Sin City had his choices for the first round and did pretty damn good, going 5/8 and he was 1 goal from being right in the Rangers series (think I’m bitter???).  Well since my computer was pooched I never got to call my picks for the first round (I was 7/8 by the way…that was a blatant lie) now I will give you my 2nd round choices and I encourage Sin City and even our baseball guru The Sheik to get in on the fun, HECK, all of you should chime in too!!!

ROUND 2, LET’S GET IT ON!!!

Vancouver vs. Chicago- Let me tell you first off, this series is my favourite and my least favourite at the same time. Favourite because I love both the teams and least because I want them both to be in the Western finals, which is obviously impossible.  Both Chicago and Vancouver looked fairly sexy in their respective first round series with goaltending as opposed to goal scoring being the difference in both series. But in this series, I like the ‘Nucks.  Better goalie, more experience and the only Canadian team left.  Vancouver in 7.

Anaheim vs. Detroit - What can you say about Anaheim?  No one in their right mind thought they would actually help fulfill San Jose’s destiny as playoff choke artist but they did!  What does that mean in their next series against the boys from Motown?  The same thing War means to Edwin Starr, “ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, HUH!!!”.  Detroit in 5

Pittsburgh vs. Washington – Let me tell you right now, if the NHL was a 13 year old boy, the series would be Miley Cyrus in a shower.  Gary Bettman must be harder than a slab of marble tile right now just thinking of having Sid the kid vs. Ugly Alex for a possible 7 games.  As for me, I will get a bucket ready for all the close ups of Ovey and a pillow ready for all the interviews with Sidney Crosby.  Either way, this series will be great for the young NHL superstars and for creating some excitement for hockey in the States in a time that it desperately needs it.  Pens in 7

Boston vs. Carolina – Two teams with two very different first rounds will be meeting in this match up.  Boston will have been off for over a week before their first game on Friday, while Carolina will only have 2 days off.  So I guess this story comes down too, who do you think has the bigger advantage?  The team who came back from a 3-2 series deficit to beat the favoured team at their own rink?  Or the team who swept a team that squeaked in the playoffs?  For me, when it comes to the playoffs and hockey, I gotta believe the more rest the better. 

Peace!

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Here’s the clip and just so you know it was a 1 on 4…UNREAL!!!  Celebrate OV CELEBRATE!!!

What did you think?  Too much?  Not enough?  Keep it coming?

Peace!

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If you aren’t familiar with Cherry and his views (you’re definitely not Canadian) but he is probably the definition of OLD SCHOOL.  He was a coach of the notoriously “chippy” Boston Bruins in the ’70s and lets just say he wasn’t shy when it came to letting his “opinion” be heard.  When his coaching days ended, he continued to let his opinions be heard every Saturday night after the first period of  hockey games on the CBC for the past 20 some odd years. 

Continuing with his trend of outspoken tirades that more often then not fall on European shoulders, he went after AO for celebrating too much like a soccer player.  Cherry suggested someone may/should take it to the physical level to deter such things in the future.  When Ovechkin was asked by the Washington Post about it, he said, “I think he is a funny guy (Cherry), old guy.  He likes old fashioned hockey, so he don’t like probably my celebrations” (just so you know that is the wording he used). 

So what is your stance on the matter?  Does Cherry have a point?  Should Alex the Great turn down the celebration meter to a 6 instead of a 10?  Is Ovechkin right and Cherry is just a old miser that can’t get used to the now? 

Personally, I like the way Alex makes every goal seem as though its his first and as far as I know he isn’t one of those guys skating by the other teams bench and rubbing it in.  He is just jumping around on the ice and usually slamming his face in the boards trying to get to the crowd or just trying to pump them up, home or away.  Like we have said here before, hockey could use a little more life in its players and Ovechkin always supplies that.  So I say, leave him be Cherry, if hes not being a sore sport and ruining the game then let it be.  At least he’s not fighting, right Reefer???

Peace!

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Kobe and LeBron

I don’t give a rat’s ass.  That was Kobe Bryant’s response when a reporter asked him how he felt after Lebron James overtook his title of “youngest player in the history of the NBA to reach 12,000 career points” (Lebron reached the mark just after his 24th birthday, while it took Kobe until he was 25).  This reaction fell perfectly in line with how I’m used to viewing Kobe – he’s an arrogant, self-centered megastar who can’t be bothered with the suggestion that another player might just be better than he is.  To Kobe, he doesn’t owe it to anyone to give a more “politically correct” response.  He’s not the type to give us one of these gems we’re so used to hearing from more humble athletes: “Uhh, yeah, you know, Lebron is a great player.  I can’t believe how he’s so, umm, dominant at such a young age… I’m not sure who’s a better player, but, you know, individual stats don’t matter and it’s all about the team.”  Like him or not, Kobe’s telling us how he actually feels.  He doesn’t give a rat’s ass.  He thinks/knows he is a better player than Lebron James, and he won’t beat around the bush just to seem like a nice guy.  He’s too good for that.

There are some people who see Kobe’s attitude and are turned off by it.  Others will applaud his confidence and view him as the coolest guy ever.  No matter what side of the fence you fall on, you can’t deny the fact that Kobe’s unapologetic attitude about being the best basketball player in the world helps to build up the rivalry between him and Lebron.  This kind of stuff makes for great entertainment and adds more fuel to the fire as the debate rages on about who is the better player.  The Kobe vs. Lebron angle will be played up in sports media for years to come.  As the hype machine grows, so do ticket sales and TV ratings.  The NBA has always been a star-driven league, and even though they may look like idiots sometimes, the players understand that.  Most aren’t shy to show off their personalities, and the storylines grow from there.

Based on the incredible talents of their top performers, the NHL should be a star-driven league as well.  The problem with hockey players, however, is that they are simply too nice, or at least too well-mannered when the microphone is in front of their face.  Yeah, their humbleness makes them quite likeable in a “role model” kind of way, but it sure ain’t interesting.  Sidney Crosby playing hockey puts me on the edge of my seat.  Sidney Crosby’s personality (or lack thereof) puts me to sleep, yet the NHL continues to market Crosby as the game’s biggest star.  To some extent, I believe his talent should speak for itself, but we’ve reached a point where the NHL needs something else to vault itself into the upper echelon of professional sports leagues.

It’s a well-known fact that Sid the Kid went through lessons in media training to prepare for life under the spotlight.  While his squeaky-clean image helped him earn endorsements, it’s not helping the NHL’s entertainment value.  We’ve all seen Crosby wear his emotions on his sleeve in the heat of battle, and I think the league would really benefit if he started to come out of his shell a bit more off the ice.  And that can be said for the majority of pro hockey players, especially the North American ones.

So who’s the biggest “personality” in hockey today (aside from Don Cherry)?  I think most would agree that distinction belongs to Alexander Ovechkin.  Ovechkin represents a new kind of hockey star, one that the NHL would be wise to promote above any of the other boring meatheads.  In the first interview I ever saw with him, he could barely even put a sentence together in English, but it was a hundred times more enjoyable than anything I’ve ever heard Crosby say.  “Who’s your favorite player in the NHL?” the reporter asked.  Looking as goofy as ever, Ovechkin didn’t hesitate to answer: “Me!”  He may have been smiling, but he certainly wasn’t joking.  Like Kobe (although he comes off more innocent and a lot more charming), Ovechkin thinks/knows he is the best, and that makes for great television.  I want to see more of this guy and more guys like him.  The NHL is so starved for personalities like this, and in my opinion, they are missing out by making Crosby their poster boy over Ovechkin.

The Crosby/Ovechkin comparison leads to a wider realization: lately, the compelling storylines in the NHL have revolved around European players.  Just look at the rivalry between Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin, or (on a smaller scale) Mikhail Grabovski vs. Sergei Kostitsyn.  TSN, trying their best to hype up a run-of-the-mill regular season game in February, ran a long feature on the “Battling Belarusians” back-to-back days on Sportscentre.  When I tuned in at 7:00 to watch the game on Hockey Night in Canada, the broadcast began with a shot of Kostitsyn in the dressing room pretending to train for a boxing match, wearing gloves and throwing fake punches at the camera.  By God, the Euros get it!

Leafs coach Ron Wilson got sour (big surprise!) at all the fuss that the media was making about the Grabovski/Kostitsyn feud.  “Are ticket sales down in Montreal?  Geez, why is everyone making such a big deal about this?”  Wilson’s attitude is typical of the traditionalists who believe the game sells itself, and that belief might hold water when you’re talking about lifelong hockey fans.  To attract new fans to the game, however, the league should embrace the egos and the gimmicks.  Coaches, general managers, and the rest of the old farts won’t like it, but to hell with ‘em.  When the audience grows, they’ll all end up richer anyways.

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