Remember - The St Hilda's Eagles "Support the Troops" Fundraiser - Wed. March 3.

Details below or download pdf form.

Feb 28 - 14 Golds - Record! - Great!    Beat the Yanks! - Priceless!!

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Feb 27 – A Saturday morning – sort of – post which might be it for the weekend. Too much to do, too little time. Was it a wake-up call, a major collapse or a ploy to make the US over confident? I vote the second as Team Canada has provided a great tape example of how to lose focus and play a scrambled panic defense at the end of a game. Full credit to the Slovaks for the comeback attempt and for pouring it on at the end. As Maxwell Smart says “they were thaaaaaat close to tying it up.

Disappointment at the Roaring Game – Canada had a “rocky” start but seemed to be following their second half hero script with some assist from the Swedes when disaster struck in the 10^th. Needing to only hold Sweden to one with the Swedes having the hammer, Canada was busy killing rocks until they only needed what everyone considered a pretty easy chip for the win. They missed! Sweden scored two to force the extra end and we missed a last shot double for the win after letting the house get too cluttered – a no no at this level. So much for double curling Gold. This is our game too. Come on Kevin – we need this.

Star at it again – Front page on-line another negative minor hockey story. I think my point of view on this is clear.  But – I did find the picture again – even if the larger one is blocked and I could only grab the thumbnail.

However, I have a new photo that is more definitive of Canadian Hockey spirit. Clearly it is a Molson Moment, but the question is – is that a Molson Champagne in the big bottle that shows up in a number of the pictures or what? I have never seen that – where can I get one.

 

Gold Rush is on – despite the stumble, Canada at 10 is now in the lead with Golds ahead of Germany’s 9 with the stellar efforts of the mens’ skating team who picked up two (Charles Hamelin’s exciting win and the relay gold) yesterday. Short track speedskating is another of those “lunatic” events. We still have a good shot for more so lets pour in on and leave the world – especially those cocky Yanks in our dust.

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Feb 26 – Look out for those cigar chomping, beer swilling, champagne swigging Canadian Hockey Players as they will blow you away – and that’s just the women! Bet Molson loves the shots! Canadian Anyone?

While I must admit that I am not usually a fan of women’s hockey, I watched every second of last night’s game and our women were full measure for their win. At least one ink stained wretch has described last night’s tilt as an “average” game. Either he is heavily influenced by some banned substance or his citizenship should be revoked and then deport him to the U.S. He is likely the same one moaning about the deplorable post game conduct of the Canadian players returning to the ice surface with some post game treats and libations. While the libations on ice was probably not a brilliant idea, let’s cut these folks a little slack. With the exception of a certain MOHA house league Tyke team that brought champagne into the dressing room after an Awards Week game (fake for the kids – real for the misguided adults) I find it hard to get upset with a team of young ladies (all but one of legal imbibing age and she apparently had one beer) having a little post game celebration. Let’s get real here. How many of us have not done much “worse” under very much less auspicious circumstances. Do not let this silliness in any way detract from a great feat – and against the Yanks to boot.

I thought the Canucks were full value for the win. They were more disciplined in their own end, moved the puck – faster – smarter – better, dominated on the boards – I thought body checking was a no no in women’s hockey but apparently the Norwegian ref had the wrong rulebook. I think there were some better hits made here under the guise of “incidental contact” than I have seen in a lot of full contact games. I know I say it all the time but puck pursuit and intensity on the puck – like a dog with a bone – wins hockey games and we did a better job. Not to mention that when we did suffer a brain cramp we got stellar goaltending too back it up. Way to go girls – now it is up to the guys.

As a separate comment – preparedness is key. The story about the team sneaking out to the “aquarium” for two exhibition games (a win and a loss) during the tourney to stay sharp was a brilliant move. Pasting some no-names 18 – 0 does not help your game and the Canadian brain trust figured out a sneaky but effective way to avoid ennui! Well done.

At the awards presentation – does the movie title “Grumpy Old Men” remind you of anyone? In this league – Silver just does not cut it.

When did the censors step in? – early this morning one of the popular pictures of the Canadian Ladies winning the Gold was the picture as captioned below:

Canada's Haley Irwin (left) and Canada's Meghan Agosta soak up the atmosphere, and a little more, as they lie on the ice with some beverages after taking the gold medal on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2010. Canada beat the U.S. 2-0 to win another Olympic hockey crown.

RICK MADONIK/TORONTO STAR

That picture (similar but more direct than the one I posted above) has quickly gone “missing” from a variety of places, simply leaving white space or just disappearing from photo galleries. Who is getting it pulled? Yes the IOC and COC have gone around cluck Clucking about it, and an official “apology” has come from the team but come on. Let’s not get ridiculous (I know that there are still some “drinking” pictures out there but not this one??).

    

It is all right to show horrendous blood and gore and people in abject grief and despair but a little fun and savouring of a very positive moment is not only frowned upon but we are censoring it? Shame on you – whoever you are!

Don’t forget – As the Olympics wind down that the OMHA playdowns are cranking along in the semis with 11 Oakville teams still alive. Get through these series and they are off to play for an OMHA Championship – pretty heady stuff.

The dreaded SCTA OMHA Qualifying Weekends are also due to start soon with the first ones going next weekend – the March 5^th weekend. The weekends kick off with the Minor Bantams, Bantams and Minor Midgets all playing at once. See dates with the links to the detailed OMHA schedule site.

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Feb 25 – Reverting to my occasional Sesame Street motif, today’s blog is brought to you by the letters “I” and “G”. Not for Investors Group, although maybe I can trick them into sponsoring, but for Intensity and Guts (and oh yeah – lets add “Gold”).

Can you spell Intensity – look it up in the dictionary and you will see the first 30 minutes of last night’s Canada – Russia game. I love the Russian quote suggesting the game was like opening the door to a cage of gorillas. What we saw last night for 30 minutes was hockey the way it was meant to be played at the highest level. Puck pursuit, second (and third) effort, Puck control and movement and physicality to support the play. The red guys did not know what hit them and barring a total collapse the game was over in the first ten minutes.

Can you spell “Guts” – chalk not one, but two up for the women’s two “man” bobsledders. Gold and Silver. I don’t know when we had our last one – two punch in the Olympics (if ever), and especially in this event where no one really hyped the opportunity and where the European sliders are perennially so strong. I have always wanted to try this but have not yet so I take a special interest in it. While Full marks go to sled 1 and the gold, I give even more accolades to sled 2 for picking up the silver. They had to wait next in line with their rhythm disrupted after the German sled marginally behind them and making a charge crashed and burned on course – a course that has received a lot of notoriety. The Canadian ladies, sucked it up and laid down a blistering fourth run that showed no reticence or holding back. You have to wonder if the American sled that dropped from second to third as the next one down had a less than stellar run due to normal “butterflies” or was psyched by both the great Canadian run or the German wreck. 1 – 2 – Gold – Silver – Take that you Canada Bashers.

Can you spell Gold – My fingers and legs and any other malleable body parts are crossed in support of more gold with good chances for (dare I be so bold as to hope for) a sweep in Curling (no pun intended – groan) and Hockey. If our boys and girls can pull this off, or come close at least three of four then I think Canada can “Own” the Gold Podium and in my and the IOC books “win” the Olympics. I thought after last night that we may end up tied for the lead in Gold but looks like a couple of others with 8 are still keeping us 1 back. Wouldn’t a lead and win be a shocker and give the rigid digit to all those bad mouthing b______ds who have been bashing Vancouver and Canada. Let’s see, the list of miscreants includes top of mind, Britain, Russia, the U.S. and a bunch of no name sour grapes wannabes. Go Canada Go!!

Olympics - Curling – on the way home I found out that the women had )(barely) made it to the Gold Game but I was hearing that Martin was locked up in a nail biter with the Kids from Tre Kronor land. Fortunately I got home in time to turn it on and by sheer willpower forced two Swedish misses and let Kevin steal two in the fifth. He should be OK now so I will be turning my attention to creating stupid penalties for the US ladies to help Canada pick up a Gold there. I think I should get an honourary Gold for all the advice, direction and coaching support I have provided.

Can you spell lawsuit - Orca Attack – This one is a slam dunk on a negligence / wrongful death basis and unfortunately has a Canadian twist to it. The Orca (Killer Whale) at SeaWorld lived up to its name yesterday as it killed a trainer by grabbing her and pulling her underwater where she drowned. The “stupid” part of this story is this is now the third death attributed to this whale. It is surprising how long these animals have been around as this one was considered to be involved in a death at Sealand near Victoria B.C. in 1991. Comparing the dangers of working with orcas to racing cars or flying jets and having only 12 of the parks 29 odd trainers even willing to work with this one suggests something is not right.

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Feb 24 – Canada shows some signs of life against Germany but did not put out the consistent and sustained effort at both ends of the rink that would make me feel good about continued progression through the gauntlet ahead of them. The defensive side of the game is still a question mark for me as Luongo did not really have to or seem to show that he was ready to meet the challenge, let alone “steal one” for the good guys. Certain elderly defensemen taking penalties because they were “caught” is something you can usually get away with against Germany but. . .

For the record – in a 4-0 game with Nash struggling – you let him take the shot. You need to give him that boost to break out, not continue to trample on his psyche by giving it to someone else even if the someone else is Sid the Kid (who missed). What even makes this worse is I had to agree with Bob McKenzie on this.

Is it just me or is Babcock making some really “interesting” choices.

Gold rush – As a few folks have finally figured out, our medals are top heavy in the gold department. Not a bad way to be. With a bit of good luck and continued fine performances, we have a good shot at racking up a few more and actually “winning” the Olympics – by Olympic standards. The winner is the country with the most Gold Medals. Go Canada Go! Tonight – Bobsled – Short Track Relay – Cross Country relay. Spare a little focus from THE GAME to support these folks. Maybe it is wishful thinking but we “could” be on top tomorrow!!! Wouldn’t that stick in the craw of all those bad mouthing S.O.B.s that are all over us.

A little birdie told me – that the suggestion is that The Star is on a bit of a witch hunt to highlight minor hockey violence and allegedly over dramatize it. Apparently, according to my sources, the “Locker boxing” instance with the Vaughan Panthers team that was published was more of a set-up, over hyped case of creating something from nothing than any “serious” fight night. I am not suggesting that locker boxing is OK or fine if in fun, but I would suggest you not take at face value everything you read – unless you were there and saw it. (my blog included).

Calendar – as seasons wind down and playoffs come to an end, the topic list moves on to next year. At this point, most coaches have been selected. Some would say most teams already picked with the big bugaboo of try-outs coming up – Starting April 12. I have had it suggested that I give my views on tryouts, how they should or should not be run, how players should be picked, how much say individual coaches should have versus association or “executive / head coach” clout. Whether there should be evaluation teams, internal or external evaluators – etc., etc., etc. I might get to that but people need to realize that to fully explain any POV here would require almost a “book” in and of itself and even then I would not cover it all and I doubt I have that much energy. However, we will see.

Meanwhile an interesting article about Guelph minor hockey that has had a tough year at the AAA level leading to arena gossip that they are thinking about dropping that level in full or part and reverting to a AA centre! Clearly this is denied by the exec, but often where there is smoke there is fire. More importantly, the dollars and cents spectre is raising its head which is something I think will be an issue in a number of areas as they are talking about a 13% increase PRE HST impact. An extra topic for Oakville will be the process of bringing four more pads online and allocated. Stay tuned.

Time to go – it is hockey night and the boys need my undivided focus to pull them through a tough one!

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Feb 23 – We got some snow last night so of course everyone is all panicked and traffic was snarled. Except for me, as surprisingly everything was on time in the transit world.

A Plug – each year the St. Hilds’s Peewee Red Eagles with their coach Nelson Pavao made a point of finding opportunities to get involved in fund raising or community support events. A great example - Good for them!

This year, the team pictured below in their “cammo” sweaters is hosting a server night at Boston Pizza - Wednesday, March 3 - to raise funds in support of Canada’s fallen and wounded soldiers. Details follow the photo. Boston Pizza has been a supportive sponsor of minor hockey so give this chance for a night out and a chance to contribute serious consideration. 

(Photo by Moorehead - I love giving myself photo credits!)

Three sittings: 5:oo pm 6:15 pm 7:30 pm

Contact Eagles Team Manager Polli Taylor for reservations

**indicate your preferred reservation time**

Pollitaylor@cogeco.ca or call 905-849-8100

10% of food sales will go towards the Troops

Boston Pizza 270 North Service Rd. W.

Dorval & QEW Oakville 905-849-8100

Ice Dancing – a Gold for Canada in something I don’t watch and have no interest in – BUT – it is a gold medal, it is on ice, and it is skating. This may be way ahead of where our stupor stars end up on the hockey front so I will just quietly take it and say well done. Even more impressive, for once, a Canadian favourite actually came through and won. I think this is a first for us in these Olympics – at least so far, as a number of the home town favourites have “spit the bit”.

Ski Cross Gold - As a late add we have picked up another gold in the Ladies Ski Cross – another of the lunatic fringe events and therefore a Canadian strongpoint. While we will not “Own the Podium”, we have a great shot at winning the most Gold Medals as we now have 6 and are tied for third, just behind the US and Germany with 7. Dare I hope that the unappreciated curlers and harassed hockey squads can pick up a bucketful?

Go for gold – at least one Canadian hockey team is assured a shot at Gold, as the ladies made it to the final with a 5 – 0, almost competitive, hockey game over Finland. Unfortunately for proponents of women’s hockey, this has clearly been a two team tournament and could have / probably should have featured only one game to decide Gold and Silver to the Canucks and Yanks. There should not be a bronze medal awarded as it is akin to giving a bronze medal to Eddie the Eagle for showing up as a ski jumper in Calgary or the Jamaican Bobsled team – they were not competitive.

In Canada’s four game run-up to the Gold Medal game, they outscored their opponents 46 – 2 and you almost get critical of them for giving up the two goals. Now they have to instantly turn their game up several notches to battle what has been a very good US team that while not winning Gold in the last two Olympics (Canada did), they have won three of the last four World Championships.

On the men’s side, the pressure is clearly mounting with a number of the fifth estate doing all they can to crank up the heat by either inventing or hyping controversy. Goalie wars – Brodeur miffed and out, Luongo in – who’s right, who’s wrong. As a coach this is a no win. But it is worse if you lose because then you get all the arm chair quarterbacks going – “see, I told you we shoulda played Brodeur – he would have come up big”. If you win it is a “so what, either one could have won this game, look how they played in front of him, I could have got that win”.

Forget the goalies, I think Team Canada’s bigger mistake or issue is the selection of some geriatrics for the D line who can’t handle the pace of the game. If they get forced into stupid penalties or beat to the puck the red light in our end will likely get more of a workout then we can handle regardless of who is between the pipes.

Paper Wars – If nothing else, the Olympics are promoting tree slaughter and the sale of red ink as Toronto is hosting its own Olympic confrontation – “Paper Wars”. As if the newsprint world is not having enough problems with our wired world and on-line readers (like me) who don’t spend one thin dime on the traditional fish wrap, they have decided that if you can’t sell it, give it away and make up the losses in volume! I think the Toronto Star started the battle by firing the first shot with their paper box editions free on weekdays during the Olympics, but the Toronto Sun did not let that one slide by and matched the offer with a “me too”. Then, not to be outdone, the National Post went one up, by having real live (sorta) people physically hand you a paper in the morning at the GO Train station. Case in point is that today has so far been a 5 – count ‘em 5 paper day for me at a net cost of “zero” as I let them pile up in my bag. The normally free, quick read Metro News and 24, plus my complementary copies of the Star, Sun and Post. I hope the city and Transit boys have extra garbage cans out to take on the leavings. The Go Trains are already knee deep in discarded papers from those clowns who do not have the common courtesy to at least put their leftovers in a garbage can – jerks!

At the end of the day the paper boys are hoping that this free paper binge changes either or both of habits and loyalties – an expensive way to learn I am incorrigible.

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Feb 22 – There is no joy in Mudville Canada, mighty Team Canada has struck out – not really. There appears to still be some magic in those retro 80s sweaters brandished by Team USA, especially the one worn by the guy minding the 4 X 6 enclosure. Next thing they will want to bring in Al Michaels as commentator. Usually when you outshoot someone 45 to 22 you tend to wing but not this time. Miller played a great game but his D kept the lanes open so he could see and square up to the shots, and there were not (in my opinion) a lot of red sweaters causing grief in front of him. That needs to change. He let in 1 in 15, we let in more than 1 in 6. Not a recipe for success. The good news is that it was not an elimination game. We now have to get by a couple more teams to get to the medal games and need to win four in a row instead of 3 to get the gold. Eminently doable so get over it.

I’m Back – I am a big believer in giving back to the community and as many of you know I have played an active role in both minor baseball and more recently minor hockey. In those days I had some minor involvement with the then Oakville Sports Council and have been glad to see that over the last couple of years that organization has evolved into “Sport Oakville” and wants to continue to grow, develop and play a more active and important role in providing a positive impact on all sports in Oakville. That being said, I put my name forward as a candidate for director and was fortunate enough to be elected this evening. That will get a few tongues wagging.

Hence the later and shorter post this evening – it was not a “snow” influence.

So – if you have any thoughts, ideas or comments, you know where to send them.

Playdowns – I tried to catch up on most of them as we are started into the semis and have finished with the quarter finals. Got to add a bunch more series winner with only one drop off in the eliminated column. Best of all for my personal satisfaction, we beat Brampton in five of the six quarter final series. Way to go Rangers and my thanks you. Check out the updates.

By my count, of the 17 that made the quarter final dance, 12 are moving on to the semis and 5 are considering golf.

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Feb 20 - The run is over for the Oakville Rangers Peewee AAA squad in Quebec City as they lost a close 3 - 2 decision to the St. Louis Blues Last Night. They did well, getting to the third round and with success in the exhibition games as well. Congrats to the players and I know they will have had a memorable experience.

Olympics - our success in the "lunatic" events continues as hot on the heels of the ladies luge disappointment, the men come up big with a Gold Medal performance by the "lugatic" Jon Montgomery. At least we now have one medal at Whistler as the skiing contingent has been noticeable so far by the total and supposedly unexpected absence from any podium appearances. We can only hope that changes as the events go sliding by.

Does someone look happy!

Give it a rest - It seems the Star is determined to sensationalize negative events in minor hockey with their current coverage of the GTHL locker room boxing incident. This behaviour (by the athletes) is wrong and should be punished and stopped but does it need or deserve the focus being provided in the Star. Case in point, in today's online edition, I have not seen the paper version, the splash page lead is "GTHL fight club shocks parents who urge crackdown" complete with video picture and link. This takes precedence over our luge Gold Medal result.  Is that appropriate, or is this another case of sensationalize the negative at the expense of the positive.

What this article does bring forward is the need for team officials to adequately supervise dressing rooms. The OMHA has a "two deep" rule for a reason and we all know that teams do a lousy job at all levels of complying with this. Essentially, the RULE requires that there be two team officials in the room at all times. Watch your own team and see how well the rule is followed. If it was, there would be no trashed dressing rooms or malicious damage..

I can not leave this article however without a parting shot. Mr. Gardner is quoted in the article as saying:

"There are coaches out there that sometimes lose control of themselves and are in it for the wrong reasons but are at least a stabilizing force. It's better than no coaches at all."

You decide if you think that is true and if you agree with it.

Playdowns - Note to teams - get your scores posted if you want to be current in my page. Things are going well. We are now up to 8 teams through to the semis AND have 3 series wins against only one loss to Brampton. Oakville versus the Bad Battlions is one of my personal scorecards!

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Feb 19 – What a game! Players are sick, players are suspended, late call-ups are filling in. Get a goal to go up 1 – 0 to the delight of the homer fans. Get outplayed and give up a late gut wrenching goal to tie at 1 – 1. The fans moan and despair. Don’t play your best but manage to get into overtime where anything can (and usually does) happen. Then find a way to pick up your game. Get a winning goal and in disbelief and relief realize you have won the game and the series and get to move on to the plateau, the semis while the other team gets to go home and dream about what might have been! No, I am not all confused about the Canadian men’s Olympic Team game against Switzerland. I am talking about the Rangers Minor Bantam AA’s who eliminated Ancaster with a victory last night. The MB AAs now move on to the OMHA Semi Final series. I am glad I changed my mind and went last night. It was far from the best game I have seen them play and the officiating was _____ , but they won. It is nice to go cheer on our guys instead of simply vegging out on the Olympics and all the talking heads and vignettes that are into heavy rerun mode if you flip channels (as all red-blooded males are required to do). It’s a genetic thing.

Having said that, Sunday is another story when I will be watching our super pro, big bucks boys hopefully hose the “hated” Yanks (who are currently in the pool’s first place). Apparently you need to have dual Ph Ds in math and Physics to figure out the qualifying and play-off schedule for hockey so I will work on that.

From what little I saw and heard of the Canadian game, it simply reinforced my pet theory. You can line up all the firepower you want, but if it is that magic night for your tender the other guys are likely going down. The most important player on any tournament team is the guardian of the hemp hut because one game, one bad goal can kill you. Hiller almost stole a game for the Swiss. Not because of bad play by Brodeur or the Swiss team’s stellar offense. They didn’t have one. The Swiss scored twice because a) they were handed a brutal 2 on 1 which they executed well and b) because Canada effectively scored one for them on a deflection.  Remember the goalies stopped seven of eight shots in the shootout – supposedly from the best snipers on each team. So Mr. Coach – who do you put between the pipes for the Yanks – Luongo the local boy with the shut out or Marty – the seasoned vet who has been there – done that. I vote Brodeur!

Kudos to Ms Nesbitt. Despite skating what she admits was not a good race for her, she hung in there and managed to pull off a Gold by the narrowest of margins, .02 seconds I think after being behind something like half a second (a huge amount to make up) going into her last lap where times typically drop off. Her tears in the immediate post race interview showed the real emotional impact of this win for her, A good feeling.

Cheap Shot – the Beaver recently carried a “photo opp” for our fearless leaders regarding the ground breaking ceremony for a new Oakville Transit facility. Wonderful! But, you have to wonder, was this the first time any of the three wise men have ever been in an Oakville Public Transit Bus? Did they pay a fare?

 

Creatures of habit – The last couple of days have been very busy for me (and it does not look as if things will ease up either). It also happens that in the same time frame my trusty wristwatch is suffering from “fading battery syndrome” and losing time. This is driving me – a creature of habit – insane. In the mornings, I like to work off of a very tight schedule (so I can sleep as long as possible) and will periodically glance at my watch to see that I am “on schedule”. When you lose confidence in your trusty chronometer, it throws you off. I could check my crackberry, but that is not part of the routine. Given that I am also somewhat hard on watches, this raises the spectre of do I just replace the battery (which often does not seem to work) or do I go hunting for a new Rolex Seiko Timex? Both of which are a pain and something that I don’t have high on my time priority list – uh oh – I am late for something.

Tiger – had his carefully orchestrated little “mea culpa” session and basically said I’m sorry, I was bad, I am going to be good now and the details are none of your business. The little PR do generated more hype and excitement over nothing, than what coverage the Olympics are generating for what are . Fine. Who cares. Move in.

Peewee AAA – Opponents turn out to be the St. Louis Blues. The second NHL team they have faced in a row after beating the Philadelphia Flyers. The Rangers got to play the winner of the St. Louis Blues vs Halifax Moosehead game which turned out to be St. Louie after they pasted the Mooses 10 – 0 (one of only two double digit scores in the Classe "AA" Bolduc). Either the Mooses were in way over their antlers or St. Louis is a really good team. 7:15 PM tilt tonight will tell the tale. Once again, here is the link.

Good luck Rangers.

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Feb 18 -- there are too many things going on for me to spent a lot of time dreaming up content for my blog when everyone is probably glued to the television watching the Olympics anyway. The Minor Bantam AA play Ancaster later tonight chance to win their series and I am trying to decide whether or not to go to the game. Given the way they played the last time I was there, it may be best to stay home. Besides that, is an 8:30 PM game which means I would be out past my bedtime. So we will see. Besides, I need to see when the replay of our latest gold medal in the ladies 1000 K. speed skating is being played so that I can watch it. Once again, this working for a living problem is getting in the way of my Olympic watching

Peewee AAA -- good news from Québec City as the peewee AAA Rangers won their second official tournament game. They were playing the Philadelphia Flyers and beat them 4 to 1.

I received some information today from the team that suggests they have had a very busy and successful time so far. In addition to their tournament games, they have also had a busy exhibition schedule. Here are their results to date:

Next tournament game:

• Friday February 19: 7:15 PM– versus either St Louis Blues or Halifax Moosehead.

Games Played:

• Thursday  February 18:  Oakville Rangers 4 Philadelphia Flyers 1.

• Wednesday February 17: Rangers won exhibition game 6 - 0 vs Baie Comeau.

• Tuesday February 16: Rangers won their first game 4-3 in OT over Zurich Lions.

• Rangers had already played three exhibition games - defeated New Hampshire 5 - 0 - defeated Ukraine 6 - 4 and unfortunately lost a close game to Detroit's Belle Tire 2 - 1

So – The boys have played six games so far and only lost one against some great competition. Way to go Rangers!

Aw – what the heck – let’s go watch a hockey game!

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Feb 17 - after my list of complaints yesterday I don't have a lot to report on today. Besides, I exceeded my word count every yesterday so I can take it easy tonight. Other than the Olympic Organizing Committee changing their mind with respect to awarding Maelle Ricker’s gold medal last night which would have been appropriate, they decided in their infinite wisdom to defer it to this evening. Would that have anything to do with an opportunity to sell more seats at the ceremony? I can't believe it's simply a matter of logistics.

Update -- so given that I plan to just have a quick update today, I will advise that I changed the "quiz" question (something I'm not going to do every day -- I would regularly) and updated in 2010 Playdowns page.

The good news coming out of the play downs is that so far five of the Oakville Tri-County teams have advanced to the semifinals -- of the 17 that made it to series play and only two teams have unfortunately been eliminated.

Congratulations so far to:

• Novice A

• Minor Atom AE

• Peewee A

• Minor Bantam A

• Minor Bantam AE

in the six series that so far have matched up Oakville against dreaded folks from Brampton, the score currently stands 2 to 1 in favor of Oakville with three series outstanding. Go Rangers and beat those guys!

Peewee AAA - having won their first game against the Zürich Lions (4 – 3) the Rangers play their next game tomorrow, February 18 at 9:15 against the Philadelphia Flyers. Hopefully, these are not Broad Street bullies like their namesakes.

Olympics -- I think this is a somewhat low key evening, at least for a TV viewer, with no major events going live -- or at least none that I'm really interested in. Maybe I just have not checked the schedule, that is, if there is an updated one that's accurate that is readily accessible.

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Feb 16 – do not misconstrue my comments, as I really do enjoy the Olympics, but I would not be me if I did not pick at a few things. I just got home in time to watch the Women’s Board Cross and see Canada pick up another Gold. Good for Maelle Ricker! I could get into this Board Cross stuff. It is really fun to watch and very unpredictable. It also helps when we are competitive. Seems we (Canada) are doing well in the “new” or lunatic stuff and struggling in the traditional events. Whatever, take what you can get.

Having said that I have to vent on some of this VANOC organized stuff. This will be my first and hopefully last Olympic rant after OD’ing on them over the extended weekend.

Medal Delays – What is this crap about winning a medal and then having to wait until the next day to get it. You win it – you get it. Smarten up. Apparently it has been changed for Maelle Ricker as she will get her medal tonight – at least the same day and not have to wait like Alex did.

Zambonis – for the oval. After three, count ‘em, three of the eco-friendly Olympias of the electric variety crapped out, the organizers are flying in a real Zamboni from the Calgary oval. I think the skaters and crowd were getting ready to stage a riot yesterday with all the delays. They knew before that they had problems with the new Olympia wonder machines but went ahead anyway. Keep that in mind when considering an electric hybrid vehicle.

Talking Heads – I know the plan is to have people who supposedly know the sport comment on it but could they at least have checked that these folks could string two sentences together without repeating themselves and resorting to redundant hyperbole? Also, stating the obvious and then repeating it three times is not in my books either scintillating commentary or meaningful repetition for emphasis. They actually make Bob Cole sound exciting by comparison.

Own the Podium – while maybe an interesting and productive fund raising rally cry, this idea was (thankfully) blown out of the water by the first couple of days’ results and should be quietly buried. The only way we will Own the Podium is to buy it, used, after the event, But since it is our, we won’t have to. At this point the US has 8 medals to our four and with a 10 – 1 population ratio I would say we are doing pretty well. I won’t make that same population comparison with some of the alpine countries.

Champagne on set – while it was nice to want to fete Alex Bilodeau and recognize his family, the impromptu on air Champagne party was a fiasco, and probably not even legal – although I doubt if anyone will take them to task. Brian Williams was the voice of reason here, looking very uncomfortable and making a point of pointing out on air that he knew nothing about the bubbly and from my perspective was not happy about it. To make it worse, the serving of the Champagne to Frederick, Alex’s challenged brother was something that clearly was concerning. I think this was planned – expecting a differ4ent winner as the “first” and turned awkward.

Fences – nothing like having a nice chain link fence around the Olympic Flame to support the peace, goodwill and sportsmanship message around this event. If security is a concern post some rent-q-cops around it 24/7 to blend unobtrusively into the crowd. Or, maybe some rocket scientist should have designed a flame / cauldron a little less potentially hand on for spectators. The fence sends absolutely the wrong message and the situation is starting to catch a lot of flack from a variety of sources.. 

Very attractive symbol presentation - looks like a refinery stack!

Busted Gondolas – Methinks the gondolas were not designed to play bumper cars and this has been kept pretty low key as two of them smacked into each other at the base for the Excalibur line after the luge. According to the usual unreliable reports it took an operator 5 to 10 minutes to show up? That makes no sense. Unattended gondolas?

Would make one feel good about your ride!

Schedules – are only a guideline or at best an approximation. Somewhere someone must be keeping track of the number of events that have been pushed back, delayed, rescheduled, interrupted or whatever and comparing these to other games. I would love to see that number. Technical difficulties count as delays and it all started on day 1 with the unfortunate circumstances around the luge and the hiccups in the opening ceremonies. Have any events gone on time and run smoothly?

Opening Ceremonies – have reinforced an unfortunate stereotype. While I did not watch them “closely” they were on TV when I got home from hockey and I suspect left the impression that we are all indigenous native with funny clothes and headgear that spend our time hunting, fishing and talking to the animals and “gods” in the great white north. Now I know that an artistic segment is necessary and “mandated”, some reality would be nice.

Disappearing Tickets - will help the scalpers as 20,000 more standing room tickets for events at Cypress Mountain were scrubbed today. These same tickets were washed out on the events for the 15 and 16 on the basis that the rains had washed away the snow in the standing room crowd areas rendering the areas unsafe for spectators. Note to self – plan snow events where there is snow. Next thing you know they will be holding these events in the indoor skiing facility in Dubai (As long as they don’t need elevators). Let’s see. 20,000 more tickets gone at a face of $65 equates to $1,300,000 plus related revenues. Is anyone talking deficits yet for revenue shortfalls and expense overruns due to “weather”? OMG! P.S. – inside source says $150 speed skating tickets were going for $300 a pop. I guess you have to want to be there.

Language Complaints – where the French language police are complaining that French is not being used enough at the games – Huh! Every announcement I have heard seems to lead off with French followed by English. Maybe they are just mad because the actual athlete’s name is only pronounced once – by the English voice. What a croc!

I could go on, but enough already! Just to put it in perspective - my idea of skiing.

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Feb 15 – Must admit I have been vegging out a bit lot in front of the Olympics. How can you not help it. Especially for the Winter Olympics where most of us can say that we have at least "tried" most of the events. Got a bit of a break last night when the ballerinas were on so I caught up on my 24 episodes. Today is Hockey Day for the Novices so I hope it is going well.

Summit – hot on the heels of the Star’s minor summit, there will apparently be a second and “major” summit this summer in Toronto from August 23 – 27. The Canadian Open Ice Summit was announced in Vancouver by a number of the bigwigs. While it is about grassroots development it sounds like there could be a number of major issues discussed that go well beyond that but this scope seemed to be somewhat of a surprise. Here’s one article.

Lucky – the Ajax Knights Tyke were very lucky with the arena roof collapse in Pittsburgh. Apparently they were just headed to the dressing room when the portion of the roof collapsed behind them. According to the Globe & Mail, the team had just experienced a one goal loss where, had they tied the game, they likely would have been on the ice when the roof came down which would then likely have been a horrendous tragedy. It is somewhat surprising that in this day and age, this can still happen. After tragedies in the past (Listowel – Feb. 18, 1959 – eight fatalities), at least in Ontario there have been a lot stricter structural and inspection guidelines. A number of Oakville teams regularly go to Pittsburgh for tournaments so I suspect some have probably played in this rink. Here is one of the Globe articles that shows just how “close” it was.

Ugly – and you thought that in the past our Red/Yellow sweaters were ugly and were nicknamed the “McDonald’s” colours. Well they were not that bad if you look at the real things.

 

These sweaters were part of an Albany River Rats promo with McDonalds and take ugly to a whole new level. They even had “yellow” ice which is a whole other thing!

Men’s Downhill – disappointing results for Canada as all the yik yak basically promised at least some type of medal. Instead we get shut out big time. You still have to be nuts to ski this event so give our guys credit regardless. Those courses are like skiing on a downhill ice rink with ruts on it. It is the classic - one chance – one time – and everything has to go perfect for you to have a chance. It was not our day. I have probably said it before but I will say it again that the Own the Podium and Win the Most Medals propaganda was an inappropriate way to put even more pressure on our athletes who already had either the heat or boost of the Home Court. Clearly that idea has been blown out of the water.

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Feb 14 - Happy Valentines Day and all that stuff!

Congrats to our Mogul Mavens on getting our first Gold - Great family story as well. I used to try to just "survive" whenever I got trapped by a mogul field not attack it like these maniacs!!

Not a post - just a quick plug for Hockey Day in Oakville. They have posted all rthe info at:

"Hockey Day in Oakville"

Click on the link above.

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Feb 13 – It seems that Canada’s first trip to the podium opportunity, let alone gold is being pushed off by the weather, let alone worrying about other athletes. My favourite, the men’s downhill has been punted until at least Monday and Cyprus Mountain appears to be a mess. I hope they do get it in on Monday as I would like to watch this event live. I did watch some of the Men’s 5,000 long track and watched the Dutchman set an unexpected Olympic event record is picking up the gold he desperately wanted.

Gretzky – got to be the main torch guy. I disagree with that selection but who cares. More important was that we managed to screw up the torch lighting ceremony with a “broken” torch arm. Fortunately it seems everyone is choosing to overlook that minor detail focusing more on the controversy around the sliding centre and how and what changes are being made to the luge course.

Speaking of which, this situation bothers me. Much as I hate to admit it, I agree with the Star’s Perkins on this one. “Blame the athlete” – crap – read his article. The Org Committee and or sports bodies are hiding from blame on this one. It is interesting that a) there are a bunch of instant changes to the course to make it “safer” – especially in the last big turn, b) making some “technical” adjustments to the course and c) dropping the men down to the ladies start level. Yet, they do not make any admission that the course was unsafe? If this is what they feel they have to do to run the event then is it not an “admission” of guilt? Also if they do not use the men’s start now or in these Olympics will it ever be opened again?

Last night – we saw a less than stellar outing by the MB AAs against Ancaster and it cost them dearly. Both in losing the game and also in losing two players for one and three more games to CFBs – a GM50 and a GM51. They did not play well and deserved to lose to the better club that night but the loss of two players in a short series could be the real crunch. That series is a best of five and now tied 1 – 1. Good luck Rangers.

Quebec Peewee Tournament – while we are all Olympicing, the Peewee Rangers are in Quebec City for the big International tournament. The schedule shows their first game at 8:00 AM on Feb 15 against the Zurich Lions. (I presume that is Zurich Switzerland and not the Ontario Duckburg which would be a drag). Here is the link again to the tournament site in case you want to follow.

Novice – Friendship games go Monday at Ice Sports. Since some people could not be bothered (among other things) to put this info on their site (what’s up with that?), I thought I would post it here. It was noted in an obit style blurb buried in the Beaver titled: “Monday is Hockey Day in Oakville” Here is the basic info.

Make Your Move - is also apparently Oakville’s big push for activity on Family Day. The novice games are one element (sort of) and the Town has a bunch of other stuff sponsored at different locations (I believe all free) including a bunch of free skate and free swims sponsored by my buddies at Tim Hortons. Check out the schedule on the Town site.

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Feb 12 – Did not post yesterday. It is funny how making a living can get in the road of your leisure plans. Those lottery winnings better come though soon as that appears to be my only reasonable alternative.

It is probably just as well in that I did not have much to add anyway.

Olympics – will probably be a steady feature over the next little while and I must admit that I am interested in some events – but definitely not the ballerinas. Sliding events interest me and I have a secret wish to include a run down St. Moritz on my Bucket List. I may have to stick with the bobsled, despite my James Bond ambitions based on the news out of Vancouver today about the luge crash(es). It seems that the Whistler course allows you to whistle down it as it is the fastest, steepest, most vertical drop luge run in the world. The number of training crashes so far suggest that this is must viewing – it’s better than NASCAR. My simple question is – who is the melon head that designed the steel posts/pylons right along the luge run – doh! The tragic death of the Georgian luge athlete is a terrible way to start the games and is hopefully not a portent of anything to come.

I will not be watching the opening ceremonies tonight as they clearly transcend in to the “artsy” tuff world – which is not me. I may sneak a quick peak at the moment of truth when “they” light the flame. The Olympics version of the venerable “who dunit?” It also turns out I wont’t be watching as I believe the plans are to go watch the Minor Bantam AA versus Ancaster.

For the auspicious moment, I am going with the Terry Fox hologram rumour with some type of participation by his Mum. There seems to be a big idea that it will be a consortium or committee of four or so from the past – Nancy Greene – Barbara Ann Scott – Katrina LeMay Doan . . . lighting up in unison. While I have no issue with any of these folks. However, my response to the group thing would be “How Canadian – we can’t even made a decision here”. The great one was mentioned but I do not support that. I believe that the flame should be lit be an accomplished Olympian – an “amateur” individual who has excelled and demonstrated on an individual basis all those qualities of character and athleticism that the Olympics are supposed to represent and so seldom do.

TTC – fooled you – this is not another slam at public transit (although it could be as I have lots of material). For the last couple of weeks I had noticed that the exit turnstiles on the TTC at Yonge & Eglinton had the “bars” covered in bright yellow rubber instead of being the plain bare stainless steel that is common. Being the logical person I am, I thought some moron had tried to impale himself on one of these spokes and so the TTC in their infinite wisdom was going around covering these 1 ½ inch diameter, rounded tip, three foot long bars with bright yellow rubber to increase their visibility and to prevent some other idiot from doing the spear thing and hopefully heading off liability suits. With the number of rods in each turnstile and the associated cost of outfitting each with its own little condom I was all set to jump all over the stupid waste of money by the TTC and equate that to the type of thinking that leads to increasing operating deficits and fare hikes!

BUT

IT is not the TTC but a demented advertiser!

These yellow bars with black accents are an ad for some type of eyeliner / eyelash make-up product! To protect the quilty or perceptually challenged I will not name the brand or company but you have to see these things. How anyone can think they are making a positive brand or image statement with this stuff escapes me. As someone who has had and continues to have exposure to the advertising agency world, even I shake my head at the idiocy of this one. Agencies work to strategies and creative briefs to go away and come up with these ideas that they then bring back and pitch to the client for approval, production and placement. These presentations were always fun as the agency “suits” (account exec types) would bring the creative folks in to the meeting with them to pitch their ideas and get the client response. A rule of thumb was that a minimum of three “ideas” would be brought forward – ostensibly all viable candidates. In reality one was always a “throw away”, one was a “safe” idea and the third, usually the creatives “favourite” would be somewhat out there. As a client you were supposed to play by the rules – show great wisdom in identifying and rejecting the “throw away” with positive words of encouragement about the effort and cappeal of it but that it was just “off” for a reason totally out of their control. , That left you with an opportunity to have an in depth discussion on the two remaining. You were also not allowed to make comments like “are you out of your mind” or “what idiot dreamed this up” as that would damage the fragile egos of those temperamental and misunderstood creative folks.

In this case I would have loved to be sitting in this room to see what else was presented and understand why the client did not lose it and say “are you out of your mind” or “what idiot dreamed this up” as I think here we have the exception to prove the rule. Check them out.

Sorry – no hockey news but go watch the Novice fun games on Monday. That is if you can find out where and when they are. I think there was something in the Beaver.

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Feb 10 - the countdown continues – D day -2 for the Olympics. Given that we are close to controversies are coming fast and furious. Besides the big debate about whether the Terminator should carry the torch (who's going to stop him), the skeleton maniacs are claiming foul against the Germans suggesting they are putting magnets on their runners. Apparently this provides a shock absorbing effect. The electro-magnetic field is theoretically some type of advantage. If this is truly considered to be an advantage, as a member of the Canadian team that is hosting the event, I would suggest that they sneak out at night and install their own batch of magnets somewhere along the track so that they can arrange to selectively put the brakes on the German squad.

Spartacus -- this HBO production was promoted as essentially the second coming of(fill in the blank). The first episode finally came on Cogeco On Demand, so I got a chance to watch it since I had forgotten to PVR series. The first episode was "so so", so I waited to watch the second and third installments to see whether we were growing up, or down. I would suggest that we would all be better off Spartacus as a gladiator met an early demise as the plot, acting and production values do not suggest this series is going anywhere. It is off my list I will be sticking with my CSI episodes, 24, and whatever hockey games I can pick up.

Work from home -- I made a major improvement on my commute today by not going anywhere. I had a fairly involved scheduling exercise to work through with a colleague so we agreed to meet at Chez Moorehead. It's amazing how productive you can be when you are not subjected to the continual interruption of telephones, e-mails and casual conversation. While I would not want to do it every day, it is a pleasant change quickly. It did not hurt that today was likely a lousy travel day anyway.

GTHL grows -- given that the GTHL is faced with a somewhat fixed border on the west, and the Scarborough Hockey Association was under the gun, it looks like the GTHL will be picking up some additional single A teams for next season. This move is not without opposition so it will be another scenario to watch as some of the folks opposed to the plan have registered their concerns with the 0HF. Article

Playdowns - are into series mode and continuing. That's the good news. The bad news is that unfortunately the Minor Midget AE have bowed out after a quick series with Stoney Creek. After winning the first and tying the second, the local squad came up short in the next two and bow out - four games in five days. I guess as the saying goes, if you are going to miss it, miss it quick.

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Feb 9 - today will likely be a short post as the last couple of days have been very busy days for me work wise and I have a bunch of prep to do for tomorrow. I think also, that probably like a lot of people I am still taken aback by the arrest of the commanding officer of Camp Borden in Trenton.. While I know it is trite to say so, I still find it hard to believe that an individual in the military who has had the types of responsible roles this individual has had, with his training, prospects and family could conceivably be the type of "monster" that he is being portrayed as. There are a lot of very surprised, embarrassed and confused people out there. Unfortunately, that does not help any of the victims. The question becomes who will get to try him as he is accused of killing both a civilian and a member of the military. I am not sure what the codes are, but I suspect punitive measures would be much harsher with a court-martial conviction. Bring it on.

TTC wars -- this whole TTC which hunt is spinning out of control. As a regular rider and formerly token purchaser (now a pass guy) I have seen lots of what I would call inappropriate customer service behavior on behalf of. In fairness, I have also seen a lot of rude and let's say disgusting behavior on the part of their customer base. However, transit is a customer service industry so in many cases whether they like it or not, employees need to suck it up and take it. They are also well within her rights to refuse service or "turn in" a customer exhibiting inappropriate behavior but this whole silly "work to rule" campaign idea is ridiculous and totally at cross purposes with trying to repair TTC image that has been getting hammered left, right and center. People also have to cut the TTC employees some slack as there are always performance issues and challenges on any job. If you have a complaint, make a note of where and when and as much of the who is possible and forwarded directly to the TTC administration. Duking it out (screaming matches) with the ticket seller isn't going to solve anything for anybody. Meanwhile, it doesn't help that the grand Pooh Bah, a mayoral candidate gets tagged. for inappropriate behavior the same day. What a circus.

 

Olympics - in case anyone has lost count, the clock that used to be in the hundreds of days has now hit three. At this point I haven't got really enthused about them, but I expect I will once we get rolling. I think the good news is that starting on Friday it gives us all a chance to get into them without worrying about competing with office time. I think it's also a good deal that the three-hour time differential is going to make it a lot easier for us to watch events live. The biggest challenge will be sorting out what's on, when, and what you will end up watching. Being in Canada, I'm sure we will get extensive coverage of all the events, but at the risk of seeming "un-Canadian", it will be interesting to see if I have to watch "foreign coverage" to get impartial coverage and coverage of all athletes not just the Canadian contenders. Saturday and Sunday look to be busy days on the schedule with a number of events including the men's downhill on Saturday. Since I consider this almost the premier event of the Olympics I'm wondering if this scheduling was based on having a variety of rescheduling options if the weather did not cooperate.

For anyone who hasn't as yet bookmarked the official Olympic site for Vancouver -- here is the link.

Leafs -- give them credit, they played a pretty good game but this time the breaks went against them. I have not checked in with the stats page for a while so just for the heck of it I went back for a quick look. While the Leafs chances had been pretty low, the current number is ZERO! I guess you can't get any lower than that. The bad news from my standpoint is that my Wings who would have been thought to be a lock and shoo in at the beginning of the season are now at only 35.1%. Not good. Get healthy boys - fast!

Montréal – Gainey is gone. That's too bad, because I think he is one of the good guys in the game and has had a very tough time in Montréal go on and off the ice. While the official story is that he resigned, I would have to bet that he was pushed out. In Montréal, unlike Toronto the expectation is that you will win and that you will improve the performance of the team. Unfortunately things didn't work out for Bob

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Feb 8 – So yesterday was the big Stupor Super Bowl – the sporting event of the year, the highlight of the season – yadda, yadda, yadda. I did not find it to be that exciting even though a number of my colleagues thought it was a stellar event. The on-side kick to start the second half was a gutsy and obviously surprise call that I think was the “TSN” turning point as the Colts never seemed to really get it going after that. The Saints on the other hand just kept coming and nickel and dimed their way down the field. Brees played a good game and in the scheme of things was probably a good MVP choice but it could easily have gone to a couple others – Pierre Thomas – solid running game, Garrett Hartley – kicking over his norm, and Tracy Porter – for the interception and only turnover. Maybe it was the lack of turnovers – the big momentum swings, the “Hail Mary’s that I missed. It could also be that I did not think the production values (camera shots and angles??) were that good, the fact that I did not really care who won or the fact that I watched the game by myself that took the edge off.

More likely it was the fact that I was going to be on my own and therefore did not make my world famous Chilli and hence no beer that made the difference.

While I am being critical, I thought that the half time show with Pete, Roger and a no name lacked spark. I really like The Who and their music but their stage presence just did not compare to Paul McCartney or Bruce Springsteen from the last two years. However, if nothing else, the generation of fans who watch C.S.I. at least now know that where the themes come from. I guess in your mid-sixties you need to consider giving up the major live performances.

As a final comment, I am now going to have to consider boycotting Olympic viewing. It was obvious that CTV was on a huge self promo binge (or could not sell the space) as they had a horrendous number of stupid vignettes that were often cut-off mid view to go back to the game. The problem with simulcast and split feeds is that you often are late getting back to the live event because the control room geeks are a bit slow on the trigger. Come on CRTC – let us watch the real game and the real commercials. With what I pay for cable, I should not get punished twice – once in the wallet and then again with the on air crap.

If you want to watch them they are all over the internet and here is one link that was active (at least tonight).

The good – I watched Al Pacino and “Any Given Sunday” again instead of the talking heads pre-game. Al’s inches rant prior to the “Sharks” big game is one of my all time favourite clips. It is worth watching the movie just to hear that speech. It is used extensively in leadership and motivation sessions so I am going to have to strip it.

FHP – Strong performance by my guys (read Ovechkin and Knuble). Crazy 8 picked up 3 goals and and assist on the game winning goal by Mike Knuble. The two of them had 4 goals, two assists, were +/- 5 had two power play point, the game winning goal and six shots on goal! Way to chock up those totals, it doesn’t get much better than that and voila I gain 1.5 points to open the gap on Jane and now trail Andrew by only one point. Now it looks like Franzen is coming back from the DL (to a club that desperately needs a momentum change) so I have to figure out who I am going to dump to reactivate him. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

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Feb 6 - Just a quick note to advise that the Tri-County qualifier round robins are all "decided". Had to wait to post as apparently there was posting stress at the minorhockey.net site. In fact I had to pull the MB AA from their site so I hope they are right.

By my count 17 of the 25 teams made it through the first hurdle. Given that in most cases it was only the division winner in a group of four or five, I would say that is pretty good performance. My congrats to all the teams that made it and I know it is a disappointment to those that did not. Check out the results as I have also setup the info I have on their next challenge - a playdown series. I will try and keep these as current as I can as well.

Leafs - as it is late, I won't comment on the Friday three minute meltdown with the Monster in the pipes versus tonight's shut-out (his second in as many starts) for JSG. I hope he is ready to see a lot of rubber as I suspect that he will be getting an awful lot of Hempo Hut time going forward as Wilson is desperate to rack up some "W"s.

Video post effort did not work so I am now working on devious Plan B.

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Feb 5 - After last night and with tonight’s games the Tri-County picture gets a lot clearer as to who moves on in the OMHA Playdowns and who drops back to “keague” play.

A Sign? – As everyone contemplates the impact of Ilya Kovalchuk to the somewhat lack lustre devils offense and ponders how the change will play out against the mighty Leafs tonight, I would suggest Lou sent another message. Shuffled off to Atlanta (buried in the fine print) as part of the deal was a young prospect named Patrice Cormier. Formerly of the Canadian National Junior squad, and most recently as a celebrity based on his elbow (and the resultant balance of season + play-offs suspension). Did Cormier have to be part of this deal or did the cagey Mr. Lamoriello just make it clear he wanted no part of this controversy and quietly disposed of the issue. I would suggest the latter. Was it Hercule Pierrot or Columbo that said there is no such thing as coincidence.

Leduc Incident – How many more of these are we going to occur and come under the microscope – how will they affect on ice behaviour and will more “laying of charges” help anyone? For this story - as the result of an alleged butt ending incident in a January 12^th game that was reported to police on January 15, a 16/17 year old Leduc played has been charged with aggravated assault. It seems that the offense was not witnessed by any official (as can easily be the case), no penalties were assessed and it apparently was not taken “seriously” until the police were called in. Interestingly, the story was picked up February 4^th by the Edmonton Sun, and by the Vancouver Sun and subsequently picked up by CTV after Hockey Alberta suspended the alleged offender pending an investigation (apparently for the balance of the season).

Super Bowl Sunday – is preceded by Chilli Saturday as we must all continue the tradition of preparing the customary Super Bowl meal at least the day before so it gets at least one reheat to lock in that flavour. I suspect I will be slaving over a hot stove tomorrow piling in the secret ingredients to Moorehead’s Blue Ribbon, Nationally acclaimed stuff. I will have to check with Andrew about his posse member attendance to know how much and how many flaming red peppers to include. The game itself is anti-climactic and if the Colts do not win it will be a huge surprise. I am not sure I agree, but people seem to think that this will be a very high scoring game – another of those “he who has the ball last wins”.

Lightning – sell like lightning. Guess things go a lot smoother (albeit for apparently a lot less money) when the prospective buyer is one of the boys and agrees to play by the “club” rules. $175 is nowhere close to starting with a 2 like Jimmy B’s bid did but then again there were no moving vans included.As a part owner of the Boston Red Sox, Vinik clearly knows how to spend money so we will see what he does in Florida.I have been to the Tampa rink – good facility – great location – cheap “ticket broker” seats. Can’t wait to see what my thoughts are re Phoenix as we plan to hit there in March.

Hockey Trivia - On this day in 1980, 30 years ago, before more than 21,000 fans in Detroit, the legendary Gordie Howe played in his 23rd and final NHL all-star game. The 51-year-old Howe retired at the end of the season. Try and match that record you young whippersnapper hotshots!

FHP – in fairness I have to report that I am still mired in second place. The fates truly are conspiring to keep me there because not only does Green get both hurt and suspended but I also lost another high offensive pick to the IR – Michael Cammalleri. With all the setbacks I have run into I think it is amazing that I am only two points back AND I will NOT surrender!

I was there - Burke’s comments at the Star Minor Hockey forum. I am also going to try embedding the video but that likely won’t work. I need more propeller head training.

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Feb 4 – I broke my posting streak yesterday as I was in a state of stunned shock and awe of the new powerhouse Leafs that debuted Tuesday night blanking New Jersey I was busy at work, came home to watch a hockey game (Way to go MB AA) and then had more homework. One streak ends, another starts as the Leafs will discover tomorrow.

Wanted – New QC people at Toyota. Talk about being snake bit, a company that has held a blue ribbon quality rep for years is now literally getting hammered on multiple fronts. Talk about revenge – GM essentially has put a bounty on Toyota owners to come and buy GM products. Nice friendly gesture.

Playdowns continue. Most will be resolved either tonight or tomorrow if they have not been already. There are still a couple of close finishes in play involving Oakville teams. The good news is that a lot of our teams have made it through “convincingly” to the next round – playdown series. By my count we have 11 moving on so far with a couple more opportunities. Unfortunately, I have identified six who will not and several hanging by a thread.

Picking up on last year’s theme, our younger teams still seem to outperform the older squads. The current Novices are the last of the Timbits under what I will refer to as my regime so let’s hope the youth movement continues in future years as I fundamentally believe a strong IP program is integral to future success. The current Minor Bantams are the original “crop” of the revamped IP program and so far only one team at MB and down (1 out of 17) has been officially knocked out. From Bantam up, five of eight have been eliminated so far with 1 TBD. Yeah, I know there are lots of variables – BUT. . .

Ponder – Are we going to see more of this because a number of elements have heightened the focus on hockey, is there actually more stuff going on or are “organizations” taking a more aggressive stance to forestall either police charges or the specter of a “Royal Commission”? I am referring to the newest thuggery publicized, the indefinite suspension of Marco Scandella by the QMJHL for a head shot in a recent game. Scandella, considered a premier junior defenseman is the second member of Canada’s World Junior team to get tagged with a major infraction. It is unlikely that the current furor is apt to die down especially if more “examples” keep presenting themselves – as they will.

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Feb 2 – If there is something I dislike more than trains that are LATE, it is buses that are EARLY. I had my own Groundhog Day movie moment this morning as I got to walk to my bus stop just as the bus zoomed by ahead of schedule. I got to turn around, go home and wait to walk down again – shades of bill Murray. Usually I have this schedule down to a science as I refuse to go down early and stand around in the cold waiting on a bus that is normally late. Not today – must have a new lead-foot driver who does not know that he/she should wait for me.

Catching the 7:33 Milk run GO Train was a whole new morning experience – lots of seats, quiet ride, excess puzzle time. Maybe I will start going in later.

Clarification – for those of you who know what cougars and coyotes are, what does it mean when the Toronto police issue a “coyote alert”.  Should I be “very afraid”?

Calgary – did not fare well with their newbies last night. The newly reinforced high power offense could not score a goal as they got beat (again) – Philly dumped them three to zip. The ex Toronto boys were in the line-up. With JS likely between the pipes and the new #3 on D, I may actually watch some of the buds tonight.

Woodstock – a while back I mentioned some of the challenges that the Woodstock Minor Hockey Association (an Alliance member) is facing. You can check on their site and read through some of the documents posted and the “fun” they are having in trying to deal with them. Common themes / different slants / still an issue. In one sense, it provides a very clear example of the disruptive power of a very small vocal minority. Take the time to read through at least the first pdf file at the bottom of the home page entitled “WMHA Executive Disclosure to Alliance Hockey”. Some interesting analogies, although I would suggest some significant role reversals.

Oscar Nominees announced – Who cares – Other than to see how much backlash Avatar takes from James “King of the World” Cameron haters.

OH! OH! – I am many things but an NDP supporter is not one of them. Today the NDP have called for a Royal Commission into violence in Sports – read “HOCKEY”. The story was just breaking this afternoon (Star Online) but has the potential to turn into a real horror show for minor hockey and the thousands of volunteers and good people who are doing their best in the game. The people who are in the game need to fix the game. If one aspect of that is that more “charges” are laid for actions such as “Cormier’s Elbow” then so be it – I won’t defend that. BUT if government intervention after another typically drawn-out , expensive and non-conclusive Royal Commission gets into the game with more regulations and conditions, then it will kill it for the majority, not cure it. I do not see how any more “government intervention will be helpful. My opinion only, but there are a lot of good people who would like to get involved now who don’t because it is already too complicated and restrictive for them and on the flip side there are a lot of people in the game who should not be because they are protected by nepotism or immune from associations who won’t or feel they can’t replace them.

The more complicated it gets, the harder it will be to get volunteers which means the grassroots levels will suffer and only the elite players will end up with the chance to play.

Let’s see, I now have Mentor Training, NCCP – D2, CHIP, PRS, HTCP-III. Am I now going to have to add some type of AVC (Anti-Violence Certification)? Am I going to get charged, sued and sent to jail if one of my players “hurts” someone else? Don’t laugh, it could be just like your liability as a host if one of your guests goes DUI and demos someone on the way home – wanna volunteer?

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Feb 1 – Thoughts on the trade:

• There will be a lot of licensed NHL sportswear on sale in Toronto, Calgary and Anaheim. Here is your chance to snap up “historical” merchandise at a great price! Do the names peel off?

• Neither White nor Stajan will be the next Leaf Captain as was speculated (it will probably be Phaneuf).

• Blake will likely pull a Larry Murphy and star (score a boatload) in Anaheim.

• Leafs offense will plummet – I think they were 11^th in the league (surprisingly)

• Giguere needs to come back to the top form he had when he almost single-handedly knocked my powerhouse Wings (that I think were defending Stanley Cup Champs at the time) out of the play-offs in a huge upset.

• Francois Allaire must be one heck of a goalie coach as he seems to be a positive common denominator in all of this stuff. Maybe he will be the miracle tonic for Mr. Giguere. Mr. Allaire demonstrated at the last Coaches Helping Coaches event and I was impressed with what he did. Therefore he must be good!

• Sutter must be desperate to save his job in Calgary as this is high risk – unless Phaneuf was a real problem there in the room or with Sutter. Someone is going to look really bad on this trade. Phaneuf will have an adjustment to make and hence his “surprise” maybe read “disappointment” ith the trade. He tarted the year with a team that had high expectations, a shoo-in for the play-offs, and expectation to go deep and probably a secret dream of winning the cup. From that he goes to the Leafs and while the Blue & White may be sacred, they will NOT be in the play-offs.

Overall, if you believe in Phaneuf, this is a good deal for the Leafs. They are trading (dumping) a number of second and third calibre players to get a forst liner. They need more up front but the scoop is the “dealin’ ain’t over”. You have to believe burke is after a first line centre but what has he got to trade for who, or maybe more importantly where’s the money honey – who is in trouble financially and needs to dump?

Stay tuned – it at least is something to talk about other than the Leafs dismal performance as #29 of 30.

Hockey Day in Canada – was this past Saturday and for some reason I did not really get into watching it – your usual sorta busy Saturday and then I had no interest in watching the Leafs and Canucks.

Shame on me as Stratford is my home town and at one point I was planning to go for the day.

No offense to Oakville Arena (a classic) but my all time favourite rink is ”the Barn” in Stratford which is, I hope, a heritage type protected facility. One of the oldest operating arenas in the world it is incredible. Pictures never do justice to the atmosphere but here is an interior shot of the empty surface.

As per the Stratford site – “Built in 1924, the Allman Arena is one of the oldest operating arenas in the world. Named in memory of long time manager, Bill Allman, this Arena has a heritage that dates back to its very beginnings when the "Stratford Flash", Howie Morenz played in the "Old Barn". Many N.H.L. Stars have played here including George Hay, Nick Libbet, Craig Hartsburg, Ed Olczyk, Nelson Emerson, Rob Blake, Chris Pronger, Tim Taylor, Dave Shaw, Mike Peluso, Louis DeBrusk, Brian Smolinski, Marc Potvin, Kevin Dahl, Greg De Vries, Garth Snow, Rem Murray, Mike Watt, and Boyd Devereaux. Many more have gone on to successful College, Jr. ‘A’ and Minor League hockey careers. “

Here is a link to some other shots of different areas in the building..

Don Cherry and Ron were there for a puck drop prior to a Stratford Cullitans – St Marys Lincolns Junior B game Saturday night. (Stratford won with a last minute goal)

They also had a ceremonial puck drop with Kevin Brow, the official who almost died from a skate cut to the throat – hopefully he is coming along.

Besides having the privilege of having “played” and watched games at Allman Arena, the Avon river in Stratford is also used for games all winter as can be seen in a couple of the pics below borrowed from the Stratford HDIC files..I remember how cold the toes used to get after playing all day, how boots were goalposts, how you hated fresh snow - to shovel and how many pucks seemed to disappear over the "snow boards and into drifts.

Kinda helps remind you of what hockey is supposed to be all about – I know it brings back good memories for me.

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