I think I might start posting again even though I doubt anyone's even looking at this blog anymore.

And to make this posting not completely useless, I'll actually say something.

All pro sports mascots should be destroyed. And last night's game between the Ottawa Senators and the Washington Capitals just proved my point even more. The game last night was 'Support the Troops' with plenty of military there. So of course Spartacat, the idiotic mascot of the Ottawa Senators, ends up shooting a military member with a hotdog gun sending him for medical attention.

They should have started a trend when Wild Wing was set ablaze! (1) comments

The broadcast of this weekend's NHL Entry Draft just got a little more exciting with TSN's announcement that Brian Burke will be part of TSN's broadcast crew.

This is exciting for two reasons. It gives us the perspective of a very recent NHL GM on prospects he's been scouting this past season. As well, it also reunites Burke with his former head coach in Hartford, Pierre McGuire. From McGuire's comments on Ottawa radio, the two aren't exactly best friends. Add in their fiery personalities and their could be some fireworks if they disagree. (0) comments

I can't seem to cheer for either team in the finals of the Cup this year.

I could cheer for Tampa Bay because a victory by them might encourage other teams to copy their "safe is death" style of play.

But I can't because the fans at the former Ice Palace have a greater percentage of jackasses then any other visiting rink I've been to.

As well, has a team ever won a Stanley Cup wearing a uniform as ugly as the Lightning's?

I could cheer for Calgary because they're Canadian and Calgary would probably be my first choice if I ever had to relocate to another Canadian city (unless Vancouver housing prices came WAY down).

But I can't because their team plays such a dirty brand of hockey. From Regehr's armdrag takedown of Fedetenko into the boards to Gelinas' Darcy Tuckeresque head shot on Kubina to Nieminen's cheapshot on Lecavalier last night, the Flames are a dirty team. And that's just the playoffs. They've been using fighting and brawls as a tactic all season long. Dave Hodge even notices how they're the new version of the Broad Street Bullies.

I probably wouldn't even be watching the games except they've been in HD and been fairly exciting, even though idiots like Damian Cox would tell you otherwise. (0) comments

Just a quirky little fact. Ottawa Senators 2003 first round draft choice Patrick Eaves will be kind of following in his father's footsteps if he eventually plays for the Senators. His father, Mike Eaves, once played for the Junior A Nepean Raiders, which now play in the amalgamated city of Ottawa, before he played in the NCAA. (0) comments

While Senator fans for the most part don't want Patrick Lalime back next season, there are some defenders of him that point to his playoff stats - 1.76 GAA and a .926 save percentage. But here some stats that might be a little more relevant.

0-3 with a 3.90 GAA and a .862 save percentage.

Those are Lalime's stats in Game 7's. (0) comments

I've been pretty lazy blogging here lately. Posting weekly, if that, is a far cry from what I did while the Senators were still playing.

I'm going to try to do more. Especially since the NHL Entry Draft, one of my favourite times of the year, is rapidly approaching.

But once the draft and the intial rush of free agent signings on July 1 are over, I don't know how much I'll be posting until the season starts, if it does at all. (0) comments

On the edition of the Sports Reporters that aired on TSN today, Mitch Albom complained about the state of the NHL. His main complaint? That the NHL has allowed the teams with stars to be elimated from the playoffs!

He was whining about the Detroits and Colorados being eliminated. Too bad he's never heard of guys like Martin St Louis or Jarome Iginla. They've only won two of the last three scoring titles.

Maybe Albom, a Detroit resident, needs to understand that Detroit's reign at the top of the NHL has faded and guys like Yzerman or Lidstrom are no longer the superstars they once were.

If Albom wants to watch Yzerman or Sakic play deep in the playoffs I suggest he try ESPN Classics. They've had their turn. Now it is time for the new guard to take over from the old guard. (0) comments

Watching Don Cherry after last night's Flyer win over Toronto made me wonder why Toronto and Philadelphia are considered gritty, playoff teams but the Ottawa Senators aren't?

Cherry went off on how Jeremy Roenick and Keith Primeau are warriors. I don't remember him saying anything like that about any of the Senators.

He also praised the Leafs for their giving it their all in their series against the Flyers. Why didn't he say anything like that after the Senators lost to Toronto? After all, the Sens came back to tie game 6 in regulation and also went on to win the game in overtime. The Sens also didn't get blown out in game 5 of their series. The played poorly in game 5 but they only lost because of a bad bounce that sent the puck in the net off of Brian Smolinski's skate.

Basically how history has presented itself in the playoffs is that the Sens can't beat the Leafs who can't beat the Flyers who can't beat the Sens. Those great playoff warriors in Roenick and Primeau against Ottawa have scored 0 goals and 3 assists in 11 playoff games with Roenick getting credit for all 3 assists. So why does Ottawa get the short end of the stick when it comes to reputation?

I think the blame lies at the biased nature of the Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts. Bob Cole, Harry Neale, Don Cherry, Glenn Healy, and Scott Oake are all huge Leaf homers when they are doing HNIC playoff games involving the Senators. Who is a Senator homer on the broadcasts? The closest it gets is Greg Millen who I can't remember ever doing a Senator playoff game in recent memory. Everything on HNIC is viewed through a blue and white filter. Listening to Bob and Neale go off on Mattias Timander getting a delay of game penalty for dislodging the Flyer net, while completely ignoring that Alexei Ponikarovsky should have been the player getting penalized for crosschecking Timander from behind into the net to cause it to be dislodged, disgusted me.

The HNIC broadcasts glorify the Leafs, and when (not if) someone beats them, then they are glorified because they beat the great Toronto Maple Leafs. Until the Senators beat the Maple Leafs they will never receive the credit they are due. Even if they win the Stanley Cup. (0) comments