The Lonely Sports Bum

From King David, To King Solomon, To King James?

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:31:00 +0000

First of all, sorry for the lack of posts lately, it's been a busty few weeks between work and the holidays.

Word on the street is that Lebron James will be a part of Time Magazine's newest "Time 100" edition, which essentially ranks the most influential people in the world. For that article they asked him which person not already on the list he would most like to see added.

His response, Jay Schottenstein...umm, who?

Well, for those of you who don't know, Schottenstein is an Ohio businessman who funded the Artscroll's translation of the Jewish Talmud into English, French and Hebrew (from it's original Aramaic). The Schottenstein Talmud is read by more than two million people worldwide and is one of the most popular editions available.

But how is he connected to Lebron James?

Jewish blogs such as The Jewish Journal and Heeb are going crazy with speculation that James might be considering a move to the tribe. While that kind of conjecture might be a little premature, it's interesting that of all the people Lebron could have chosen to answer with, Schottenstein would be his choice and the translations would be his reason.

Though it stands to reason that having grown up and played his entire career to this point in Ohio would have led the high-profile James to meet with Schottenstein, it's puzzling how he, of all people, has had such an impact on the life of this 6"8 megastar.

Maybe James has been trading brisket recipes with Jordan Farmar, the only Jewish basketball player currently in the league (according to my research anyways).

Hey, if James does decide to convert, let me be the first to wish him a Mazal Tov. I'll bring a bottle of Manischevitz to his bris.

TSN No Edit Theys Headlines

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:05:00 +0000

Hidden in this awful, awful mess of a headline is actually an interesting story about how the Rogers Center lost its liquor license for two games this season because of violations from last year. The first game of the punishment is tonight versus the Detroit Tigers where the entire stadium will be dry. One Argos game will also be dry this coming season.

You Think We Have Rivalries In North America...?

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 20:06:00 +0000

From Bogota, Columbia:

A Colombian soccer player was knocked unconscious before a game when he was hit by a rock thrown by a fan of a rival team.
Deportivo Cali defender Juan Guillermo Dominguez was treated for head injuries and released from a hospital Monday, one day after Millonarios supporters threw bottles, bricks and stones at Cali's team bus before a Colombian league match...
...Dominguez said the crowd hurled objects at the bus about 200 metres from the stadium. He was knocked unconscious for five minutes and was taken straight to the hospital with a piece of glass lodged in his eye. (TSN)

Glass lodged in his eye?? Can you imagine how the world would be turned upside down if Tom Brady got stoned upside the head before a game against the Jets!?!

The doctors go on the say Dominguez will be out of action for five days....I'm pretty sure that's how long it takes Vince Carter to recover from a hangnail.

The Saga Continues...

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 18:11:00 +0000

In my inbox this morning I received a press release from TSN. This isn't an unusual thing as they normally send out a few of them per week and most of the time they are of little consequence to me, either telling me how great the ratings are, or that a certain game is not to be missed tonight. But this particular email contained one sentence that piqued my attention and was extremely unwelcomed:

TSN2 is home to exclusive NHL playoff action in April.

Those 10 words have the potential to change my life.

This is news I've been dreading for months. Ever since TSN2 began broadcasting last August they have been in a constant state of bicker with Rogers (the largest cable company in Canada) over how to get the channel onto their lineup. With no agreement having been made up to this point I have missed out on countless number of NBA, NHL, golf, tennis and other sporting events - all this, despite paying for the Super Sports Pack which allegedly gives you access to all the games (local games are blacked out and since technically TSN2 is a local channel, those are games I miss.) I have called Rogers to complain on several locations and even been given a quite substantial refund on my money, but this is of little consolation since the games are still being missed.

I've been wondering for a little while now what TSN would do come playoff time. Would they deprive their Rogers viewers of an entire Stanley Cup Playoff series and put some games on TSN2? Last year, before the channel was introduced, if TSN had rights to two games in one night they would put the elite matchup on their flagship station and relegate the other game to its' digital alternative channel, a normally empty feed that went unused most of the week and was available for free for anyone with a digital cable box.

The news today that TSN2 will, in fact, be carrying playoff games will do one of two things...either be the final impetus needed for Rogers and TSN to strike a deal, or it will drive hundreds, if not thousands of Rogers customers to other cable companies that do have deals for TSN2 (Bell, Cogeco, Shaw, Star Choice...etc).

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who got this press release (what kind of publicity would it be if only I got it...?). Jason Kay, the Editor in Chief of The Hockey News has posted this excellent column on this very matter.

Here's an excerpt:

All season, I simmered as TSN2 and Rogers were unable to reach an agreement for the cable provider to carry the new channel. It prevented myself and thousands of other Centre Ice subscribers/Rogers customers from seeing a handful of games we thought we’d paid for, including the early-season re-match between last year's Stanley Cup finalists, Detroit and Pittsburgh.

Now comes word TSN2 will be airing post-season games – though likely none involving Canadian teams – and still no pact with Rogers is imminent....

...Admittedly, I have options. Cancel my Rogers service and switch to Bell or Star Choice, an alternative I may consider. It may be an inconvenient solution for people who also have Rogers cell phones, home phones and Internet connections, but a viable one.

I could also get a life, put this into perspective and realize in the grand scope of humanity this is less than a non-issue.

But I’m not always that big a person. Sometimes I’m quite small, I want what I want, what I believe I am due, what I’ve paid for, what the constitution or Charter of Rights ought to guarantee me. I want cable justice!

Damn right! Here's to being small and petty and getting what we want!

Here's the number to call Rogers to complain (1-888 ROGERS-1) and here's the link again to the full article (THN).

Breaking: Cutler to Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 21:31:00 +0000

From ESPN.com

The Bears payed a huge price for the young QB...

To acquire Cutler, the Bears had to give up quarterback Kyle Orton and first-round picks in 2009 and 2010, a source said.
To complete the trade, the Broncos had to give back an undisclosed draft choice in a later round.

....more will come either later tonight or tomorrow on the issue.

But this is a big deal for Chicago

The Coolest F*%&in' Golf Hole Ever

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:03:00 +0000

You won't believe this par-3 at the Legends Golf & Safari Resort in South Africa.

You thought the 17th island green at Sawgrass was difficult? Well, it aint got nothing on this guy.

That's because the hole is 1,410 feet down....that's right...down.

Players are helicoptered up onto a cliff a quarter mile above the ground for the their tee shot and then the chopper drops them off back down by the green where their ball - hopefully - lands...30 seconds after it's hit.

The course is designed by 18 professional golfers including Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen and Padraig Harrington.

It's not actually a part of the course and it's a separate fee to play their "Xtreme 19th" hole, but boy does it look cool. Bonus: A hole in one bags you the title of Most Xtreme Golfer On Earth and a million bucks!

SportsbyBrooks does a pretty cool job of talking about the physics behind a golf shot that travels for 30 seconds before it hits the ground and wonders what sort of back-hoe you might use for divot repairs. What I wanna know is how the hell do you account for wind on a drop like that!?!

Here's a video of Harrington and Raphael Jacquelin playing the hole a couple weeks ago....soooo f'in cool!

I Don't Get It...Does it Transform Into A Pair Of Pants?

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 18:13:00 +0000

Yep Yep blog (at least, I think that's what it's called, I can't really tell) today posted a link of the 10 ugliest sneakers of the last two decades.

While some of them aren't so bad, this one is just puzzling. Who OK'd this design? Do they still have their job? Were there plans originally to make an army of these shoes to take over the world?

Funnily enough, this is my most sports related blog post of the day...

And on that note, an excerpt from an interview of Josh Holloway ('Sawyer' from Lost) talking about beer to Draft Magazine. Enjoy.

Do you remember your first beer? And do you still pop one open every once in awhile and reminisce?
I do, it was a Miller High Life. It’s the Champagne of Beers. And yes, I still drink it sometimes.

Since moving out to Hawaii, are there any local beers you’re now a fan of?
Well, Dharma beer isn’t all that bad.

What types of beer are your favorites, and what brands can you always count on?
My favorites are pale ales and plain ol’ American beer, because that’s what I grew up drinking. I can always count on Bass, Miller, and Budweiser products.

Any lesser-known beers or microbrews you're a fan of?
I like Fat Tire amber ale and Full Sail.

You’ve been able to travel abroad and help promote the show in other countries. In your travels, were there any beers overseas that you’ve enjoyed but are hard to find in the States?
I’m sure there are, but I can’t remember their names. I must have liked them a little too much.

This One Goes Out To The Everyday Working Folk

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Sometimes in my endless search of entertainment during the day I'll come across a web page or a video or photo that's so funny I decide to share it with my friends...
Other times, I come across one of those things that is so UNINTENTIONALLY funny that I pass it along to you, my loyal readers....
Friends, this is one of those times.

While reading an article on Time.com describing how having an office goofball or contrarian can actually increase the productivity of your group (can you tell why I would be interested in such research?) I stumbled across this link embedded into the text: (See pictures of cubicles from around the world.)

Now, this gave me a slight pause. As I was reading an article about the social environment in the office, this wasn't so weird to have a link to a photo essay of office stuff....but "cubicles from around the world"!?!

As Banya would say, "this is gold Jerry, gold!"

This link, as far as I can tell, was not posted with tongue-in-cheek, nor was it done in irony. I'm pretty sure the good people at Time just decided their readers might be interested in seeing a 13 photo essay of cubicles...just cubicles, no people in them even...from around the world.

I dunno about you, but I can't think of a single thing (animal, mineral or vegetable even!) that elicits such excitement and enthusiasm as the office cubicle.

Time disabled the ability to copy their photo essays so you'll just have to click on the above link to see for yourself, but trust me, it's not to be missed.

Your Morning Double Take

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 11:59:00 +0000

While watching my favourite show, Lost, last night...I couldn't help but notice that Ken Leung, who plays the mysterious and hilarious Miles Straume, reminded me an awful lot of someone whom I couldn't put my finger on....

Jack: What you're keeping us under house arrest?
Miles: No, you can leave whenever you want.....but I'll shoot you in the leg....
(trust me, it was a lot funnier when he said it)

....then after a little soul-searching and 12 tequila sunrises it donned on me (isn't that how it always happened, so cliche of me)....

For those of you not down with the hip, new TLC shows...that's John of 'John and Kate Plus Eight'...not sure if it's more the receding hairline or the obvious Asian-American thing going on that makes it...anyone else see what I'm talking about?

P.S...for anyone not yet addicted to Lost like I am, you must...MUST...go out and rent seasons 1-4 and catch yourself up. Heck, come to my house and I'll lend you the DVDs We're now in the middle of season five and next year will be the final, concluding season for the show...ooh, I get goosebumps just talking about it.

Report: Cutler To Be Traded

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:40:00 +0000

First he was gonna be traded...then he was gonna say...now this:

From SI.com

Apparently convinced that their split with Jay Cutler is irreconcilable, the Broncos have decided to pursue a trade for their disgruntled quarterback before the April 25 draft.

In a stunning turn of events, Broncos owner Pat Bowlen released a statement at 9 p.m. ET Tuesday saying both he and coach Josh McDaniels had been unable to get Cutler to call them back over the last 10 days.

Bowlen said he spoke with Cutler's agent, Bus Cook, on Tuesday and came away convinced "that Jay no longer has any desire to play for the Denver Broncos."

Well, this can't be good now can it? The people in Denver are gonna be miiighty pissy come morning.
I guess it was inevitable, you can't have a QB who thinks he's more important or more powerful than his coach, he just had/has to go.

Lions...get on that phone!
Jay Cutler: The One Man Detroit Stimulus Package (LSB)

This Is The Reason God Invented Email

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:21:00 +0000

I will keep the intro as short and sweet as humanly possible as the body of this posting is not to be missed...
Michael Kinahan is the now ex-coach of the Scituate, Mass. 6-7 year old, girls soccer team....

Here's why:

"According to my wife, my emails get too wordy, so for those of you read too slowly, are easily offended, or are too busy, you can stop here. For the others……"

They should have taken his advice...

Here are two excerpts from his email (remember, six and seven year old girls):

It is imperative that we all fight the good fight, get involved now and resist the urge to become sweat-xedo-wearing yuppies who sit on the sidelines in their LL Bean chairs sipping mocha-latte-half-caf-chinos while discussing reality TV and home decorating with other feeble-minded folks. I want to hear cheering, I want to hear encouragement, I want to get the team pumped up at each and every game and know they are playing for something....

...OK, here's the real deal: Team 7 will be called Green Death. We will only acknowledge "Team 7" for scheduling and disciplinary purposes. Green Death has had a long and colorful history, and I fully expect every player and parent to be on board with the team. This is not a team, but a family (some say cult), that you belong to forever. We play fair at all times, but we play tough and physical soccer. We have some returning players who know the deal; for the others, I only expect 110% at every game and practice. We do not cater to superstars, but prefer the gritty determination of journeymen who bring their lunch pail to work every week, chase every ball and dig in corners like a Michael Vick pit bull. Unless there is an issue concerning the health of my players or inside info on the opposition, you probably don't need to talk to me.

I believe winning is fun and losing is for losers. Ergo, we will strive for the "W" in each game. While we may not win every game (excuse me, I just got a little nauseated) I expect us to fight for every loose ball and play every shift as if it were the finals of the World Cup. While I spent a good Saturday morning listening to the legal liability BS, which included a 30 minute dissertation on how we need to baby the kids and especially the refs, I was disgusted. The kids will run, they will fall, get bumps, bruises and even bleed a little. Big deal, it's good for them (but I do hope the other team is the one bleeding). If the refs can't handle a little criticism, then they should turn in their whistle. The sooner they figure out how to make a decision and live with the consequences the better. My heckling of the refs is actually helping them develop as people. The political correctness police are not welcome on my sidelines.

America's youth is becoming fat, lazy and non-competitive because competition is viewed as "bad". I argue that competition is good and is important to the evolution of our species and our survival in what has become an increasingly competitive global economy and dangerous world. Second place trophies are nothing to be proud of as they serve only as a reminder that you missed your goal; their only useful purpose is as an inspiration to do that next set of reps. Do you go to a job interview and not care about winning? Don't animals eat what they kill (and yes, someone actually kills the meat we eat too – it isn't grown in plastic wrap)? And speaking of meat, I expect that the ladies be put on a diet of fish, undercooked red meat and lots of veggies. No junk food.

Who's with me? Go Green Death!

Whoa.....
and just for fun, here's how he opened his follow up email:

Team, After careful consideration, I have decided to resign from all coaching responsibilities related to Team 7 this season. Unfortunately, it has come to my attention that some parents and the Board of Scituate Soccer failed to see the humor in my pre-season email.

The Clutch

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 12:56:00 +0000

After Tiger Wood's dominating Sunday performance this week, it got me thinking the same sort of questions a lot of other pundits have been thinking lately: Who is the best big-time performer in sports history?

By big time, I don't mean big name players or even championship players. I'm talking about guys who you KNOW will pull it off when it counts. Guys who leave you in shock and awe when they miss, not when they make. Clutch performers.

There's Michael Jordan, whose litany of buzzer beating shots and six NBA Finals MVPs to go along with his six NBA championships certainly put him high up on the list. But before he won any of his trophies, his team lost in the conference finals two years in a row. Not a black mark on a career, but a sign that it took him a few tries before he reached his pinnacle.

There's Wayne Gretzky, who though he had transcendent talent, was never particularly known as a 'clutch player'. His Stanley Cup rings and virtual takeover of the NHL record book are not to be slighted in the least bit, but Gretzky always played on excellent teams and therefore wasn't always expected to carry the full load and pull it out in the clutch. In fact, there was often no 'clutch moment' for his Oilers in the '80s since the teams were so good in the first place.

His one shining moment (if you can pinpoint just one) came in game seven of the 1993 conference finals (a game I remember, well, not so fondly...) when he scored a hat trick in Toronto to eliminate the Maple Leafs and send the Kings to the Stanley Cup Final. He still calls that his greatest NHL game ever.
But, L.A lost in the Final to the Montreal Canadiens in what many regard as still the prime of Gretzky's career. In that instance, The Great One couldn't close the deal.

There's Joe Montana, or as he was called, 'Joe Cool'. Montana's four Super Bowls rings and three Super Bowl MVP's as well as his penchant for late game heroics are legendary. Montana's throw to tight end Dwight Clark in the back of the endzone, throwing off his back foot, with three defenders on him, in the waning moments of the NFC Championship game versus Dallas, or 'The Catch' as it's lovingly referred to, is the stuff legends are made of. A more appropriate title would be 'The Throw'.
When people compare Tom Brady to Montana, they do so hoping that one day can compile a record as impressive as his. Brady can, but it's still to be seen if he will. Brady had a chance to match Joe Cool's record of four Super Bowl wins in 2008, but lost to the Giants in the final game of what could have been a perfect season.

But in my mind, the argument begins and ends with Tiger.
To go along with his 29% career winning average (think of that like the Habs winning a Stanley Cup every three years...if there were 100 teams in the NHL to compete against every season), Woods record in the clutch and in big time events is unheard of.

Woods hit the ground running by winning the first Masters he played in as a pro in 1997 by 12 shots. The learning curve, what learning curve?

Woods also, since he turned pro 14 seasons ago has compiled 66 victories, third all-time and only seven behind Jack Nicklaus, who by the way, took 25 years to reach his total. In fact, if you check the list of all-time victories, not only is Tiger already third on it, but the next player to have compiled a similar amount of W's in the same time span is Horton Smith who won "just" 32 tournaments in 14 years on tour.

The four Majors, the measuring stick with which all great golfers are tested, have become Tiger's plaything. He has 14, only four behind Jack Nicklaus' record once thought impossible to break. Nicklaus won his final major at the age of 46. Tiger won his 14th before he turned 33.

Tiger is the only golfer in the modern era to own all four major trophies at once, winning the US Open, British Open, PGA Championship and Masters in a row for what has become known as The Tiger Slam.
And when one writer wrote last month that he could equal Nicklaus' mark of 18 with the grand slam this year, he wrote it with no tongue in cheek and people actually believed it!

Tiger not only wins, but he doesn't seem to lose either. His record in playoffs is 15-2, his record when entering the Sunday of a major with at least a share of the lead is, you guessed it, 14 for 14. And he can come from behind also. Just last week he made up a five-shot difference on Sunday to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the second time he's come back from five on the final day of a tournament.

He also owns a record of 1-0 when it comes to winning the US Open with two broken bones in his leg and a torn ACL, while needing a long birdie putt on the 18th on Sunday to force an 18-hole playoff the next day, which he also birdied to win.

When you watch Tiger on TV, (which you certainly do; this week's tournament had higher viewership ratings than any other since Tiger's knee injury last July, including the two majors he missed, the British Open and the PGA Championship) you simply get the feeling that he can't and won't lose. When he stands over a putt he needs to make, he makes it. This week alone he was perfect from 15 feet and in. The announcers must have mentioned half a dozen separate times how he was the greatest par-putter in the history of golf.

You could spend hours watching countless shots Tiger has drained in the clutch and I defy you to find a putt Tiger has had to win a tournament that he missed. I'm sure it's happened once or twice, but heck, I can't remember when.

You know the saying, 'drive for show, putt for dough'? Well, Tiger Woods has plenty of 'show' and 'dough' to go around.

He, more than anyone else in history, more than Jordan, more than Gretzky and more than Montana, elicits a sense of fear in his opponents and a sense of confidence in himself that any shot he needs to make, he will make. I find myself watching him before an impossible shot and even before he hits it I think I will be more surprised if it doesn't go in than if it does...It usually does.

We are not surprised anymore by his greatness. We know he will be, if not already is, the greatest golfer, if not athlete, of all time. We are simply in awe of everything he has done and everything he continues to do.

Forget the fist pumps, forget the hundreds of millions of dollars he counts as his own, forget the inspirational story of a black golfer being brought up in a society that disallowed him from playing in some of the countries pre-eminent courses. For his volume of work alone, Tiger is the greatest clutch performer in sports history.

Weekend Musings: CIS and The Return of The Roar

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:13:00 +0000

There was a national championship tournament going on this weekend that had drama, intrigue, upsets, big comebacks and exciting play....and it wasn't March Madness.

Playing out a long distance - not just geographically - from the public's gazing eyes in Thunder Bay, Ontario was the Canadian University Hockey Championships.

With almost no fanfare or media hype, six teams representing the Atlantic, Ontario and Canada West conferences all vied for the Cavendish Cup and in the end it was only the University of New Brunswick who were able to come out on top.

The round robin style of the tournament lent itself to some exciting action. The six teams were broken up into two divisions with each team playing a game against the other two. After the round robin was to be completed, the top team from each division would play in the championship final.

This was further complicated due to the tie-breaker in the standings being goal differential, meaning that coming into their final game of the round robin, Western (my alma mater, Go Stangs!) not only had to beat St. Mary's to get into the championship game, but because of their previous results, had to beat them by at least three to finish ahead of them and take first place in the group.

After one period the score was 2-1 St. Mary's, essentially a four-goal deficit to climb out of and after two periods it was 2-2, leaving a slim shot at making it to the next day's championship game.

But all of a sudden, Western opened the third period with a fury of action and ended up scoring five consecutive goals to win the game 7-2, sending them to their first championship game since they last won the title in 2002.

Unfortunately for them - and the home fans - the Mustangs weren't able to face off against their arch rival Lakehead Thunderwolves who lost to UNB the day before. What would have been a spectacular final turned out to still be a pretty darn good one as Western erased a 2-0 deficit to tie the game in the third period, but were ultimately defeated 4-2 (including an empty netter) in a thrilling final game on Sunday afternoon.

Now is not the place for my rant, but as a former university hockey (and other sports) broadcaster, I've always believed that CIS hockey doesn't get the recognition it deserves for being a high calibre brand of the sport. Furthermore, the league shoots itself in the foot by not offering the level of athletic scholarships available in the USA and therefore limiting itself with the kind of talent it attracts.

That being said, there were several high NHL draft picks playing in this tournament and nearly all of the players had previous spots on CHL rosters before they hit the age limit.

For a combination of skill, speed, rivalries, emotion and pure love of the game, it doesn't get much better than University Hockey.

----------------

Tiger is back....
Ok, so he's been back for a while, but by coming from five shots back on Sunday, needing a long birdie on the 18th, in the dark and getting it to win his sixth Bay Hill Invitational by just one shot, he's REALLY back.
Tiger has now won tournaments in 14 straight years (Arnold Palmer, the host at Bay Hill, holds the record with 17 straight) and owns a career winning percentage of 29%. That is insane for a golfer to win almost a third of every event he enters....just insane. Watching Tiger on the back nine on a Sunday when he's in contention is one of the most spectacular things in sports.
...Augusta and The Masters is only a few weeks away, beware.

So much for Justin Pogge being the Maple Leafs goalie of the future, he looked absolutely awful in a 7-5 loss to Boston on Saturday night. He was constantly out of position and didn't seem to be able to read the play with any level of consistency.

Mark Cuban, the outspoken owner of the Dallas Mavericks was fined $25,000 over the weekend for using Twitter to criticize the refs after a Mavs game. He then did a double zinger by posting the following to his page:
"can't say no one makes money from twitter now. the nba does )"......zing!

The Raptors all of a sudden have won four games in a row and are starting to look like the team people thought they could be when they started the season 3-0 before major disappointments along the way to fall out of the playoff picture. In yesterday's OT win over Chicago, Chris Bosh had 31 points and 15 rebounds, Andrea Bargnani had 28 points and Jose Calderon had 22 points and tied an all-time franchise best with 19 assists.
This year is pretty much a wash with the Raps seven games out of the last playoff spot with only nine games to go, but it could be a sign of what to expect next year if Calderon can stay healthy, Bargnani continues to prove he was worth a first overall pick and Bosh decides to commit to Toronto for the long haul.

With just seven games or so to play in the regular season, the NHL's Western Conference is unbelievably close at the bottom with just four points separating 7-11th place. The most surprising contender for a playoff spot would be the St. Louis Blues who almost nobody picked to be even close to the mix this year.
A group of young guns (Patrick Berglund, T.J Oshie, David Backes and David Perron) have all stepped up and played beyond their years to get them to the cusp of the post season. While I don't think they would have a matzah ball's chance at a seder to make it past Detroit or San Jose in the first round, it would certainly be a great story if they finished in the top-eight.

The Final Four is set...Villanova will face North Carolina in one semi-final while UConn will face Michigan State in the other. I'd be really scared to play Mich. St. right now, not only because they're playing out of their mind, but also because the Final Four just happens to be in Detroit, a practical home game for the team whose campus is just 78 miles away.

I just realized something odd about one of those Guitar Hero commercials from yesterday that I posted....A-Rod is in big trouble stemming from his steriod confession, Michael Phelps is in hot (bong?) water over his racy smoking pic, Kobe Bryant was accused of and went to trial for rape several years back, and Tony Hawk...well, he's a skater, so you know he's done somethin'.
Is Guitar Hero inadvertantly going after the coveted 18-34 felon demographic?

New Guitar Hero Ad

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 01:27:00 +0000

This is just awesome....in the spirit of the NCAA Tournament the fine folks at Guitar Hero have made a new commercial featuring four all-time great NCAA....coaches?? Former coach (and chair thrower) Bobby Knight, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, Louisville coach Rick Pitino and North Carolina coach, Roy Williams are in the ad and it's awesome...check it out.

Here's another one they did with Heidi Klum....

And one with Michael Phelps, A-Rod, Tony Hawk and Kobe Bryant...

There's a few more on youtube including ones with American Idols David's Cook and Archuletta.

That's Really Nice Guys, But...Uh, I Didn't Order Mushrooms...Aaaawkward

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:43:00 +0000

Since enduring a long mid-season slump and making a coaching change, the Pittsburgh Penguins have really delivered to their fans. No really, they actually did deliver...the pizza.

As a token of appreciation, Pittsburgh Penguins players Marc-Andre Fleury, Jordan Staal, Max Talbot, Kris Letang, Tyler Kennedy and Pascal Dupuis delivered pizza to workers at the new arena construction site on Tuesday. (WXPI)

I get the part about why they would come and pay them a visit, it's a nice thing to do in your community and especially for the people who are building your new arena. But pizza? Why?

There was a big joke last season about how the Pens had pizza in their locker room during a long overtime game in the Finals versus Detroit (the owner of the Red Wings, Mike Illich, also owns Little Ceasar) and the players made a point of saying the pizza was from Dominos. But the pie they delivered yesterday was Pizza Hut, so who knows what that means.

Still can't beat this though, the ultimate Pittsburgh Penguins public appearance moment...

Thank God That's Over, Now We Can Get Back To What Really Matters

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 02:05:00 +0000

The WBC finally ended last night (long exhale).

Japan beat Korea in what was actually a pretty entertaining 10-inning matchup in front of a packed house of vocal supporters of both squads in LA.

A lot has been said about how nobody in North America (where the final rounds of the tournament is played) cares about the WBC, about how it's too long, played at the wrong time of year...etc.

I think this comment from TSN.ca summed it up pretty well:

Who really cares about the WBC? It's played at the wrong time of year, the format is disjointed and it just gets in the way of Curling, Hockey, Basketball and Golf coverage.

Damn straight, how dare baseball get in the way of hockey, basketball and curli....wait. huh?
Really?

Tukka Rask Goes Bonkers

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 21:41:00 +0000

Looks like the Bruins goalie (currently with Providence, their minor league affiliate) has been getting some coaching tips from Patrick Roy....

...to be fair, the play should have been blown down once the puck was poke-checked and momentum was stopped.

But wow...just wow. Gotta give him creativity points for the milk-crate though.

Sweet 16 Bracket Update

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 23:40:00 +0000

12 of 16 teams...all Elite Eight still in contention, I'd call that a successful bracket so far. Although a USC win over Michigan St. was oh so close to becoming a reality.

As always, click to enlarge.

Sunday Night Syndrome: A Brief Explanation

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Despite the NCAA tournament going on and a few other important events taking place this past weekend I'm going to spend the majority of this column discussing an issue plaguing what I can only assume to be mass proportions of the 30-and-under population in this world. The issue that I am speaking of, is what I shall to refer to as "Sunday Night Syndrome".

Sunday Night Syndrome is a condition that is both extremely simple in its manifestations, but scientifically complex in its explanation. Allow me to begin with the symptom as it is most straightforward to explain.

Mondays suck.

Yup, that's pretty much it. You hear the buzzing of your alarm clock at whatever time you have it set for (7:15am...oy) and your eyes open to check because it can't possibly be time to wake up yet. You even get mad at the clock when you realize it truly is time to get up, as if it has a choice in the matter. You're pretty much groggy and grouchy all morning, if not all day. This is nothing a strong cup of tea or coffee can't cure, but at the same this is a different kind of sucky you feel. This is a sucky that is not felt when your mother in law comes to visit, or when your favourite team loses by 30 in a game they absolutely, positively had to win. No, this is a special Monday morning sucky. We all know it.

But where does this come from? Why don't we feel this bad on any other day of the week?

Well folks, I have a hypothesis.

As a university student not too long ago I experienced this feeling as well, except it wasn't on Monday, it was on Tuesday. Why, do you ask? Well, my schedule at school was so unbelievably fantastic that I not only had no classes on Friday, which is actually not so out of the ordinary, but on Monday as well.

This allowed me a continuous, four-day weekend through my entire fourth year in school. It also allowed me to develop this theory as to why Mondays, or in my case at that time, Tuesdays, sucked.

You see, the fact that your Monday mornings suck have nothing to do with waking up on the morning at all. It all stems back to when you woke up the days before.

Working so hard and diligently during the weekdays and waking up at unruly hours of the morning sure tires a guy out, eh? So the only natural thing to do would be to give yourself the opportunity to sleep in on the weekends. This does two things; Firstly, it allows yourself the chance to rest and recoup some of the sleep you've lost during the work week. But secondly and more importantly for this argument it alters your sleep patterns enough from the work week schedule to affect your Monday mornings.

You see, it's only natural that when you when you wake up at 10, 11, even noon or later, you're going to be tired later in the night than you would have been had you woken up at say, 7:15 (...oy). This means you go to sleep on Saturday night later than you would have on Friday or Thursday (not taking into account going out the night before). Sleeping in further on Sunday both extends your ability to sleep even later and reinforces to your body this new, 'weekend' sleep pattern that will become such an issue not even 12 hours later.

This brings me the meat of the thesis, Sunday Night Syndrome. The problem begins when you try to get yourself back into your regular work week sleep schedule and fall asleep at a reasonable hour for waking up early the next morning (7:15am...oy). This, of course, is not possible. Your body now is so used to waking up and falling asleep later than normal, it simply will not allow you to fall asleep at 10 or 11pm as you would like. So 11 turns to 11:30, which turns to 12:30, which turns to 1am...

Maybe you fall asleep at 2, maybe 2:30, maybe even a much less ridiculous hour like 12 or 11:30. But the point is it is much later than you'd normally like to fall asleep on a work day. Thus making your Monday mornings...well, suck.

I am a Sunday Night Syndrome sufferer. I have experienced this malady for several years (beginning of course as Monday Night Syndrome in school as I explained previously) and for the past two years in its current manifestation. There is no way out of this vicious cycle before getting married and having children (we all know parents with small children don't get to sleep in on the weekends anyways, thus eliminating the problem), but there still may be hope.

I tell you this story not for your pity, but so you can better understand a condition that affects so many people around the world and perhaps one day, help find a cure to eliminate it.

Happy Monday morning people, if there is such a thing...

Latest Bracket Standings

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 21:46:00 +0000

Still more green than red but a few upsets and close games brings my record down a little bit.
Still in the top-20 of my Facebook friends which is pretty decent.

Again, click to enlarge.

The Next Star Of David

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 00:17:00 +0000

I stumbled upon this excellent article from SI.com on Dimitriy Salita, the junior welterweight boxer who is the number 1 contender for the title belt and also happens to be an orthodox Jew from Crown Heights, New York.

Whether you're Jewish or not, the story is pretty inspirational and amazing in how a young immigrant from the Ukraine has been able to balance such fervent practicing of his religion along with athletic performance at such a high level (his professional record is 27-0).

HBO produced a few small webisodes on Salita earlier this year which are equally, if not more intriguing and enlightening as the article. I have attached all three parts below, make sure to watch them.

Here's an excerpt of an interview Salita did with HBO:

HBO: Jewish Pride is important to you. What effect do you think your newfound visibility will have in that area?

DS: Historically, boxing has been an ethnic-driven sport. Latin fans are driving the sport today, and somebody like Manny Pacquiao has got the support of his whole country. In the Philippines Manny is like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods and Barack Obama all rolled into one.

Some Jewish people who are not connected will have seen the episodes, and it's going to make them feel good about being a Jew, and hopefully give them a sense of pride.

HBO: How did your religious leader from Chabad react when you first asked him if HBO could shoot you during a prayer session?

DS: He jumped right in! He was super excited. Chabad uses every media available to speak the word of God. All the rabbis in Crown Heights were very favorable toward the filming. They feel the more media coverage Judaism gets the better.

HBO: What lies ahead for you in both your secular education and religious training?

DS: Religious training is my life. You become a better person the more rules and things you know about God. Knowing God takes a lifetime. There is so much more to learn. It's like a mountain you have to climb. As for my education, I plan to finish Touro College here in Brooklyn. After I get my degree I want to pursue further education. When I finish boxing, I hope to be an entrepreneur and go into business. We'll see what the future holds.

Spring, Gus Johnson Have Been Sprung

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 17:50:00 +0000

Today, March 20, brings not only the second day of March Madness, but also the first day of the vernal equinox and, more importantly, the return of Gus Johnson to the March Madness CBS airwaves.

Gus Johnson, to put it simply, is the greatest college basketball play-by-play man in the history of the universe. The only problem is that CBS must always be on watch that his head might explode every time he calls a game...no, seriously.

I don't even care who's playing today, or how close the scores are in the other games, I want to watch nothing but Johnson and his screaming, wild-calls.

He and his crew are stationed in Minneapolis for the first and second round and today will be calling the following games today:
Kansas vs North Dakota State (in progress)
Dayton vs West Virginia (3:00pm ET)
USC vs Boston College (7:20pm ET)
Robert Morris vs Michigan St. (9:50pm ET)

It Was So Hot, Burger King said "If You Want It Your Way, Make It Yourself"

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 04:01:00 +0000

Here's the Ovechkin video...apparently his celebration had something to do with the stick being "hot, hot, hot"...still not really sure what that means....

Explanation from Ovie is around the 1:40 mark

Was The Stick So Excited It Had A Heart Attack?

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:31:00 +0000

Alex Ovechkin has just scored his 50th goal of the season in the first period on the road against Tampa Bay and celebrated by placing his stick on the ice and pretending to give it CPR....at least I think that's what he was doing...I really have no idea.

He now is the first player to hit the half century mark this season and does it for the third time in his four NHL seasons.

Sill looking for the video and I will post it here when I find it

Well This Can't Be Any Good For The Economy

noreply@blogger.com (Lonely Sports Bum) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:14:00 +0000

Sorry for the lack of posts today...I've been a little under the weather.

The good news is that I've had plenty to keep me busy in between the sneezes and coughs.

Today began the NCAA March Madness Tournament and with it billions of dollars in productivity at work has gone down the drain for the next two weeks or so.

You can of course watch the games all day everyday on TV on CBS or The Score in Canada, online for free, or even download an app to watch on your iPhone....oh yah, this won't make the recession any worse.

I have probably four or five brackets on the go, but the one that I always put the most stock in is the one I have on Facebook, mostly because I get to compare it to all my friends and everyone else gets to see it and make fun of me if it sucks.

Here it is...as you can see, I'm 6/8 up to this point, which is pretty good, but not spectacular (click the pic for a larger version)

I'll be updating my Facebook bracket every day from here on out so you can see how I'm doing...my hopes aren't high. But post in the comments if you think I'm nuts in any of my selections.

I've included a live scoreboard to aid in procrastinating from whatever it is you were supposed to be doing now.