least, relative to Bettman)
posted by mkn at 12:34 AM on April 12
Before the start of the season, I wasn't a fan of three things: the shootout, Raycroft, and Ferguson. The last few days didn't assuage me one bit. Wasn't Edmonton supposed to get rolled over by the Wing juggernaut in the first round last year? No. Quite a few people picked Edmonton to win. Not by virtue of Edmonton being so good, but mainly because of Detroit's recent playoff woes. It wouldn't be a surprise if the Flames knock them out of the first round. Huge upset my ass. No one is safe in the West. (And if we're partying like it's 1994, does that mean that Vancouver is making the finals and shall we start early on overturning cars?)
posted by mkn at 10:14 AM on April 09
When the composite sticks started to gain popularity, they were known more for their ability to totally explode at the most inopportune times than they were for the added velocity of the shots. Now add holes to that... is this stick going to be even more fragile than Lindros' head?
posted by mkn at 11:40 AM on April 03
Colorado had the Rockies in the late 70's and they were gone in a heartbeat too (it was of course the same franchise & ownership, which might tell you something), but when the Avs showed up a decade-plus later, they didn't play to an empty seat for over ten years. Well, it obviously helps to get a Stanley Cup quality team from the get go. Had the Nordiques of the mid-80s moved to Colorado, I have doubts that it would have gone quite as well. If the Vancouver Grizzlies had won the NBA championship in their first year, rather than being a perpetually futile team, they'd probaby still be in Vancouver. And the Expos would likely still be in Montreal had that strike/lockout/whatever not killed their best ever chance for a penant. Championships sell. And Lemieux, as much as anyone, knows that from experience.
posted by mkn at 02:09 PM on March 15
The one knock is that neither one of the two has much playoff expirience, I really think that makes NO difference. It takes a hot goalie to take you through the playoffs, not one with a lot of experience. Cam Ward and Roloson weren't exactly experienced playoff veterans last year.
posted by mkn at 05:51 PM on February 16
Now that I look into it, Nashville lost thier first 3 games against the Blackhawks this season. In their defense, the Blackhawks were surprisingly decent at the start of the year... until Havlat got injured. And, well, the Preds started off a little slow.
posted by mkn at 04:15 PM on February 16
What I can't figure out is why they'd schedule the gold medal game to be on a Friday. ARG. Carey Price was great. Just as good, if not better, than Pogge last year (Leafs draft pick!) It's amazing how dominant the Canadian jrs have been these last three years. Three years ago was likely the most talented jr team ever. Last year was the most dominant ever. That's a hard act to follow, especially without Sutter, but they did well. Canadian hockey is alive and well!
posted by mkn at 10:57 PM on January 05
This was a bizarre game. I was watching it off and on while switching to other things and I tuned out after it was 4-1 EDM in the third -- only to check back a few minutes later to see that it was 5-4 DAL. Unfortunately, I missed this play, but no doubt it was all over the TV the next day. Crazy. Craziest finish since that OTT BUF game in last year's playoffs. (EDM had another crazy finish game last season against PHX, when they scored right off a face-off taken with 3 seconds left... just after a timeout was taken... by the other team... after the goalie smothered a puck shot in from beyond the red line (if he left it, the time would have ran out). That goal tied the game and EDM later won it in OT. Gretzky called it "the worst loss of his career". It was hilarious.)
posted by mkn at 10:51 PM on January 05
Twice every three years. I hope they bring back the Norris division. That'd be sweet.
posted by mkn at 06:10 PM on December 22
Looks like, after all the conditions the NHL tried to put in place (where were such conditions when Winnipeg was in trouble?), that Balsille made the right move in withdrawing his bid. Free arena? If the Pens want an arena, they should build it themselves.
posted by mkn at 11:59 PM on December 20
sickleguy should be renamed sarcasmguy.
posted by mkn at 10:55 PM on December 19
Red Fisher then loaned the book to the Right Honourable Prime Minister Stephen Harper, a member of the Society for International Hockey Research. Oh Canada. Great link.
posted by mkn at 03:08 PM on December 18
Canada has an empire?
posted by mkn at 07:19 PM on November 24
So by your scale, qbert72, is Lindy Ruff the equivalent of one of those old 50th anniversary couples you see in the occassional human interest piece on the news?
posted by mkn at 09:47 PM on November 23
Slow time? NHL hitting its stride. Grey Cup. NBA getting going. NFL mid-season. The RPS Championships are merely the icing on the sports cake.
posted by mkn at 05:34 PM on November 12
A Brit won the tourney, ending the Canadian domination over the last few years. It's a sign that the sport is really gaining an international following.
posted by mkn at 01:00 PM on November 12
It's been covered for a lot of channels and so on. No live coverage, but you might see some highlights on the morning shows or see some writeups in various Magazines and so forth. FSN was there last year and I guess their guy liked the event enough to rip it off and host his own NON-SANCTIONED championship (everyone knows that this is the TRUE championship) which, I believe, was shown on A&E or something. They're also filming a RPS documentary right now. Last year's champion went around to appear on multiple shows and was on a late night talk show or two, I think. Here are some of my photos from this year's event and past years. Note: I was an official championship referee in 2003, but since have been a competitor. Not a very good one, unfortunately. I lost in the first round yesterday :(
posted by mkn at 12:52 AM on November 12
I just realized that I wrote "Wales Campbell" when I meant "Wales Conference". It's been so long since I've used those words, I guess I was too eager. NORRIS
posted by mkn at 02:23 PM on November 02
the 1994 Final between the Canucks and Rangers. Game 7. Some more 92-93 Penguins games would be nice. Mario at his prime. I think they have a game against Chicago, but some of those Wales Campbell series were great.
posted by mkn at 12:55 PM on November 02
AWESOME Also, to counter grum's GLEE, I present this anti-Glee Right here
posted by mkn at 09:03 PM on November 01
Very sloppy indeed
Six day suspension for making a crude comment about his ex.
Meanwhile, boarding somebody head first and causing them to be injured for months? That's three.
Way to prioritize, NHL!