USA

Dojo pants and American Muscle at the tavern at 3pm! 1000!

Finland

Tomorrow's game is a 3PM start. Position yourself accordingly.

A few things:
- Kipper scares us
- The Finnish roster is sneaky strong
- We need to figure out line combos to get our scorers scoring
- If we were on the US team we wouldn't even look at Ryan Miller's direction for the next 2 days
- Please God don't let us drop the game tomorrow and have every dick on Twitter saying we got "Finnished".
- Kane is due to breakout
- Kessel is due to breakout
- Parise hasn't even gotten warmed up
- Canada looked downright scary at times last night
- We can't pay attention to the other side of the bracket. We'll cross that bridge when we get there.
- Dojo pants and American muscle at the Tavern tomorrow at 3.
- Dan Boyle was a douche last night
- I sleep well at night knowing that Chris Drury is riding with us
- God Bless America
- Let's deliver a nightmare




- Nemmy

USA

If I were in Charge

So I've already crossed off 4 teams yesterday. Today I'm realigning and renaming the divisions. I'm not trying to throw out the past but I'll let the old Patrick, Adams, Norris and Smyth divisions be. Those old guys already have trophies named after them.

Here's how things will look going forward:

Prince of Wales Conference
NJD, NYR, NYI and BUF play in the Sully Division named after the guy who landed an airplane in the Hudson. Not much change here but I've added Buffalo to get some tri-statae area saltiness going.

PHI, PIT, CBS and WAS play in the Dutch Division named after Arnold's character in Predator. I moved Columbus into the Wales Conference and got rid of the Eastern/Western conference labels. I like the current heat between the Pennslyvania teams and Washington and Columbus seemed like a decent geographic fit here.

OTT, MTL, BOS, TOR and CAR now play in the Gilyard Division named after the guy who played the sidekick in both Matlock and Walker, Texas Ranger. That guy is the man. I figure since Carolina used to be the Whale I can throw them up with the Northeast guys. As much as Toronto fans must pine for the old Norris days I'm keeping them in the Gilyard because of the heat with Montreal and Boston.

Clarence Campbell Conference
CHI, DET, STL, DAL and NSH now play in the Yzerman Division. I tried to keep things geographically cool but Nashville throws things off a bit. I might get rid of that team later.

ANA, COL, SJ and LA now play in the Mustaine Division named after the guitarist from Megadeth. I was trying to find a way to have these guys play at a reasonable hour for people on the East Cost but I can't. Since I am in charge I think I'll let myself stay up late to watch these games.

VAN, CGY, EDM and MIN now play in the Hart Division named after Bret Hart. I think he was from Calgary and he was the mayor so he gets a division. Minnesota stays in the division even though some folks on my executive panel wanted to put them back in the Yzerman to relive some Norris days.

That's it. Every team plays a home and home and I'll have my intern put together a schedule this week. Play ball.

- Nemmy

Mike Comrie...

...IS THE MAYOR!

- Nemmy

If I were in charge

I'm contracting the league.

No offense but I would remove Tampa Bay, Atlanta, Phoenix and Florida from the NHL. Canada doesn't get another team but hopefully our cousins up north will be happy that they have a larger % of total teams. Columbus, Carolina and Nashville are all on watch. If one of those guys can't pull their weight I'm putting a team in Quebec. I say Quebec because they would be the only fans to hate Montreal more than the rest of the league.

Here's the thing for me. I feel bad because I would like the league and the sport to thrive in those 4 markets but it's really not working. A part of me wants to bring hockey to everyone because I know that once hockey gets into your blood you will be a fan for life. But there's a big part of me that knows that hockey will always be a nichey sport loved by many enjoyed by few and ignored by the rest. I need to make a decision to make the sport better for the people who really love it and not water things down to appeal to non-fans. I can live with that.

Instead of spreading the league too thin we should admit when things aren't working. And those 4 teams are bringing up the rear. Well, thanks for showing up.

- Nemmy

Team USA 5, All of Canada 3

What can we say about last night's game that hasn't already been said? Probably nothing. Let's try to gather some of the 1,000 feelings and thoughts that we have after the game. Please fill in what we missed.

- We feel like that was the type of game that this US team was built for. It was amazingly gritty, fast paced and we relied heavily of Miller.

- Thank goodness that we scored 41 seconds in. Taking the crowd out of the game early - and then answering the Canadians quickly to make in 2-1 - was HUGE.

- Side note: Ovy crushing Jagr was beautiful.

- Chris Drury did his best Chris Drury impression. Sean Avery tweeted that he was "clutch" last night.

- Joe Thornton did his best Joe Thornton impression. Where the hell has he been?

- You have to wonder whether the US can survive another 45 shot game from a powerhouse. Also our unofficial count for blocked shots by the US was ~750.

- That second period scared the hell out of us. Mr. W said that it took longer than his girlfriend's period. Summed it up perfectly.

- Kesler's empty netter summed up the entire night for the US. I don't even know what to say about that play.

- Marty looked like he was trying to hard. We think a calm Luongo in net would have made a world of difference. But you can't fully blame the outcome on Marty.

- Why does Gary Bettman wear that tight-ass sweater that looks like he should be drinking hot totties and playing grab ass in a swingers chalet?

- Ryan Getzlaf must really hate the visor rule because he sports a 2-inch shield that is pushed up past his eyebrows.

- Did we see back-to-back-to back breakaways? Somewhere during that stretch we lost consciousness.

- After 45 shots is it asking too much that Miller hug the post better on Crosby's goal?

- The 2Man was together watching at the Village Tavern. After Kesler's ENG Scotty fell hard to the floor.

- Just in case you didn't see the pants we were rocking for the Games on our Twitter:



- We need Pat Kane to really get going next game.

- I can't believe that game was on MSNBC. What a joke.

- Ryan Callahan did a tremendous job killing penalties in limited minutes. I thought that was worth noting.

- We hate to temper our excitement but this game wasn't for a medal. The US gets an easier road going forward but there's still a long way to go to reach Gold.

- 1000%

- This is how you need to watch next week's day games.



- USA!!!!!!!!!!!! USA!!!!!!!!!!!! USA!!!!!!!!!!!

- Nemmy

Sunday

Team USA vs. all of Canada, Sunday 7:40.

Be ready.

- Nemmy

SWE 2, GER 0; CZE 3, SVK 1

A few observations:

- There's no way I can stay up for the late games even though I really wanted to watch the Slovaks vs the Czechs.

- What happened to the Swedes wearing Jofa helmets?

- The Swedes didn't look sharp. Apparently the way things work is you get to town, get a win and have a good skate the next day. Unfortunately the Slovaks have to play Russia today.

- Forsberg looked pretty good despite the smaller ice sheet. That crafty passing ability must be the last thing to go.

- By accounts from what I read, Jagr started slow and played himself into form last night. He scored one on a semi break and set up another goal later in the game.

- I've said enough about Joe Micheletti on Twitter last night.

Today/Tonight we have
USA - NOR at 3PM EST
SUI - CAN at 7:30
SVK - RUS at 12AM

Norway is a roadapple so hopefully the US opens things up.
The Swiss should give Canada a better game than the Norwegians
Maybe the Slovaks can find some chinks in the Russian armor before they go down by 7 goals?

- Nemmy

What you missed because of your internet connection, working late and a reasonable bedtime

U.S. beats Switzerland 3-1

Let me just say for every person at my office that stopped to watch the 3PM game vs. the Swiss at the TV near my desk there were 3 guys at the other end of the floor watching a soccer match. I hate my office.

I can't find any clips of the goals so I'll try to describe them.

1) Some Swiss defenseman turns the puck over and Bobby Ryan rips a shot from the slot past Hiller's glove. The puck was just sitting there and Ryan without hesitation ripped it upstairs. I imagine Hiller sees that shot everyday in practice.

2) Miller kicks away a pretty decent Swiss scoring attempt and Blackes scoops up the puck at the circle and carries it the length of the left side of the ice. He beats some Swiss D wide, cuts across the crease and pots the puck by Hiller. Jonas might have been afraid to poke because Blackes would have severed his arm. Total power move.

3) Ryan Malone (who was wearing shoulder pads so loose that you could see his upper body ink) knocks home a rebound through the legs of Hiller. Thankfully no one around the TV makes a "Swiss cheese" joke.

Thoughts:
- Blackes, Malone, and Brown were punishing people. Malone scored after a frothy forecheck and the Swiss couldn't control him in front of the net.

- Parise, Stastny and Kane is a ridiculous line. They weren't completely in sync but could really get it going when they cycled.

- All in all the US team looked sloppy. Part of me thinks they were trying to do too much with the puck. Instead of getting everything deep, banging away and causing turnovers they settled for forcing passes. Part of me (and I hope this isn't the case) thinks that they were freaking the fuck out.

- Drury and Callahan were awesome in the little ice time they got. I think Cally hit the pipe on a shot?

- Miller is a rock.

- Hnat Domenichelli has not dropped off the face of the planet. He played big minutes for the Swiss.

Canada beats Norway 8-0
They took a little while to get going but Canada opened up for 8 goals. Norway didn't skate any current NHLers but they were a little bit of a tougher matchup than the score showed.

- Iginla (had a hat trick) opened up the scoring with a one-timer from Sid. It was the prototypical Jarome goal and it helps to have Rich Nash screening for him.

- Crosby (3 helpers) and Weber were the most impressive Canadian skaters.

- Heatley had 2 goals but Marleau and Thornton were pretty unnoticeable.

- Getzlaf didn't look like he was missing a step from that ankle issue.

- During one of the breaks Milbury and JR were discussing Ovy in comparison to Sid. It is such a tired subject but they went for it and it gummed up the entire broadcast.

- Mike Richards scored off of his own rebound. If he and Patty Bergeron are killing penalties together it will be a huge problem for the rest of the world.

- The Canadian team is that good.

Russia beats Latvia 8-2
I didn't watch this. I don't want to ruin the mystique that has built up around the Russian team. I want Ovy and Semin to kill Carl Weathers on the ice and have Talia Shire scream at Joe Pavelski that he can't win. Plus this game was on too late and I fell asleep before the CAN/NOR game was over.

- Nemmy


- Nemmy

This is not a recap post

I couldn't stream the USA game on NBCOlympics.com yesterday. I missed the Canada game because I was working late. And the Russia game was on past my bedtime.

This post will be about the new Nike commercial that aired last night at some point.





My roommate and I rewatched this thing like 9 times. We finally figured out the song (its "Ali in the Jungle," by The Hours.
Nike always knocks it out the park with its TV ads. In the Olympics they always have something special. I'm sure as it gets closer to the medals we'll see even better work. Below is my favorite Canadien Nike commercial:



AWESOME!

Holiday Weekend Wrap Up OR Does anyone know where I can watch the daytime hockey games online?

First I'll review the last weekend of the NHL before the Olympic pause, and then I''ll talk Olympics.

I didn't anything of real interest happened Friday night, except for this sweet game-winner from Nicolas Bergfors:



And Dion falling back into his bad defensive habits:



Calgary HATED when he chased guys behind the net.

However, the Fridy Canadiens/Flyers match up did set up this:



I love a good opening face-off fight and Lapierre did some nice work. Jeff Carter was also happy


And then danny briere went at got a hat trick. I'm not sure he deserved a penalty shot for the 3rd, though.



Nice finish, nonetheless.


Heres some sweet backhand sauce, courtesy of Robbie Schremp:





As for the Olympics...

First of all, for all Team USA news go here: http://teamusanews.org



We'll be keeping that widget up for the remainder of the games.


Second - it sucks that the hockey won't be on the main NBC channel. I don't really care about exposure or audience size - I mostly just care about watching great hockey in HD. I don't know if CNBC or USA or MSNBC or HGTV have HD versions. If I'm the NHL, I'm pissed because of the numbers stuff. They shut down and then get put on channels that only do slightly better than Versus.

Speaking of Versus, if Comcast owns NBC now and has always owned Versus, why aren't games on Versus? Thats rhetorical - ad space is sold way in advance, yada yada, but shouldn't Versus at least do a nightly recap show of the hockey. Yea, that would be logical and helpful, so of course they won't.

Anyway, USA starts on their road to Gold (or bronze) with an afternoon game vs the Swiss. Where can I watch this online?

Thanks,

Bress

What you missed last night while you were taking in all that Le Parker Meridien has to offer

Last Friday Hockey Haikus for a while

Senators beat the Capitals, 6-5:
Semin's hat-trick goals
were all high glove snipes. Has that
been done before? Wow!

Canucks shut out the Panthers, 3-0:
Alex Burrows knows
to go to the front of the
net with his stick down.

Oilers beat the Kings in the shoot-out, 3-2:
Why was Quick resting?
He's going to have 2 weeks
of rest in B.C.

Stars beat the Flames, 3-1:
Turco leads the league
in agressive poke checks. Flames
will have the most trades.

Sharks beat the Red Wings in the shoot-out, 3-2:
Jason Williams toe-
drag and snipe were pure sauce. The
Mules release is prompt.

Bruins beat the Lightning, 5-4:
Steve Downie is the
new Claude Lemieux. No, thats
not a compliment.

Hurricanes beat the Sabres in OT, 5-4:
I feel like these two
teams have a rivalry. Why?
Did they meet in spring?

If I were in charge

Buffalo, Edmonton, Long Island and Calgary have to go back to the original sweaters.

I'm fine with 3rd, 4th or 5th unis but they should only be worn for day games or other special occasions. The 3rd uni craze has more hits than misses. For every blue Nashville sweater there's the black Dallas Stars, the Edmonton oil cumshot and the big-ass Bruin. For every dark blue Blues sweater we have the Statue of Liberty Rangers look, the mustard Nashville disaster, and the Kings lion.

The revamped looks haven't fared much better. The Sabres have had multiple uniform iterations and still have not come close to besting the sweaters that Perreault wore or that Rob Ray sewed his shoulder pads into.

I'm not anti new uniforms or anything but I feel as though the gimmicky stuff needs to be a temporary exercise. It's like when really hot Hollywood chicks start dating rockers because they go to a concert and become the biggest fans. They spend the next 6 months playing the shit out of their favorite songs and getting UTIs until they realize that their favorite songs come from such a dark, desperate place written by soulless men that only an empty shell of a personality could fall in love with. I don't know what any of that had to do with 3rd jerseys but in short: without a solid foundation things can fall apart quickly.

And I'm over it. Now that I'm in charge we're bringing back the more traditional looks. We'll pepper in some new uniforms here and there without getting carried away by the whole thing.

Change we can believe in.

- Nemmy

Volume Alert

High unusual volume surge in Steve Mason as of late.

Shutting out Buffalo and San Jose in back to back games. 10,000% Mason. Keep it coming love.I cannot get over how bad this Mason highlight video is. None of the shots show the actual full saves...the guy who made it is like trying to slow it down and speed it up but is ruining the shots for the saves. It attempts to be 1000% but it is negative 250%

If I were in charge

I'd fine the hell out of NHLers for conducting interviews with their helmets on. Unless of course you are giving one of those silly interviews during the warm-up. As long as you are on the ice or bench you can keep the lid on. From now on take your helmet off and act like you give a shit when the camera is on.

Players: I know that most of the questions you get asked during these bits are worthless but I'll revamp how all that is handled at a later date. But from now on and until I stamp out lazy questions you need to step it up. $10K fine for leaving the bucket on and if you wear a visor and leave it on for an interview you sit a game. Sound unfair? I don't care. You're thinking about turning down interviews? Nope. They are now mandatory. I'm using the Dana White rules with how you handle interviews: do them all and be honest*. You'll only be fined if you keep your helmet on or say dumb stuff like "we're gripping the sticks too tight" or "just not getting the bounces" when asked what you have to do to get back in the game.

This is not punishment. It's important to let fans see your personalities and it starts with the little things.

*Don't be too honest. If you pull any John Mayer shit or start losing your mind like Mel Gibson you will be punished and possibly assaulted. It's not a double edged sword; it's common sense.

- Nemmy

What you missed last night while you were shoveling

Canadiens beat the Capitals in OT, 6-5: The streak is over. Sick comeback by the Caps to force overtime, but sicker pass from Sergie Kostitsyn. I don't want to hear any talk, that the Caps still have a 15 game point-getting streak or whatever. It was a damn impressive winning streak, but its over. Also, how'd they disallow that Ovy goal... because Hal Gill is a pineapple with no balance?

Ducks beat the Oilers, 3-2: I think the Oilers would play better on the road if their jerseys didn't look like nightgowns. Also, I'm so glad Bobby Ryan is American. His snap shot, far side high was a deadly snipe.

Penguins beat the Islanders, 3-1: Matt Martin got into his first NHL fight with Tyler Kennedy. Does it still count?

Avalanche beat the Thrashers in OT, 4-3: Kyle Cumiskey's game winner in OT, was the most men's league goal I've ever seen in the NHL. After taking the puck on the wing after the opening face-off, he skated into the zone, turned to face the boards and then snuck in splitting 2 Thrasher d-man. It was pathetic - from an Atlanta perspective.

BJs shut-out the Sharks, 3-0: Steve Mason played freshman-like.

Flyers beat the Devils in OT, 3-2: I just hope Parise gets healthy before the Olympics.

Predators beat the Rangers, 2-1: Michael Del Zotto got 2 for hooking and then 2 for talking. The Preds scored on the power play because of a terrible clear that hit another Ranger to keep the puck in the zone. Tortorella screamed at Del Zotto and benched him. What a fucking hypocrite Tortorella is. If the Rangers miss the play-offs he's got to get fired, right?

Coyotes beat the Wild, 3-2: Backstrom made better saves, but lost.

If I were in charge

I wouldn't let NHL players compete in the Olympics.

I'm not as concerned about players getting hurt away from the league I'm just more unhappy about suspending my league for the winter games. Let the NCAA stop mid-season and have those kids play.

And I like the Olympics and all that goes along with it. (Note: I'm super excited about the US team this year and will be rooting for them to win the Gold 1000%). I just think that a Stanley Cup is so many times more important than an Olympic gold. The Olympic hockey tourney lasts a few days longer than the pond hockey championship. I only get pumped because it's us versus the rest of the world but that doesn't mean it we should put the pencils down while certain guys go off to play.

If guys want to respresent their countries they can take up arms and kill that cocksucker Bin Laden or just wait the World Cup when they are off the clock.

- Nemmy

What you missed last night while you were preparing for the snowstorm's rereturn

Senators beat the Flames, 3-2: Niklas Hagman's goal for the Flames was pure quick release SNIPE. Iginla fed it to him in the slot and a shortback swing later, the puck was high glove and in.

Lightning beat the Canucks, 3-1: Stamkos and St. Louis have creepy good chemistry. I imagine there are awkward moments in the shower where Stamkos just puts out his hand and St. Louis no look tosses him the shampoo.

Hawks beat the Stars in the shoot-out, 4-3: I bet Marty Turco leads the league in sliding 2 pad stacks.

Blues beat the Wings in the shoot-out, 4-3: Is St. Louis the Wings regional rival or is it Chicago?

Bruins beat the Sabres in the shoot-out, 3-2: Damn, there were a lot of shoot-outs last night.

Hurricanes beat the Panthers, 4-1: All I can remember from this game are the 2 fights.

Islanders beat the Predators in the shoot-out, 4-3: I definitely was resigned for the Islanders to lose this game last night. I did not expect the last second goal at all. Mark Streit looked more relieved than excited after tying the game with 11 seconds.

What you missed last night while you were actually doing editting work on a possible new video

Sharks beat the Leafs, 3-2: Giguere had 2 shut-outs in a row. Impressive, but not epic. However, everyone shit themselves when he gave up the first goal last night to Boyle. No big tragedy. Had he been able to keep out one of the other two or had Nabakov not been OUTSTANDING, then the Leafs might have won.

Coyotes beat the Oilers, 6-1: The play that is the epitome of this game was the Radim Vrbata short-handed goal. I don't know what Oilers D-man he outraced, but it was embarrassing. Then a simple but effective move led to the goal. Oiler deflated, Coyotes elated.

Ducks beat the Kings, 4-2: Jonny Quick made spectacular saves last night, but it seemed that rebounds of those aforementioned saves eventually made it to Ducks' sticks and turned into goals.

Flyers beat the Devils, 3-2: Lets make sure everyone understand this right now: Just because a player gets injured as a result of a hit, does not make said hit dirty. Last night, right as Anssi Salmela scored Jeff Carter finished his hit. Like he supposed to do. Unfortunately Salmela took it poorly, landing on his face. Everyone calm down. This sometimes happens, but Carters hit was good hockey. Also, this doesn't mean that because a player does NOT get injured that a dirty hit didn't occur.

Avalanche beat the Blues, 5-2: Chris Mason was so freaking terrible in this game

Weekend Wrap Up OR The only cure to a hangover is to sweat it out at the gym

Ovy won the weekend. Hat trick on Sunday and the Caps just keep on winning.
His best goal though was the one-time on friday night:





To recap - he went to the bathroom, got a new stick and then walked into a pass set on a plate for him. That goal shouldn't even count against Pavelec. It might as well have been an empty-netter because no one was stopping that.

It was also the weekend on grizzled vets scoring and fighting:
First it was Black:



And then it was The Cowboy:


They both had previously scored unspectacular goals.

Here's a spectacular goal from Phil Kessel. Lets bring that wrister to vancouver!





What did I miss?

-Bress

Serious Question

Which video is more awesome?





- Nemmy

Happy Super Bowl Sunday

What you missed last night while you were about to make an offer to the Thrashers

I don't have a haiku about the trade. Like any trade, everyone will try to evaluate it in the present moment, but its actual worth won't be known until after the season and possibly next year. Will the Thrashers make the play-offs with Bergfors and Oduya? If the Devils lose in the first 2 rounds again, is it a failure? We'll see. Everyone just calm down and enjoy watching the best scorers in league (except ovechkin) play in the Atlantic.
Speaking of Ovechkin:


Capitals beat the Rangers, 6-5:
Ovy's goal before
the 2nd was sick. One
handed: a thousand!
-paraphrased from nemmy's emails to me this morning

Canadiens beat the Bruins in the shoot-out, 3-2:
When is the last time
the Bruins won a game or
scored more than 2 goals?

Senators beat the Canucks, 3-1:
I wonder if the
winning streak has fixed the sales
problem in Ottawa.

Wild beat the Oilers, 4-2:
Guilliame Latandresse
scored a beaut and gave a sweet
feed to Havlat. Score.

BJs beat the Stars, 2-1:
Mason looked to be
in freshman form and RJ
got the empty net.

Kings beat the the Ducks, 6-4:
Kopitar's nail-in
-the-coffin goal showed off his
hands. Nice curl and tuck.

Lightning beat the Islanders, 5-2:
As a fan, should I
give up on the play-offs and
hope for a high pick?

Predators beat the Avalanche, 5-3:
I can't believe Steve
Sullivan is still in the
game and kind of good.

Sharks beat the Blues, 4-2:
The coach called Greiss, "a
copy machine." What the hell
does that even mean?

Brendan Witt

So Brendan Witt has been waived and will sent down to Bridgeport. This may not be a huge headline but it made me think of some of the other players who have put in strong years in the NHL but don't currently have what it takes to hold a roster spot. I did a 5 minute sweep of AHL rosters and found some guys that I was surprised to seeing still kicking around.

Reid Simpson - Chicago Wolves
Chris Chelios - 1000%
Mathieu Dandenault - Hartford Wolf Pack
Nick Boynton - Manitoba Moose
Dave Scatchard - Milwaukee Admirals
Mark Parrish - Norfolk Admirals
Derek Armstrong - Peoria Rivermen
Mike York - Rochester Americans
Jassen Cullimore - Rockford IceHogs
John Grahame - Adirondack Phantoms

By the way, the year the Chris Chelios and the Hawks lost to Mario and the Penguins this was my favorite song:



Kill me.

- Nemmy

What you missed last night while you helped out the girl across the hall who got locked out her apartment

Senators beat the Sabres, 4-2: The Senators are playing very well and their best players are lighting it up. Spezza scored 2 ridiculous goals. The first was short side on barely any release and the second was sick shot to the top corner. And Alfie scored the other 2. Meanwhile, Brian Elliot is coming into form nicely. Ottawa has escaped that clusterfuck of teams all battling for the 3 play-off spots.

Flames beat the Hurricanes, 4-1: Eric Staal got his face beaten up this game - a high stick and then his own man's skate after Mark Giordano dumped the cane into the bench. If Curtis Glenncross scores a hat trick, you should be winning.

Oilers shut-out the Flyers, 1-0: Oilers scored with 16 seconds left - heartbreaking. Also, because the Flyers had like 17 on-the-doorstep opportunities that they missed.

Blues beat the Hawks, 3-2: The Hawks goal were beauties. Kane went top shelf on the backhand on a breakaway and the pass from Toews to Hossa for the 2nd was pure filth.

Ducks beat the Wings, 3-1: Who's the starter and who's the back up in Detroit?

Read This

If you watched any of Tim Horton's Hockey Day in Canada broadcast maybe you've clips of these guys playing ball hockey in Afghanistan. If not read the article.

And to think we have trouble getting numbers for games in NYC.

- Nemmy

Thoughts?

All trade talk aside, shouldn't we applaud Olli Jokinen for his mustache?

You could be a total bender but if you have a stache you will automatically be everyone's favorite player. Case in point: When's the last time George Parros won a fight? Also, I'm sure Ranger fans (and others) have little love for Daniel Carcillo's game but they itentify with the facial hair. Respect that shit!

What are the first things that come to mind when you see the handlebar?

Mine:
1) high octane butane nitroglycerine explosiveness

Thoughts?

- Nemmy

What you missed last night while you were doing the NYMag Crossword Puzzle

Penguins come back to beat Sabres, 5-4: Crosby scored from weird angles on both his first and second goals. However, a lot of credit should go to Alex Goligoski for the selling the fake slap shot on the first goal, as that gave Crosby the room to score from below the dot.

Oilers beat the Hurricanes, 4-2: Its hard to believe that these 2 shitty teams were in the Stanley Cup finals together only a short time ago.

Flyers shut-out the Flames, 3-0: Really necessary that Flames delayed the trade with the Rangers so that Jokinen could play and be a minus-1. Great backhand goal from Giroux. Sold that he would go to forehand and Kipper slid across leaving the room for Claude to score.

Ducks shut-out the Panthers, 3-0: Why wasn't this game on TV?

Weekend Wrap Up OR Some girls are out-of-control hot

So yea, there was a big trade on Saturday and then a smaller, but then canceled trade yesterday. Remember 2 years ago when Dion Phaneuf was actually untouchable or he at least would have attracted a top pick and prospect and scorer in a trade? Well, not he went to Toronto for 40% of the Leafs scoring (not as impressive as I just made it sound) and Jamal Mayers and Ian White. Who knows how this trade will turn out, but my first instinct is that its pretty even.
I think Burke's better trade was the one for Giguere. Not because of Giguere's possible return to form, but because he somehow convinced Brian Murray to take Vesa Toskala and Jason Blake. Jason Blake! True story, Blake was supposed to be traded to the Ducks at the deadline the year they won the Cup, but Garth Snow didn't get the paper work to the NHL on time.


Besides that, nothing else really changed in the NHL. The Caps keep winning and the Islanders and Bruins keep losing.

Sheldon Souray made sure he won't be traded by breaking his wrist/hand in this fight with Iggy:



Those old school Flame jerseys are awesome.

Here is an example of great hand-eye coordination from Jason Spezza:


Heres Bress' tip of the weekend:




Crosby popped the water bottle in the shoot-out, but Malkin's move was better:



What did I miss?

-Bress