Simply Drew

HA...

2009-06-12T21:41:00.004-06:00

Dear Mr. Hossa,

I seem to remember hearing something about you signing a free agent deal with Detroit because they had "the best chance at winning the Stanley Cup" even though you made it to the Finals the year before with the Penguins. However, when I watched the Finals, I don't recall seeing you on the ice. Were you out there at all? Please help me out here.

And enjoy the Stanley Cup you earned from your contract with Detroit.

Aww, too soon?

New home for Wildcats' coverage!

2008-10-08T14:57:00.003-06:00

It seems the majority of my readers here are interested in my coverage of the Wichita Falls Wildcats. I originally started this blog as part of the short-lived Sports Fans Online Network, a new-media conglomerate with several sports bloggers and podcasters from around the country coming together with some cross-blog and cross-cast cooperative work that helped to promote each others' sites. Much of my writing originally was on whatever I felt like talking about: the Browns, the Indians, hockey fights, the NHL in general, my hatred of the Detroit Red Wings, trades and free agents, the Wildcats, even my exploits at the poker and blackjack tables.

I am keeping Simply Drew open as a general forum for my thoughts on the world of sports at-large. I will continue to comment on everything sports-related that's on my mind. Having a lot of readers who only care about the Wildcats, I am going to help you out.

Rather than having to wade through my rheuminations on the Brett Favre saga, the lack of success in Cleveland sports, or anything else, all future Wildcats' information will be in a new blog as of today.

So, please change your bookmarks accordingly. The new blog is called Simply Wildcats. Click the bold link to be taken there now!

Wildcats vs. Bandits live blog, October 5

2008-10-05T12:14:00.060-06:00

Hello again everyone, the B2 Network is still not not functional because of a faulty cord, so I'll be live blogging this one again. So, if you're going to be reading along, welcome once again. Keep hitting your refresh button and new updates will appear just below this intro. So if you are reading this after the fact, read from the bottom of this blog upward.

Questions, comments, feel free to IM me. I'm on AIM, screen name is WildcatsHockey73.

4:25 pm - Well, that one was... well, it was what it was. Final score 7-4. Wildcats play again October 24 with the home opener vs. Springfield.

4:24 pm - Breakaway chance for Hill late, but Kincaid stacks the pads, and the Cats can't bury the loose puck. Tempers flare again, off go Bourgonje and Hill for charging and high sticking, respectively.

4:22 pm - Tempers flare late, shoving match in front of the STL net, matching minors to Quick and Olszewski for roughing.

4:17 pm - And again... Loose puck in front off a rebound, and Jordan Bourgonje roofs it. Power play goal, it's 7-4. Assists to Klein and Bertsch.

4:16 pm - Tempers flare, delayed penalty comes, whistle blows, and everyone piles into the corner. Heinz gets the original 2 for hooking, plus matching minors to Cahill for checking from behind and Reinthaler for roughing.

4:11 pm - Back to 5-on-5. Somehow the scoring is Hill from Cahill and McKenzie, though it was definitely Heinz that touched it last before Hill.

4:10 pm - Matching minors, Hoffman elbowing, McNeil charging.

4:08 pm - FINALLY! Heinz doesn't get much on his shot but it comes right to Hill and he finds the back of the net, cutting the deficit to 2, 6-4. 1:30 remaining on the Cats PP.

4:07 pm - Bandits penalty on Patrick Sheehan, Cats up 5 on 3 for 48 seconds.

4:05 pm - Huge chance at the other end, puck in front, McKenzie gets it and fires off a quick one... and somehow Kincaid sprawls out and gets it. Coffey to the box for a slash, Cats on the PP.

4:04 pm - Son of a... Odd-man rush, Jarboe stopped the first shot, but there's only so much you can do. Bandits put in the rebound and it's 6-3. Greco from Kirchhevel and Hamburg.

4:01 pm - Back to 5-on-5, just over 11 minutes to go,

3:58 pm - Wildcats back on the PK, Opie to the box for slashing. Not what we need right now...

3:57 pm - Nice move that sent Kincaid sprawling, but a good poke check by as he was going down keeps it a 5-3 game.

3:56 pm - PENALTY SHOT WILDCATS! Shaun Jameson...

3:54 pm - Five minutes into the third and the Bandits have the only two shots on goal of the period. And they scored on the first of them.

3:51 pm - Kirchhevel from Hamburg and Reinthaler is the official scoring.

3:50 pm - Defense caught napping again, and it's 5-3. Man. Someone want to wake up out there? Hello?

3:47 pm - McNeil has another 43 seconds to serve on his misconduct. Also, no sign of Broderick Browne back on the bench after a high stick in the first period. Hartung and Coffey are serving the delay of game minors, not Kenline and Jonzzon as the boxscore says.

3:38 pm - Looks like Jonzzon and Kenline will each get 2 for delay of game from everything at the end of the period, or so says Pointstreak.

3:32 pm - Frustrations seem to be building for both teams, Bandits for a poor first period, Wildcats for a poor second. Should make for a good third, hopefully with the Wildcats getting back what they've given up.

3:31 pm - Jarboe leaves out a huge rebound and Olszewski fires it past him. 4-3 now. This one is shaping up like last night, with the wheels falling off in the second. As the final buzzer sounds, Hartung and Coffey get in a shoving match as everyone is leaving the benches for the locker rooms (locker room hallway is on the opposite side of the ice from the benches here, so both teams have to cross the ice to head off between periods). A few extra players who had been on the benches come over but the linesmen restore order quickly as both teams head off. We'll see if any extra penalties come up, though I doubt they will.

3:26 pm - Bandits tie it up. Even strength goal from Rashid, assists to Jonzzen and Olszewski. It's 3-3 now.

3:21 pm - Official call on McNeil was an abuse of officials misconduct with the high sticking call.

3:20 pm - Bandits outshooting the Cats in the 2nd, 12-6 so far.

3:18 pm - Dome shot! Hartung puts one off Kincaid's helmet and up and into the netting.

3:17 pm - Big save by Jarboe with a Bandit streaking in backdoor. Goal was Bourbonais from Allen on the PP.

3:16 pm - Cahill out of the box and back to the bench. So it seems McNeil may have gotten a 10 after the high stick. We'll try to get more details on this, but either way it's 5-on-5 and McNeil is the lone man in the box.

3:15 pm - Cahill to the box now off the bench, but still 5 on 4. Likely a misconduct of some form.

3:13 pm - Bandits score on the first penalty, so they stay up a man for another 56 seconds. 3-2 now, scoring coming in a moment, with 9:19 remaining in the period.

3:11 pm - Reinthaler just took a stick to the face from McNeil. Only two minutes, but he was down for a bit. Bandits have the two man advantage.

3:10 pm - Holy deflection, Batman! Great save by Jarboe in traffic, keeps it 3-1.

3:09 pm - PK time again, Heinz off for interference.

3:08 pm - Shoving after the play, Brown and Bertsch come together. Brown loses the gloves and helmet... Bertsch doesn't. He had the gloves off and seemed to be trying to get his helmet off when the linesmen stepped in and said no way. Both to the box, delay of game. Let 'em go ref!

3:03 pm - Back to 5-on-5, good kill for the Bandits.

3:01 pm - STL returns a man.

3:00 pm - Hill dumped to the ice in front, holding is the call on Patrick Sheehan. 5 on 3 for 1:22!

2:59 pm - STL penalty to Gorczyca for checking from behind. 2 second of PP time for the Cats, then 31 seconds of 4 on 4, then just under 1:30 of PP time again.

2:57 pm - Great chance for the Cats with Delaurell and McKenzie but a huge save post to post by Kincaid.

2:56 pm - Four seconds in, McNeil goes to the box for hooking. We skate 4 on 4.

2:53 pm - Officials are on the ice, followed by the Wildcats and now the Bandits! Let's get this second period going!

2:40 pm - Greco tripping, Kenline and Coffey each 4 for roughing. Cats on the PP. Bandits goal was Gorczyca from the Sheehans. End of the first, score is 3-1 Wildcats! WF outshooting STL 16-8 after 1.

2:36 pm - Here we go, Quick vs. Allen off the draw, Quick dominates with the rights, even gets Allen spun around so he can land at-will. Aaron Quick with a Gordie Howe Hat Trick. In the first friggin' period no less!

2:34 pm - Off the faceoff, didn't see what started it, but Coffey shoves Shost and Kenline comes in, gloves fly, they wrestle around a bit and fall to the ice. Coffey is the only one lacking gloves and his helmet. :27 left in the period, we'll have the penalties and scoring from the PPG at 19:30 in a few moments.

2:33 pm - Cats return a man, but the Bandits score with :30 left in the period. 3-1 is our score.

2:31 pm - Players come together, Hartung got in and bumped Kincaid and his helmet goes flying. Hartung off for charging, no penalties from the brief scrum. 5-on-3 for 53 seconds.

2:30 pm - PK time again, Trotman to the box for interference on what looked to me (and everyone on the Wildcats bench) to be a clean hit on the puck carrier. Apparently we were wrong. By the way, before the penalty, Trotman and McKenzie each had a good two solid hits each on their shift.

2:27 pm - Brown and Kirchhevel get matching minors for delay of game from a little shoving match after Jarboe covers up a loose puck. Bandits with 2 SOG so far on their power play, 4 for the entire period. Wildcats have put an astonishing 12 shots on Cinotti, but none yet on Kincaid. We're back to 5-on-5!

2:24 pm - Cats on the PK, Nash off for tripping.

2:22 pm - Opie from Kenline and Quick is the scoring. First NAHL goal for Tim Opie, and Matt Kenline and Aaron Quick each have a two-point afternoon!

2:17 pm - BIG BEN STRIKES THREE! Even strength goal, official scoring coming soon. With 11:49 to go in the first, Cinotti is pulled in favor of Kincaid.

2:14 pm - GOAL! Power Play goal with 5 seconds left on the first penalty, so we have another 54 seconds of PP time. Goal goes to Kyle Delaurell, assists to Erlacher and Jameson.

2:13 pm - Two-man advantage for the Cats, Patrick Sheehan off for high sticking. Note that he is in the lineup in place of Bradley Nunn, so if you're scoring at home, change your lineup cards.

2:12 pm - Wildcats on the power play as Allen goes to the box for slashing.

2:11 pm - Excellent puck movement by the Bandits leads to a chance, but Gorczyca's pass cross ice was a little too far for Sheehan.

2:10 pm - Cats' defense is looking better here early on in this one in spite of a couple odd-man rushes. Hopefully it keeps up, as this was the biggest problem last night.

2:07 pm - GOAL! Aaron Quick's first NAHL goal puts the Wildcats up 1-0! Assist goes to Matt Kenline.

2:06 pm - Heinz's pass for Quick just a little long, icing call brings the faceoff back to the WF end.

2:05 pm - Blocked shot off the stick of Jason Nash leads to a 3-on-1 for STL, well defended by Shaun Jameson and the Bandits don't manage anything.

2:03 pm - We're underway! Opening faceoff controlled by the Cats!

2:02 pm - Minutes away from starting this game up, your officials are referee Greene, and linesmen Bethmann and Montgomery.

1:58 pm - Another look at how the special teams units stack up against each other:

WF Power Play: 14/41, 34.2%, #1 in the league

STL Penalty Kill: 45/52, 86.5%, #5 in the league

STL Power Play: 6/48, 12.5%, #13 in the league

WF Penalty Kill: 23/27, 85.2%, #7 in the league

All three of the Wildcats' goals last night came with the man advantage, while 1 of the Bandits' 5 goals came on the power play.

1:50 pm - Lines appear to be as follows, starters in bold:

WICHITA FALLS
Erlacher - McKenzie - Hartung
Browne - McNeil - Delaurell
Kenline - Opie - Quick
Brown - Cahill - Hill

Jameson - Nash
Kaneshiro - Trotman
Shost - Heinz

Jarboe
Graveline

ST. LOUIS

Olszewski - B. Sheehan - Gorczyca
Hamburg - Greco - Kirchhevel
Jonzzon - Bourbonais - Rashid
Bertsch - Bourgonje - Klein

Reinthaler - Quick
Allen - Coffey
Hoffman - Nunn

Cinotti
Kincaid

1:22 pm - Puck drops at 2 pm this afternoon, so we're just under 40 minutes out. The Zamboni is working on the ice, players will start warmups in a few minutes. I'll get the lines and D pairings posted once they start warming up!

Wildcats vs. Bandits live blog, October 4

2008-10-04T17:23:00.053-06:00

Hey everyone, coming to you from the Hardee's Iceplex in Chesterfield, MO, we'll be live blogging this one. Unfortunately due to some technical issues (namely a broken cord), we have no B2 broadcast. Additionally, our internet deal back in Wichita Falls doesn't start until October 24, for the home opener.

So, if you're going to be reading along, welcome to the party. Keep hitting your refresh button and new updates will appear just below this intro. So if you are reading this after the fact, read from the bottom of this blog upward.

Questions, comments, feel free to IM me. I'm on AIM, screen name is WildcatsHockey73.

9:41 pm - That's all she wrote! Wildcats fall 5-2, hopefully we'll have the B2 Networks up and running tomorrow, but if not, I will have coverage here once again.

9:40 pm - Empty net for the Cats, McKenzie (boarding) and Coffey (cross-checking) off for matching minors.

9:37 pm - A Bandit goes to the box, and the Wildcats get another power play goal! Shaun Jameson completes the Gordie Howe Hat Trick with a goal, with the assist to Erlacher. 5-3 now, just over a minute to go!

9:32 pm - Matching minors to Delaurell and Greco for roughing.

9:31 pm - Hill with a chance, but couldn't quite elevate the puck enough to get it past an outstretched Kincaid.

9:26 pm - Karlsson and Sponseller go 2 on 1, but can't quite connect with Karlsson's saucer pass being in the air as Sponseller tries to get it but misses.

9:24 pm - Delaurell from Jameson and Hartung is the official scoring.

9:22 pm - 5 on 3 for the Wildcats now as Hill's penalty expires, and the Wildcats score! Details coming.

9:19 pm - Out of the frying pan, into the fire. Hill off for tripping, Brown gets a 10 for arguing it (Shost was announced, I thought it was Cahill, but Brown is what the boxscore says). A minute in, it gets evened up with Reinthaler going off for interference. We skate 4 on 4. Hamburg runs Graveline, discussions ensue. Hamburg gets two for roughing, so it's 4 on 3, Wildcats on the PP.

9:16 pm - The onslaught continues. Bandits make it 5-1. Oy vey.

9:14 pm - Right off a faceoff, Thomas Erlacher shows some fistic abilities to go along with his clutch goal scoring! Erlacher and Nunn square off, with the Italian taking a pretty clear victory!

9:12 pm - Kaneshiro's shot has eyes and gets through some traffic, but the Cats can't quite find the rebound.

9:09 pm - Bandits score again, puck fed in front to Soren Jonzzen on the doorstep, and he puts it in for a 4-1 Bandits lead.

9:04 pm - After a long delay and some technical issues (I hate Blogger's platform, for the record), we're about to get the 3rd period underway. As I've tried to write five times now, Bandits scored again, Graveline was screened by his own man. Jameson and Bourgonje fought, edge to Jameson. Third period is underway, Bandits with the lead 3-1 and advantage in shots on goal, 31-22.

8:38 pm - No luck, courtesy of a missed pass for an offside, an icing call, and some sloppy play in the offensive end. Back to 5 on 5.

8:33 pm - Back on the power play we go as Nunn goes off for hooking!

8:26 pm - He's back! Sean McKenzie, making his 2008-09 debut, goes freight train on Kyle Greco!

8:25 pm - GREAT chance in front as the penalty expires, Cahill's shot gets stopped, rebound comes right to Sponseller, no one near him except for a perfectly squared up goalie. Sponseller tried to delay his shot and find an opening, but Kincaid made the save, Hoffman swatted it away, and the Bandits had a great chance of their own snuffed out by Graveline at the other end.

8:20 pm - 2 on 1 for the Bandits leads to their second goal, Klein from Nunn. Right off the face off, Cats go on the PP as Delaurell gets knocked to the ice. Interference is the call on STL's Hudson.

8:18 pm - Bandits score, Bourbonais from the point on the power play, assist to Edwards. We're tied at 1 and back to 5 on 5 hockey.

8:16 pm - Backdoor chance for the Bandits, but it rolls off the forward's stick. Good job by the Wildcats in forcing the puck to stay wide for the most part.

8:15 pm - WF penalty, Trotman four minutes for high sticking as he left a Bandit bleeding. If there's ever a time for the PK unit to come up big, it's now.

8:14 pm - Back to 5 on 5, Cats 1 for 3 on the PP tonight with 3 SOG.

8:14 pm - Wildcats had a lot of trouble getting it out of their own zone to start the period with STL a man down. Great chance for Delaurell from the slot, but it hits the post!

8:10 pm - About ready to get the second period underway, Wildcats still with 1:32 of PP time as they switch ends of the ice. SOG in the first, 13-12 in favor of the Bandits, but the Cats lead 1-0!

7:53 pm - End of 1, Wildcats lead 1-0!

7:52 pm - Wildcats score on the power play! Goal goes to McNeil with 28 seconds left in the period. Assists are tallied by Delaurell and Jameson. Also, Hoffman of STL to the box for a cross-check so the Cats stay on the PP!

7:51 pm - Kincaid kicks out a HUGE rebound, pass for Karlsson just missed connecting on what would have been a Wildcats PPG.

7:51 pm - Another Wildcats chance on the PP, Sheehan off two minutes for a high stick.

7:50 pm - Nice hit at the blue line by STL's Edwards on Jameson as he tried to come in 3 on 3. And then another great Graveline save off a shot from in close by Greco.

7:47 pm - Good efforts at the offensive end by the Wildcats, but nothing doing on the scoreboard. Then a 3 on 2 for the Bandits, and a stick save by Graveline!

7:43 pm - Bandits with a great chance 2 on 1 with Kaneshiro the lone man back, but Trotman gets in to help and the shot goes wide.

7:42 pm - Quick shot by the Bandits' Kirchhevel, but Graveline shuts the door, rebound cleared out by the defense.

7:41 pm - Bandits with the SOG advantage 7-6, still no score with 8:10 to go in the first.

7:38 pm - Wildcats chance as they get to even strength, nice shot by Hill, but it was gloved and held by Kincaid.

7:37 pm - Hartung blocks the shot and clears the zone. And now back to five on five!

7:36 pm - Scramble in front covered up by Graveline. Bandits managing 2 shots on goal on the PP so far with a minute remaining on it.

7:35 pm - Brown to the box two for slashing, Cats on the PK.

7:35 pm - BIG save! Graveline going post to post with the Bandits setting up a little backdoor play with a pass across the crease. Still no score.

7:34 pm - Penalty killed, 'Cats manage one shot on goal during the man advantage.

7:32 pm - Wildcats power play, as STL gets called for too many men. Hamburg serves.

7:30 pm - Five minutes in, both teams looking good and pretty evenly matched thus far. SOG 3-2 in WF's favor, but no great chances for either team.

7:27 pm - Wildcats did a good job of controlling the puck in the Bandits end, but a rush the other way showed St. Louis' prowess at using this Olympic sized ice sheet. No shots on goal for either team two minutes into the first.

7:25 pm - We're underway! The Bandits control the opening faceoff.

7:20 pm - The Wildcats' starters have been announced, and now out come the Bandits. With this being their home opener, the entire roster is being announced. For the record, ref tonight is Welker, linesmen are Bextermueller and Bokal.

7:15 pm - Just a look at some special teams numbers, Wildcats currently have the top power play unit in the NAHL (11/33, 33.3%), while the Bandits have the #3 penalty killing unit (40/44, 90.91%). The Bandit power play is 14th in the league, only 5 for 44 so far, 11.36%. The Wildcats' penalty kill is 7th in the league, 20/23 for 86.96% efficiency. The Wildcats have done a good job of staying out of the box so far this year and have taken advantage of opponents' penalties. Judging by these teams' games last year (you may recall a few fights between these squads, including the goalies going at it on December 7), this could be an important factor.

7:05 pm - We're about 10 minutes from the start of player introductions. Lines, as far as I could tell from warmups are as follows (starters in bold):

Wichita Falls
Karlsson - Rourke - Sponseller
Erlacher - McKenzie - Hartung
Browne - McNeil - Delaurell
Brown - Cahill - Hill

Kaneshiro - Trotman
Heinz - Shost
Jameson - Nash

Graveline
Jarboe

St. Louis (note: not sure who are wingers and who are centers, nor what order these lines go in)
Bourgonje - Olszewski - Klein
Cifelli - Jonzzon - Hudson
Greco - B. Sheehan - Kirchhevel
Gorczyca - Bourbonais - Hamburg

Reinthaler - Quick
Edwards - Coffey
Nunn - Hoffman

Kincaid
Cinotti

View from the Scratching Post: Back from Minnesota

2008-09-24T17:45:00.004-06:00

Not a whole lot to say here, as pretty much everything that I could say is up on the Wildcats' website. Great weekend, had one of our players named Player of the Week (Kyle Delaurell, going 3-6-9), had another named Showcase MVP (Thomas Erlacher, 4-1-5, 3 GWPPG), and a third joined them on the All-Showcase team (Shaun Jameson 0-5-5 with excellent play in his own end as well).

If not for Lyle Rocker's great play for Topeka, I think Mike Jarboe could easily have joined those three on the Team.

Fun week aside from hockey too. Gen and I went down to the Mall of America, I got to eat at Chipotle twice (we seriously need a Chipotle, Qdoba, and/or Baja Fresh here in the Falls), saw Gen's family, met up with fellow U.S. grad Paul Teeple, and as expected, watched a crapload of hockey. I'm planning next year to go for the whole thing, and watch the whole day Saturday and Sunday and return late Sunday. Maybe write more on here while there as well, since I know I didn't write a single thing on here during the week.

Got to watch a few other games besides the Wildcats. So far, the St. Louis Bandits do not look anything like the team we've seen the past two seasons. The Junior Blues are another who fall into the "could be dangerous" category. Kenai River is vastly improved. Traverse City surprised me, as did Alaska. Topeka is definitely the best team in the league (though I feel the Wildcats are pretty close).

So far, everything said on the Wildcats seems to be accurate. The scoring depth will be better than it was in the past. While most of the scoring came from the #1 power play unit, you can definitely see the chemistry developing and that the abilities are there from every line. I still think the majority of scoring will come from the top line, but the other three lines will be bigger contributors than they were last year.

Not much physical play, but that's not a concern. As you may recall, last year's team was a hard hitting squad, not afraid to fight. But they didn't get too physical in Minnesota either. It'll come, I'm not worried.

All in all, looks like we're in for another good season. I'll have more next week as the team prepares for two games in St. Louis on October 4 and 5.

And thanks...

2008-09-14T22:00:00.002-06:00

I also need to send a big thanks to everyone who signed the Brandon Sugden petition.

As of yesterday evening, the NHL urged the four teams who voted against Brandon Sugden to reconsider their positions. They all did, and Sugden has been cleared to attend the New York Islanders' training camp.

The spotlight put on this story, fueled by your signatures, has given the man a final chance. Thank you!

And kudos to the NHL for doing the right thing for once in the Bettmanist Regime.

Link: http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=249415&lid=headline&lpos=topStory_nhl

Announcement!

2008-09-14T21:47:00.002-06:00

I mentioned this on the air on Saturday and figured I'd post it here as well.

Beginning October 1, I will officially be employed by the Wildcats in a hybrid of three positions. I don't have an official title yet, but I will be handling media and broadcasting, some graphic design, some community relations, and some equipment manager duties.

A lot of what you would read here will be on the Wildcats' website (minus my opinions, just the facts) but I plan to try to write here when I can and whenever I feel like it. With my generic reports being on the Wildcats site, this may go back to its whatever-sports-related-stuff-is-on-my-mind format rather than being primarily Wildcats.

Anyways, I have many people to thank who got me to this position. First off, my parents and friends just for always supporting me. Next, everyone I've worked with in broadcasting, especially my fellow current and former NAHL broadcasters (especially Slapper and Beast), the whole crew at WTAM from my 2005 internship (especially Marty, Triv, and Rado), and Larry Yeagley at my WELW internship. All the journalism teachers that impacted me in a positive way.

And a huge thanks to those aiding me in the professional aspects: Nathan and Vanessa Moyer for their advice on my even getting in with the team in the first place back in 2006, and advice on how to go about my "sales pitch" for this position; and Robin Woody at Graphics II for looking over everything for me and helping in assembling it all.

And of course to my cats Carmela and Onyx who would love me even if I only made enough money to buy them cat food and nothing else.

And last, but certainly not least, my wife Gen for constantly being there to support me through everything when I didn't have a job, when I was at my soon-to-be-former job and had many complaints about it, and now in helping me to get this job. And I probably should thank her for the support yet to come in the future as I continue in my career. Even with I didn't believe I was capable of something, you always knew I could do it.

Anyways, I'm excited for the season to start this week, and especially to get started in my new position in October!

Comments changed

2008-09-13T08:13:00.003-06:00

Apologies to those who comment as Anonymous, but that will no longer be permitted on this blog thanks to one spammer (who goes by the name "avenger" on Glassrattler).

I have been forced to change the ability to leave comments only to allowing those from registered Google users rather than just anyone. It beats trying to wade through 20 comments a day that have absolutely nothing to do with anything I write.

Apologies for the inconvenience, but I'm sure you understand.

Wildcats vs. Sooners tonight, and I am told we WILL have it on B2! I'll find out about the internet audio feed as well later today and will try to post an update here.

Live Blogging: Wildcats vs. Tulsa Rampage WSHL

2008-09-05T17:31:00.056-06:00

And so, here we are again. September 5, the puck drops on the Wildcats' first preseason game as they take on the WSHL's Tulsa Rampage in the first game of a two-game weekend set.

I'll be updating the action here, so keep your finger on that Refresh button. Latest info will appear at the top, so if you are reading this after the game, read from the bottom of this entry to the top.

Any questions, send them to me via AIM. My screen name is WildcatsHockey73 (take note, I screwed it up before; this is now correct).

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

9:20: That'll do it! Wildcats win this one 5-0, outshooting Tulsa 39-20. Three stars are Hartung third with 2 assists, Jarboe second with the shutout, and Cahill first with 2 goals. The teams go again tomorrow; I won't be able to live-blog it, but I will have some write-ups afterward.

9:17: Finally, back to 5 on 5. Tulsa managed 9 shots on goal during these PP opportunities, almost as many as they had managed in the entire game before that (11). One more WF penalty, Heinz off, checking from behind.

9:15: Another Wildcats penalty, Hooking on Dyer. :43 left in the first penalty, :13 in the second one. Official attendance tonight: 517

9:12: Erlacher off for a hook, Cats on the PK. And now, tack on a slashing call on Curtis Heinz. Tulsa 2-man advantage for 1:30.

9:05 (both the current time and time left in the game): Back to 5 on 5, shots 36-10 in favor of the Cats.

9:03: Hooking call on Craig Martin puts the Cats on the PP again.

9:02: Still no sign of Aaron Quick's return. He may just be kept out of the rest of the game as a precaution.

9:00: WF PP, Tulsa's Michael Criscuolo off for slashing.

8:59: Back to 5 on 5. Only two shots in this period so far, one for each team.

8:57: 5-0 now, shorthanded goal scored on a rebound by Cahill (second of the game), assist to Hartung.

8:55: Interference call coming against WF's Justin Hancock. Off to the penalty kill we go.

8:53: I didn't see Michael Hill out on the ice at all in the second period after his mysterious problems in getting back to the bench after a hit in the first (though I may just not have noticed him). The good news is he just finished a shift, so it would seem that he's alright.

8:51: Wildcats third goal was changed to Shaun Jameson from Kyle Delaurell and Jeff McNeil.

8:49: Aaron Quick just took a nasty shot and went straight to the locker room. Not sure what happened, but he was laid out flat on his front, sliding along, got up, whistle blew for an offside call, and he headed straight for the locker room door.

8:47: Fight! Off the opening faceoff of the third, Broderick Browne and Mike Zielke squared off. Big size difference (6'4" 205 vs. 5'10" 165), but Zielke hung in well. Browne's reach was too much for Zielke to be effective, but he landed a couple shots before Browne caught him with a big shot to the back of the head that sent him down.

8:45: First comment of the night! In response to the questions, the guys are all looking pretty good out there, the defense has been effective, not too rough-and-tumble but it's also early. I know we'll be seeing some good hitters out there from what I saw in the August camp. As for particular standouts, definitely Aaron Quick and Kyle Delaurell so far. On defense, no one has really stood out more than anyone else, all eight have looked good in their time on the ice.

8:43: Back to the keyboard, and we're just about three minutes from the start of the third.

8:28: End of the second period, Cats lead 4-0, outshooting Tulsa to the tune of 32-8. Once again, I'm off to a break, back in about 20 minutes. And as always, questions, comments, the AIM name is WildcatsHockey73. I'll answer anything sent as soon as I get back.

8:25: Great work by the Hartung-Cahill-Erlacher line. I swear all three of them were right in crashing the crease, looking for rebounds, looking for redirects, and doing an all-around excellent job of keeping Tulsa from getting to the puck.

8:22: Oh... my... God. That was awesome. First off, great passing from Matt Kenline and I thought one other (Kenners got the lone assist though) to set it up, then right in front Aaron Quick roofed a backhander as he was falling to make it 4-0.

8:20: Goal by Jeff McNeil, assists to Kyle Delaurell and Shaun Jameson.

8:19: Power Play Goal! Scoring coming soon.

8:17: Tack on another one, 4-minute high sticking called on Dustin Meyer. Wildcats up two men for the next 1:35, then a man advantage for 2:25.

8:16: Tulsa's Cothel McDaniel off for charging, Cats on the PP again.

8:14: For the record, it's still 2-0, shots 24-8 in the Cats' favor. Second period has been a bit yawn-worthy.

8:12: Matching minors are up, as is McNeil's misconduct.

8:10: Matching minors to Matt Kenline and Tulsa's Craig Martin for roughing.

8:05: For those wondering abour Nash and Erlacher (neither were in the main camp in August), Nash played for the LA Kings AAA and is a prospect of the WHL's Tri-City Americans. He's a lefty d-man from Oxnard, CA, was 7-21-28 with 66 PIM in 58 games for the Kings. Erlacher is from Italy, played for both the Italian National Junior Team and the Brunico Val Pusteria Wolves from the 2004-05 season to the 2007-08 season. With Brunico, he was 1-6-7 with 82 PIM in 77 games. In the WJC, he's played 20 games, going 10-13-23 with 45 PIM.

8:02: Couple of nice chances for Broderick Browne. Big kid, has great hands to go with the size.

8:01: And again, back to five on five.

7:59: Hooking call on Aaron Quick, Cats shorthanded for two minutes.

7:55: Scoring change on the Hartung goal, it was actually scored by Patrick Cahill, assists going to Zach Trotman and Hartung.

7:54: Just about a minute until we get the second period underway!

7:37: End of the first period, Wildcats hold a 2-0 lead, outshooting Tulsa 16 to 2.. I'm taking a break during the broomball game, will be back for the start of the second. If you're on AIM, don't hesitate to message me, WildcatsHockey73. I'll be around to answer once the second period starts up.

7:33: Back to 4 on 4, coming up, a WF power play for about 13 seconds.

7:32: And a 4 on 3 for the Cats as David Scott goes off, two for hooking.

7:31: Jeff McNeil off, two for unsportsmanlike conduct (served by Cahill, I believe) plus a ten minute misconduct for abuse of officials. 4 on 4 for 50 seconds, then 1:10 of PK.

7:29: And it's 4 on 4 again as Ty Smith gets two for holding. 12 seconds even, then the Cats go on the PP for 1:48.

7:27: Strangest hop ever off the end boards, fortunately Jarboe got a piece of it and Waxenburg cleared it from the doorstep. Shots on goal 11 to 2 in favor of the Wildcats.

7:26: Another penalty, this time it's Cahill going off for two minutes on an interference call.

7:23: Back to 5 on 5.

7:22: Good puck movement thus far on the PP, Hartung had a chance but got handcuffed just a bit. Great passing out of Kyle Delaurell. Let me just say he will be huge for this team this year.

7:21: Abbreviated power play for the Cats for 1:24.

7:19: Dome shot! Delaurell rings one off Zielinski's cage on a short-handed attempt. Tulsa penalty for a hold, called on Derek Thompson. We'll skate 4 on 4 for 36 seconds.

7:17: Aaron Quick off, two for interference.

7:17: Big hit in return on Michael Hill, hge has trouble getting back to the bench. May just be a skate issue.

7:16: Physical play is picking up, huge hit by McNeil at the end of a play that left Daiel Tratz a bit slow to get up. Fortunately it appears Tratz is fine.

7:15: Good penalty kill, as Tulsa wasn't able to get much set up.

7:13: McNeil off, two for tripping.

7:11: Wildcats goal again! This time it was Michael Hill less than a minute after Hartung going high glove side from the slot, assist going to Victor Karlsson (note: apparently Karlsson is wearing the #20 jersey, not Ricky Brown).

7:10: Wildcats goal! Tulsa netminder Zielinski got badly out of position and finding the back of the net easily was Brett Hartung from Patrick Cahill and Jason Nash at the 2:22 mark of the first.

7:09: More good pressure from the forwards, Kenline with a nice attempt at a redirect in front.

7:08: Good start for the top line, kept the puck in the Tulsa end for quite a bit. Opie line getting its chance now.

7:07: Puck drops, we're underway! Crowd is closer to 400 or so now; not too bad for a preseason game.

6:59: Officials are on the ice, Ref tonight is Farkas (didn't catch his first name because the speakers in here are... well, they're the KYC speakers, you've probably heard the complaints), linesmen are Tim Zemens and Mike Anderson. Starting for Tulsa: goalie Zachary Zielinski, defensemen Craig Martin and Ty Smith, forwards Bobby Watson, David Scott, and Dustin Meyer.

6:50: For proof on how big high school football is in Texas, take a look at the attendance here tonight: I just counted everyone in the arena, and got 150. Granted, it's the preseason, and there may be others at the concession stands and on the concourse, but still, Friday nights are definitely for football here. This is possibly why much of the first half schedule is played on the road. Crowds will certainly grow once the football season ends.

6:37: Wildcats' forward lines, based on the warmups, are as follows:
Broderick Browne - Jeff McNeil - Kyle Delaurell
Thomas Erlacher - Patrick Cahill - Brett Hartung
Ricky Brown - Michael Hill - Branson Yost
Matt Kenline - Tim Opie - Aaron Quick

I didn't see the D pairs, except that Brett Kaneshiro and Curtis Heinz are starting with the forward line listed first. Eight d-men are dressed tonight: Kaneshiro, Heinz, Jason Nash, Zach Waxenburg, Zachary Trotman, Shaun Jameson, Ryan Dyer, and Justin Hancock.

Goalies are Mike Jarboe and Philip Graveline.

6:33 pm CDT: The teams are warming up, I'll post Wildcats' line charts (or at least tonight's lineup) in a few minutes.

Latest on Wildcats preseason broadcasts

2008-09-03T14:24:00.002-06:00

I spoke to Coach Bowkus this afternoon. The team is trying to get everything set up so that we can have the games this weekend and next on B2, and hopefully we will have them on internet radio as well. Nothing is certain yet, but we are working on it.

And as I said before, if worst comes to worst, if I can get internet in the KYC, I will live-blog it here.

The Coaches' Show will be starting again next Tuesday from Buffalo Wild Wings. It will be on local radio on 104.7 The Bear. It also can be heard online at Bear104.com via their audio stream.

As soon as I have a definite answer as to if and how the games will be broadcast, I will post it here.

Just let the man play!

2008-09-01T13:12:00.006-06:00

I'm sure some of you have heard of the plight of Brandon Sugden by now.

For those who haven't, his story puts yet another bad spotlight on hockey and makes me want to lash out against the NHL even more than I already have.

Brandon is a career minor league enforcer. He played his last AHL game in the 2006-07 season, announcing it as a "retirement." He chose to move on to the semi-pro LNAH in Quebec for part of that season and the 2007-08 season.

Recently, Brandon found out that his father has been diagnosed with cancer. He has less than one year to live. He decided he would try one final time to make it so his dad could see him skate in an NHL game before he dies. Brandon was even lucky enough to gain a tryout this year in the New York Islanders' camp.

But, a roadblock has been put in place. Because of his retirement, then his jump to another pro league, Sugden needed the approval of all 30 NHL teams to come back, or else play one more season on an AHL-only contract, or the LNAH, or some other minor pro league. By the time that timeframe passes, his father will likely end up dying. When it was put to a vote, three teams rejected his desire to attempt to return to the NHL, thus ending his hopes of coming back this season.

These three teams have remained anonymous and have given no reason as to why they have voted against him. Granted, Sugden has had some problems in his past, including at one point a lifetime ban from the ECHL for throwing his stick into the crowd due to a fan verbally abusing him about his past problems with drugs and alcohol. He has turned his life around and had a moderately successful career in the AHL and has been a major fan favorite in Syracuse where he played from 2003-2006.

Why should three of thirty teams be allowed to mess with this man's livelihood in such a way? 90% of the NHL approves of his return. Why should only 10% decide his fate? Why not put it up to those who will have to play with and against him and let the players decide? Why should he not have a final chance? Marty McSorley got another chance. So did Todd Bertuzzi, Brad May, Chris Simon (two extra chances for him), Jesse Boulerice (another with two shots, if you include his lifetime OHL ban), Gordie Dwyer, Dale Hunter, Steve Downie, and Tom Lysiak.

Why not Brandon Sugden?

If you are as sick of this as I am, I would encourage you to sign this petition. The group wants to get 2,000 signatures on it as soon as possible. While online petitions often don't mean a thing, it's better than just sitting back and letting it happen.

This isn't just something for fans of tough hockey. It's not even for hockey fans alone. This is for ANYONE who has ever had a dream and worked their tail off to try to achieve it.

Help the man achieve his dream. Go to this link, and add your name to the petition and show your support.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/let-brandon-sugden-play

First the NAHL, then the world!

2008-08-27T09:20:00.006-06:00

One day, Hunting Valley, Ohio's University School graduates will own you.

Okay, maybe not quite. But we are taking over the broadcasting ranks in the NAHL. I graduated in 2002, and there's now one other Prepper in essentially the same job as me, Paul Teeple up in Mahoning Valley, Ohio; part of the US class of 2000.

Anyways, Paul is starting a blog on the Phantoms, so any other NAHL fans or various Ohio sports fans (I know there are a few of you out there, considering how often I rant/complain about the state of Cleveland sports every year), I'd urge you to check it out. It's in the "Blogs I Read" link off the the right.

And if you don't feel like looking for the link over there, just click here.

For those waiting for info on our broadcasts, I spoke to Scotty Preston down at 94.9. I should have some more info up soon!

It's official!

2008-08-25T19:25:00.002-06:00

The votes have been cast, and a decision has been made by you the readers (and from the people of an autograph collecting and custom card making message board I'm active in). This year's Drew-created Wildcats e-card set will be the 1983 Topps design, seen here

As soon as photos are taken, I'll start working on them.

For any amateur (or professional) photographers out there who would like to allow me to use your photos, leave me a message and we'll get in contact. Remember though, these cards will not be sold at all; heck, they won't even be printed. I'm making no profit, so don't expect me to pay you to use them, haha.

Well crap...

2008-08-20T19:14:00.003-06:00

Another one bites the dust, and the roster is officially down to 25.

Adam Mitchell jumps to the EJHL

Good luck to him, but man I wish we had him here. Especially considering the EJHL is on par with the NAHL talent-wise, maybe even slightly behind; plus it's a pay to pay league, unlike the NAHL. Though with the fact that the EJHL gets more looks from Eastern colleges than the NAHL does (why, aside from travel expenses, I'll never get), I can understand why one would want to jump over there.

Meanwhile, up in Quebec, fans of tough hockey, looks like we're at the beginning of the end.

QMJHL to ban fighting

Yikes.

2008-08-18T19:35:00.001-06:00

Matt LaPorta gets beaned in the head by a Chinese pitcher and ends up in a Beijing hospital with a concussion.

The Browns, in the span of five minutes on the clock, allow a blocked punt for a safety, have the ensuing kick run back for a TD, get into the red zone from an awesome kickoff return then fumble the ball away, returned for a TD, and then Derek Anderson goes down with a concussion.

Jobu, I'm not sure what I have done to offend you, but I shall get rum and cigars in your honor.

If anyone gets that reference, you rock.

More Custom Cards

2008-08-18T08:57:00.005-06:00

Capitalizing on the sudden burst of readership, I'm putting something up for a vote.

As some of you may know, I often make my own sports cards. For the past two seasons, I have designed cards of Wildcats players. I haven't printed any, but they could be printed easily enough. For now, they just exist as "e-cards" (which reminds me, I need to send my dad an e-birthday card, as he's 58 today). In these seasons, I have only missed making cards of four players to appear in at least one Wildcats game (Zach Josepher, Brian Downing, Dan DeCato, and Jason Syrett) due to a lack of good photos in a Wildcats uniform. If anyone has any, send them my way, PLEASE!

I made cards of everyone last year as well, in some cases multiple cards. I found enough good photos to make them of every player.

This year, I plan to make cards again. This is where you, readers, get to give me feedback.

I've created 9 designs, all based on (AKA fully, completely, 100% stolen from) some old Topps Baseball card designs. First, here are the designs I used in 2006-07 and 2007-08-- 1990-91 Topps and 1990-91 Pro Set hockey sets, respectively.

2006-07 design (1990-91 Topps)
2007-08 design (1990-91 Pro Set)

For this season, I have nine potential designs, made from Topps baseball card designs in 1959, 1960, 1963, 1971, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1991, and 1992. And I'm letting you the readers pick which design you like best, or if you want, recommend some other designs. Here they are, in order.

1959 Topps
1960 Topps
1963 Topps
1971 Topps
1983 Topps
1985 Topps
1988 Topps
1991 Topps
1992 Topps

So, leave your vote (or any recommendations of other set designs) in a comment here. Please keep in mind, these prototypes are VERY rough. I will be doing a lot of tweaking to clean up the designs and made them look a little better and more like the original sets.

No coverage?

2008-08-16T09:11:00.003-06:00

It's true, this blog is mostly hockey, junior hockey at that. But I do write on other sports quite often as well (I constantly have commentary on baseball, football, pro hockey, and occasionally basketball, soccer, Aussie football, wiffleball, sports autographs, sports cards, whatever comes to mind really). And with the world's biggest sporting event taking place at this time, I'm sure some avid readers are wondering why I'm not writing on it.

It's rare that I talk about anything not sports-related on here. In fact, out of over 200 entries on here in the two years I've been writing, I think only two have absolutely no relation to sports. And it's even less often that I'll touch political or religious topics on here because that only touches off arguments. And I hold some beliefs that are considered odd, sometimes even downright "wrong," by the majority of people here in Texas. So it should be obvious why I'm hesitant to talk about my views.

Religion, or at least one particular spiritual practice, is the main reason I'm not writing anything on the Beijing Olympics, and I'll actually discuss it and how it relates to me.

But not just yet. I'm standing by my policy of not writing anything related to the Olympics until they're over.

A little more roster info...

2008-08-12T08:42:00.003-06:00

Got some info passed on anonymously regarding Michael Hill and the USHL from someone who knows the situation better than I do and can clear up some confusion. USHL blogger Ryan Wacheldorf had said Hill was on the Fargo Force's 25-man roster, but he was in our camp this past weekend. According to my source, Michael is on the 25-man roster of the Fargo Force but the Force have not been very communicative with him aside from the fact that he's on the roster. They have also recently traded for another forward. The team can take 25 to the Fall Classic tournament and then have to reduce the roster to 23 after that. He will attend their August 22-24 camp and should know after that where he will be playing this season, whether it be Fargo or Wichita Falls.

Additionally, the source corrected the stats I have here. Hill played in 49 games, going 45-44-89 with 62 PIM. He also told me a bit more about Matt Shost, who was a teammate of Hill's with Dallas Alliance. He said "Matt is a solid, stay-at-home defenseman that doesn't make many mistakes. He's not going to be looked at to score. He may be looked at to stop the opposing team's top line." Shost was 4-10-14 and 54 PIM in 54 games.

So there's the latest regarding Michael Hill. Best of luck to him in making it in the USHL, but if he gets cut, we would certainly welcome him here in Wichita Falls.

As promised...

2008-08-11T14:12:00.002-06:00

A little roster info, and any stats and such that I could find.

FORWARDS
Ricky Brown - 5'11" 175 - LW
Brown of course was with the Wildcats last year, though he missed much of the season with a concussion that happened in a freak incident off the ice. He appeared in 28 games, going 2-5-7 with 51 PIM. He's one of the fastest skaters on the team and is an excellent penalty killer.

Broderick Browne - 6'4" 205 - LW
Taken straight from the Wildcats' website "Great kid, Hard shot, plays with a temper, Big Power Forward. Was their [Texas Attack AAA] 2nd leading scorer." In 48 games, Browne was 19-22-41 with 150 PIM.

Patrick Cahill - 5'10" 190 - LW
Cahill played under Bowkus with Capital Centre in 2005-06. He played 21 games, 4-17-21 and 72 PIM. No info on him from 2006-08 at all, or height, weight, or exact position however.

Kyle Delaurell - 6'2" 185 - RW
16 games, 3-7-10 and 4 PIM as a Wildcat, 26 games, 3-3-6 and 17 PIM with the USHL's Lincoln Stars. Total, 42 games, 6-10-16, 21 PIM. Delaurell will likely be on the top two lines. His versatility (he played all three forward positions last season) will come in handy, as will his play on the power play units.

Brett Hartung - 6'0" 190 - RW
Hartung is another speedster and it looks like his offense has greatly improved. He'll be a mainstay of the penalty kill this year and looks like he'll also be a candidate to play on the top line. Last year he was 5-9-14 in 51 games as a Wildcat, adding in 61 PIM. Right now, he's my bet for being named captain.

Michael Hill - 5'10" 175 - C
Again, from the Wildcats website, "Good all around player. Leading scorer-had over 50 goals this season." Reports had said he had made the team in Fargo (USHL), but apparently has not as we have him here. As a member of Dallas Alliance last season, Hill was 58-43-101 in 59 games-- yes, almost a goal a game. He also had 58 PIM.

Victor Karlsson - 6'2" 195 - RW
The lone European on the roster as it stands now. Karlsson comes from Stockholm, Sweden and played for Tingsryds AIF at the junior levels over there. Last season for their U18 Elite team, 1 goal in 7 games, 1 assist in 1 game for their U20 Elite team, and no points in 11 games in the U18 Allsvenskan level. However, this is provided that I have the correct Victor Karlsson (there are three listed on EuroHockey.net, plus one who played High School in Cloquet, Minnesota).

Matt Kenline - 6'0" 180 - LW
Another veteran from last year, Kenline was a major cog in the rotation of penalty killers, and was 7-5-12 in 43 games as a Wildcat, adding in 59 PIM. Another speedster, like Hartung he looks like he has improved his offensive abilities as well.

Sean McKenzie - 5'10" 190 - C
Last year's Rookie of the Year, McKenzie will likely be among the leading scorers on this year's team. He appeared in 54 games, 15-19-34 with 108 PIM. He's a big hitter, he has a great shot, I'm thinking he'll likely center the second line.

Jeff McNeil - 6'3" 210 - C
Big, fast, and can fight. McNeil is another potential wearer of the C for this year's team, and will be one of the top penalty killers, as well as the resident enforcer. He led the team with 10 fights last season, while also going 8-9-17 with 117 PIM.

Adam Mitchell - 6'2" 210 - C
Mitchell was a USHL draft pick who spent last season with the Texas Tornado. After the Tornado folded for the year, the Wildcats quickly tendered him. Mitchell played 52 games last year and was 7-5-12 with 44 PIM. From the Wildcats website: "Defensive player that should be able to put up some points this season."

Tim Opie - 5'8" 155 - C
Spent last year with Little Caesars AAA, where he tore it up, going 13-9-32 in 25 games-- good for fourth in the MWEHL-- with 18 PIM. He's small, but was always in good position and is an excellent passer.

Aaron Quick - 6'3" 200 - LW
Again, from the team's site, "Can make plays, Physical, puck seems to follow him all over the ice." He played for the Colorado Thunderbirds last season, going 24-34-58 in 56 games, adding in 98 PIM.

Zach Rourke - 5'10" 165 - C
Playing with Compuware AAA last season, Rourke was 4-8-12 in 25 games, with 12 PIM. He also attended the USA Elite 15's camp in 2005 and was top 10 in scoring in it.

Adam Sponseller - 6'1" 205 - RW
Sponseller was one of the Cats most gifted offensive players last season, going 15-19-34 in 41 games, adding 143 PIM (and about three or four different suspensions). I've heard this year he's had a bit of a change in personality (in a good way), and has cut down about 10-15 pounds from last year. Look for him possibly to meet the potential scouts have seen; the potential that got him listed on the NHL's Central Scouting list a couple years back.

Branson Yost - 6'0" 190 - RW
Yost looked bigger than the size IO have him listed at from last year, something that certainly won't hurt him in his role as a hard hitting, lower line winger on this team. He went 2-6-8 in 28 games last year, also adding in 31 PIM.

DEFENSEMEN
Ryan Dyer - 6'2" 190
Dyer spent last season as a member of the SoCal Titans. Unfortunately, that's all the info I have on him, anything anyone else can find is appreciated (Note: there is another Ryan Dyer who played in Florida and was drafted in the CSHL, USHL, and NAHL; this is not him).

Justin Hancock - 6'0" 170
Hancock is a Dallas native, and played last year with Kenai River, going 4-4-8 with 51 PIM in 47 games. Good in his own end, not afraid to get physical.

Curtis Heinz - 5'11" 190
Heinz is another one looking bigger, and has improved his play greatly from last season. He was 1-2-3 with 53 PIM in 32 games, and will likely be an everyday player this year.

Shaun Jameson - 6'1" 190
Jameson was great in every facet last year for the Wildcats-- undefeated as a fighter, 4-14-18 for scoring, and could play defense well. Look for him to be a leader on this year's team, perhaps wearing one of the A's.

Brett Kaneshiro - 5'8" 180
Kaneshiro is small, but not afraid to get physical. Excellent passer, great in his own end. Last year, played in 52 games, 1-16-17 with 52 PIM. Another who could possibly wear an A.

Matt Shost - 6'0" 165
From the Wildcats' website: "Makes the first pass, steady defense, can skate very well." This is probably why he wasn't on my roster prediction-- you don't notice a guy like him if he's doing his job well; only if he screws up does anyone take notice. That and I've never been good at analyzing defensemen.

Zach Trotman - 6'3" 190
One more time, from the Wildcats website: "Physical Defense, Has good hands and can jump in the play offensively." Just make sure he has a bunch of extra sticks-- he broke two or three of them this weekend. Definitely a good hitter too.

Zach Waxenburg - 6'3" 205
Wax was in our camp last year, and he impressed me then as an excellent shot blocker. He didn't stand out as much this year, but this is probably a case like that of Shost-- if he's doing a good and steady job, you won't notice him. I can't find any info on him; anything anyone can give me is appreciated.

GOALIES
Mike Jarboe - 6'0" 180
Glad to see Jarbs back for another year, let's just hope he can get any issues with consistency ironed out. Last year, he was 27-15-2, with 3 shutouts, a 2.87 GAA, and .908 save pct.

Philip Graveline - 5'11" 175
Graveline had some great moments last season, making his NAHL debut by shutting down the Texas Tornado for a 4-1 victory. He went 6-1-0 as a Wildcat, with a 3.58 GAA and .881 save percentage. Without the Topeka 9-0 disaster, he would be 6-0-0, 3.29, .891. He likely will challenge for the #1 spot between the pipes.

Wildcats Roster Announced

2008-08-11T06:53:00.003-06:00

Just like last year, a day after camp the roster hit the newspaper. This year, I wasn't quite as close on my guesses as last year, but still got 18 our of 25 correct. A little later, I'll post any info and stats I can find on each player.

FORWARDS - 16
Ricky Brown, Broderick Browne, Patrick Cahill, Kyle Delaurell, Brett Hartung, Michael Hill, Victor Karlsson, Matt Kenline, Sean McKenzie, Jeff McNeil, Adam Mitchell, Tim Opie, Aaron Quick, Zachary Rourke, Adam Sponseller, Branson Yost

DEFENSEMEN - 8
Ryan Dyer, Justin Hancock, Curtis Heinz, Shaun Jameson, Brett Kaneshiro, Matt Shost, Zachary Trotman, Zach Waxenburg

GOALIES - 2
Mike Jarboe, Philip Graveline

Only one Wildcats veteran didn't make it in Dustin Nowick, and two other NAHL vets in Sebastien Johansson and Gerry Holland. Nowick was a big surprise to me. He looked great on a line with Delaurell the whole weekend, but did appear pretty frustrated in the ASG, then took a stick to the mouth that ended his day.

So there are 26 so far, one will have to be cut, and Bowkus said there likely will be three cut to trim everything down to 23.

As I've said this whole weekend, the talent in this camp made it nearly impossible to perfectly predict the roster. I'll admit, I'm a bit surprised by a few of these picks (two especially, but I'm not saying who), but there were a couple that surprised me last year that turned out pretty good.

Got four preseason games on the schedule, two against the WSHL Tulsa Rampage on September 5 and 6, the OU Sooners on September 13, and in Topeka against the Roadrunners on September 14.

So for those who entered the "Pick the Roster" contest this past weekend, how many did you get right?

Since July 16...

2008-08-10T19:12:00.003-06:00

... When I installed the counter you see to the right of your screen, I have had over 1000 views from 614 different people. Including disgruntled Red Wings fans leaving comments on my Top 10 Reasons to Hate the Detroit Red Wings post.

Thank you readers, you are the reason I do this.

Wildcats Final Camp: All-Star Game

2008-08-10T16:10:00.002-06:00

Well, my ASG roster predictions, and even final roster predictions were pretty badly off. Of the 40 players in the game, I was correct on 33. Here are the lines for each team from it:

RED
Patrick Cahill - Zachary Rourke - Kyle Delaurell
Adam Mitchell - Michael Hill - Adam Sponseller
Ricky Brown - Clayton Lewis - Branson Yost
Clayton Glick - Hans Helminen - Grant Dixon

Zach Waxenburg - Shaun Jameson
Justin Hancock - Ryan Dyer
Sebastien Johansson - Ryan Gaffney

Philip Graveline
Brian Phillips

WHITE
Sean McKenzie - Brett Hartung - Victor Karlsson
Dustin Nowick - Tim Opie - Trent Krueger
Broderick Browne - Jeff McNeil - Aaron Quick
Matt Kenline - Gerry Holland - Nick Gualano

Brett Kaneshiro - Zach Trotman
Matt Shost - Curtis Heinz
Tristan Musser - Jaakko Lehtonen

Mike Jarboe
Jeff Michael

White won the game, 6-3. All the goalies had some moments of greatness, and I wouldn't be surprised at all to see any one of them on the team with Mike Jarboe.

White's goals came from Broderick Browne, Sean McKenzie (2), Nick Gualano, Matt Kenline, and Trent Krueger; assists went to Jeff McNeil, Victor Karlsson, Brett Hartung, Krueger, Tim Opie, and Kenline (2). For Red, scoring were Kyle Delaurell, Adam Mitchell, and Zachary Rourke, while assists went to Patrick Cahill and Justin Hancock (2).

Three fights in this one, with Sean McKenzie and Ryan Dyer going in a quick one that I'd score a draw. The second one featured Broderick Browne and Ricky Brown. This one was a good long one, with Browne getting the win, but Brown certainly was impressive in his ability fighting someone about twice his size. The third was between Grant Dixon and Nick Gualano. I'd give the decision to Gualano, but Dixon hung in pretty well.

With the All-Star Game havung been played, it's time for me to redo my roster prediction.

GOALIES: Mike Jarboe, Philip Graveline

DEFENSEMEN: Curtis Heinz, Brett Kaneshiro, Jaakko Lehtonen, Zach Trotman, Justin Hancock, Shaun Jameson, Sebastien Johansson, Ryan Gaffney

FORWARDS: Broderick Browne, Brett Hartung, Matt Kenline, Trent Krueger, Sean McKenzie, Jeff McNeil, Dustin Nowick, Aaron Quick, Ricky Brown, Kyle Delaurell, Grant Dixon, Michael Hill, Adam Mitchell, Adam Sponseller, Branson Yost

No official word on when the final roster will be out, but if it's anything like last season, it could be out tomorrow. As soon as it's official, I'll post it here.

And Ryan, to answer your questions, not sure if this is the same Mike Miller or not. The one in our camp was a '91 from Bloomfield Hills, MI. No official word on Michael Hill yet, but I know I'd love to have him here. His speed would be a huge asset. And I haven't found anything on Mike Henderson as to where he was shipped off or what we got in return.

Wildcats Final Camp, Session 3

2008-08-09T21:17:00.002-06:00

Evening Saturday. The final chance for players to make an impression on the coaches to get named to the All-Star Game and the final roster.

Makes for some exciting hockey.

The first game put Gold up against Blue, and as with their previous games, Gold shot the lights out, putting 50 shots on goal against the recently-arrived Mike Jarboe. I heard from someone that Jarboe was on the road all night and playing on about 3 hours of sleep, so I'll certainly excuse him for allowing 7 goals on those 50 shots. Blue hung right in until the end, scoring 6 on Philip Graveline. Anyways, recapping goals, Gold got them from Caleb Lister, Adam Mitchell, two from Trent Krueger, two from Sean McKenzie, and the game winner from Curtis Heinz. Assists were credited to Marcus Andary, Heinz, Tristan Musser, Sam Cimino, Brett Hartung, and two to McKenzie. The Blue team's goals came from an Adam Sponseller hat trick, two from Adam Cardwell, and one from Aaron Quick. Assists went to Zachary Rourke, Jeff McNeil, , Ryan Dyer, Cardwell, and Kyle Soder. Sponseller is looking a lot faster so far this season. Additionally, Jeff McNeil ran Graveline over about seven times this weekend. Considering the two were talking and being friendly between games, it doesn't seem it's anything personal. Perhaps a test to see who will stand up for their goalie and take on the 6'3" 200 pounder?

Speaking of standing up and fighting, we had a couple in this one. First off, McNeil was challenged by Gold's Patrick Cahill after a huge hit by Cahill on McNeil and a slash back by McNeil. Pretty even fight, not much landed by either. I'd call it a draw, maybe a slight edge to Cahill. Second was off the faceoff after a Blue goal when Ricky Brown and Kyle Soder dropped the gloves. They went down quickly, edge to Brown. The two just picked up the gloves and helmets, the puck was dropped again, and the gloves came off again, this time with Soder scoring a pretty clear win, though Brown had a decent showing.

The nightcap featured Red vs. Green, with Green winning 5-4 in a shootout. This one was a really fun one to watch, lots of good hitting and action at both ends. All four goaltenders showed they could certainly handle the backup job, so it seems it will certainly be a race to the finish, with essentially five goalies competing for one spot. Green tallied goals from Chris Rose, Tim Opie, Victor Karlsson, and Alex Barr. Assists went to Shayne Caruso, Sebastien Johansson, Shane Vorndran, Ryan Gaffney, Brett Kaneshiro, and Anthony Finney. For Red, goals were scored by Hans Helminen, Kyle Delaurell, Trevor Campbell, and Dustin Nowick. Assists were marked by Nowick, Delaurell two, Nick Guzman, Shaun Jameson, and Ales Jezek. The lone shootout goal was scored by Green's Branson Yost.

This one was a fun one for fights. Early on, Clayton Glick and Ryan Brown went at it in a pretty even fight, both throwing a lot, neither landing much. And then to start off the second period, what's better than all ten skaters dropping the mitts? As far as I could tell, the matchups were (Green player named first) Chris Rose vs. Nick Guzman, Shane Vorndran vs. Trevor Campbell, Alex Barr vs. Hans Helminen, Cole Winans vs. Matt Shost, and Grant Dixon vs. Jaakko Lehtonen. I couldn't keep track of all of them, but of what I could figure out, Lehtonen got Dixon bleeding from the nose, Winans got Shost bleeding, Campbell beat Vorndran, and Barr and Helminen weren't too serious about fighting and just did because everyone else did. I couldn't see much from Guzman and Rose while I was writing everything down. And finally, off a faceoff, Anthony Finney went with Shaun Jameson, with Jameson getting a pretty decisive win. I'm guessing Finney didn't know that Jameson was undefeated in seven fights last season.

And so, we're at the end of camp, with only the All-Star Game left to be played. Before I make my final roster predictions, by request here is a list of all the players in camp.

* denotes players not eligible for the final roster

RED TEAM
D: Trevor Campbell, Justin Hancock, Shaun Jameson, Jaakko Lehtonen, Matt Shost, Sam Smith
F: Ryan Brown, Kyle Delaurell, Nick Guzman, Hans Helminen, Gerry Holland, Ales Jezek, Thomas Moessner, Dustin Nowick, Taylor Shea, Dan Shilts

GOLD TEAM
D: Ryan Cole, Curtis Heinz, Tristan Musser, Zach Trotman, David Wasnick, Zach Waxenburg
F: Marcus Andary, Ricky Brown, Patrick Cahill, Sam Cimino, Nick Gualano, Brett Hartung, Michael Hill, Trent Krueger, Caleb Lister, Sean McKenzie, Adam Mitchell

BLUE TEAM
D: Ryan Dyer, Goshi Kumagai, Craig Martin, Mike Miller, Jimmy Richardson
F: Julian Breaux, Broderick Browne, Adam Cardwell*, Pat Gallagher, Jeff McNeil, John Paul McNicholas, Aaron Quick, Zachary Rourke, Kyle Soder, Adam Sponseller, Michal Szabo, Jake Machel

GREEN TEAM
D: Alex Barr, Shayne Caruso, Ryan Gaffney, Sebastien Johansson, Brett Kaneshiro, Cole Winans
F: Grant Dixon, Anthony Finney, Clayton Glick, Victor Karlsson, Matt Kenline, Clayton Lewis, Tim Opie, Chris Rose, Luke Salazar*, Shane Vorndran, Branson Yost

GOALIES
Brian Phillips, Philip Graveline, Mike Jarboe, Jeff Michael, Brent Troyan, Peter Emery

Putting together a good prediction for the final roster was a tough task. As I said earlier today, the gap between the best player and the worst player is much smaller than it has been in the recent past. Even coming up with 40 players for the All-Star Game was hard. I had to leave a lot of really good players off my roster, but that being said, here's what I put in as my guess for the $500 Final Roster Contest, in no particular order.

GOALIES: Mike Jarboe, Peter Emery

DEFENSEMEN: Shaun Jameson, Brett Kaneshiro, Curtis Heinz, Ryan Hancock, Zach Trotman, Jaakko Lehtonen, Craig Martin, Goshi Kumagai

FORWARDS: Brett Hartung, Jeff McNeil, Dustin Nowick, Adam Sponseller, Sean McKenzie, Matt Kenline, Aaron Quick, Adam Mitchell, Ricky Brown, Branson Yost, Kyle Delaurell, Broderick Browne, Clayton Lewis, Michael Hill, Ales Jezek

As for the ASG rosters, take those players and add in...

GOALIES: Philip Graveline, Jeff Michael

DEFENSEMEN: Tristan Musser, Zach Waxenberg, Shayne Caruso, Ryan Gaffney

FORWARDS: Grant Dixon, Zach Rourke, Kyle Soder, Nick Guzman, Ryan Brown, Hans Helminen, Patrick Cahill, Trent Krueger, Victor Karlsson

And I'll go out on a limb here-- even if (or when) my 25-man final roster is proven wrong, all 25 of the players on the roster are on my ASG list. We'll see soon if I know a thing about scouting or not.

Anyways, All-Star Game is 1 pm tomorrow. I'll have a boxscore and update (and maybe a final roster) tomorrow evening.

Wildcats Final Camp: Practice, Sessions 1 and 2

2008-08-09T13:02:00.002-06:00

Alright, I said I would update people on camp, and I'm finally doing so!

The group as a whole looks seriously awesome. Past years, there have been times that I could pick out players I'm certain would not make the final team. This year, the gap between the best and worst player is much smaller. There are 65 skaters and 6 goalies tryout out this year. Sorted by age:

1988: 13 (7 NAHL experienced)
1989: 28 (9 NAHL experienced)
1990: 28 (3 NAHL experienced)
1991: 2

By state/country:
Michigan: 19
California: 12
Texas: 9
Colorado: 5
Pennsylvania: 3
Ohio: 3
Minnesota: 2
Sweden: 2
Washington: 1
Arizona: 1
Czech Republic: 1
Wisconsin: 1
Japan: 1
Slovakia: 1
Missouri: 1
Finland: 1
Illinois: 1
Florida: 1
Maryland: 1
New Jersey: 1
Alaska: 1
Massachusetts: 1
Nevada: 1
Indiana: 1

Anyways, enough of that nonsense. From the practices on Friday morning, I felt that Green and Blue were faster than Gold and Red, though I wouldn't get a chance to know for certain until Saturday morning.

Anyways, first game, Gold and Red played in the first game Friday evening. Gold won 5-2, with Brett Hartung scoring two goals and getting an assist. Also scoring for gold were Ricky Brown, Sean McKenzie, and Caleb Lister. Assists went to Sam Cimino, Adam Mitchell, and Patrick Cahill. Red's goals were scored by Thomas Moessner and Kyle Delaurell, with an assist going to Dustin Nowick. One fight as well, with Ryan Brown getting the decision over Marcus Andary right off a faceoff following Ricky Brown's goal. And just a warning, do not cross the blue line with your head down while Jaakko Lehtonen is on the ice. The kid can hit, big time; think Ossi Vaananen.

On to the second game, Green and Blue faced off, with Blue winning 2-1. Blue's goals were scored by Craig Martin (not the former Winnipeg Jet) and Zachary Rourke from Martin. Green's goal was scored by Luke Salazar, with assists going to Tim Opie and Clayton Glick. Two fights here, with Grant Dixon scoring a decision over Jimmy Richardson, and Ryan Gaffney getting bloodied by Broderick Browne. The Green team has some good hitters in Dixon and Branson Yost, so as with last year's team, be prepared for physical play this season from whoever makes the team here in Wichita Falls.

Moving on to Saturday morning, Blue vs. Red was a high-scoring affair, with a final of 7-4 with Red on top. Red's goals were scored by Nick Guzman, Shaun Jameson, Jaakko Lehtonen, Ales Jezek, Dan Shilts, Dustin Nowick, and Hans Helminen. Assists went to Shilts, Nowick, Jezek, Jameson, and Sam Smith. For Blue, goals were tallied by Adam Cardwell, Goshi Kumagai, Pat Gallagher, and John Paul McNicholas. Getting the assists for Blue were Zachary Rourke, Thomas Moessner, Kyle Soder, and Michal Szabo. Two fights in this one, with Aaron Quick getting the win over Justin Hancock, and Smith challenging Cardwell. In the latter fight, Smith took the initiative and issued the challenge and got the takedown early and quickly. Though with it being so quick, the officials let them go again, with Cardwell getting the win overall. And as far as I could tell from my initial reactions, Blue and Green were faster, however as a whole, Red and Gold have more talent.

As for Saturday's second game, Gold played against Green, with Gold winning 4-2. Gold's goals were scored by Brett Hartung (two for him again), Sean McKenzie, and Michael Hill with an empty netter; assists went to Patrick Cahill, Adam Mitchell, and Sean McKenzie. Green's goals went to Victor Karlsson and Shane Vorndran, and an assist I believe to Clayton Lewis. Lewis, while not figuring much into the scoring has been impressive-- he's a high-energy player, always is in good position, communicates well with linemates, and is one of those 100% balls-to-the-wall type of players. One fight in this game, Caleb Lister vs. Grant Dixon. Pretty much a total Donald Brashear style hug-fest, I'd score it a draw.

Two more games tonight, plus All-Star game tomorrow. Additionally, Wildcats' owner Roy Davoult has announced a roster contest: if you can accurately guess the Wildcats' final 25-man roster, you win $500. If no one guesses perfectly, the most accurate will win $100. You can be sure I'll be entering a roster for it. Guesses must be in by tonight at 9 pm. I'll post my guess tonight after the deadline. This is a tough one to guess-- there are a lot of really good players in camp this year, and while I'm sure I can guess about 18-22 of the players correctly, there are probably 20 who could easily fill those last few spots.

Busy weekend ahead

2008-08-06T20:58:00.002-06:00

So along with a semi-promotion at work this week (I'm still a part timer, but I've been added to the news staff, being heard daily at 3 minutes past the hour between 4 and 7 pm on Newstalk1290), we have the first major event of the hockey season going on this weekend: Wichita Falls Wildcats Final Tryout Camp.

As with last year, I'll be there every day this year, scouting players and also functioning as rink announcer. And as with last year, you can read my reports here at Simply Drew. And if anyone else is at any of the camps and has anything they'd like to add to my writings on it, talk to me, we'll see what we can do.

Brett Favre is not heeding my advice

2008-07-29T10:06:00.003-06:00

Go figure.

Anyways, as promised, the rest of this series, this time we look at hockey. So in between refreshing Woot in hopes of buying a Bag O'Crap during today's Woot-Off, I give you a list of hockey players who should have just quit while they were ahead instead of going to different teams.

Bobby Orr - Chicago Blackhawks, 1976-79
It's hard for the greatest to give up their game, especially when it was taken away via injury and Alan Eagleson's crimes. But still, when you are risking life and limb to play the game you love, it's time to hand up the jersey. As a Blackhawk, you could see Orr still had the fire and the ability, but his knees wouldn't hold up for him. 27 points in 26 games is still a great number, but it's the fact he could only play 26 games in that time span that indicated that he should have bowed out as a Bruin.

Guy Lafleur - Quebec Nordiques, 1989-91
What exactly was the point of Lafleur retiring, getting elected to the Hall of Fame, and then unretiring, coming back to two different teams then the one he played on previously? His last season dans le bleu, blanc, et rouge should have indicated he was done-- 5 points in only 19 games. And he accepted it. For about four years. In 1988, he joined the New York Rangers for a season, and then followed it up with the Nordiques-- his old Habs teams' local rivals through the 1980's-- for a final two seasons. From 1974-83 in Montreal, Lafleur was good for more than a point per game. It just wasn't the same seeing him in a different jersey, struggling to reach even 30 or 40 points.

Brett Hull - Phoenix Coyotes, 2005-06
A lot of you know I'm not a big fan of Hull. His name will always be tainted for the No Goal in 1999. That being said, his best years were in St. Louis and Dallas. You might even see the occasional Flames or Red Wings Hull jersey, which wouldn't look completely wrong. But I can almost guarantee no one in their right mind would wear a Phoenix Coyotes Brett Hull jersey. The guy came to them after the lockout... and played a whole 5 games, getting himself an assist before opting to retire. It took Hull's buddy Wayne Gretzky to offer him a job playing. Brett, that should have told you something.

Paul Coffey - Boston Bruins, 2000-01
I can give a pass to Brian Leetch for going to the B's to finish his career, as he was raised in nearby Connecticut. But Coffey's arrival in the spoked B was just weird. Everywhere he played, Coffey wore either 7 or 77. Obviously neither was available in Boston (7 was retired for Esposito, 77 was on its way to retirement for Ray Bourque). That should have been a sign for Paulie, but no. He went onward, wearing #74. The former assist-machine for Gretzky and Mario Lemieux only tallied four of them in 18 games before realizing he was done.

Peter Forsberg - Nashville Predators, 2006-07
It was strange enough seeing Forsberg wearing a Flyers jersey instead of an Avs jersey after the lockout. But as the team fell apart in the 2006 season and it was obvious he was going to be traded, no one would have picked Nashville as being the team to get him. And seeing him in the baby-turd-gold and navy blue of the Preds just looked wrong. Scoring only two goals in 17 games (but adding 13 assists) just didn't look right either. And where did the former two-time Stanley Cup winner go in the playoffs? Out in the first round, that's where. Thankfully, Forsberg returned to the burgundy and blue for one final go-round, with injury-plagued results similar to the short time he spent in Nashville (1 goal in 9 games, but with 13 assists, followed by his team falling apart in the playoffs-- at least this time in the Western Conference Finals, rather than the first round). But at least the uniform looked right on him as he left the ice one last time.

Get it yet, Brett?

2008-07-23T13:25:00.002-06:00

In our continuing installment on Brett Favre's desire to unretire, we look at other players who went elsewhere and looked just plain wrong. And played pretty wrongly as well. We covered football and basketball already, so it's time we move onward to baseball.

Babe Ruth - Boston Braves, 1935
By 1933, it was pretty obvious Babe Ruth's career was on the decline. For the first time since an injury-plagued 1925 season (stomache ache from a hot dog bincg, or gonorrhea, you be the judge!), Ruth's home run totals dropped below 35 (for the record, the last time that happened before 1925 was 1918, when he was pitching for the Red Sox). His batting average was below .310, something that last happened also in 1925 and 1918. Still, 34 HR and a .301 batting average are pretty awesome, just not Ruthian. A 22-HR and .288 campaign in 1934 signaled the end of the Babe's career. However he decided to go one more season with the Boston Braves, batting .181 with 6 HR. It didn't do much to tarnish his legacy, but really, what good did it do him?

Harmon Killebrew - Kansas City Royals, 1975
When you think "Killebrew," you think "Twins baseball." You think the old powder blue uniforms and TC logo. You think 573 career home runs. But you don't think of the Royals. But that's where Killer finished his career, in the shadows of the Royals Stadium fountains. He was never known as having a high batting average, as a .256 lifetime hitter. But in that one season, he managed to go even lower, hitting a paltry .199 with 14 HR, and his Three True Outcomes numbers were dominated by strikeouts, rather than walks or homers. Should have just hung up the cleats as a Twin.

Rickey Henderson - San Diego Padres, Anaheim Angels, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers, 1996-2003
Buy your tickets now, come and see baseball's circus freak! By the end of his third stint in Oakland, Henderson was pretty much living the life of a sideshow wherever he stopped. While people paid the good money to see Ken Caminiti, Tim Salmon, Mike Piazza, Edgar Martinez, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, and Pedro Martinez, in their prime, they were also treated to the ageless wonder on the side. If Methuselah could steal bases, he would have been Rickey Henderson. It wasn't that Rickey didn't have anything left in the tank. He most certainly did. It was the fact that he became a mercenary that lands him on this list. It was like he was that guy who had a band in high school, and is living in his parents' basement, insisting that the band should get back together with the drummer quitting his job as a stock broker, the guitarist leaving the world of real estate, and the bass player who actually became a legitimate musician leaving it behind for someone else's dream. Rickey, your "M.B.P." seasons were behind you. He hit below .250 in all those years but one. He had fewer than 40 steals in all those seasons but two. Sideshow. Nothing more.

Greg Maddux - Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, 2006-
The only active player gracing these lists. Since being traded from Chicago, Mad Dog has been 23-22 with an ERA of an even 4.00, and 203 strikeouts in 77 starts. A far cry from his 17 seasons in a row with 15+ wins, 15 seasons in a row with an ERA under 3.60, and 14 seasons in a row with 130+ strikeouts. Maddux will be forever remembered as a Brave and a Cub. These last few seasons aren't going to do him any good. Tom Seaver and Steve Carlton, two more great pitchers who didn't know when to retire and bounced around from team to team late in their careers, almost made the list as well.

Duke Snider - New York Mets and San Francisco Giants, 1963-64
I'll give the Duke a pass on the Mets. When you think baseball in the 1950's and 60's in New York, you think Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, and Duke Snider. Or at least that's what we're told in the song, and it sounds better than Willie, Mickey, and The Chooch. With his season with the Mets, at least he's returning to where his career started, albeit for a struggling expansion team. His numbers were still decent, as he still had an OPS of .746 (best on the team, sadly), and only made 4 errors in 1340 innings in the outfield. But he should have just let it end there. It's just plain WRONG seeing a Dodger great in a Giants uniform, especially when he's become a bit player off the bench, hitting .210 with a .610 OPS.

Wildcats Schedule Announced

2008-07-17T09:14:00.002-06:00

I'm late on this, but the Wildcats schedule is official. Looks tough with 38 of their 58 games coming against playoff teams from last year. This includes 12 games against Springfield, and three trips there. Longtime readers will recall my hatred of that arena. 11 games against defending champion St. Louis, and the start of the season against the US National Junior squad makes for a pretty tough schedule.

Here's how it all breaks down for the Cats, by team:

Minnesota Showcase: USNTDP (unsure if it's the U-17 or U-18 squad), Alexandria Blizzard, Albert Lea Thunder, Marquette Rangers
St. Louis Bandits 11
Springfield Jr. Blues 12
Fairbanks Ice Dogs 5
Wenatchee Wild 7
Topeka Roadrunners 8
Alaska Avalanche 6
Kenai River Brown Bears 5

We should be talking to 94.9 soon about getting everything straightened out in regards to radio broadcasts and such for the season. As far as I know, once again I'll be doing every trip except those to Alaska and Washington (We wuv Wenatchee Washington's Wild), but if anything changes it will be announced here and on the air.

More names for Brett Favre to remember

2008-07-16T15:56:00.003-06:00

In this ongoing installment, today we look at basketball for the top 5 list of players who never should have finished their careers with another team. Now I don't know basketball as well as I know other sports (mostly since I hate it; think about it, at 24 years old, I'm 5'8", my vertical leap is negative, I have no crossover dribble, and my shot from three-point range comes up shorter than an impotent midget immune to Viagra, so exactly what reason do I have for liking it?), but I'll try my best. Brett Favre, we hope you're still paying attention.

Patrick Ewing - Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic, 2000-02
There's just something so wrong about seeing Ewing in anything other than a blue or white #33 jersey (I know the Magic wear blue and white; he wore #6 there). Especially when he's wearing that "something else" while also averaging under 10 points and 8 rebounds per game.

Hakeem Olajuwon - Toronto Raptors, 2001-02
Another moment of "That's just not right." Olajuwon finished out his career in bright purple. Granted, that's just not right on any pro athlete. But especially on one who wore red and yellow, then red white and blue for his career in Houston. Factor in his double-double-per-game career averages (20+ points and 10+ rebounds per game across all the years, plus 3 blocks per game) had shriveled up to 7 points, 6 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks, and you have something that REALLY never should have been.

Michael Jordan - Washington Wizards, 2001-03
Self explanatory. I don't need to go into any detail here. Michael is a Chicago Bull, period, bite me, end of story.

Bobby Knight - Texas Tech 2001-07
Now I know it wasn't really Knight's choice to leave Indiana. But let's look at what happened to Indiana after he left, and to Knight after they fired him. Indiana struggled after 2002 (a team largely made up of Knight's players), and got caught with egg on its face in 2007, with Kelvin Sampson's recruiting violations. Knight on the other hand, kept running a clean program at Texas Tech and turned a dismal program into a team that was suddenly still alive in March every year. But still, Knight is synonymous with Indiana basketball. Successful in Texas or not, it's just not the same seeing him on any other sidelines.

Robert Parish - Chicago Bulls, 1996-97
One more time: when you think Robert Parish, you think Celtics green and white. No one remembers his time in Golden State, and no one cares about his tenure in Charlotte with the Hornets. But there's just something egregiously wrong about seeing him in red and black. Especially when one considers that he was behind Bill Wennington and Luc Longley on the depth chart. When you think of great centers, Parish will be on a list far ahead of Longley or Wennington. NBA Champions that season or not, he shouldn't have retired as their backup.

Further installments are coming this week, with baseball and hockey still on the way!

Brett Favre: Sit down, shut up, and just retire already!

2008-07-15T13:20:00.003-06:00

The title pretty much says it all, and actually has little to do with what I'm about to write about. Favre needs to stop wanting to be Roger Clemens, retiring and unretiring at the drop of a hat, and just do it already.

And don't go through this bull about wanting to be released to go play elsewhere. Think about it: how many players could have gone out at the top of their game, but chose to stick it out a while longer, their name and the new team becoming irrevocably linked forever as a total joke?

Actually, no need to think about it. I've made a top 5 list from each major sport.

Let's start with Favre's sport of football.

Johnny Unitas - San Diego Chargers, 1973
The Chargers brought in the 40 year old Unitas to try to boost their poor attendence: purely a publicity stunt, gone awry. Johnny U only appeared in 5 games, completing 44% of his passes, throwing three touchdowns, to seven interceptions, and a passer rating of 40.0. Rookie Dan Fouts replaced him, starting a Hall of Fame career.

Joe Namath - Los Angeles Rams, 1977
Obviously, neither Namath nor the Rams learned from the Unitas-Charger mistake four years before. Namath still had his arm, but his legs were pretty much useless by this point in his career. But yet, the Rams took a chance, and predictably, Namath flopped. He appeared in four games, throwing three TD's and five interceptions, was sacked seven times, and completed only 47% of his passes. His passer rating was 54.5. Soon after, he was replaced by Pat Haden, and the Rams finished the season 8-2, making the playoffs.

Thurman Thomas - Miami Dolphins, 2000
When you think of Thomas, you think of the great early 90's Bills teams that played in four Super Bowls. You think of a small running back who ripped off eight 1000-yard seasons with 88 TD's on the ground or through the air. But what you don't think of is a Miami Dolphons uniform, and only 136 rushing yards and 117 receiving yards in 9 games. Such were the numbers of Thurman Thomas in 2000.

Tony Dorsett - Denver Broncos, 1988
The name Tony Dorsett just screams "Dallas Cowboys" and "Pitt Panthers." Like the aforementioned Thomas, TD was a small back with eight 1000-yard seasons with his most famous team. And like Thomas, he finished his career with another team, rushing and receiving for barely 300 yards combined.

Vince Lombardi - Washington Redskins, 1969
Again: Lombardi, Packers, linked forever. Vince retired at the top of the game, winning the the 1965 NFL Championship, plus Super Bowls I and II. Could have stayed put and just left the game behind, his legacy untarnished. Then came the Washington Redskins. Perhaps if it wasn't for cancer, Lombardi could have turned the Skins into the next big dynasty. But as it stands, you say "Vince Lombardi," and everyone says "Packers," never "Redskins."

Later this week, I'll take a look at baseball, basketball, and hockey as well.

Cards, autographs, and wiffleball

2008-06-22T19:30:00.005-06:00

Been a while since I've been here, been busy cleaning the house, bowling, doing more autograph stuff, and playing wiffleball. But that last post by Sig and a few posts from the various card-related blogs online (for the record, each of those words is a separate link) got me thinking about the card industry and where it's headed.

It's a sad state of affairs that Topps is relying on gimmick cards to create interest in their products. I was once a loyal Topps baseball card buyer. I can't even tell you how many packs I bought in 1991, 1992, 1994, and 1997 (I didn't know a thing about cards before late 1990 when I bought way too much Score and Pro Set football; then I was a football collector primarily in 1993, varied my 1995 purchases, and bought a ton of Fleer in 1996, and have done mostly hockey since 1997), or how many old boxes of 1987 and 1988 Topps cards I've bought and busted. Even now I'll pick up a bunch of packs or a Wal-Mart Blaster Box every now and then. But it's not what it once was. The designs have gotten more complex, adding a glossy coating to every card, then adding gold foil to every card, stopping airbrushing in favor of Photoshopping, or worse, just leaving cards unchanged with a player in a Phillies jersey and the card listing him as a member of the Yankees.

While the cards may look better than the plain photo on paper that we once had, they just aren't the same. I can't really explain it, but comparing every year of cards, 1991 was to me the last pinnacle year for Topps. 1992 was still good, but the company sold its soul by 1995. And a lot of collectors seem to agree, as it was about 1994-1998 that all the little independent card shops shut down, with my favorite one, Stolen Base in Perry, Ohio, closing in January 1995.

And now the companies are trying to win back collectors and are failing. Instead of improving/changing the product for the better, back to something the collector truly wants, we get stuck with the 2006 Alex Gordon "shouldn't have been printed" error, the 2007 Derek Jeter-George Bush-Mickey Mantle "error," various 2007 signature "variations," 2007 Poley Walnuts card, and now the 2008 Red Sox-Rudy Giuliani "error," and the 2008 "error/inserts" of players from the World Baseball Classic. Newsflash Topps: we don't care.

To me, 1991 Topps was a classic set. Yes, it was overproduced and worth less than the card stock it was printed on, but it was their 40th anniversary, had a simple and pleasing design, and best of all, it had some great photos. Seriously, look for the cards of Wade Boggs, Benito Santiago, Roger Clemens, and Walt Weiss: I can picture each in my mind, with the blue sky and white puffy clouds as a backdrop behind Boggs, Santiago looking up at the camera man as though he were a pop fly at home plate, Clemens posed by the Fenway Park scoreboard, and Weiss leaping over a sliding Joel Skinner as he turned a double play. And the set was chock full of LEGITIMATE errors that the company actually corrected-- incorrect photos (Billy Bean for Jose Gonzalez, anyone?), mistakes in stats (Don Mattingly hitting .256 but only getting 10 hits in his 300-some at-bats), and one major blunder with a player listed with the wrong team (good ol' Keith Comstock, Topps can never get his team right on cards). Most of the time now, if there's an actual, unplanned error, the card companies won't bother correcting it. It isn't worth the effort to them.

It was also the last year that Topps followed their typical card design: Color photo on the front with no gloss, the back carried stats and info on the player, maybe a blurb or two about his career or personal life, always printed on a grayish card back with minimal extra colors added. In 1992, there was one change made: white card stock, and full-color backs. Excellent design, though it was the last of its kind. And that set gave birth to the annoying "parallel cards" that somehow make a card worth five times more just because it had a little patch of gold foil (Pacific perfected this art: variations in gold, silver, red, green, blue, copper, ice blue; and all had different values attached to them). By 1993, the fronts and backs were semi-glossy, by 1994, it was full-blown UV coating, and in 1995, it was gold foil on every card.

Maybe I'm in the minority on this one, but I don't care about autographed inserts. If I want to get something autographed, I'd rather write the player a letter or better yet, get it signed in person. I don't care about these things with a piece of jersey, bat, pants, stick, glove, ball, shoes, bases, boards, floor, astroturf, shorts, whatever, put into the card. First off, you just have to take the company's word that it's made of a piece of jersey the depicted player wore in a game. Just look at Hound Central 3.0 for some thoughts on this. Just give me the cards at an affordable price, save the memorabilia stuff for someone who cares about it.

Please Topps, go back to the old formula. Just a simple design, no frills, with 500-1000 players (they had 792-card sets in the 26-team MLB with an average of 29 players per team, and a few cards for all-stars, checklists, record breakers, or whatever sort of tribute they felt like adding; so with 30 teams, make it 924 cards: it easily works on the 132-card printing sheets, gives 29 players per team, and leaves 54 cards for whatever bonuses they care to add in). And do it with every sport: a hockey set could be done in a 792-card format, with 25 players per team and 42 cards left for whatever should be thrown in; basketball could be done with 528 cards-- 15 players per team, with 78 cards left for whatever they want to put in; football, well, forget football, because covering every player would take about a 1500-card set that no one would buy. Bring back the collector by making it collecting easily affordable cards (like $1 or less for 15 cards), rather than repeatedly praying for something valuable. Make it fun for the collector by having some interesting photos and up-to-date information, rather than bland bat-on-shoulder shots or a Photoshopped jersey. Keep the small-market collectors, those of us who can't afford to blow $200 on a box, in the game.

Stepping off my soapbox, I got a few autographs back since I last wrote about them. More than a few actually. Here's a few names: Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Rostislav Olesz, Joffrey Lupul, Michal Handzus, Zach Parise, Rick Manning, Keith Tkachuk, Brent Seabrook, Shea Weber, Kris Letang, Brett Hull, Brendan Bell, Frans Nielsen, Kurtis Foster, Stephane Veilleux, Pavel Datsyuk, Hannu Toivonen, Ryan Miller, Dan Cleary, Joe Buck, Hank Aaron, Ernie Harwell, Sparky Anderson, Bobby Bonilla, Duke Snider, Cecil Fielder, Darren Daulton, Cory Snyder, Ryne Sandberg, and Travis Fryman. Quite a list, and there are still more coming every day (I hope). Been sending out a bunch of baseball requests as well. Speaking of cards, one of Topps' best ideas recently is their All-Time Fan Favorites sets that they released in 2003, 2004, and 2005 and also for football in 2004. I'm trying to get them all signed.

And lastly, wiffleball. The Wichita Falls Wiffleball League has officially been established, and we're playing exhibition games throughout the summer. We've done two so far in the 95+ degree heat, with my team winning both, 5-2 and 5-0. Fun stuff, I'll probably have more to say on it once we get the season going. This should be fun: Wildcats hockey, autographs, and WF Wiffleball all in one blog.

Hockey Cards… It’s Amazing What Changes in 15 Years!

2008-06-06T18:02:00.003-06:00

Well, maybe I shouldn’t be too amazed. 15 years is a long time. But the last time I forked over some duckets for a pack of cards, I didn’t have to grab the green in my pocket… I could grab the silver.

But back then, I was also reaching for Score products and hoping to pull a Hasek, Jagr, or Belfour rookie. Little did I know, Score was probably one of the most over-produced sets in collecting history. You can find those cards, even boxes of those cards, for pennies on Ebay these days should you want to.

The name of the game these days is short print cards. The general rule is, the shorter the print, the more valuable the card. Cards are individually numbered now to represent how many cards have been printed and exactly what number in the print run your card is. There are cards numbered to 1999, 999, 599, 399, 200, 199, 100, 75, 50, 25, 15, 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. And I probably missed a few. But those are some of the more recognizable print runs that jump out to me.

And yes, I did say/write 1. There are some print runs that only make 1 version of a card. The print on the card therefore would be 1/1. I actually have two of these cards… a 1/1 Paul Coffey “In the Game Superlative” 1000 points card… a recent Ebay purchase.

Jerseys and patches, while typically short-printed, as well are also a hot commodity. Jerseys come from game worn or photo shoot worn jerseys and are inserted into tiny or large cutouts in the card. The cards are typically thicker as a result. And before you think about bending any packs to find jersey cards, do know that the manufacturers are one step ahead of you. That actually insert decoy cards of equal thickness into packs to deter pack bending.

Patches are more popular than game worn jerseys because they usually contain two or more colors of the jersey when card companies cut the jersey at the seams. The more colors and seams in a patch, the more coveted the card; and the more it books and sells for. I recently picked up a Brett Sterling 7 color patch… yet another Ebay purchase. It was promptly traded for some Patrick Kane cards. Right now, the most popular patches are 1/1 NHL logos or Meigray tags. If you want one of these, you’d better be really lucky (to pull one) or go to the bank and take out a loan.

And while I amazed to see jerseys and patches inserted into hockey cards when I jumped back into the hobby, I was floored when I saw cards that stick cutouts, skate cutouts, goalie mask cutouts, fight strap cutouts, and even SOCKS inserted as well! And I am sure I am missing a few. It’s probably only a matter of years before we see a sweaty jock sewn in as well.
The most coveted of cards are autographed rookies that are short printed. Autographed rookies of Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin can fetch thousands of dollars on Ebay. Some have even sold for over $10K! And if you ever want a premium on your card and you think the condition makes the grade, send it Becket Grading Service or Professional Sport Authenticators. A high grade can double or even triple the value of your card. Just ask Mr. Malkin...
And while Crosby and Ovechkin still at the tops as far as most collected, Carey Price, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Nicklas Backstrom are hot on their heals. Carey Price’s cards, in particular, have skyrocketed in value since he became the #1 goalie. It doesn’t hurt to have thousands of Canadian collectors scurrying to add Price to their collections.
One thing that hasn’t changed is what people collect. That runs the spectrum. People collect individual players, individual teams, skill players, enforcers, etc. There are still tons of set collectors out there.

And while you used to have to buy another pack of cards to hopefully finish out that set, that has changed too. There are a number of message boards devoted to connecting collectors, most notably Beckett.com, where I am a member. Now, if you want to finish out a set, you can go to a message board and post the players or the card numbers that you need and others will trade you cards to help you get what you need. On top of that, if you are interested in trading to obtain players or teams that you like, you can do that as well. I’ve made a number of trades on Beckett and have yet to have had a bad experience.

Personally, I enjoy collecting for a few reasons. I can collect and display players that I like, most notably Alexander Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom. I also view cards as mini-stocks. So I scour Ebay looking for steals and turn around and trade them or re-sell them for more. This allows me to expand my collection and bring some strategy to the hobby. But everyone has their own reasons and to each their own. The one thing I have learned again and quickly remember after 15 years, a card is only worth what you’ll pay for it and what it means to you. That’ll never change.

A new contributor!

2008-06-05T15:15:00.003-06:00

Simply Drew is opening its doors to new people again!

We had a guest writer make an appearance here back in June, I believe (Will was his name), and we're going to now have at least one more!

Sig from over at Two Minutes for Blogging might have a few things to write and post here over the next few weeks, so keep tuned for that. At the same time, I added a few thoughts over there a couple days ago, so go check it out!

And as always, if you want to write an editorial or help contribute to Simply Drew, leave me a comment or shoot me an e-mail.

Top 20 Why Reasons It Sucks To Like the Teams I Do

2008-06-05T10:37:00.005-06:00

20. September 2005: Cleveland Force fold.
Now I'm not a big soccer fan. I casually cheer for Chelsea and Juventus, and would occasionally go to a Cleveland Crunch or Force game. They were Cleveland's only championship-winning pro sports team. In 1994, 1996, and 1999, the Crunch, as they were known at the time, won championships in the old NPSL. They also lost in five other championship series between 1991 and 2005. However, indoor soccer just wasn't big enough, wasn't profitable enough, and with problems finding owners in 2005, the Force went on inactive status. Cleveland's only winning pro sports team, no matter how little-known they were, went silent.

19. May 7, 1957: Herb Score takes line drive to the face
Score was coming up as a great young power pitcher, possibly the best on the Indians' staff. Early in his third season, a Gil McDougald liner met his face and he was never the same afterward. Score went on to be a great announcer, but unfortunately, that doesn't win you games, and the Indians struggled.

18. January 7, 2008: LSU trounces OSU for National Championship
The wounds from the previous season had finally healed. Ohio State was back in the running for a National Championship, this time against Louisiana State. The 38-24 score sounds a lot closer than the game actually was, as the Tigers' 21-0 second quarter pretty much ended all hopes of OSU coming back.

17. June 14, 2007: Cavs get swept by Spurs
Self-explanatory. Cavs win the East, no one except an ineffective LeBron James shows up for the Finals. Possibly the most boring sporting event I have ever watched, golf, tennis, and fishing included.

16. May 14, 1993: Penguins blow it vs. Islanders
No team has won three straight Stanley Cups since the 1980's Edmonton Oilers. The Penguins, would have, could have, should have, but David Volek (who?) scored a game winner in Game 7 overtime to knock the Pens out of the playoffs. The Islanders went on to lose to the eventual Cup winners in Montreal in 5 games. No Canadian team has won the Cup since.

15. December 23, 2007: Browns lose to Cincinnati
The 2007 Cleveland Browns shocked the hell out of everyone in their run for a playoff spot. And in Week 16, the train derailed. A five-point loss guaranteed the Browns would have to beat San Francisco and then hope for Indianapolis to beat Tennessee in Week 17. Only one of the two happened; Tennessee pulled out the victory, keeping the new Kardiac Kids out of the playoffs.

14. June 4, 2008: Penguins lose in Cup Finals
I've said enough on this. Bite me, Detroit.

13. September 29, 1954: Willie Mays' catch is a parable for the entire World Series
I believe it was the great philosopher, Foghorn Leghorn, who said "I came. I saw. I got blown up." Such was the 1954 season for the Indians. Winning a record 111 regular season games, the Indians were expected to dominate the World Series against the Giants. Sadly, Bob Lemon forgot how to find the strike zone, Bob Feller didn't play (apparently his arm fell off or something), and the Giants swept the Indians.

12. April 17, 1960: Frank Lane trades Rocky Colavito
For a more current comparison, think about this. Bill Mueller hit .326 as a member of the Red Sox in 2003. Imagine now that the Indians decided to trade C.C. Sabathia for Mueller at the start of the 2004 season. That's about how lopsided this was: Harvey Kuenn was the AL batting leader in 1959, while Colavito was an up-and-coming power hitter coming off back-to-back 40-HR seasons. Kuenn did manage to hit .308 in Cleveland, but was soon after shipped off to San Francisco. Colavito would hit 245 more homers in his career.

11. May 4, 1976: Jim Chones breaks his ankle
Afther the stunning Miracle of Richfield upset, the Cavs went into Boston with confidence, set to take on the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference Championship. Sadly, less than a week before the series, Chones, the team's star center, broke a bone in his foot in practice, pretty much quashing Cleveland's hopes of victory. The Cavs evened the series with two home wins, but dropped the series in six. The Celtics beat Phoenix in six games for the NBA Championship.

10. September 25, 2005: Indians choke in the final week
A ball lost in the sun, a lack of clutch hitting, and the inability to lay down a bunt, all in the span of three games take the Indians from being 1.5 games out of the AL Central lead and 1.5 up in the Wild Card to losing six of their final seven games, including a three-game sweep by the AL Central and World Series champion Chicago White Sox. A 19-8 September will be overshadowed by the fact that they came into the last week of that month 18-4.

9. October 21-28, 1995: We waited 41 years for this?
The Indians have a 100-44 regular season before the hitting dries up against Atlanta. The Indians drop the World Series in 6 tightly-contested games, only one game being decided by more than one run (Atlanta's 5-2 victory in Game 4).

8. January 8, 2007: OSU loses to Florida on the gridiron...

7. April 2, 2007: Then repeats the process on the hardcourt.

6. January 4, 1981: Red Right 88
Damn you Brian Sipe! No one can blame Sam Rutigliano for this. Sipe was instructed to run Red Right 88, and if no one was open, Rutigliano told him to "throw it into Lake Erie." No one was open. Sipe tried to force the ball to Ozzie Newsome. Mike Davis intercepted it. Oakland held on for the 14-12 victory, and went on to win Super Bowl XV.

5. January 17, 1988: The Fumble
The hole opens, Earnest Byner could walk right in... but Webster Slaughter missed his block so he could watch Earnie score. Ball gets stripped by Slaughter's man, recovered by Denver, season over.

4. January 11, 1987: The Drive
John Elway rises to the occasion, Cleveland's eleven defenders don't. Even on a 3rd and 18 play with a botched snap, the ball bounces right to Elway and he finds Mark Jackson for 20 yards. I still refuse to believe Rich Karlis' OT game winning FG was truly through the uprights.

3. October 18-21, 2007: Outscored 30-5
I can't say much more than that. A 3-1 series lead, your aces set to pitch two of the three games, needing only to win one. And you still manage to lose three in a row: 7-1, 12-2, and 11-2.

2. May 7, 1989: The Shot
Everyone knew the ball was going to go to Michael Jordan. I knew it. You knew it. The entire arena knew it. Helen Keller could have seen it coming. And somehow, the Cavs only put one defender on him: Craig Ehlo. Jordan gets the ball, shoots, scores his 44th point and the Cavs become the Bulls' punching bag for the next decade. Why not double team Jordan with Ehlo and maybe Larry Nance or Hot Rod Williams? Why not team leader in steals, Ron Harper?

1. October 26, 1997: Speechless
Two hits in 8 innings. A 2-1 lead in the bottom of the 9th. And Jose Mesa can't hold it. A poorly timed error by Tony Fernandez and an Edgar Renteria single later, and the Indians blow it for the second time in three years. I don't cry after sporting events, but I'll admit I did after this one.

Oy...

2008-06-02T16:10:00.005-06:00

So I shaved my playoff beard on Saturday and can turn my attention to baseball 100%.

A few thoughts...

1992 series vs. Washington, Pens down 3-1, came back to win. Could it happen again? Probably not. The Wings are not the 1992 Caps, and Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are not Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr.

However, 66 years ago, the Wings blew a 3-0 series lead in the Finals against Toronto. Yes, 66-- Mario Lemieux's jersey number.

And Game Six, should it be played, would be the 67th straight sellout for the Penguins. And what year did the Pens enter the NHL? 1967.

That's gotta be some numeric karma there for the Pens.

By the way, not even the cashiers at Dairy Queen have grasped at this many straws.

Oh well. We'll see who win more Cups from 2009 through 2015, Detroit or Pittsburgh.

By the way: NHL barely beat out MMA fighting in the TV ratings on Saturday. Are you listening, Kommissar Bettman und Kommandant Kampbell?

Like a fish out of water...

2008-05-27T12:02:00.002-06:00

Another gem from the LGW crew...

"Johan Franzen dives? LOL"

Yes Kylee, he does.

Considering ~~Jackass~~ wait I mean ~~Donkey,~~ err sorry, Mule, took about 3 seconds to react, fell like he had been shot, and then came back for his next shift, I don't see what's to laugh at.

If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck...

By the way, nice glove slaps there by Pavel Datsyuk. I can just hear him in that scrum screaming "Oh stop it, you big bully! STOP!!!!" What's just as funny are the Wings fans who think Datsyuk is such a badass for it. Yeah, let's see him with the gloves off with Gary Roberts in a real, honest-to-goodness fight. Now there's some one-sided entertainment.

That being said, it turns out again that I was right: Sidney Crosby should not be wearing the C at this early point in his career, and the playoffs are showing that. He's the best player in the game, top 3 at the worst (I think even Wings fans would admit to that), but he doesn't have the experience needed to handle the pressure at this point in his career. Had the Pens been thinking with their heads instead of their marketing department, they would have realized that Gary Roberts or Darryl Sydor, playoff-experienced heart and soul players, should wear the C. Not a third-year diving whiner who's in his first trip past the second round. You don't give the C to your best player, you give it to your best leader (likewise with Detroit, while Nicklas Lidstrom is a decent enough leader, I think Kris Draper, Chris Chelios, or Dallas Drake are better suited for a captaincy).

Hal Gill, as I have said in the past, is useless: always has been, always will be. The guy is 6'7" 250, afraid of his own shadow, and slow. He and Sergei Gonchar, paired together in Boston, single-handedly cost the Bruins the playoffs in 2004. Then again, the Pens defense has been in the crapper since the mid 90's; at least they're trying to fix it, even if every attempt at repair fails miserably.

Chris Osgood, while playing well, is still an average goalie. Swap him with Marc-Andre Fleury, and these games are all around 6-0 or 8-0. If he gets named Conn Smythe winner, he should seriously re-award it to the defensemen in front of him. Any goalie can look good when only facing about 20 cream puff shots per game because the defense closes everything down.

Am I concerned as a Pens fan? Hell yes. But, the Pens still have not lost a game at home since February. And they showed some balls late in Game 2, something they need to do more of. I had been saying that the Pens need to play a physical game to hang in there, and they did exactly that in the first period of Game 1. They quit in the last two periods and allowed four goals. Same thing last night: nothing physical until the third, and suddenly it seemed like the tide shifted a bit. Step up the hitting, play your game rather than trying to beat the Wings at their game.

Anyways, down 2-0, heading home, I'm concerned. But it ain't over.

Yet.

Anyways, moving on...

2008-05-26T13:28:00.002-06:00

So I'm a week behind on this, but the names of the Wildcats' draft picks and tenders have been released, and as promised, I'll bring any info I can gather up.

First off, the USHL Draft. Only one Wildcat was picked, and that was Sean Duddy, taken in the 13th round by Green Bay. Not a big surprise, I said before the draft that we would see him being picked, and with new Green Bay coach Jon Cooper having seen him play live four times this year, he knows what he's getting. Best of luck to him if he makes the team, and if not, I'm certain he'll be welcome to return to Wichita Falls. Also, defenseman Justin Javorek has told the coaching staff that he may not return this season. A bit of a surprise, but not immensely so. I'm sure he was a bit discouraged by the lack of playing time he got late in the season, especially after the trading deadline. Best of luck to him wherever he goes, whether it's back to WF, to another North American league, or somewhere in his native Slovakia. I'll have more on some USHL Draft info in a bit as I cover each draft pick and tender for the Cats.

Moving on to the draft, the Wildcats grabbed five players in the four round draft, including three second round picks. I believe one came from the trade of Michael Schumacher to Fargo-Moorhead, not sure about the other extra pick. First round, the Cats picked up Justin Castagna, a 5'9" 165 forward from the LA Selects. He's a '90, shoots lefty, but I'm not sure if he'll be a left wing or center. Coach John Bowkus compares him to Adam Cardwell, a smaller guy who is an excellent passer and sees the ice well. Castagna was a 2007 USHL Entry Draft pick by Cedar Rapids, but did not play for them. The fact that he was a USHL pick should tell us something about his talent.

Second round, in order, the Cats got Kyle Beattie, Taylor Mouser, and Chris Annunziato. Beattie is a forward from Phoenix's P.F. Chang's Midget AAA squad. He's a righty, 6'0" 180, and a '91. He was also the Omaha Lancers' first pick in the 2007 USHL Futures Draft and is on the WHL's Everett Silvertips' protected list. Mouser is another '91 from P.F. Chang's, 6'0" 185, listed in all Wildcats info as a defenseman, but as a forward on the P.F. Chang's site (perhaps this could be similar to former Wildcat Petr Ondrejac-- listed as a forward on his Czech teams, but was signed as a defenseman here, and played a little at both ends). As for Annunziato, he comes from the Colorado Rampage AAA squad, which I believe also gave us a couple of players recently (Kyle DeLaurell and Mike Henderson). Annunziato is an '89 forward, 5'9" 155, and was 20-24-44 in 50 games this season, also adding 87 PIM.

Moving into the third round, the Wildcats picked up Grant Dixon of the Lansing Capitals. Dixon is another 1990 forward, lefty shot, and is 5'11" 180. Lansing's assistant coach is Ray McKenzie, father of Wildcats forward Sean McKenzie. Also according to their website, the Lansing Capitals have officially been designated as a Wildcats Tier 1 AAA affiliate.

Talking to Coach Bowkus, he seems very happy with the additions the team made in the draft on top of what they got via the tendering process. Speaking of which, the Wildcats made a total of eight tenders before the draft, netting themselves six forwards and two defenseman. Here's a little info.

With the Texas Tornado officially taking a year off from the NAHL, this allowed the Wildcats to tap into their pipeline of up and coming Dallas-area players. Of the eight tenders, five come from Texas teams, including one former Tornado player.

One name Wildcats fans will immediately recognize is Adam Mitchell. Mitchell spent last season as a forward with the Tornado, going 7-5-12 in 52 games. Mitchell is a 1990 out of Maryland, also drafted in the USHL by Sioux Falls in the 9th round. So it is entirely possible he may never appear in a Wildcats uniform, but just in case, he's on the protected list.

The other Texas guys include Michael Hill, Matt Shost, Ryan Daugherty, and Robert Brown. Hill and Shost come from the Dallas Alliance AAA squad. Hill is a 1990 forward, 5'9" 165, shoots righty. Shost is the lone defenseman of the group, another 1990, 6'0" 170. Daugherty is a '91, 6'1" 185, shoots righty. However, he's another USHL pick (4th round by Omaha), so he's another who may never play for the Cats. Unfortunately I can't find any info on Brown, except that he played last year for Texas Attack AAA. Any help on his numbers is appreciated. Three native Texans have worn the Wildcats uniform so far (Chris Nicolaou, Drew Harcharik, and Jarrett Runey), and this season is almost guaranteed to bring us more.

The final three tenders I haven't covered yet are forwards Darren Quick and Cody Dion, and defenseman Zach Trotman. I can't find any info on Quick at all-- where he comes from, position, nothing. Any help here is appreciated. Dion played for Colorado's Pike's Peak Miners AAA squad this past season, and is the younger brother of NAHL defenseman Casey Dion of Springfield (formerly of North Iowa). However, Cody has also signed with the AJHL's Okotoks Oilers (as has Casey), so once again, there's a pretty good chance we don't be seeing him in the Falls this season. Trotman played last season in Michigan for Victory Honda AAA. He's a 1990, 6'3" 195, and was 3-6-9 in 26 games, adding 24 PIM. However, yet again, we have another USHL draft pick, taken by Waterloo in the 14th round. You know the deal by now, he may never play here, we don't know.

So there you have it. Looks like a pretty good mix of talented players who should rebuild the top line for the Cats after losing Cardwell, Salazar, and Grant Everett, last year's leading scorers and top line.

Angry sometimes?

2008-05-25T17:01:00.017-06:00

Judging by the 13 now 25 mostly anonymous comments I received, it seems I touched a nerve with my last post.

Cry me a river, Wings fans. By the way, since none of you had the balls (typical Detroiters) to leave a name or e-mail address with your posts, they all got deleted. But then again, while 13 comments of what essentially amounts to "You suck, Red Wings rule" may work over at LetsGoWings.com, it won't fly here. To the commenter who said "I like how you moderate the comments on your blog, not really looking for a dissenting opinion are we?" read what I just said."You suck, Wings rule" or "You're a tool" is not exactly a dissenting opinion. If someone can actually come up with a decent response and one that isn't profanity-laden like most of those I've read, then sure, maybe I'll let it through. But if you can't make a point without being profane, then you have no point to begin with and I won't bother responding.

Frankly I'm doing all of you a service by not posting what you've chosen to say, as it only makes me look better by comparison by not stooping to your levels. So go ahead and keep up the insults, if you so choose. I've been called worse things by far better people anyway. Frankly I've met my goal, angering Red Wings fans. Mission accomplished.

Amazing. A blog that, as one commenter stated, "no one reads" has gotten 25 comments, and is increasing by the hour. Seems like you have a little too much time on your hands if you actually want to concern yourself with an "amateur journalist" as another called me. I do believe a degree from one of the top journalism schools in the country and three years experience in the broadcast news and sports field hardly makes me an "amateur." Keep 'em coming!

For the record, I also have had 15 comments supporting my views. I have chosen not to post those either.

But for now Detroiters, enjoy the city with the country's highest murder rate, and as you send this to your friends to laugh at, remember that there is no such thing as negative publicity.

Top 10 reasons to hate the Detroit Red Wings

2008-05-25T09:57:00.003-06:00

1. This team is owned by Mike Ilitch, a man with dreams of turning the Red Wings into the New York Yankees of hockey while spending years neglecting his other teams, the Detroit Tigers and the Detroit Drive, formerly of the AFL. If you aren't going to help them, sell them Mike.

2. The Wings are the only team ever to un-retire a number with no reason given as to why they did it. Ask Larry Aurie's family how they feel about the organization that Aurie spent his entire NHL career with. His number was retired in 1939 and hung in the rafters as the first number in Red Wings history to receive that honor. By 2001, the banner was taken down and Aurie's name was removed from the list of retired numbers. Again, no explanation was ever given. Why?

3. Tomas Holmstrom. This is just the kind of player Gary Bettman wants in the new NHL: someone who will invade the crease and interfere with the goaltender, with no chance of retribution from a defenseman because they can't touch him. Challenge him to fight in response to getting too close and he'll just turn tail and run.

4. Red Wings fans love to point out how often Colorado Avalanche players, specifically Peter Forsberg, take dives to draw penalties, but conveniently ignore the flopping done by Valtteri Filppula, Johan Franzen, Jiri Hudler, Kirk Maltby, and Mikael Samuelsson.

5. Chris Chelios went from being a hated man in Detroit after his years as an Original Six rival playing in Montreal and Chicago, to suddenly becoming the most beloved sports figure in Red Wings history behind only Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman. Additionally, it's a disgrace handing the jersey number 24, formerly worn by tough guy and fan favorite Bob Probert, to a stick-swinging, mouthy jerk with over 2500 PIM and fewer than 75 career fights (in fact, I believe he may be the leader in fewest fights per PIM in those with over 2500 minutes in the box). By the way, those fights include victories over noted heavyweights Luc Robitaille, Mike Knuble, Steve Yzerman, Glenn Anderson, Brian Bellows, Larry Murphy (playoffs), and Pat Verbeek; draws against the ever-so-tough Mark Recchi, Sergei Fedorov, Kelly Kisio, and Tomas Sandstrom; and losses to the real tough guys like Brian Curran, Nevin Markwart, Brendan Shanahan, Mark Tinordi, Derian Hatcher, Tony Twist (preseason), Chris Simon (preseason), Tyson Nash (barely a tough guy, but still beat Chrissy), and Larry Playfair. Why every Wings fan thinks he's so tough, and such a "badass" as one has called him, is beyond my comprehension.

6. The "Hockeytown" name. If Detroit is such a great hockey town, why are there empty seats in the arena for the Cup Finals? Why was the arena "dead silent" last night, according to fans of both Detroit and Pittsburgh? Why could fans, according to Don Cherry, call up the team the morning of a Conference Final game and get tickets? Not just one or two tickets either: a block of 12 tickets all together. You should be ashamed to call yourselves "Hockeytown." Give that name to a team where the fans support no matter what: Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Philadelphia. Not Detroit, where attendance reads well, but in actuality is nowhere near the published numbers.

7. Red Wings fans are impossible to like. More than three decades ago, Roger Angell described New York Yankees fans as "overdressed, uncomprehending autumn arrivistes." Today we would describe them as front-running boors. Replace "autumn" with "spring," and you have the average Detroit Red Wings fan.

8. Red Wings fans largely live in the past. Okay, great, you have 10 Stanley Cups. Since 1960, they have three. In that span, Montreal has won 12, Edmonton has won 5, the New York Islanders have won 4, New Jersey has won 3. Even the hapless Toronto Maple Leafs have won 4 since 1960.

9. Red Wings' stiff/scrub/plug/useless spare part Kirk Maltby has somehow won three Stanley Cups. Marcel Dionne, Dino Ciccarelli, and Gilbert Perreault, each ten times the player Maltby could ever hope to be, have none between them.

10. Red Wings fans. Without bias, I find you all to be the most insufferable, fair weather, ignorant fans in the world. Know this: no matter how many championships you win, you have a BORING, UNLIKABLE, UN-EXCITING TEAM.

Let me say this: I used to like the Red Wings. Key word: used to. When I was just starting to get back into hockey in the mid 1990's, the Red Wings were the second closest team to me, and having family in Michigan, they became a favorite of mine. Great players, great games, fun rivalry with Colorado that resulted in some good, fun to watch, rough-and-tumble hockey.

And then Ken Holland took over as GM. The Wings won two Cups with their tough and talented teams and after getting knocked out of the playoffs in 1999, the toughness was dismantled. The Red Wings won the Cup in 1997 while also being in the league's top 10 in fights. In 1998, they won again, last in fighting, but with plenty of willing fighters in Darren McCarty, Jamie Pushor, Joe Kocur, and Brendan Shanahan. And in 1999, a playoff loss with the same group (replace Pushor with Martin Lapointe). For the next three seasons, the Wings were dead last in the league in fights. In spite of their 2002 Cup win, this was not the team I once liked watching.

2002 the Wings had 23 fights in the regular season. The next season, the only reason they weren't at the league's basement in that category is because Sean Avery was around, and every other team decided to copy their blueprint: dump all toughness and bring in a bunch of high-flying European guys who fall down if touched.

The Red Wings went from being the epitome of my favorite brand of hockey to the dictionary definition of the kind of game I hate. It's boring. It's weak. It's not the way North American hockey was meant to be played at its highest level.

And with them about to win another Cup, you can guarantee every team will try to copy them. Again. And the game will continue on further down the drain.

MLB Nation Sim League

2008-05-15T10:11:00.003-06:00

Anyone out there know a thing about sim leagues at all? This is the first one I've joined and I have the Indians. It looks like it's a fantasy baseball type of thing, but instead of using real-life stats, the games are all simulated via computer. So what a player is doing now has no impact on the game (hence why Adam Miller is up and Cliff Lee is not)

For the record, here's what I've done with the Indians.

Lineup (numbers are their current and peak overall attributes on a scale of 100; injury level 0 unless noted)
1. Grady Sizemore CF 91/93
2. Victor Martinez C 88/88
3. Ryan Garko 1B 83/83
4. Travis Hafner DH 85/85
5. Jhonny Peralta SS 84/95
6. David Dellucci LF 77/77
7. Casey Blake 3B 76/76
8. Asdrubal Cabrera 2B 80/94
9. Ben Francisco RF 80/82

Bench
Kelly Shoppach 83/90
Jamey Carroll 79/79
Franklin Gutierrez 77/84
Trevor Crowe 74/86
Andy Marte 72/83

Rotation
1. Fausto Carmona 92/95
2. C.C. Sabathia 95/95
3. Jake Westbrook 83/83
4. Jeremy Sowers 80/93
5. Adam Miller 82/94

Bullpen
CP- Rafael Betancourt 94/94
SU- Jensen Lewis 84/90
SU- Rafael Perez 84/90
MRP- Aaron Fultz 82/82
MRP- Masahide Kobayashi 82/82
LRP-Aaron Laffey 80/85

Minor Leagues
Catchers
Wyatt Toregas 76/93
Yamid Haad 71/73
Matt McBride 70/93

Infielders
Stephen Head 68/74
Beau Mills 65/87
Carlos Rivera 63/81
Josh Barfield 77/77
Danny Sandoval 71/71
Jared Goedert 65/81
Wes Hodges 69/87
Joshua Rodriguez 65/83

Outfielders
Shin-Soo Choo 81/92 (20 injury)
Jordan Brown 74/87
Jason Michaels 74/74
Jason Cooper 73/77
Jason Tyner 73/73
Ryan Goleski 71/75
John Drennan 68/83
Roman Pena 68/81
Nick Weglarz 64/87

Starters
Scott Lewis 79/91
David Huff 77/88
J.D. Martin 77/85
Cliff Lee 77/77
Paul Byrd 76/77
Kelvin De La Cruz 69/88

Relievers
Joe Borowski 81/81
Tom Mastny 79/82
Brendan Donnelly 79/80 (110 injury)
Jorge Julio 77/77
Rick Bauer 77/77
Edward Mujica 76/89
Tony Sipp 76/85
Brian Slocum 76/83
Jeffrey Stevens 75/90
Matt Meyer 75/84
Sun-Wei Tseng 75/81
Juan Lara 75/79
James Deters 72/77
Matt Ginter 72/72
Brian Sikorski 70/70

So, give me your thoughts. Anyone you'd call up/send down? The season is just starting, for the record.

NAHL: Changes afoot?

2008-05-06T11:50:00.006-06:00

Lots of rumors flying right now. Go figure.

First off, congratulations to the St. Louis Bandits on their repeat as Robertson Cup champions. Having seen them play four times this year, I figured they would easily be the favorite to win it all again. Great season to all the other finalists as well, second-place Mahoning Valley, third place Topeka, and fourth-place Alexandria. Alexandria was the biggest surprise to me: the Wildcats mopped the ice with them 6-3 in Minnesota, then dropped four throughout the season to Springfield. So one would expect Springfield to take it to Alexandria pretty handily. Great showing by the Blizzard to get to the finals.

So yes, rumors. Of course it appears that Wenatchee is still up in the air. No players, no coaches, just an arena and a rumored team for 2008-09. With the draft two weeks away, I don't see anything happening this year, even though they say a deal "is close." Maybe 2009-10.

Could the Texas Tornado be taking a year off? According to a source with knowledge close to the situation, the Tornado may close up shop for 2008-09 and return to the NHL in 2009-10 once their arena construction is complete. Of course, the same was said in Texarkana in 2006. The team has not released an official comment at this time.

Or, could this be just a delay of the Tornado moving to the USHL in the next year or two? And if they go, could some other NAHL South teams join them? Might the NAHL expand to San Angelo, Austin, or El Paso soon? This could expand the rivalries for Texas, Wichita Falls, and Topeka (or replace a potential Texas-to-USHL move).

UPDATE, May 7: Tryout camp info has been removed from the Tornado site. Not sure why they aren't looking into playing in one of the other arenas in the DFW area, or even perhaps an area like San Angelo.

The Albert Lea Thunder have become official, as have the Motor City Machine. Can't wait to see the potential realignment if Wenatchee comes in too. Perhaps something like this?

EAST: Mahoning Valley, Motor City, Alpena, Traverse City, Marquette
NORTH: Albert Lea, Alexandria, Bismarck, USNTDP
WEST: Wenatchee, Alaska, Fairbanks, Kenai River
SOUTH: Texas, Wichita Falls, Topeka, St. Louis, Springfield

Of course, this screws up the Robertson Cup back to the way it was in 2006, with five teams playing for it. Seriously, why not just have it rotate cities without the host team playing unless they win their way in? Or why not just have it in a neutral city every year?

Could Mahoning Valley be headed for Cleveland? Rumor has it the USHL's Ohio Blue Jackets will either be moving to Youngstown or Detroit. If Youngstown, the Phantoms could be off to the Gilmour Academy rink, just up the road from my alma mater, University School. However, according to Ryan Wacheldorf, USHL Blogger extraordinaire, sources say the Ohio-to-Detroit deal is almost a certainty.

UPDATE May 7: Per Ryan's comments, looks like neither of those deals are close to completion.

Tryout camps start this month, with the draft two weeks away. Stay tuned, I'll have info as it comes out, especially on the Wildcats' tenders and draft picks.

Don't Call It A Comeback...

2008-05-02T12:51:00.002-06:00

How many times do you look at a musician, actor, athlete, whatever, and ask yourself "How the hell does this guy still have a job?"

Colorado Avalanche goaltender Jose Theodore is coming to my mind right now. Ever since the end of the lockout, the guy has gone from stud to scrub faster than you can say "former Vezina and Hart winner."

Until this season, Theodore has had issues with stopping the puck, resulting in a GAA over 3, save percentages below .890, and a sub-.500 record. Add in accusations of a positive drug test in 2006, and you have a recipe for the end of a once-promising career.

But, Jose turned things around this year. After starting the season in the AHL, it looked like things were back on track as he lowered his GAA to 2.44, upped the save percentage to .910, and had a record of 28-21-0.

And then the playoffs hit. Theo carried the Avs through the Wild in 6 games, with a GAA of 1.83 and save percentage of .940. Wow! Looks great, right?

Then Detroit came in. Jose goes 0-4, with a GAA of 6.92, and a save percentage of an abysmal .826. Holy crap. However, Detroit gave him and the rest of the 'Lanche fits in the regular season as well, beating him by scores of 4-0 and 1-0. They beat backup Peter Budaj by scores of 4-2 and 2-0 as well. But at least Budaj showed up to play in the playoffs, subbing in for Jose three times in the Detroit series, where he had a better (just slightly) GAA of 3.35 and save percentage of .908.

And Theodore apologists, I don't want to hear a word about this "flu" that he allegedly had. Especially as an explanation for him leaving the bench and changing after he was pulled from Game 1. If you're healthy enough to start, you're healthy enough to sit on the bench. And if you can't sit on the bench, then you shouldn't have been playing in the first place. And it's a shame, because the Avs played well as a whole in games 1 and 2. Budaj came in and shut the Wings down in Game 1. What if he had started? How different could this series be now?

But instead, the Avs are polishing the golf clubs and preparing for another long offseason. If Avs' GM Francois Giguere is smart, there will be listings in the want ads soon looking for a new goalie and a new coach to patrol the Pepsi Center.

Six Two degrees of Kevin Bacon Mike Sillinger

2008-05-01T14:52:00.005-06:00

I just read a theory the other day.

Every player in the NHL is, at most, two degrees away from Mike Sillinger.

That is, every player in the NHL, at the very least, has played on a team with a player who has played on a team with Mike Sillinger.

For example, Jeremy Roenick played with Shane Doan for Phoenix in 2000-01. Doan played with Sillinger in 2003-04 in Phoenix.

Or, Adam Foote was a teammate of Sergei Fedorov in Columbus this season. Fedorov was a teammate of Sillinger from 1991-1994 in Detroit.

I can find three active players who do not fall into this category.

Can you name them?

I have a few hockey autographs as a prize for someone who can name all three. Deadline for entry is May 10 at noon. To participate, leave a comment with your name and e-mail address!

Note: Dana, you are not eligible since you brought this to my attention.

Thoughts on the 0-3 C.C. Sabathia...

2008-04-16T21:00:00.005-06:00

... as someone posted to TheClevelandFan.com and I blatantly ripped off.

The evolution of Sabathia....

Carsten Charles.

C. C.

Cy! Cy!

Sigh Sigh...

My my...

Why? WHY?!?!?!

DIE! DIE!

Bye-bye.

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

Okay, so we're not even to my birthday yet, and I'm already going to call it. The Indians will absolutely not be a playoff team this season.

Seriously, these are the same guys who took the Tribe to within a game of the World Series?

Good news: V-Mart and R-Gark are hitting over .300.

Bad news: Seven players are hitting below .250.

Worse news: Our third basemen, normally a power position, are hitting a feeble .123.

Good news: Indians are third in the AL with 19 DP's turned

Bad news: The Indians are fifth in the AL for most errors with 10.

Worse news: Casey Blake has made three of them. While also hitting .146.

Good news: Three starting pitchers (Cliff Lee, Fausto Carmona, and Jake Westbrook) have ERA's under 2.50 and have struck out 32 in 53.2 innings.

Bad news: Paul Byrd and C.C. Sabathia have rendered that moot by combining for a record of 0-4 and an ERA around 9.

Worse news: Carmona has walked 17 in 16.1 innings.

Good news: Joe Borowski has two saves.

Bad news: JoBo also has an ERA over 18, an 0-2 record, and can't hit above 85 on the radar gun.

Worse news: Eric Wedge obviously can't handle a pitching staff well (namely Borowski).
Screw me once, shame on you.
Screw me twice, shame on me.
Screw me thrice, and I should be fired.

You're at two, Eric.

P.S. Sabathia's stats since the end of the 2007 regular season? 7 games, 1-5 record, 11.34 ERA, 27 BB, 28 K, 2.40 WHIP. I just vomited in my mouth a little while calculating that.

That's All, Folks!

2008-04-13T09:53:00.003-06:00

And so, the season comes to an end with a 6-3 Wildcats' loss in Game Four.

Definitely a season to remember here in Wichita Falls though. The Wildcats' first year with a new coach, a return to the playoffs, and a team featuring the league leaders in goals and points, a team that, as a whole, led the league in penalty minutes and fights, and a team that was in either first or second place from September through late March.

And this season was also a learning experience for everyone: fans, players, coaches, media members. Things I've learned?

The standings don't mean a thing until the season is over. Just as a game is 60 minutes, a season is 58 games. You can't quit and claim victory after 40 minutes, nor can you claim the division title at the 50-game mark.

Even when the season is over, the standings don't always mean anything. Look at Springfield in the Central Division.

Line brawls are fun to watch, hard as hell to call on the radio.

As echoed by coach John Bowkus in the Times Record News this morning, veteran leadership (especially from defensemen) is huge at this level.

The players who put up big numbers aren't always the ones who really drive a team to victory. Throughout the season, Bowkus has mentioned Grant Everett as the player who really makes the top line and drives it, although Adam Cardwell and/or Luke Salazar had him beaten in every offensive stat.

In spite of his positive coverage of the Wildcats this season, I'm still no fan of Nick Gholson.

I still hate Springfield and everything about it. Not just the team there, but also their arena, the city as a whole, and pretty much all of their fans.

If Topeka fans invite you to a tailgate, DEFINITELY take them up on it.

When it comes to the Wildcats versus the Tornado, I greatly prefer being on the winning end of the rivalry.

Fans apparently do not appreciate the humor of saying "Jesus Tapdancing Christ" on the air or message boards.

Glassrattler is largely a waste of time and energy.

While I'm still not a fan of the B2 Networks, they did improve as the season went on.

And last, people in this city STILL do not appreciate hockey and the fact that we have a team anywhere near as much as they should. While the Wildcats were still third in the league in attendance, this city has a 7,000 seat arena. Getting under 1,900 a game is nothing. This season, the Wildcats only averaged 18 more fans per game than in the playoff-missing year of 2006-07. Attendance is down 97 on average from 2005-06, and down 58 from 2004-05. Tickets are not that expensive! And with the big complaint about WF being that there's nothing to do, well guess what? There is something to do. And it's not expensive either. Let's see some better support. Only three regular season games had a smaller showing than last night's playoff game.

Anyways, a long off-season is upon us. The Wildcats have 18 of their 25 players who could come back next season (10 forwards, 6 defensemen, and 2 goalies). Some may leave for college offers, or the USHL or EJHL, or some may be traded. Or, perhaps every single one of them could return. Of course, there will be new faces as well, as the tendering process is beginning. The NAHL Draft is upcoming. And tryout camps will begin soon as well.

We're still five months away from the Minnesota Showcase to kick off the season, but there will still be plenty going on, and any news made public will be posted here.

So to those who have been reading here for my NAHL coverage, thanks. I hope you'll stick around for my other sports-related rantings from April through September. If not, well screw you then. No, really, thanks for reading and listening to the broadcasts, and we'll see you in September.

More autographs

2008-04-11T10:04:00.002-06:00

Got a ton more since my last update!

Sent to a ton of players, almost 100. I think I have enough stamps to send to about 10-15 more players.

I've received...

Bob Nystrom, Al MacInnis, Jonathan Sigalet, Vladislav Tretiak, Bob Kelly, Ken Daneyko, Ryan Potulny, Nick Fotiu, Jonathan Bernier, Ryan Suter, Johan Franzen, Jim Paek, Petr Kalus, Ron Hextall, Jussi Jokinen, Tomas Kopecky, Earl Campbell, Jeff Finger, Matt Carle, Dustin Byfuglien, and Jonathan Toews for a total of 62 new signed items.

Full details and scans are available on my site.

Back Home With a Tied Series

2008-04-11T09:16:00.003-06:00

After talking to Wildcats uber-fan Bill Bradley, maybe my assessment of Game One was wrong. Bill, a teammate of mine in the Wednesday Night Mens' Hockey League, was one of the lucky few to make the trip up to Fairbanks to see the Wildcats and Ice Dogs play both of their playoff games. And he said that we outplayed them both nights.

Television doesn't always pick up everything, especially in a game like hockey. There is too much to cover that can't fully be seen in as limited of a picture as one gets on TV, especially when you're dealing with one camera, in a cable access quality signal over the internet, that isn't operated by a professional. Maybe once everyone is watching in hi-def all the time, we might get a better picture. But until then, there's a lot that can be missed when you aren't seeing the game live and in-person.

Yeah, the offense didn't get things done in Game One. But how much of that was their fault, and how much of it was Fairbanks' goalie Cody Reichard? Get one past him, and get some help in front of Mike Jarboe, and it seems this could have been a much closer game. Or maybe the Cats could have come home with a 2-1 series lead.

Game Two pretty much seemed to be exactly as it looked. The Cats played well, they FINALLY got something past Reichard, and the defense was strong. Jarboe stopped 36 of 37 shots, the scoring was distributed among more lines (Kyle Delaurell and Adam Sponseller with even-strength goals, Kent Detlefsen on the power play), and the special teams have been great. Of course, when you have Dan Monacelli as your referee, you won't get too many calls on either side (26 PIM total over two games). I've always liked the fact he lets the guys play unless something truly egregiously bad happens. The Cats are 1 for 6 on the PP, 7 for 7 on the PK. Can't complain much there!

So here we sit, tied at a game apiece. Game 3 is tonight, Game 4 tomorrow, Game 5, if necessary, is Sunday at 3 pm. The keys to this series pretty much remain the same: keep getting some good defensive help, distribute the scoring as widely as possible (not just the White Knights, though it would be great to get them going again too), goaltending (Jarboe certainly has been up to the task so far), and (depending on the officials) special teams.

Heath and I will have the call tonight at 7 pm from the KYC on KOLI.

One Game In The Books

2008-04-05T00:26:00.005-06:00

Alright guys, it was funny for a while. Now come on, what did you do with the real Wildcats team?

After watching the first game of the Fairbanks series, I really don't know what to say. I'm disappointed. Disillusioned. Disconcerted. Insert your favorite "dis-" word here.

The playoffs are a new season. The real season, if you will. But what I saw tonight was unfortunately reminiscent of the final six regular season games. The puck was being forced to areas where there was nothing. Reaction times seemed a bit slow. The Ice Dogs got a few odd-man rushes. Forwards didn't backcheck. The intensity that was there in the first quickly waned. Opposing forwards were allowed to march in front of the net and into the Wildcats' end with no one trying to stop them.

It's disappointing, and I don't know who is to blame. Not saying I'm here to assign blame to anyone as I can't do any better of a job than any of the players, coaches, officials (who, by the way, I felt did a great job tonight; I've always liked Dan Monacelli), whomever. I'm just here to provide some commentary, nothing more. But as a fan, it's just such a let down to see this team get so far in 58 games and to see this kind of a final in a game that should mean so much to these guys.

But really, I'm trying to keep the faith. I doubted everything in the 2004 ALCS when the Red Sox decided they couldn't hit in Games 1 and 2, then couldn't pitch in Game 3. And then the comeback happened.

Will we get the same type of forces of the universe lining up to get the Cats going? Who knows?

All I know is that in spite of any loss of faith any of us may have, it ain't over until it's over. The fat lady may be getting her costume out, destiny may be ordering an apple martini, and the fickle middle finger of fate may be starting to make its way up, but nothing is in the books yet. There is still enough time for things to go the Cats way, and enough time for them to MAKE things go their way. You have to create your own chances and then capitalize on them. It's an A then B scenario. Fairbanks won't just hand any team any chances.

The Cats are down one game. That's it. Forget about the past of Game One, because we still have the future of at least two more to see before anything can be set in stone. It just takes some hard work and maybe a lucky break or two to turn a cold streak around.

Wildcats Hockey: The Playoff Push

2008-04-03T12:22:00.003-06:00

So this is it. 58 games later, it's the playoffs, and the Cats play in Fairbanks again. And I completely forgot to write anything on it until I saw Zach Duncan's work in the paper today.

Thinking back, I remember panicking in January as the team went cold for a little while. On January 5, I wrote "Unfortunately, this is starting to feel like last year. The team played decently in the beginning, well enough to be a playoff team, and at Christmas, things started to fall apart. I'd hate to see the same thing happen this year."

Fast forward to February. The team went 6-3 overall in January after splitting with Texas to start the month, then a February where the Cats went 11-0.

Then 0-6 in March.

Maybe this team is just streaky. Yeah, before this 0-6 stretch, the longest losing streak had been three games. But you know who bookended those three-game streaks? Texas and Fairbanks, then Texas and Texas. Considering the Wildcats went 10-2 against the Tornado this year, it won't be too tough to prevent losing streaks with a schedule like that (no offense to the Tornado or their fans). This six-game streak has consisted of four games against a red-hot Topeka squad and a playoff-bound Springfield team that has had a great rebound from last season and played a tough schedule (second toughest in the league, by my calculations). There hasn't been a Texas or an Alaska on the schedule in this stretch to help stop the skid.

So perhaps this team is just streaky. Yeah they've lost their last 6. But they're 17-9 since the start of the 2008 calendar year. Is that so bad?

And so, on that note, the real season begins. Two games in Fairbanks this weekend, where the Wildcats are 4-0 this season. A sweep there puts the Cats in the drivers' seat, needing to win just 1 of the next 3 at home. With the team going 1-3 against the Ice Dogs on home ice this year, it sounds a little easier said than done. But if the Cats can win those two in the league's toughest arena, they can get momentum, a big factor in the playoffs, moving in their favor.

KEYS TO THE SERIES
1. Goaltending
Mike Jarboe has been good against Fairbanks this year, going 4-2-1 with a shutout, a 2.48 GAA, and a .922 save percentage. He's had to be at the top of his game, as Cody Reichard of the Ice Dogs can, does, and will match him shot for shot: 3-4-0, 2.38 GAA, .933 save percentage. If Jarboe plays the weekend flawlessly, that's a big bit of assistance for the Wildcats.

2. Special Teams
The Wildcats are 6th in the league in both power play and penalty killing. Fairbanks is 12th on the power play and 5th on the penalty kill. When you factor in that these two teams have combined for nearly 500 PIM in their 8 regular season games (roughly 31 minutes per team per game), success on the power play and not taking dumb penalties is a huge plus in this series.

3. Cut the crap in the defensive zone
Besides a lack of offense in March, the Wildcats have had some "fumbleitis" in their own end. Simple breakdowns have led to odd-man rushes, loose pucks that no one is getting to, and overall poor turnovers. Obviously I won't go naming any names, but the defense can't be too eager to overpursue on offense. This led to at least two goals in the game this past Saturday against Topeka. Defensemen are there to defend first, join the offense second. Don't try to be a hero, just play solidly.

4. Get the offense firing on all cylinders
If it were up to me, a little experimentation would have been in order after the Topeka three-game sweep. Maybe break up the White Knights and see how things go by distributing the talent across two or three lines. Of course, that can throw off the chemistry a bit, but when mired in a losing streak, something has to be done, and since they've been the main producers on offense, why not disperse their abilities a bit? I despise that line of "he makes the players around him better" because it's a total cop out used by Gretzky fanboys in the "Who's Better: Gretzky or Lemieux" debate, but that's the only way I can describe it. Obviously in the playoffs, you don't do that. The White Knights trio together has gotten you this far, so don't mess with it. But nevertheless, something has to be done to get the offense back to where it has been for most of the year. In March, the Cats averaged 1.3 goals per game. Before March, the offense averaged 4.1 goals per game. Not sure what's going wrong, but something has to change, not in terms of personnel and who's on what line, but in getting those lines to get it in gear.

PREDICTION: Wildcats in 4.

PREDICTIONS ELSEWHERE AROUND THE LEAGUE
Topeka over Texas in 3
St. Louis over USNTDP in 4
Mahoning Valley over Alpena in 4
North Iowa over Springfield in 4
Southern Minnesota over Alexandria in 3

2008 Opening Day: Live!

2008-03-31T10:34:00.080-06:00

"For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land." -- Sg 2:12

And so, it begins. Opening Day of baseball season comes on March 31, 2008. It's just past 11:30 am that I'm starting here, and I'll constantly be updating. So, keep hitting your refresh button!

The schedule (all times CDT):

Toronto @ New York, 12:05 pm
Milwaukee @ Chicago, 1:20 pm
San Francisco @ Los Angeles, 3:10 pm
Los Angeles @ Minnesota, 6:10 pm
Houston @ San Diego, 9:05 pm

The brats and dogs were grilled yesterday, got a couple cokes in the fridge, and we're ready for some baseball (older posts are at the bottom)!

6:15: Alright. I've been doing this for almost 7 hours today. Enough is enough, I really don't care much about these last two games. So folks, enjoy them without me, it's time for dinner.

6:10: Angels and Twins are underway, and the Metrodome is as full as I've ever seen it. By the way, speaking of lard-ass Opening Day starters as I did at 4:25, the Twins have Livan Hernandez going for them against twig-man Jered Weaver of the Angels. Possibly the greatest size difference ever in two Opening Day starters in one game.

5:51: Meanwhile back out in California, the score remains 5-0 Dodgers lead the Giants. Angels and Twins should be underway soon. Thankfully.

5:50: Way to blow it, Cubs.

5:46: Gabe Kapler? Really? Come on now man, you had your chance. You were a 57th round pick, you had your cup of coffee in the majors, you even made it last longer than it should have with some chemical enhancement (not yet proven, I need to add to make sure no libel suits hit me). Enough is enough, give it up!

5:45: "Joe [Borowski]. You are like that guy who drives drunk all the time but only hits animals." -- LetsGoTribe.com

5:43: Amazing. After all that, Eric Gagne might still get the win.

5:38: Rickie Weeks now leads the league in getting hit by a pitch.

5:37: Last time Rickie Weeks batted, he got plunked. Now he has a chance to drive in the lead run.

5:34: Meanwhile over on ESPN, commercials. It makes it so much easier to use commercials in here for one-liners when they actually have some easy-to use content. Whatever happened to things like "YOU'RE RISKING A PATIENT'S LIFE!"? By the way, the Giants are blowing it, 5-0, as expected. Hard to believe that five years ago, they were a World Series team. Back to ESPN2.

5:33: I want a Fukudome jersey. Time to get my dad to send my Cubs jersey down here, I know what to do with it.

5:32: Two former Indians warming up, David Riske for Milwaukee, Bob Howry for Chicago.

5:28: Who's less fleet of foot: Cecil or Prince Fielder? That was bad, and sets the table for some random rookie pinch-hitter that I've never heard of to be today's hero.

5:27: Crede pops up and the Indians win. Whew.

5:25: Eric Gagne has lost it. Whatever "it" was from 2002-2004 is long gone and showing no signs of returning.

5:22: Meanwhile over in Cleveland, Joe Bo blows it. Sort of. Tying run to the plate. Bob Wickman's Indians' life has been reincarnated and its name is Borowski.

5:21: Holy. Mother. Of. God. That was awesome!

5:20: Here it comes...

5:19: You just know it's going to happen...

5:18: Two men on, Fukudome to the plate. Oh man...

5:16: Meanwhile back in Chicago, someone not named Fukudome finally got a hit, followed by a walk. Eric Gagne is reverting to the one we saw in Boston. All is not yet lost at Wrigley.

5:15: Shoulda pinch hit. Three run lead, moving to the 9th, here comes Joe Borowski... I need a drink.

5:13: Maybe Mike Trivisonno was right. In 2005 at least, Blake was right there in the middle of every rally. He disappeared for a couple years but hot damn, there he is. Grady Sizemore walked, Jason Michaels to the plate. Let's get a pinch-hitter up there.

5:12: For once, LOB-lake doesn't live up to his nickname, and the Indians take the lead. Life is good once again. In Chicago, Eric Gagne emerges to show the Cubs what a real closer looks like.

5:10: Prince Fielder's jiggling as he runs is almost hypnotic. 3-0 Milwaukee. Kerry Wood's career as a closer will last about a day.

5:08: And that brings Casey "Rally Killer" Blake to the plate. Well, it was good while it lasted.

5:07: Guh. Let's go Frankie Gutierrez?

5:06: Meanwhile back in Chicago, Kerry Wood blows it, 1-0 Milwaukee in the 9th.

5:06: Err. Make that Asdrubal Cabrera due up.

5:03: Alright! Two singles to start, and Garko due up!

5:00: Don't call it a comeback: Kerry Wood's first pitch plunks Rickie Weeks. Smooth.

4:59: Yahoo apparently is way behind. Two doubles to start the inning and the Sox don't score. Maybe luck will work in our favor for once.

4:58: So... The bases are loaded... Nobody out... and Betancourt is STILL IN? How does Eric Wedge still have a job? Really now, why?

4:53: Yahoo has quit updating. I have a bad feeling about this. In Chicago, Cubs and Brewers are still scoreless in the 8th.

4:46: Six minutes, 11 pitches, two K's and a flyout. Way to go Tribe offense!

4:40: Who's in next, Jorge Julio, Masa Kobayashi, or someone else?

4:39: Courtesy of a great play at first by Ryan Garko, the inning ends when A.J. Pierzynski puts it on the ground, and I can breathe again. To quote Hi Oktane over at TCF, "I wonder if the whole 'turn the other cheek' mantra would've been different if Jesus knew Pierzynski."

4:37: Bad break for the Cubs on the ball in the dirt hitting the batter and coming right back to Kendall. Now is it Fukudome's fault or the guy on first? Or neither? Both maybe?

4:36: By the way, it's nice to see the offense is stepping it up without Victor... oh wait.

4:29: Meanwhile, back in Cleveland, Betancourt comes in and gives up a single. Crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap...

4:25: Comparing lard-ass starting pitchers, Sabathia went 5.1 innings, 5 runs, 6 hits, 7 K's, 3 walks, without a rain delay. With 90 minutes in rain delays, Zambrano went 6.2 innings, 0 runs, 3 hits, 5 K's, 1 walk. I hate being a Cleveland fan.

4:23: Back in Cleveland, Perez blows it and the game is tied. This is going to be a long season.

4:22: Meanwhile back in Chicago, Zambrano's finger is cramping. Seriously? Come on, I pitched a wiffleball game with a strained Tommy John ligament (well, I tried to). Suck it up and throw!

4:21: Super-long flyout, apparently. Time to find the Rolaids again.

4:19: Same situation, this time Thome batting and Rafael Perez on the mound. Oh no...

4:05: Yahoo tells me the Indians bullpen looks decent again. Jensen Lewis gets two out with the lead run at the plate. I can put my Rolaids away.

3:49: Meanwhile, back on ESPN, Jeff Kent homered. Apparently they changed games without telling me. I'm liking the Cubs-Brewers better. Heck of a pitchers' duel!

3:41: I can breathe again, Thome grounds out.

3:37: 7 K's for C.C. so far, as I follow the game on Yahoo. Unfortunately there are 4 runs on the board too, but I'll take those 7 K's.

3:28: Cubs are back on ESPN2. So No Indians for us.

3:26: Apparently Victor Martinez wrecked his hamstring. Didn't that happen early last year too, in which case I'm not too concerned? Or was that 2006, in which case I'm going into flop-sweat mode?

3:23: Tigers and Royals go to 11, the Cubs still have rain, and yet I still can't see the Indians and White Sox. I hate you, ESPN.

3:04: What happened to Jim Thome? He couldn't hit lefties worth a thing in Cleveland, now he hits two on opening day off Sabathia? Did he learn to hit right-handed this off-season?

2:51: Meanwhile, over in Cleveland, the Indians lead 7-2. Awesome. Now let's get rained out.

2:46: And more rain, Go figure. Now I remember why I don't usually watch Opening Day baseball. At least they're giving us the Reds vs. D-Backs.

2:36: Tigers pitching collapses in the 7th. Sounds like I can breathe a bit. I hope.

2:27: Holy Fukudome! Think I know what my next custom card project will be.

2:05: Wow, Big Z has lost some weight. Think maybe Carlos Zambrano vs. Prince Fielder may be the heaviest batter vs. pitcher combo ever?

1:56: Finally, we've got our second game ready to go. And a third too, as the Cubs and Reds are set to get their games underway!

1:49: Allegedly the Cubs and Brewers are almost ready to go. Alex Gordon, holy crap. Nice knock!

1:42: DeJesus is officially an aggravated sprained ankle. Day to day, so don't cancel the season just yet.

1:38: Best cure: eat my second brat and mute the TV.

1:37: We still only have Detroit vs. KC. Cabrera just hit one to Ypsilanti. I'm going to puke.

1:34: Yankees get canceled. Sic semper tyrannus.

1:24: Still nothing in Chicago. On the plus side, Watt has finally appeared and started the game day thread at TheClevelandFan.com. Things are looking up.

1:15: A little Indians discussion on ESPN2. Jake Westbrook? 0.00 ERA and 0.67 WHIP in the preseason? Really? And that's behind C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona? And the 4th and 5th starters have experience without being aging junkballers (aside from Paul Byrd)? This should reassure me, but instead, I feel like the fickle middle finger of fate is 100% set to dash all our hopes and dreams.

1:12: Rain everywhere. Cincinnati is getting it too so no Diamondbacks vs. Reds. The only game to watch is Detroit vs. Kansas City. I'm in hell.

1:09: Rain here too. Rain everywhere except Detroit and Texas. Fortunately the tarp is coming off. Interesting drainage system they've put in there. I'm taking bets on how long it will be before someone tears a knee ligament tripping on one of those holes, and of course who it happens to. Odds on a Cubs player in the NLCS causing the pennant-winning run to score for the other team: 3-1.

1:07: I'm sorry, but I just can't get into this game. Cubs-Brewers time.

1:01: Mark Grudzielanek is still around? Sweet. I remember when he was with Montreal and WGN spelled his name backward just for the hell of it: Kenaleizdrug Kram. Point of this? Not sure. And that pitch had to have hurt. So not only is DeJesus out, but you'll probably see Grudz out soon too. It's only opening day; can this team buy some luck?

12:58: Dear Magglio Ordonez, You're too big and slow to beat out a throw from Jose Guillen. As an Indians fan, I encourage you, however, to keep trying. Sincerely, Simply Drew.

12:56: Steve Phillips has said this Tigers team may have the best offense ever. Not sure I'd agree with that, but holy crap, they look good so far. But as I keep telling myself, "Stay calm, it's just against Kansas City; no need to freak yet."

12:49: We're only in the third and David DeJesus is already out of the game, with Joey Gathright taking over in center and as the leadoff man. Gotta love those hapless Royals!

12:44: Time for decisions. If the New York rain delay continues, does ESPN stick with Detroit-KC? Or do they switch to Cincinnati-Arizona? And for the Cubs-Brewers, do I want to watch on ESPN2, or WGN?

12:42: Nice piece of hitting from Edgar Renteria there with a 2-2 count, putting it up the middle. Like the non-Harwell commentators said, he couldn't go the other way with the right fielder playing shallow, so he took it up the middle. So maybe I spoke a little too soon from my point at 12:12. I'm getting a little scared.

12:38: Where on earth did Gil Meche come from and what the heck was that strike three pitch to Jacque Jones? Whatever it was, damn!

12:34: Two brats, a dog, Stadium Mustard, a Coke, baseball on the TV, and a computer on the lap. Life is good.

12:28: As the first inning ends, it's time to get myself a couple of those brats, a dog, and a Coke.

12:20: Ross Gload starting at first for KC. Man do I feel sorry for them.

12:15: I gotta say, Tigers' Opening Day just isn't the same without Ernie Harwell.

12:12: Pretty obvious that Carlos Guillen isn't a first baseman by trade. It hurt to watch him try to scoop that. And wow, a stolen base off Pudge Rodriguez. Miguel Cabrera at third will be an adventure. Maybe this season won't be as scary as I thought.

12:09: As an Indians fan, this Tigers team scares the hell out of me. And I've only seen five pitches so far. Granted, it may just be because Kansas City is Kansas City. By the way, my wife just let out the greatest belch ever. I think I saw the TV quake a bit.

12:07: Finally! Some talk about KC vs. Detroit! And we're underway, with a Justin Verlander ball.

12:05 pm: We still have rain. We still have coverage of the rain on ESPN. Why not the Royals vs. Tigers? Are they in rain too? Did the broadcasters just not show up because no one outside of Missouri or Michigan care about this one? Help me out here.

11:51: Am I the only one thinking/hoping that Joba Chamberlin is going to be the pitching version of Kevin Maas?

11:44: There's only so much of Steve Phillips that I can take. With a whole day of ball ahead of me, time to switch it over to NFL Network to see the end of their replay of Super Bowl XXV.

11:42: Christ. Kruk just predicted the Cubs over the Indians in the World Series. Will I ever win?

11:40 am: Twenty minutes away, and I see something bad on my TV. Not John Kruk (though he certainly isn't pleasing to the eye), but rather what's behind him. It's raining in New York. Looking at the schedule, the only other game they could show in place of the Jays-Yanks is the Kansas City-Detroit snoozefest. Stay tuned, the schedule may change.

BASEBALL!!!11!!!1!!! OMGLOLWTFBBQ!!!one!!!!eleven

2008-03-31T09:26:00.005-06:00

We'll be back to our regularly scheduled Wildcats coverage soon, as the season has ended and the playoffs are upcoming. But first, this unpaid advertisement for Major League Baseball.

Yep, the season is underway as of today. Being an even-numbered year, I'm already preparing myself for a Cleveland Indians choke of epic proportions. Just look at history. An unexpectedly great 2005 season where they choked it away early, were amazing late, and pulled the ultimate choke in the final week just barely missing the playoffs. Then there's 2006 where they blew it straight from the start and continued to blow it late. 2007: playoffs and choke. 2008: probably another non-playoff year that consists of massive choking from April to October. Especially when Yahoo Sports' Steve Henson is predicting them as World Series champs and Jeff Passan says they'll win the AL. All that does is remind me of a certain 1987 SI cover with Joe Carter and Cory Snyder.

Painful, ain't it?

But, of course, as a Cleveland fan, I just HAVE to have hope, as much as it pains me. Because, you never know. Losing streaks have to end sometime. At least every other one has, and even though there's a first time for everything, statistics say eventually a Cleveland team will win, there is a light at the tunnel that's something other than just another train preparing to run our collective asses over, and for once I'll have a reason to celebrate.

Anyways, opening day is today, and ESPN and ESPN2 are showing a marathon of baseball. Unfortunately, the Indians vs. the White Sox is not one of those games. And since I have Dish Network, I don't get the damn free preview of games either, since Dish can't show any of them. DAMN YOU DIRECT TV!!!! But, at about 11:30 CDT, I'll open the laptop and liveblog all the games I'm watching. So keep it here at Simply Drew, because as Ernie Harwell always said "It's a great day for baseball!"

More on Autographs

2008-03-25T19:15:00.003-06:00

After some comments on my How-To entry on autograph collecting, I figured I'd put in some info here on the questions there and a few other sort of FAQ's on the hobby.

In regards to the Detroit Red Wings, especially Steve Yzerman and Nicklas Lidstrom as asked by the Anonymous commenter, unfortunately you're best off saving your stamps. Yzerman has quit signing. He used to be accessible through his agent, but now has whoever handles his mail do the "stamp and trace" method he used as a player, where someone (a personal secretary perhaps) rubber stamp his autograph, then trace over it with a Sharpie, making it look real. It isn't. As for Lidstrom, he looks to be another stamp-and-trace guy. And, I tried him through his home address a few months back with no luck. Good signers for the Wings? There are a few: I've heard of successes from Kris Draper, Valtteri Filppula, Johan Franzen (home address), Tomas Holmstrom (team or home address), Jimmy Howard (home address), Niklas Kronwall, Darren McCarty, Brian Rafalski (through his agent), Daniel Cleary, and Henrik Zetterberg (through his agent, you'll get a s & t through the team). Aside from them, the team is REALLY rough, even in person.

I've had questions on when to send to players as well. Don't bother sending through teams from mid-March through early October. Home addresses can be mailed to at almost anytime, but don't forget that some players will not sign through home addresses (Jere Lehtinen is now refusing mail to his house, stamping all fan mail as RTS). Also, beware of players who have more than one home. Holmstrom, for example, I believe returns to Sweden every summer. Others, like Jack Johnson of the LA Kings, have a home address near their team, but likely go elsewhere in the summer (likely to his parents' home in Minnesota). Sometimes for young players, parents' addresses will work in the offseason. That's how I got Phil Kessel.

Basically, any questions on autographs, leave a comment here, or e-mail them to me, drewpelto -AT- gmail -DOT- com.

Blogger's Burnout

2008-03-19T19:11:00.006-06:00

It happens to every writer from time to time.

You've been sitting and writing for so long that eventually, when you take a day off, writing doesn't feel like part of the same old routine. A day off here and there becomes two. Then three. Then after a stretch of writing, it's a week off.

You sit back down to write, and it's not something fun anymore. It almost becomes a chore.

One week becomes two. Then three. And you almost forget that you ever did it in the first place.

That's how I've felt the last 20 days or so. Granted, it's not as long as Howie Mansfield's almost-three-month break, but it feels like it's been almost as long. I've kept the writing skills going in my spare time. A couple lengthy posts at The NHL Arena. A couple at TTM Autographs. And tons over at Die Hard Baseball. And of course, I've had to put the pen to the paper (literally: no typing involved) in sending out about 70 autograph requests to various current and former baseball and hockey players. But I just haven't felt like putting anything here. And after a while, I just sort of forgot about it. I'm also now in charge of writing post-game recaps for the Wildcats' website, part of the reason I haven't been writing much on the Wildcats here.

But with that break, I feel a bit refreshed. I feel ready to start writing a bit more often now as we are close to playoff time in the NAHL, NHL, and NBA. The NFL Draft is a month away. And of course, MLB starts up in just a matter of weeks as well.

Maybe the key to being able to keep going with this effectively is a few well-timed breaks to make sure I only go sitting back and relaxing for three weeks instead of three months (I'm not blaming you at all Howie, you have a family to attend to, plus you've written as a profession, while I just talk for a living, and even then only for a couple hours a week). We'll see where it goes.

All I know is that I was up at 4:30 this morning and have to do it again tomorrow and Friday too. Out of sheer fatigue, I took the night off from playing hockey to just sit at home and write a bit. None of those two things, skipping hockey or writing, were part of the plan when I sat down to a fried pie and a coffee with Joe Tom White and the guys this morning after the show. But whatever works, you know?

Anyways, more to come soon, I hope (this is only my 13th post in the 79 days of this year, egad man!). My mind is clearer, I'm refreshed, and I'm ready to write! It feels good to get that first post back!

Question Marks All Around

2008-02-29T11:01:00.004-06:00

So, it's official. NFL free agent and trading season is underway as of today. And the Browns have me scratching my head and asking "HUH?!?!?!?!"

First off, quarterbacks. Derek Anderson refused the Browns' $2.56M offer sheet making him a restricted free agent. If a team signs him, the Browns get a first and third round pick. Pretty good, considering the browns gave up their first rounder for another quarterback in Brady Quinn. You trade a first for a QB, he's expected to be your franchise guy.

So why re-sign Anderson to a 3-year deal? You spent the farm for a franchise QB in Quinn, so now you sign another QB who just happened to back his way into a good season? Anderson wasn't even the opening day starter. Frye blew it, got traded and by default the job became Anderson's until Quinn was ready, and he had a good year. You now have a chance to get a first round pick and a third round pick, while just having to hand over the offense to the guy you sold the future for. Sounds perfect right? Just think of the teams that might want Anderson. Each of the top 3 teams in the draft (Miami, St. Louis, and Atlanta) need a QB, and they won't get a good one this year through the draft. Minnesota at 17th overall needs one. ANY of those are better than what we have now. And given Bill Parcells' love for tall, strong-armed QB's, you think he wouldn't consider giving up the first overall pick for someone who fits that mold and has proven himself already in the NFL?

So why not do it? Why not let Anderson chum the waters a bit?

But no. Instead we have a quarterback controversy that hearkens back to the days of Tim Couch and Kelly Holcomb. And no first round pick to bolster the defense.

Speaking of bolstering the defense, the Browns got some help by bringing in Corey Williams from the Packers (their franchise player) in exchange for a second round pick, as long as the Browns can sign him to a multi-year deal. WAY TO GO PHIL SAVAGE! Now not only do the Browns not have a first round pick, they don't have a SECOND rounder either! So the team gets to sit back and relax on day one of the draft.

Or, might Savage have something up his sleeve? Could we see a trade of Andra Davis for a second and third rounder? Or one of the QB's for a first and third? I'm still not comfortable with Anderson as the future over Quinn, so I'm hoping if anyone's traded, it's DA.

There are several teams out there needing a quarterback, and if Anderson is trade bait, the price will be high. WalterFootball.com rates Anderson as four stars. Know who the remaining free agent QB's are? All rated 2 to 2 and a half stars, there's Quinn Gray, Todd Collins, Billy Volek, Cleo Lemon, and Chris Redman. Plus about 15 stiffs rated under 2 stars.

Apparently Travis LaBoy and Donte Stallworth are both coming into town as well, and the team has shown interest in Bernard Berrian and Antwan Odom.

By the way, the latest mock draft I read has the Browns taking ~~Red Bryant in the second round,~~ Shawn Crable in the third round, and Steve Slaton in the fourth.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the Browns will end up with Quinn starting and a first rounder in their possession.

EDIT: After reading a few other fans' opinions, what are the chances he was signed just to make sure Baltimore didn't throw an offer sheet at him? And, what are the chances a trade is in the works with the Vikings or Jets? This deal keeps a team from having to throw $50M+ at him while also giving up a first and a third. This contract is more trade-friendly. The Jets will be able to throw good money at Alan Faneca and Asante Samuel while also acquiring the QB they desperately need.

End of homestand, custom cards, more autographs, and the "Sponseller 'Splosion"

2008-02-18T16:02:00.003-06:00

Plenty to talk about, as I haven't written here in a few weeks.

First off, awesome job by the Wildcats and the fans for raising $80,000 for Childrens' Miracle Network via the jersey auction. I bought one of the autographed card sets for $30, as I don't have the money to be able to spend $1000+ on a jersey. Wish I did, but radio pays nothing.

Anyways, the 12-game homestand is over, with the Wildcats winning 10 games, losing only to Fairbanks. And had it not been for Dan Dreger (see my post on January 27 for details), the team could easily be 11-1-0 instead of 10-1-1. Overall, the team looked pretty good. The offense is really clicking, and the Kent Detlefsen trade may be one of the best deals this organization has ever made. Granted, it sucks to give up a good center in Bill Colclough, but if you have a chance to bring in the league's best offensive defenseman in exchange for a third-liner and two prospects, you have to do it. Oh yeah, those two USHL guys Mike Henderson and Kyle Delaurell are looking good too. Four goals and three assists between them in four games with the team. And they aren't even on the same line (at least not right now). Holy crap.

The backup goalies behind Mike Jarboe have played well too. Peter Emery got two wins, including a shutout of Kenai River, while Philip Graveline got a victory by shutting down the Texas Tornado for most of 60 minutes. Gravy also got the start Saturday night, as he needs to appear in 10 games for the Wildcats to be able to have him for next year without using a tender or draft pick on him. He's at three, so he has to play in at least seven of the final 12 games this season. I wouldn't be surprised if he starts two games in the upcoming road trip to Alaska, with two games each coming against Fairbanks, Kenai River, and Alaska, the latter two being the teams Emery faced.

I'm still working on my custom cards of the Wildcats from this season, and the good news is that I'm almost done. The fronts have been completed for every player to have worn a 'Cats jersey for at least one game this season. The bad news: I still have to make the backs. I have a design finished though, so I just have to get the stats and info and plug them in with a good headshot of each player/coach/whoever.

In non-NAHL related news, tax returns are awesome. I'll be using part of mine and Gen's to buy a couple rolls of stamps and send out about 100 autograph requests. I'll be chronicling all of them here as I send and receive them. The first 13: Henrik Lundqvist, Mikko Koivu, Ryan Smyth, Jason Bacashihua, Rene Bourque, Brad Boyes, Matt Lashoff, Rostislav Olesz, Maxime Ouellet, Ryan Potulny, Hannu Toivonen, Paul Stastny, and Yan Stastny. The Stastny brothers are going to the same address though, so that saves me a couple stamps. Also, for those considering trying Sidney Crosby via Mario Lemieux's house as I did, don't bother. He apparently has chosen to stop signing there too. So, there is officially no way of getting Sid's autograph any more without a whole hell of a lot of luck on your side.

Finally, something I've actually gotten a few e-mailed questions on, as well as questions at other sites, and that is Saturday's freakout from Adam Sponseller. Or as I choose to call it, the "Sponseller 'Splosion." Frankly, his reaction was completely uncalled for and embarrassing to not only himself, but the team as well. I can understand being upset over the lack of a call on Tyler Bowman's cheap shot of a knee to the face, ripping off Sponseller's helmet, and his refusal to fight. Especially given the comments and history between him and former Texas Tornado tender turned Wildcat Matt Kenline. Oftentimes, something like the instigator on Sponseller would be waived because of the Bowman knee and helmet ripping. However, typical of our favorite referee Dan Dreger, he missed it all and got no help from the linesmen.

I'm betting the league will give him at least three games, likely more, and if not, I would think you might see a response from coach John Bowkus, for as I said, this is a black eye on the team. Being aggressive and getting the fight is a good thing. Playing with emotion is a good thing. But letting it boil over and acting like a two-year old in throwing everything around (helmet into the stands, gloves on the ice, stick on the ice, jersey in the stands, shoulder pads on the ice, gestures to the Tornado bench, words with the bench and the officials, gloves on the ice a second time, banging on the glass, etc.) deserves a lengthy timeout.

Granted, given the lack of league interaction in John Kruse's broom-throwing incident, another under-reaction from the league wouldn't surprise me. But, once again, I think the team would deal with this in their own hands if the team doesn't. Considering this would be Sponseller's third suspension in the last year in this league, I don't think the league will just let it go.

Anyways, road trip to Alaska starts this weekend. No radio, but there will again be B2 coverage. We'll be back on the radio for the trip to Topeka in March.

NAHL Trading Deadline

2008-02-08T09:30:00.000-06:00

Finally, in between work, autograph stuff, and the flu, I have some time to write in here. After missing the Tuesday Coaches' Show with the flu, I will be back on the mic tonight for the game vs. Kenai River.

The Wildcats' roster has undergone a few changes since I last wrote. First off, the team already had an open roster spot after the January trade of Jake Watchorn to Marquette. It was filled for a bit by goalie Ted Florence in order to give Mike Jarboe a rest last weekend, but other than that, the roster has stayed at 24.

This past week, it went down to 23 with the shipping of Petr Ondrejac to Boston of the IJHL. Ondrejac has opted not to report and instead is going home to the Czech Republic. Rumor has it he may have a spot waiting for him with some sort of national team. Speaking of which, the IIHF World Championships are coming in May. Could this have something to do with that?

At the same time, rumors were circulating about the Cats acquiring Kent Detlefsen from Alaska. Those rumors were confirmed as of Tuesday. Detlefsen is coming to the team in exchange for Bill Colclough and non-roster players Pat Colclough and Tyler Tosunian.

So, two empty roster spots. With the USHL's Sioux City Musketeers trading former Wildcat Ricky Doriott to North Iowa, and the 'Cats acquiring his best friend Detlefsen, I expected the Wildcats might make a push for Doriott, who can play both as a forward and a defenseman.

It didn't happen, but two other USHL deals did come though. From the Lincoln Stars comes Kyle Delaurell and from the Ohio Junior Blue Jackets comes Mike Henderson, both forwards.

Additionally, the backup goaltending situation appears to be set. Peter Emery is out, Philip Graveline is back in. In his lone game, Graveline allowed one goal and stopped 39 of 40 shots in a 4-1 Wildcat win over the Texas Tornado on December 21. Look for Emery to get a tryout again next season. If he does, I wouldn't be surprised if he makes the team. In two games as a Wildcat, he allowed 4 goals, stopped 44 of 48 shots, and got a shutout last week against Kenai River. Emery is still with the team for now, though the Cats' website does not list him and lists Graveline.

So, if you're scoring at home, even if you're alone, add to the roster #24 Mike Henderson, #26 Kyle Delaurell, #27 Kent Detlefsen, and #29 Philip Graveline.

It was a relatively quiet trading deadline across the league. As far as I can tell (because Pointstreak is being updated very slowly), ten teams have made deals since January 31: Wichita Falls, Alaska, North Iowa, Fairbanks, Alpena, Kenai River, Fargo-Moorhead, Marquette, St. Louis, and Bismarck. Wildcats were the most active with their four acquisitions.

As far as I know, all four will be in uniform tonight. I'll post a review on them as soon as I can. Game starts at 7:05 pm!

The Brawl in the Falls, Crappy officiating, and the FCC

2008-01-27T09:23:00.000-06:00

Quite the eventful weekend here in Wichita Falls vs. the Fairbanks Ice Dogs.

The good: Well, at least we got a point out of it. And the line brawl was fun.

The bad: The final minute of Saturday and the OT. Dan Dreger and all the officiating of this league.

The ugly: post-game interviews.

Friday night, the Wildcats were off all across the board. Couldn't finish at the offensive end, couldn't solve goalie Cody Reichard, couldn't not put pucks off the posts (yes kids, that's a double negative; try not to use them because it confuses people). At the defensive end, Mike Jarboe played well, but got little help in front of him. The defense was mediocre, didn't clear the crease, and the forwards weren't backchecking. As coach John Bowkus said "Our guys were overlooking this game and too much toward [Saturday] night."

On the other side, Fairbanks was dead on, razor sharp the entire night. Passes were clean, good shot selection, they screened Jarboe. Reichard stopped everything, the defense blocked shots and cleared the crease. They had it, we didn't, end of story. They deserved the two points, they got them.

Good game by the officials, they let a lot of things go when they could. Unfortunately the Wildcats didn't realize how much clutching and grabbing sort of stuff they could get away with until the third period.

Moving on to Saturday, Military Appreciation Night. Great crowd on hand (5,415), cool jerseys, and a team with a chip on its shoulder from Friday night's poor effort. Sounds like a fun game, right?

Then I saw Dan Dreger was our ref. And a mighty cry of "DAMMIT" went up from the crowd.

Let me put it this way: simply, Dreger sucks, and the fact he's a linesman in a professional league (the CHL) is a scary thought. Sometimes it seems like he thinks the crowd is there to see him call a game rather than to see him stay the hell out of the say and let the teams play, kind of like when AHL linesman Brian Wisner would call high school games in Cleveland. Two fights in the first period (Eric Kraft vs. Sean McKenzie, and Sean Duddy vs. Julian Mikola) would have been roughing minors, or double minors at most, to any other ref. Bret Morrell's holding penalty was for a clean check. How you get a HOLDING call from a clean hit is beyond me. I'll have more to say on the moron after the line brawl recap.

Congrats to Luke Salazar for the hat trick, his second of the season (first was against Bismarck at the Minnesota Showcase).

Okay, line brawl. It starts out with Skylur Jameson and Julian Mikola getting tied up a bit in the corner. The grab each other, wrestle a bit, and off come the gloves and helmets. Definitely a surprise, as neither are known to be big time fighters (Skylur has been in this league for four years and this is his first fight). Jameson definitely beat him though.

As they're being separated, everyone else pairs off. Jeff McNeil mugs Paul Kirtland (for the fight fans out there, think Dave Brown vs. Jim Kyte, circa 1991 Playoffs when Kyte was playing for Calgary), and Cody Reichard steps in to stop it. When I saw that, I was expecting Jarboe to skate down, or at least to center to challenge Reichard. No luck there.

At the same time, Dustin Nowick and Matt Carlson go at it. I was too busy watching for Jarboe to come down to really see much of this. My spies tell me Carlson cut him, but Nowick got the better of it aside from that. They fell and willingly skated away by themselves.

While all this is going on, Arthur Bidwill and Shawn Jameson exchange shoves, and off come the gloves and helmets. Similar result to McNeil vs. Kirtland, but ending with Jameson just holding him down.

And the fifth fight of it, Mike Sturdevant vs. John Lennartson was a good finish to it. Two rounds in this. First, Sturdevant landed a few good shots, took him down and held him there. The linesmen were avoiding them to break up the others, so Lennartson starts running his mouth. Sturdevant gets up to go to the box and Lennartson challenges him again. Okay, fine. Let's see round two then. Sturdevant comes through with a repeat performance, scoring another win. Lennartson has now gotten beaten down by three Wildcats this season in decisive fashion: Adam Cardwell, Shawn Jameson, and now by Sturdevant, twice in one fight.

Somehow out of all this, the Wildcats end up down two men with penalties to the Jamesons. Extra two to Skylur for roughing, and two to Shawn for a cross-check. How anyone could see a cross-check in everything going on must have super-human sight. Roughing? Okay fine, but Mikola should have gotten it too. And why not Reichard getting two for being essentially a third man in?

And how, might I ask, with that being Mikola's second major of the night, does he not get ejected?

So on the ensuing 5-on-3, with the Cats lacking two of their three best penalty killing forwards, Fairbanks scores, cutting it to a 3-2 game. Then they tie it with under a minute to go with Reichard pulled from the net.

Overtime didn't even take a minute. First shot came from about three feet inside the blue line and beat Jarboe five-hole.

Game. Set. Match.

Checkmate.

Bite me, Dreger.

So yeah, post-game interview. I'm not worried so much about fines from the league as I am about BIG fines from the FCC coming to the station or the team. I'm not going to post the comments here, but I will say that I agree with all that was said in them. Oh yeah, speaking of fines from the league, apparently you can't play "Three Blind Mice" as the officials skate out on the ice or the league will go after you with a big fine. NAHL Uber Alles!

Three games in the next two weeks against Kenai River. I'll have more to say later this week.

Oh. Hell. Yes.

2008-01-26T15:15:00.000-06:00

Read it and weep, kids.

"Bender" is my middle name

2008-01-16T13:15:00.000-06:00

Bender: The stiff to end all stiffs. Comes from the Olde English term "ankle bender," one whose ankles bend while skating.

So other than a couple shifts back in August in an open adult hockey game at the KYC, I haven't played any hockey in over a year.

That's about to change tonight. My illustrious hockey career will be resurrected as part of the Wildcats' adult hockey league.

I have played a bit over the years. Here are the highlights.

1984-2001: Didn't play. Watched a lot, skated a little, but never played aside from the occasional street hockey game or gym class floor hockey.

2001-02: walked on and dressed for 24 games with the University School Preppers junior varsity team. Saw the ice in 17 of the games. No goals, no assists, no points, a +4, and no PIM. Dropped on my head three times. Kid attacks our bench in a game. I pound on his helmet a few times, then pounded on his teammate's cage. Bruised a few knuckles. Game was called with us up 5-1 with 4 minutes to go. I had seen a total of 1:30 of ice time in the playoffs to that point. We finished second in the Ohio JV State Tournament. Weighed in at 5'7" 165.

2002-04: Retirement number one. Spent a lot of time playing indoor soccer and skating occasionally. Size: 5'8" 165-195, depending on the time and year.

2004-05: Street hockey in Roslindale, MA. Mostly played goalie. GAA of 36.72, save percentage around .650. Not too bad considering most of the guys played a lot in high school and/or college, while I was the only guy willing to put the pads on every week. Scored a few goals because of my awesome backhand with a street hockey ball. Approximate size: 5'8" 170.

2005: Emerson College brings back hockey, thanks largely to efforts by Matt Porter, Evan Goldman, and myself. Played one charity game as a defenseman, coming out on the ice in a Bob Probert jersey to the rousing cheers of the 7 people in attendance. Size: 5'8" 190.

2006: Moved to Wichita Falls. Played the open adult hockey games. Puked on the ice my first time out there. Learned not to eat a chicken salad sandwich an hour before going out on the ice. Took a full slapper off my ankle from about 8 feet away that hurt like a sonofabitch for a week. Size: 5'8" 200.

2008: About to die tonight. Size: 5'8", can no longer see my toes.

Here goes nothing tonight...

Wildcats' Custom Card Series

2008-01-14T13:46:00.000-06:00

I've been trying over the past couple of weeks to finish off as many of these as I can, but I need help. I'm short on photos of a few players. So if any readers out there have clear, high-resolution photos of any of these players (from this season), please send them to drewpelto -AT- gmail -DOT- com.

Nick Shkreli (I have him with #7, I'd prefer finding one with him in a #12 jersey)
Mike Daniels
Bret Morrell
Sean McKenzie (With no cage on the helmet)
Adam Krefski (if I have to, I can find and use one from last year)
Peter Emery

Looking better

2008-01-14T10:17:00.000-06:00

Wildcats are on a nice three-game winning streak now since my post woefully comparing this season to the second half of previous ones. Additionally, the Wildcats are 7-3 in their last 10 games. So perhaps I was a bit premature in my assessment.

The offense has woken up significantly since December. After a six-game goalless drought, Luke Salazar has put up 7 goals in his last 8 games, chipping in with 8 assists. Adam Cardwell has had multiple points in the last three games. And Grant Everett has put up at least one point in each of his last 10 games (15 points in those 10 games). Second-line forward Skylur Jameson has moved into the NAHL's top ten in scoring. Since the start of the series at home against St. Louis December 7 and 8, Sky has had 5 multiple point games, and numbers of 5-13-18 in those 12 games.

And this is not to overlook contributions by the rest of the lines. While the third and fourth lines are not expected to be big scorers, Sean McKenzie has had points in 9 of his last 11 games, Jeff McNeil has points in 7 of his last 8 (including a three-point night against Texas), and Petr Ondrejac has found a bit of a scoring touch as well as playing a good physical game after being moved from defense up to forward.

At the other end, the defense has looked much better over the last few games as well. In spite of allowing just under four goals a game since December 21, the defense looked stronger this past weekend against Alaska. Yes, there were 3 and 4 goals allowed, but in the first game, only one came at even strength, and the Avalanche were held scoreless in the final 36 minutes of play. Saturday night, one of the four came with the game already out of reach for Alaska, and one other came on the power play. So it seems the story just is to stay out of the box, simply. Mike Jarboe has been good when he gets help in front of him and with Peter Emery playing an excellent game Saturday, this should keep some pressure on him to keep up with the solid play we've seen from him this season.

Got Kenai River on the schedule tomorrow. I'll have the call on 94.9 and on the B2 Networks.

Additionally, we'll have all the updates here on the Prospects Tournament in Ann Arbor. As soon as the rosters are posted (which I've heard could be today), we'll have them here.

365 days of complete and utter sporting crap

2008-01-08T09:13:00.000-06:00

January 8: Florida over OSU 41-14.

April 2: Florida over OSU 84-75.

June 7, 10, 12, and 14: The San Antonio Sweep.

September 23: The Field Goal Freeze. Lane Kiffin calls timeout, Phil Dawson's retry gets blocked. Browns lose. Hit it and the Browns are a playoff team.

October 18, 20, and 21: 7-1, 11-2, and 12-2. Sox win, Indians watch them celebrate in Colorado.

December 23: Four INT's and a drop. Could have clinched, should have clinched, and didn't.

December 30: The Indy roll-over. AFC's second best team has to beat a barely-.500 one... and doesn't. The Browns are kept out of the postseason.

January 7: LSU over OSU 38-24.

Really now, how much more must I take? My apologies for the melodramatic tone this blog has taken in the past couple of weeks, but come on now. This is getting ridiculous.

----------------
Now playing: Derek and the Dominoes - Layla (Piano Coda)

More Custom Cards

2008-01-07T12:41:00.000-06:00

This is from a contest at the TTM Autographs board. A poster there wanted to see if someone could make a set of 2006 Hurricanes cards with the Cup. Here's my submission!

Things I've learned in the past two weeks

2008-01-05T10:39:00.000-06:00

Apparently it's really hard to play a full 60 minutes.

St. Louis is a really good team. But are they really that good?

It's really easy to think a game is over when you're ahead 3-1 at the end of the second intermission, you're 15-0-0 all season in that situation, and the team you're facing is 0-20-0 when they're down after two.

Going back to points 1 and 3, the game isn't over until the clock says 0:00.0.

You can defend a 3-on-1 perfectly and still give up the game-winning goal.

94.9 Sucks. B2 even more so. Technical issues send me off more than anything that happened on the ice last night. At the main station I work with, it took us only two weeks to run football games flawlessly. In three years, hockey games still have problems. Ridiculous.

There are some real arrogant bastards in Frisco. Yes, there are some good people, but the bad seem to outweigh the good, unfortunately.

Either the Tornado had a lucky game last night, or they've been under-performing all season.

Mascots can do anything and everything they want to opposing fans short of mowing them down with an AK-47 and the fans are never permitted to retaliate.

Then again, this is in an arena where opposing fans last year were told by the staff to "stop making so much noise."

Unfortunately, this is starting to feel like last year. The team played decently in the beginning, well enough to be a playoff team, and at Christmas, things started to fall apart. I'd hate to see the same thing happen this year.

Say, you don't think that was fixed, do you?

2008-01-01T15:38:00.000-06:00

Before I begin, I should say that at the end of the game my wife, who often rolls her eyes at me when I go conspiracy theorist on her, looked over at me and said "That seems a little suspicious."

Okay, so the NHL has their biggest event in America in a while, showcasing the biggest player in the game, Sidney Crosby. Now, as many of you may know, in spite of being a Penguins' fan, I make no effort to hide my disdain for Sid the Kid.

So the game is tied through two, and goes through a decent third period with no goals, and not really because of any amazing efforts by the goaltenders. The game goes to overtime. And as soon as OT started, I looked at Gen and said "How much you wanna bet this goes to a shootout, and Crosby scores the game-winner?"

And what happened? No real good chances either way in OT, and Crosby scores the game-winner in a shootout on what really seemed to me like a pretty weak goal.

Really, what better way for the NHL to promote itself? Make an exciting game, play it as long as possible, and have the game's biggest young star win it in the end. It's a storyline that's been recycled billions of times over.

I don't think it happens too often, but I wouldn't put it past the NHL (and other leagues) to engineer a few events here and there.

How much more can a man take?

2007-12-30T22:31:00.000-06:00

2007.

Worst. Sports. Year. EVER.

I start by defining the "Cleveland Loss." It comes in three forms. (Note: I did not write this, I just like it and quote it often. No idea who wrote it or where I read it. And typical of my ethics, I stole it and posted it here for you.)

Type One: The game where our team has eked out a lead, looks like it's going to take it home, then blows it/gets beat at the end. The Shot was a Type One Cleveland Game, as was The Drive, as was Game Seven of the '97 World Series. The Browns suffered a series of Type One losses in Three Rivers Stadium in the late '70s.

Type Two: The game where we're behind late, we fight back to tie or at least be in a position to tie/win the game at the end, then do something stupid to lose. The Fumble is perhaps the epitome of a Type Two Cleveland Game. Red Right 88 is another good example. The Browns lost a Type Two to the Eagles in overtime in 2004- the loss that sent the season into the crapper. February 28, 2005 Cavs game against San Antonio- Type Two.

Type Three: Somewhat rarer, a game where we have a big lead then cough it up in shocking fashion. The Browns blowing a 21-3 lead and losing to Miami in the '85 playoffs was a Type Three. Another Type Three was the Browns' loss to the Vikings in 1980, in which they were winning 23-9 and allowed Tommy Kramer to throw three touchdown passes, including the Hail Mary to Rashad, in the last five minutes (the Vikings missed an extra point that would have tied it, necessitating the Hail Mary, but the Browns hated the gift). It was Type Three in the Windy City in 2001; the Browns led 21-7, the Bears had the ball on their own ten-yard line at the two-minute warning... yet somehow Chicago came back to win. I saw it, but I'll be a monkey's uncle if I'm still not exactly sure how that could have happened.

And allowing for exceptions (The Fumble; Game Seven), the true Cleveland Game plays out right here at home. M.J. knocked the Cavs out of the playoffs with buzzer-beaters twice, both times at the Coliseum. Red Right 88 and The Drive silenced sellout crowds at Municipal Stadium.

January: Ohio State faces Florida in the BCS Championship. Favored by a ton, lose by 27. Type Three Loss, as OSU was ranked #1 for most of the season.

March: Ohio State vs. Florida for the NCAA basketball Championship. OSU loses again. Another Type Three, as OSU was near the top the whole year.

June: Cavs get swept by San Antonio, series ends at home. Type One. They were there, they had a great season, they had a chance to finish it all off, and well, we all saw what happened.

October: Indians have a 3-1 lead over the Red Sox. They choke, beginning at home, then two on the road. Type Three. Again.

And now tonight. A 10-6 record when we all expected a top 5 draft pick going to the Cowboys. One win last week against Cincinnati changes everything. A blown call against Arizona in the final seconds. Oakland's timeout in week three with 3 seconds left, negating Dawson's field goal, and seeing his retry get blocked. If just one of those changes, the Browns live to play San Diego next week. If all three change, the Browns win the AFC North, only losing games to Pittsburgh and New England. Instead, they go home in a Type Two Loss.

After Ohio State chokes next week against LSU, this will make six Championship Game/Series losses, in stereotypical Cleveland fashion in the span of 365 days. Honestly, how much more can I take? I'm 23 and already balding from ripping my hair out over these teams. You think I'm kidding, but I'm not. I'm considering shaving it all off to hide the fact.

Edited January 8: LSU beating OSU would go on to become a Type 3 Loss. One more time.

I don't even know what to say anymore. I'm just speechless.

Meanwhile, my colleagues in Boston are celebrating a World Series, a bowl victory over Michigan State, their forthcoming Super Bowl XLII victory, and the likelihood of an NBA Championship and a run at the NHL playoffs. Go die, all of you.

That... was... ugly!

2007-12-23T11:26:00.000-06:00

Yeah, it's still two points, but last night was honestly one of the ugliest games I have ever seen. Not just in terms of the play on the ice, but actions between plays, the actions of the Tornado players toward the fans, and the actions of the WF fans toward Tornado players.

I have been told my broadcast was not available on B2 for some reason (I hope the league reconsiders next season unless the company gets their crap together pretty quickly), so many fans and player parents did not get to hear my comments on the game, the aftermath, or the talk with coach John Bowkus afterward. I will try to recap it all here. There was a lot of action however, but I will try to cover it all.

The officials, referee Nick Krebsbach, and linesmen Matt Barnett and Jay Alburry lost control of this one before it even started. Friday night's game was full of the same ridiculousness from the opening faceoff. No fights, but many scrums, poor penalty calls and non-calls on both sides, and five misconduct penalties in a poor effort to keep it under control.

Saturday night, it all started at the opening faceoff. As the red carpets were rolled off the ice from the national anthem and ceremonial puck drop, Dustin Nowick and Stu Jacobson lined up and got to talking. This was before anyone else was lined up for the faceoff. Puck drops, so do the gloves and helmets. Good square-off, with Nowick landing a couple early rights, followed by Jacobson with one, then missing on two. Nowick missed one, then landed an absolute bomb to Jacobson, knocking him off balance, but Jacobson came back, landing a couple rights, then a bomb of his own. They each miss on a couple and go to the ice. Decent scrap, score it a draw.

With the Wildcats taking an early 2-0 lead, the show continued. Branson Yost caught Sean Roadhouse with a hard, but clean hit behind the Tornado goal. After Sean McKenzie took a poke at the puck that was covered up by Tornado goalie Tom Callaghan, Tornado defenseman Blake O'Connor came over to rough him up a bit. While this was happening, out of nowhere, Roadhouse grabs Yost and starts pounding on him while Yost still has his helmet and gloves on. Roadhouse peppers him with the rights as Yost finally shakes off the gloves and comes back with a few of his own. He manages to right the ship, pull Roadhouse down and give him a nice group of uppercuts. Roadhouse comes back with the rights, while Yost continues, each connecting on about half of what they threw. Roadhouse is getting tired as his jersey comes off, and Yost manages to keep him from throwing while getting in several rights of his own. Both tire, throw a few looping rights that miss, and the linesmen step in. Subtracting the edge Roadhouse got by jumping the guy, it's a clear win for Yost. With the jumping advantage, still and edge to Yost for landing more and better. Keep that name in mind: Roadhouse. It will come up a lot later.

The game moves on, Wildcats lead 3-1, and Roadhouse runs over WF goalie Mike Jarboe. Now Jarboe leads all goalies in PIM (33, with a major, two misconducts, and 4 minors), so I was fully expecting him to come out and extend that lead. Instead, Skylur Jameson goes over and tries to get Roadhouse to fight. Now in spite of the red hair, Skylur is usually pretty even-tempered. If he's trying to fight you, you know you did something really wrong. Typical of Roadhouse, the gloves stayed on. During a stoppage in play Adam Sponseller tried to get Roadhouse to go as well. Of course, nothing. By the way, Sponseller and Roadhouse came into this game tied with 5 misconduct/ejection penalties each. I've lost count of how many times Adam Cardwell has tried to fight Roadhouse in three years. Needless to say, it's a lot, and each time Roadhouse has refused. And if you go running from Skylur and Sponseller too, it just shows what kind of a "tough guy" you really are. Sean Roadhouse is to the NAHL what a chihuahua is to a dogfighting ring. Just ask Michael Vick about that if you don't get the analogy (ohhhhhhhhh the rare double burn!).

Fast forward, Wildcats up 5-2. Now, remember a few weeks ago when I complained about the officials handing out three penalties to the Wildcats and none to Springfield in a game a few weeks back? Similar event here: A scrum breaks out, just some clutch and grab kind of stuff, and the linesmen step in. Roadhouse gets two for the original call of tripping, Gustav Bengtson two for slashing as a response to the WF players who came toward Roadhouse, Nowick and O'Connor each got two for delay of game. Kind of overboard on the calls really, and obviously the Tornado didn't like how screwed they were getting here. Captain Roadhouse tries to argue, gets an extra 10, argues that and gets escorted to the locker room, ejected. Because of the ejection of his captain, Tornado coach Dwight Mullins argues and earns himself a two-minute bench minor and a game misconduct. So the Wildcats get a 5-on-3 for about a week: three penalties resulting in a power play for the Cats. Sadly, during this extended power play, the Wildcats got outscored 2-1. Two short-handed breakaways by Jason Zawacki and Mike Cifelli, and a PPG by Mike Sturdevant made it a 6-4 game. Sadly, as my buddy Jason pointed out to me, Cifelli and Zawacki scored on the exact same move. Sturdy's goal was pretty well gift-wrapped as he was wide-open on the near side and had a full net to shoot at, with Callaghan being stuck on the far side of the net. Good work to get him the puck though. And gift-wrapped or not, it's still a goal and counts for just as much as the other 12 that were scored.

So after the officials screwed the Tornado over in the second, they did it to the Wildcats in the third. First off, Wildcats end up down 5-on-3 on a questionable hooking call on Sean Duddy. Follow this up with Skylur going off on a tripping call for what looked to me like a clean open-ice hit. Maybe a little low, but certainly not a trip. Then later Grant Everett was in possession of the puck and somehow gets whistled for holding. The whistle blew as a Tornado player touched the puck, so naturally I figured we had a penalty coming on the Tornado. So you can imagine my outrage when Ev goes to the box after these repeated crappy "make-up" calls to apologize to the Tornado for the second period. The worst was late in the game. Tornado down by a goal, Callaghan is out of the net and back to the bench. Ben Van Lare knocks Brett Hartung down, and Hartung ends up on top of Van Lare's stick. As Van Lare tries to skate back to get onside, he can't get away and gives Hartung a few shots, thereby keeping him down on BVL's stick. So typical of the whole night, Van Lare screams to the officials, and out of nowhere, they award the Tornado with a power play: Hartung gets two for roughing, of all calls. Coaches John Bowkus and Tom Murphy argued and got nailed for a two-minute bench minor. So with Callaghan on the bench, this made it a 6-on-3 with 12 seconds to go, and one of the Cats' best penalty killers in the box. Maybe it's not so bad I wasn't on B2: at least now the league can't fine me for anything I said after that.

Fortunately the clock ran out and the Wildcats won 7-6. But the fun wasn't over yet. As the clock hit zero, a few fans threw brooms onto the far side of the ice. Nowhere near any players, I should add, but still not exactly a classy display. The worst was yet to come: one of the stick slid along the ice toward Tornado forward John Kruse. As he skated off the ice, he bent down, picked the broom up, and blindly whipped it into the crowd on the near side of the ice (not the direction the brooms actually came from). There are conflicting reports as to what happened, but the general consensus is that three brooms were thrown on the ice, all came from the far side of the ice, and were not thrown at the players. Kruse's throw did hit at least one fan, one person said it hit a man, another report says a young boy about six years old. Fans started trying to get at Kruse over the railing, and forward Brian Sheehan apparently decided the fans wanted to see what one of his fingers looked like. I'm sure you can guess which one. The police stepped in and discussed matters back by the locker room with Kruse.

I doubt criminal charges will be filed, but I hope the NAHL and USA Hockey will step in and do something about this. An ECHL player, Brandon Sugden, was banned for life from that league for throwing a stick at a fan. I see no difference between that and this broom-throwing incident. I myself will not be satisfied unless he gets at least five games. If Sean McKenzie can get three games for responding to a check from behind, then five games is a pittance for a player assaulting an innocent bystander of a fan.

Anyways, poor game on both sides. You shouldn't score 7 and have to wonder if you're going to lose. And at the other end, you don't score 6 and lose. Coach Bowkus felt Jarboe didn't play his best game, I felt it was largely the defense in front of him (2 breakaways, one bad hop on a clearing attempt, and three PPG's with two coming with the Tornado on a two-man advantage). Undisciplined play hurts, and it killed both teams tonight.

Wildcats play next week in Chesterfield, MO against the St. Louis Bandits. I'll be there for it. Things should get exciting the week after, as the Wildcats and Tornado go at it again from Frisco, TX on January 4 and 5. I'll bring all the action to the radio that weekend as well, and should get a B2 broadcast as well (the media guy there says he'll have a B2 cord for me by then).

And if John Kruse is playing that weekend, I will not be happy.

This just in: Crosby grows a set

2007-12-21T09:08:00.000-06:00

Never thought I'd see this happen, but Sidney Crosby fought Andrew Ference last night. And if I did see it, I figured it would be a lot of purse swinging, but Sid actually threw a few legitimate punches.

I call it a draw, maybe an edge to Crosby for cutting Ference. By the way, Sid now has as many Gordie Howe hat tricks in his career as Gordie Howe did.

Or did Gordie Howe have as many Sidney Crosby hat tricks as Sid?

The BCS Playoff, Round Two

2007-12-13T15:35:00.000-06:00

Well, I only got 1 vote here, and a total of 9 through various internet sites. Moving on, here is round two!

Hawaii Bowl (Honolulu, HI) #23 Auburn vs. #1 Ohio State
Holiday Bowl (San Diego, CA) #16 Tennessee vs. #2 LSU
Alamo Bowl (San Antonio, TX) #15 Clemson vs. #3 Virginia Tech
Liberty Bowl (Memphis, TN) #14 Boston College vs. #4 Oklahoma
Sun Bowl (El Paso, TX) #13 Illinois vs. #5 Georgia
Music City Bowl (Nashville, TN) #12 Florida vs. #6 Missouri
Meineke Bowl (Charlotte, NC) #11 Arizona State vs. #7 USC
Outback Bowl (Tampa, FL) #9 West Virginia vs. #8 Kansas

So once again, place your votes for round two through Monday December 17 at 1 pm EST.

Win, Lose, or Brawl

2007-12-10T13:09:00.000-06:00

Legendary hockey coach Conn Smythe once said "If you can't beat 'em in an alley, you can't beat 'em on the ice." This weekend, the Wildcats proved they can do both to the St. Louis Bandits.

As any reader here knows, I'm a big fan of fighting in the game of hockey. Friday, I got married to a seriously awesome woman, Gen, who has been mentioned here before. And afterward, we went to the Wildcats' game with the family. Looking at the 6-1 score, it sounds like a pretty crappy game. But for us, it was anything but.

Yeah, the Wildcats lost. Yeah, they played like crap. But the third period featured the gongshow to end all gongshows. Okay, maybe not quite that far (I can name off plenty of crazier events from the 1970's NHL and WHA, and there are some absolutely unfathomable ones from 1970's minor leagues), but it was still something to keep the officials busy and the fans making noise.

Now I'm not usually one to go crowing about officiating (especially after a few on-air remarks that have the entire crew of off-ice officials in Wichita Falls and KYC security all angry at me over what I feel is a legitimate beef), but something has to be done about Bob Walter. He refereed Friday's game and also has officiated at least one other game the Wildcats have been involved in that has gotten out of control. Just read this boxscore and see who was one of the linesmen.

Walter lost control of this one midway through the third. With a 5-1 score, four fights broke out in the span of three minutes, including both goalies, Mike Jarboe and Cal Heeter duking it out at center ice. I haven't gone through the records to see if this is a regular occurrence in his games or not. While I'm a fan of good tough, hard-nosed hockey, including fighting, this one went a little overboard. Seven players were ejected in this one (Jarboe, Heeter, Shawn Jameson, Ben Warda, Sean McKenzie, Justin Javorek, and Dustin Nowick; five for fight-related incidents, two-- Warda and Nowick-- for hits from behind).

We saw a more controlled game Saturday night, with continued physical play, and St. Louis dominating things in the first two periods, but the Wildcats managed a nice comeback in the third. Three goals in the third period and overtime made it a 4-3 win for the Wildcats. Three of the four Cats' goals were scored by the top line. Good to see them snapping out of this mild funk they've been in since the Tornado sweep. From the drop of the puck on the series in Springfield through the start of the third period Saturday night, the top line of Adam Cardwell, Grant Everett, and Luke Salazar and the defensive pairing with them had only scored 6 of the team's 21 goals. Granted, Everett was playing while injured for a game and Cardwell was suspended for two. But in the third period Saturday, the line had a lot better bounce in their step. Sometimes you need a stretch like this to keep you on your toes and going at your best.

Three new players on the team this weekend. Mike Sturdevant was one of the big ones, playing on defense, acquired in the Adam Krefski trade. He has NAHL experience in Cleveland, Mahoning Valley, Traverse City, and Kenai River, and has appeared with Ohio in the USHL. Another was forward Dustin Nowick. Nowick, a former Springfield Junior Blue, looked to be decent with the puck, fast, and hits pretty well. Looks like he might be able to fight a bit too, as he has already fought Mike Murray of St. Louis once this year. Third is goaltender Miles Kirkhuff. Looks like Kyle McMahon may be out, as Kirkhuff was wearing his old #32. Kirkhuff has played in lower levels for the California Wave 89's (with current Wildcats Branson Yost and Brett Kaneshiro), the AAA Pikes Peak Miners, Colorado Rampage, and LA Junior Kings. He may have also been possessed by the USHL's Indiana Ice at one time as well.

Coaches' show will again be on Tuesday night. We'll have notes on it here later this week.

The BCS Playoff System: Round One

2007-12-03T14:59:00.000-06:00

So yesterday I mentioned my playoff system. And I'm going to you, readers, vote on it!

Voting starts right now, and ends at noon CST (1 pm EST) on Monday December 10. Just post a reply with who you think will win each game for round one. On the 10th, I will tally up the winners and post round two.

Here are your nominees!

New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque, NM): #24 Boise State vs. #9 West Virginia
Motor City Bowl (Detroit, MI): #23 Auburn vs. #10 Hawaii
Independence Bowl (Shreveport, LA): #22 Cincinnati vs. #11 Arizona State
Emerald Bowl (San Francisco, CA): #21 South Florida vs. #12 Florida
Las Vegas Bowl (Las Vegas, NV): #20 Virginia vs. #13 Illinois
Humanitarian Bowl (Boise, ID): #19 Texas vs. #14 Boston College
Papajohns.com Bowl (Birmingham, AL): #18 Wisconsin vs. #15 Clemson
Insight Bowl (Tempe, AZ): #17 Brigham Young vs. #16 Tennessee

The top 8 teams (OSU, LSU, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma, Georgia, Missouri, USC, and Kansas) get a first-round bye. Winners this week will play these 8 teams in Round Two (Round Two bowls will be the Hawaii Bowl, Holiday Bowl, Liberty Bowl, Alamo Bowl, Sun Bowl, Music City Bowl, Meineke Bowl, and Outback Bowl).

So vote away! LEave your votes as a comment, and I'll approve it and tally everything up.

Damn the BCS!

2007-12-02T19:24:00.000-06:00

A mighty roar of "Dammit!" echoed across the living room of my house about 10 minutes ago.

For the second year in a row, my Ohio State Buckeyes face off against the SEC Champion in the National Championship game.

And for the second year in a row, my Buckeyes will lose.

Think about it. LSU is, according to every expert, quasi-expert, and occasional college football watcher, the best team in the country. I don't care that the polls rank them #2 behind #1 OSU: the polls don't say everything. And worse yet, LSU will for all intents and purposes, play in front of their home crowd. How much more screwed can Ohio State get here?

With the craziness that has erupted over the past ~~two days~~ ~~week~~ ~~month~~ season, I don't see how anyone can call any team a clear-cut number one or even number two. There are some obvious ones: you can't put Kansas there because they lost to Missouri. You can't put Missouri there because they lost twice to Oklahoma. You can't put Oklahoma or Georgia there because they lost to two unranked opponents. OSU shouldn't be there because of a weak schedule. Hawaii can't go because of a feeble schedule (I just wanted to use the word feeble). Virginia Tech can't go because they lost to LSU. USC, West Virginia, and LSU each lost two, with one each to an unranked opponent. LSU was ranked number one TWICE and blew it both times.

And this is why college football needs a playoff system.

It's ridiculous that out of 119 teams, 64 play in bowls. That's 54% of all teams. Why should .500 and lower teams be playing in bowl games? For my system, we need 24 bowl games, and the top 24 teams via the BCS rankings.

The top 8 teams get a first-round bye. The ninth through 24th teams will play against each other (9 vs. 24, 10 vs. 23, 11 vs. 22, etc.). From there, winners play against the top 8 teams. And it proceeds like any normal playoff. Simple enough, isn't it?

This week I'll list off who will play in what bowl. The other 7 bowls will have the "also-rans," the 25th ranked team and 13 schools with good seasons that just weren't quite good enough to make it into the playoff (I'm making it 31 because I'm not including the rotating-site BCS National Championship Game).

From the Scratching Post

2007-11-29T15:35:00.000-06:00

Another day, another week of games.

First, a few more autographs: Ken Dryden (signed photo, via e-mail request, 4 weeks), Mike Sillinger (3 cards, 4 weeks), Ruslan Fedotenko (6 cards, 1 month), Chico Resch (3 cards, 3 weeks), and a Canucks fan pack.

Anyways, the Wildcats;' week that was...

Split the weekend in Topeka, minus Adam Cardwell, suspended for the fight with Blake Humphrey about two months ago. I have to wonder why the suspension was handed down so late, and if this may have not been the league's way of trying to keep the Runners from exacting revenge on their home ice. These two teams don't face each other again until March, when they play five games.

Offense looked good five-on-five, and as Coach John Bowkus said on the Tuesday night show, "There aren't many teams in this league that will beat us in that situation." Friday night, all of Topeka's goals had to come via the power play, while the Wildcats scored two with the man advantage and two even-strength. Final score (for those who are not mathematically inclined) Wildcats win 4-3. Saturday was a solid game, but sort of boring, with neither team doing anything super-exciting. Topeka wins 3-1, with one goal coming via the PP.

Yet again the series was pretty physical. Lots of good hitting, and two fights, Tom Kleidon vs. Jeff McNeil and Colin Smith vs. Sean Duddy. I give the edge to McNeil and the win to Duddy. Video of these fights and my reviews are both available at DropYourGloves.com

The Secret of the Week Award goes to the Wildcats' trade of Adam Krefski to the Kenai River Brown Bears. By Tuesday morning, it was made official that the Wildcats had made a trade and during the show, Bowkus confirmed the trade was a forward for a defenseman, but said nothing further as to who was involved or where the player was going. Within a couple hours, a poster at Glassrattler.com let it out that it was Krefski for Brown Bears' defenseman Mike Sturdevant. Sturdevant is a Michigan native, has played in the NAHL, USHL, and OPJHL for a number of teams (Cleveland, Traverse City, and Kenai River in the NAHL, Ohio in the USHL, and Oshawa in the OPJHL). He should help to shore up the blueline, a spot where the team could use some assistance.

Well, we're going to have a Coaches' Show next week, but I have no idea what to talk about. The Wildcats have this weekend off, followed by two games next weekend against the St. Louis Bandits. Wildcats will be without Adam Sponseller for Friday's game, as he will be sitting out due to a game misconduct assessed in the final seconds of Saturday's game.

In other news

2007-11-26T16:40:00.001-06:00

We'll have coverage of the Wildcats' weekend from Topeka tomorrow or Wednesday after the Coaches' Show tomorrow night.

My posting abilities have been placed on "Moderator Approval Only" at TheNHLArena.com because Boston homers suck. After pointing out his whining about the refs in last night's Pats-Eagles game, he ripped into me with a profanity-laced tirade that got him banned from the site for a month. My response, containing one "bleepable" word got me placed on "Mod-Watch" status. Meh, whatever. Not my fault your team is going to go down in the history books as being severely overrated and coached by an ass. People like this are part of the reason the Red Sox are no longer my favorite team, the reason I hate the Pats, and the reason it's very hard to even cheer for the Bruins now. Screw the Celtics.

We'll see if I think of anything else during the week.

The Legendary ECWL

2007-11-26T14:41:00.001-06:00

I cover a lot of strange stuff here on this blog.

I wrote on Australian Rules Football a few months back (Congrats to Geelong on pounding Port Adelaide for the 2007 Premiership). I regularly write about hockey fights. I talk about mail-stalking athletes for autographs.

But as of yet, I've said nothing about wiffleball.

Anyone who knows me well knows of my history in the game of wiffleball and the teams I played on. And this week, I learned that the team I retired from back after the Fall 2005 season, the Emerson Expos, has finally won an Emerson College Wiffleball League World Series.

The ECWL started in Spring 2005 after pickup games in the Fall of 2004. I entered the league and was drafted by Ian Villmore's Expos. Besides myself and Ian, the team had star pitcher Dean Mozian and top-hitter Jim Meegan forming the core of the team. Honestly, we were a pretty terrible team. We finished the season about 2-6. I batted .261 with 2 HR, 12 RBI (tied for the team lead in both), struck out 24 times while walking 19 times (leading the team in both stats). On the mound, I fared better, with a 7.46 ERA (really not too bad for this league), 1-1 record, struck out 28 while walking 26 (both the highest totals on the team).

With Villmore's excellent drafting, the next season went far better. In the draft, the team acquired sure-handed switch-hitting speedster Sal Valone and MVP candidate Alex Disenhof. And things slowly turned around.

The team started off the season with a double-header against the Legends of the Hidden Temple. A playoff team the previous season, the Legends were already the favorites to win the East division. The Expos had them on the schedule twice. Game one went as we pretty much expected, with the Legends winning 12-5. For some reason, we never could do a thing when they had Dave Bartlett on the mound. He was one of those guys that didn't have over-powering stuff, but had great control of his pitches and could hit any spot with any pitch. Think of a Greg Maddux type. Bartlett would go on to win the Cy Young Award for the season.

Game two was my first chance on the mound in the Fall 2005 season. After my near-record-setting 14 strikeouts in a game in Spring 2005, I was expected to lead this year's pitching staff, and this game was my first test. Going up against Alex MacDonald, one of the best pitchers from the previous season, as well as being a leading power hitter, I knew I had to bring my best game, and I did. Really, we all did. I was within an out of tossing a 3-inning no-hitter, while the offense got to A-Mac early and put up a 12-2 "10-run mercy rule" victory. The season was underway, and we were 1-1.

Game three pitted us against DT United, led by Matt Ganski and Chris Strickland. We proved to be no match for Ganski's knuckleball, and Villmore's curveball was spot-on for the whole 16-4 victory in 4 innings. We were 2-1 and tied for the top of the East Division.

But it wouldn't be long before everything hit the fan. Part of the problem with the game of wiffleball is that if you get the slightest bit of wind or wet ground, everything goes to hell pretty quickly. A wind in a pitcher's face deadens fastballs, makes curveballs go straight, and sliders go, well, everywhere. And pop flies turn into home runs. With wet ground, pitchers can't push off the mound to get anything behind pitches, so you have to rely on movement.

For our fourth game, we faced the Renegades. This was a team that looked like they should be among the league's elite, but they came into this one 0-4. They had a ton of offense, but little pitching. We had all the pitching, but limited offense. And in this league, the nuclear offense will dominate the good pitching any day.

The ground was soaked and rain was still falling, but we had to play this one. And we couldn't get anything done. My pitches had no speed, and I rely on limited movement, so I was screwed. Meanwhile, Pablo Velez, my mound counterpart who relies on sliders and cutters could mow us down at will, as he was not affected by the weather. I gave up 6 runs in 2-1/3 innings. This time, a mercy-rule loss, 12-2.

Soon, it looked like a repeat of the previous season was in order. On a windy day, we played a doubleheader against DT United. Wind: a wiffleball pitcher's worst nightmare. Pretty quickly, we fell behind in game one and called it in the third with the Expos losing 24-7. I started this one and along with being unable to control my pitches and the weather, my mental status got the best of me as well. While we were batting, I spent my time in between at-bats throwing a ball off the fence trying to figure out anything I could to throw a straight pitch. Other times, to work off the excess aggression, I was picking up a bat and just pounding stray balls all over foul territory. Game two, same thing. We lost 24-14 in 5 innings. Villmore had mistakenly thought we were only down by two when we were down by 5. With the bases loaded, he told me to let the next batter hit a homer and then strike out the next guy. We would be down by 6, but still alive. I tried, but my control wasn't there. He singled. Fortunately, this brought Matt Ganski to the plate with two out. I had struck him out three times already, and I knew I could do it again. But, I was thinking we were down three. Instead it was six. I went after him with a slider to start, and it didn't move. Ganski crushed it. Grand slam, 10 run lead, and the game was over.

At that point, I lost it. I had gone from an elite pitcher to crap in the span of two weeks. The Expos needed better. I launched about three wiffleballs across the field and took a bat to the strike zone target. Doing my best Patrick Roy imitation, I screamed something at Villmore about trading me (I think I may have used the Slapshot line from Denis Lemieux, "Trade me right f#%$ing now!") or shipping me to the minors (yes, we had a minor league system in this), that I was done in an Expos uniform. I was tired of being left out to dry when we had plenty of other pitchers who could (and should) have come in when it wasn't happening for me (game one, about an inning too late), and hated being brought in as a reliever (game two in the fifth). I hated the fact I had my best games of the season hitting, but got no support from the rest of the team in hitting, pitching, or fielding.

After a few days, Villmore e-mailed me about everything. Oddly enough, I was fourth in the league in hitting. The team needed me. He promised to start handling pitchers better. And it would start with the next game. I decided to come back. Our woes continued, but we were finally getting things straightened out. We lost to the West's second-place team the Tyrone Biggums 18-14. We were still in the running for a playoff spot. But we would have to win two of our final three to have a chance.

The following weekend, we had another doubleheader against the Legends. And just like the previous one, I shut them down 13-2 in three innings, and with Bartlett leading the way, they took us down 15-8. But, for once, we could hit Dave.

One game would decide it all. The 3-6 Expos had to face the 3-6 DT United. Winner plays the Legends for the East championship. Loser goes home. I had found out the day before that I was a Cy Young Award nominee. Unfortunately, so was Chris Strickland, who I was facing.

In the top of the first, I put us on top with a three-run homer. On a 3-1 count, I saw Strickland holding his slider (it's hard to cover up what pitch you're throwing when you can't wear a mitt). It came, it broke, and I read it perfectly, dropping one over the fence for a 3-0 lead. I went to the mound, set them down facing 6 batters, not allowing any runs, including getting out of a 2-on, 1 out jam.

In the second, our offense continued, but the defense led to some problems. We led 7-5. After that, I got into a groove. The setting sun was no longer blinding me, so I could actually pitch decently. The United got nothing for three innings, while we put up three more in the third, including my two-run homer to make it 10-5. The score stayed the same through the bottom of the sixth. We were three outs away from the playoffs.

And that's when my arm decided to die on me.

First pitch to the first batter of the sixth, bam, home run.

Ian asked if I wanted him to take over. Not yet. Three weak hitters were coming up. I could mow them down.

And then came another homer. 10-7. Ian didn't have to ask: I just tossed him the ball and told him to take over.

Ian would go on to get credit for the league's only save of the season. The next batter struck out, then a fly ball to right, a walk, and a pop-up right back to the mound. We won 10-7, and were going to the playoffs, beating the team that nearly sunk our season two weeks before.

We moved onward. Our first playoff appearance. I was tagged to pitch against Dave Bartlett. The East's two favorites for the Cy Young were going at it. One would have thought that with the Expos inability to hit Dave and their inability to hit me that this would have been a fairly close, low-scoring game.

We won 21-6 (the mercy rule is 20 for the playoffs). I homered twice, drove in 7, struck out 10, and held the Legends scoreless from the second through the end of the fifth. My newly-discovered forkball was perfect to throw with two strikes when ahead in the count. Our late call-up of Steve Rippin, who could actually hit Bartlett, helped us immensely.

And so, the All-Star Game and World Series. Ian, Alex Disenhof, and I were all named to the game. While the East lost to the West 19-13, the Expos lost more than anyone. When making a diving catch, Disenhof's knee cap caught on the edge of a manhole cover (yes, in the middle of the field we were playing on). An ambulance was called, x-rays showed a break.

It was Jim Chones' ankle all over again. A prototypical Type Two Cleveland Loss. Worse yet, it was on our home field of Port-A-Potty Stadium (we had four fields: Dynasty Stadium over at Rotch Field where Team Dynasty played, Port-A-Potty Stadium on Boston Common named because of the nearby Port-A-Potties which was our home field, Center Field in center field of the softball field which was home of DT United and the Tyrone Biggums, and The Corner which was the right-field corner of the softball field and home to the Renegades and the Legends). X-Rays showed he broke his kneecap. His season was over, as were our chances at a title.

Ian and I got together to outline our game plan for the World Series. We had detailed scouting reports on Team Dynasty, the West champs. We figured out how we could pitch most effectively, and what to watch for from their pitchers, including Cy Young candidate Drew Sumner. And how the hell we might overcome the loss of our MVP candidate Disenhof.

And so, we played. But we scrapped our game plan when we saw Rippen pitch. He was hitting every corner of the zone with his knuckler. We decided to start him in Game One.

After Rippin walked the first four batters, Sal Valone took over. We started the game down 12-0 at the end of one inning. Ian took over on the mound. In hindsight, we wish we had stuck with the plan of starting him in this one. For the final five innings, he allowed four runs, while we managed to score 11. We could easily have won the first game. We should have won it. But we beat ourselves.

Game Two was an example of that "nuclear offense beats great pitching" mantra that I spoke of before. We took an early 3-0 lead, but managed nothing from there. I felt I pitched alright early on, but we couldn't mount any offense. Final score: 21-4.

So, we lost the World Series. In the offseason, I retired to move to Texas. Disenhof was traded. Villmore rebuilt the team, but things weren't the same. Finally, with a few pieces added in, this past month the Expos went 9-0 in the regular season, and only lost one game in the playoffs on their way to a World Series win. It took two years and four seasons to get back there, but it finally happened, and this time we won, beating my old favorite team to face, the Legends.

What's the point of this story? I don't know. Just that it's rare I get to brag about my own athletic accomplishments and my teams winning, so I'm taking the chance to do so. Congrats to the Expos!

From the Scratching Post: Tuesday Night Coaches' Show

2007-11-21T12:53:00.000-06:00

Time for another report from the Tuesday Coaches' Show from Cici's Pizza!

By the way, yesterday I got one more autograph in the mail, Henrik Zetterberg, 1 card, 3 weeks, plus a fan pack from the Carolina Hurricanes in a week. Anyways...

Coach John Bowkus couldn't make it this week, so instead we got to talk to assistant coach Tom Murphy. Going back to Bowkus' remarks after game one of this past weekend, I asked about the team looking nervous out on the ice, and Murph agreed. They were playing well, but not finishing off their chances that they had. Possibly it had a bit to do with just having dropped two games in a row in Springfield, so the guys were trying to be a little too perfect, and it backfired on them. Additionally, Fairbanks scored their early goal, and that was all they needed. The Ice Dogs, Murph said, play a very physical and defensive game, and because of that and the great goaltending from Cody Reichard, sometimes they'll only need one or two goals to win a game.

Their defense forced us into a lot of bad shots. While the Cats outshot the Dogs, most of the shots were from far and wide and ended up right in Reichard's chest, something a goalie will stop eleven times out of ten. There is no six-hole there!

At the other end of the ice, Fairbanks' power play was 2 for 4, providing all their offense. So far this season, our penalty killers have been very good, and this was sort of an anomaly. Neither goal was because of a breakdown by the Cats, just a good screen for the second, and a lucky bounce on the first. Factor in the Cats' lone goal off a misplayed puck by Reichard, and this could have easily been a 0-0 game all the way through.

Moving on to Saturday night, it's too early to call anything a "must-win" game, but Murph agreed with me that getting a win after three losses is huge for this team. It's early in the season, but you still want to keep dominant and stay atop the standings. "We want to be the best team in the league, not just a highly-ranked team when all is said and done," Murph said. Continuing on the theme from the previous night, defense, goaltending, and lucky bounces ruled the first 53 minutes. Several great saves by Reichard and Cats' goalie Mike Jarboe, as well as players from both sides hitting posts kept it scoreless. It could easily have been 3-0 either way by the end of the second. But then Adam Sponseller and Luke Salazar came through with goals late in the third to win it 2-0.

Both goaltenders were great in this one and if Salazar doesn't score that second goal, Reichard gets third star. As it was, Jarboe was first star for the shutout (28 saves), Sponseller second for the GWG, and Salazar 3rd for his goal.

Good support from the crowd, 2000 is the largest crowd we've had at the KYC this season. I wouldn't be surprised to see more crowds like this as high school football season ends here in Texoma.

Good to see Jarboe getting back on track, after allowing 6 vs. Springfield and a goal on the first shot he saw against Fairbanks Friday night. As Murph said "Goalies can go through periods sometimes where they doubt their abilities after allowing 6 goals or such in a game, and so it's always good to see him come back with a great game and prove nothing is wrong."

Speaking of Mike Jarboe, we talked to him in the "Talk To The Team" segment of the show as well. Apparently he's interested in Lake Superior State and Michigan Tech University. Good choice on the latter (and not just because my dad is class of '72): it was the college for future NHL goalies Damien Rhodes, Geoff Sarjeant, Gord McRae, Gary Bauman, and hall of famer Tony Esposito.

Two games coming up this weekend in Topeka, KS. I'll have the call as usual on B2 and KOLI.

----------------
Now playing: CC40 - Light It Up
via FoxyTunes

Autographs and Fan Packs

2007-11-19T15:10:00.000-06:00

Sent out a ton more and they've started rolling back in. I also e-mailed every NHL team asking for free stuff. Here's what I've gotten since my last update on autograph stuff.

Tony Twist, 2 cards, 2 index cards signed on both sides, 2 months
Garth Butcher, 3 cards, 2 months
Sandis Ozolinsh, 4 cards and even wrote a short note to me on an index card, 10 days
Konstantin Pushkarev, 2 cards and 2 index cards, 10 days
Martin Straka, 4 cards and 2 index cards, 2 weeks
Michel Goulet, 4 cards, 2 weeks
Ian Laperriere, 1 card, 2 weeks
Anze Kopitar, 3 cards and 2 index cards, 2 weeks
Kimmo Timonen, 4 cards, 2 weeks
Kyle Calder, 3 cards, 2 weeks
Patrice Bergeron, 3 cards, 10 months

Fan Packs
Dallas Stars (mini-pennant, form letter, 2 pocket schedules, a sticker sheet, a Marty Turco magnet, and 4x5 photos of Turco, Boucher, and Halpern), 1 week
Atlanta Thrashers (team logo magnet and a pocket schedule), 1 week
Pittsburgh Penguins (2 pocket schedules, 1 8x10 of Sid, 1 8x10 of Lemieux's comeback in 2000), 1 week
Toronto Maple Leafs (3 temporary tattoos, 1 schedule with both the Leafs' and Marlies' scheds on it, a Christmas card, a button that says "Holy Mackinaw!" in a maple leaf, and a set of 25 cards), 1 week

Back in the swing of things

2007-11-19T10:38:00.000-06:00

Pretty decent weekend for my teams. Ohio State wins the Big 10 with a victory over Michigan. Wildcats split with Fairbanks in two close games. Browns win a really weird game over the evil Ravens. And Barry Bonds gets indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice.

Been a little slow to write lately since I'm getting married on December 7 (Jim "The Beast" Beason will hopefully be able to cover those games), plus we have one Thanksgiving dinner coming this week down in Aurora, TX, then another here in Wichita Falls, and then a roadtrip this weekend to Topeka. All while I'm battling a nice cold. Fortunately it seems to be leaving me after only two full days of suffering.

I'm not certain of the Coaches' Show tomorrow, as the team has their Thanksgiving dinner as well, so I'm thinking the show will likely be canceled. If this is the case, I will still try to get on here and provide a full update of the weekend's games and a preview of the coming weekend in Topeka.

For my fellow card geeks and Wildcats fans

2007-11-14T12:59:00.000-06:00

This is what I do when I get bored. I make my own custom cards.

Click the photo to see the rest. I'll be making more as I find good pictures and have time. These are just the first few. I'll be making one of everyone on the team before the end of the season.

Vote Simply Drew in 2002 (2008 doesn't rhyme)!

2007-11-12T21:16:00.000-06:00

Election time is near. A year from now, the results will be counted for our new president. Likewise, a year from now, votes will be counted for the Bloggers' Choice Awards.

And I want your vote.

Howie Mansfield nominated me for the BCA in the Best Sports Blogger category last year. Unfortunately, I didn't win. However, campaigning and voting starts now for the 2008 Awards! So vote for me, and let's get Simply Drew out to the masses. Look at the top right area of this blog and you'll see where I have the nomination. Click there, sign up (it's free and they won't spam you at all), and give me your vote! Last year's winner had 200-some votes. So far he has about 20 or so. I have 7.

So I need your help. Vote for Drew. Get Drew's name out there. You know how much you like my writing!

Think about it. I even have a celebrity endorsement!

See that? Chuck Norris supports me. And no one goes against Chuck Norris and lives to tell about it.

See the yard sign? The people are showing their support and pledging their votes to me. Shouldn't you?

Vote Simply Drew as the Best Sports Blogger and I'll make all your wildest dreams come true.

Springfield, Springfield, It's a hell of a town...

2007-11-12T11:41:00.000-06:00

Wait a minute, no it isn't.

For those of you who have never experienced a game in Springfield, IL, do yourselves a favor and don't. The arena is nothing more than an overgrown community youth hockey arena. It's dark, it's dreary, it has a tiny broadcast booth, and the fans... well don't get me started on them. If you want to see the average Springfield fan, go to Glassrattler.com, check out the NAHL forum, and look for posts from ~~Dishonest Ass~~ Honest Abe.

The arena holds 2200, or so says the Fire Marshall's capacity. So there's plenty of seating. Attendance was listed at 750 each night, and it seemed like half the fans in that arena decided to all stand in a group around me while on the air, blocking my view down the ice. The broadcast booth on the far side of the arena only has room for Springfield's announcer, scoreboard operator, and camera guy. I had to be at a table at ice level across from the Wildcats bench. Can't see a thing down in the near-side corner closest to the main stands off the the right of me. So a large group of fans all decided to stand around me while broadcasting and try to drown me out and block my view. Real nice. At least in Wichita Falls we make room in our small, way-high-up post for an opposing broadcaster if we need to.

Last year, I had a kid try to pick up my spare headset. When I took it away from him, his mom looked at me like I was Michael Jackson. In the second game last year, I had an adult try to mess with the knobs on my mixing board. This year, adults who should know better making tons of noise behind and around me, kids and adults both pointing and laughing and screaming about how much we suck anytime Springfield scores, and just generically trying to interfere with my broadcast. And last but not least, throwing brooms on the ice at the end of the game. Real nice. You were jerks when we owned you last year. You're jerks when you win. Show some class.

Needless to say, I'm glad I don't have to go back there.

And now on to the game. As said, the Wildcats looked terrible all weekend. And this wasn't Springfield making us look bad, it was just us looking bad. The goaltending was very weak, though neither Kyle McMahon nor Mike Jarboe got much help from their defense. One defenseman was commenting on the bus about just feeling winded the whole weekend: getting on the ice, skating for fifteen seconds, and feeling dead. Another was directly responsible for at least two goals in the second game. For the first, a forward walked right around him for an easy goal. Later he made a pass to the middle of nowhere which was immediately picked up by a Springfield forward for another goal. Take out those two ~~massive defensive screwups~~ miscues, and the Wildcats win this one. Even late in the game with Jarboe out of the net, the Wildcats had a chance to tie. They had a set play off a faceoff in Springfield's zone, but lost the faceoff, and the team just looked clueless as to what they needed to do after that. It took about 3 seconds for Springfield to put in the empty-netter.

Additionally, the officiating of Friday's game was questionable at times. Ever seen three minor penalties all called on one team at the same time, while the opposing team gets nothing? How about a bump from behind and a dive called a 4-minute check from behind and a game ejection? Elbows to the face going uncalled, a goalie getting run over in the corner with no call. Pretty bad across the board. Seems to be a trend this year, but at least it was better than any game Steven Berry has called. Fortunately this weekend's referees William Steinel Jr. and Bob Walter rarely do any games for us.

Talking after the game to coach John Bowkus, he was disappointed, but essentially viewed it as just a speed bump in the road of the season, saying "We've played better on the road recently... This is why it's a 58-game season, and we still play them at home two more times."

"The entire weekend was just inconsistent all across the board. We would play physical, then back off. We would be the fastest guys out there, then slow down. Our defense would make some good plays, then give the puck away. And the goaltending was off all weekend. That has to change."

The one good from this weekend is the play of the Wildcats' offense and special teams. Three goals on eleven attempts on the power play, nine of ten on the penalty kill with a short-handed goal. The offense managed 8 goals in the two games, but as stated, the defense and goaltending just weren't there.

Two more games to play against Springfield later this year, both here in Texas. Next week, two games against the South division's second-place team, Fairbanks. Thunderstix on Friday, hats on Saturday!

This just in...

2007-11-07T08:45:00.000-06:00

Something funny has finally been written by an Eastern New Yorker!

A day in the life of Bill Belichick

Even more funny: the comments from the pathetic Patriots ~~fans~~ bandwagon jumpers. At least one of them found humor in it.

The Derek Anderson Quasi-Dilemma

2007-11-06T12:40:00.000-06:00

Okay, really now, be honest. Who saw Derek Anderson doing what he's done this year? After 9 weeks, the Browns QB has thrown for 2108 yards, 17 TD's with only 9 INT's, and a 57.6 completion percentage. I know of no one.

Really, just look back at what I wrote in the preseason on the guy.

August 28: "According to one viewer, after a touchdown, Brady Quinn, Charlie Frye, and Ken Dorsey were all together reviewing the drive on a clipboard. Notable absence: Derek Anderson, who was off laughing and joking with teammates. Wonder who the goner will be?"

August 24: "Try to trade Derek Anderson now, and let Frye start. He looked crappy, but not as bad as Anderson... Receivers haven't been anything great, but they haven't had a chance to show what they can do either because of the ineptitude of Frye and Anderson. Give them a good QB and Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow will be great for this team. But unless they have someone to get the ball, they're meaningless in this offense."

But now come the big questions. Is Anderson a one-year wonder? Can the Browns afford to keep him and Brady Quinn after spending what they did on Quinn? What if they drop Anderson and Quinn turns out to be a bust?

For question number three, I have faith in Quinn and in Phil Savage's ability to judge early-round talent. I can almost guarantee with the year he's having that Anderson will likely be tendered the maximum offer sheet this offseason, which I think is a better move than signing him long-term. The Browns have no first round pick because of the Quinn trade, and so if a team signs Anderson, the Browns get a first round pick. Plus as I said, the Browns have a QB on the bench who can take the reigns in Quinn. If no one bites, the team has Anderson for another year, and then might look to going long-term or trading him. The team is in a win-win situation right now.

Who might bite? Looking at things right now, there are several teams in need of help at quarterback, most notably Atlanta, NY Jets, Baltimore (who drafted Anderson in the first place), Jacksonville, Minnesota, St. Louis, and Chicago. These teams are all looking at having high draft picks. I doubt any would want to give those up to get Anderson. Granted, it happens: look at the contract given to Matt Schaub. Additionally, how many legitimate quarterback prospects are there in the draft this year? I could see Brian Brohm, Andre Woodson, Matt Ryan, J.D. Booty, and Colt Brennan going in the first two rounds, as well as possibly Chad Henne. That's six quarterbacks for seven teams needing one. One might bite, but I would think they would more likely look to make a trade rather than scoop Anderson as a RFA. Anderson could be had for a couple picks later in the draft, maybe a 2nd and 4th. And there could be teams looking to trade their first for the Browns' newly-acquired second rounder and their original second rounder.

The Browns have several big holes to fill, most notably the defensive line and possibly the running game. Jamal Lewis has been great this year, and at age 28 he should be just entering the prime of his career, but injuries are a concern. In the middle of the defensive line, Ted Washington is likely done, and depth at nose tackle is a problem. The draft's best DT, Glenn Dorsey, will never make it down to the Browns (unless they get REALLY lucky and some sucker with a top 5 pick makes an offer on Anderson), but there are still Sedrick Ellis, Frank Okam, Red Bryant, and a few potential second-day draftees like Nick Hayden and B.J. Raji. Okam and Bryant should likely be available in the second round. If they pull off the 2nd-and-4th-for-Anderson deal, they might be able to pull both a NT and a RB early, and spend the middle rounds hunting for some hidden talent for the defensive secondary, offensive line depth (especially the right side), and any other weak spots.

While it's been said having two QB's is a good thing, I agree as long as there is no controversy over the starter. A friend of mine once said (and the whole Tim Couch-Kelly Holcomb thing from a few years ago proves it), "If you have two starting quarterbacks, then you don't have any." Running backs aren't like that. A good two-back attack is a VERY good thing to have. Just look at last year: New Orleans had Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush, the Bears had Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson, and the Colts had Joseph Addai and Domenic Rhodes. If no team bites on Anderson, I'd hope the Browns look to trade him around draft time for some defensive line and running game help.

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Now playing: Guns N' Roses - It's So Easy
via FoxyTunes

Brother, can you spare a dime?

2007-11-05T19:02:00.000-06:00

OK, not a dime. Not even a nickel or penny. It's actually free, just a second or seven of your time.

A friend of mine needs money for college (he's a Wildcats' fan too, btw, so player parents, players, housing parents, fans, Romans, countrymen, help a fellow Cats fan out) and you can help him!

Go to this site and go to where it says "Nathaniel has X current campaign entries. Help him win!" and aid him. If he wins, he gets college money. So help him out!

Sweep the Leg Weekend

2007-11-04T08:57:00.000-06:00

Finally, a home win against the Tornado!

Two great games this weekend, a 2-1 OT win in Frisco, then a 6-3 home win, both in come-from-behind fashion. No radio Friday night, but that just meant I got to watch the game closer and also meet Slapshot's Hanson Brothers. Got the game program signed by them as well. Both goals on Friday were scored by Adam Sponseller.

Two fights in this one as well, Justin Javorek had a pretty even fight with Ryan Fuller, edge to Fuller based on damage inflicted (Fuller gave two big rights to him leaving some marks, though Javorek landed a hell of a left and Fuller went into lockdown mode right after it). Grant Everett scored a decisive victory over Justin Lee. Lee didn't want to go, but the linesmen made no effort to get involved, so he had to fight back.

Saturday night looked to be a continuation of the tradition of the home team losing these matchups as the Tornado jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but the Cats came back with 5 unanswered. Branson Yost had his first NAHL goal on a power play, Everett had a hat trick, and Adam Cardwell had a goal and three assists. Tornado added a goal in the third, but the Cats put in an empty netter with 1.8 second left, courtesy of Skylur Jameson.

Once again, two fights. Sponseller TKO'ed Bret Waltz at center ice (though Waltz had the edge in it until the last two punches), and Shawn Jameson scored a one-sided win over Mike Cifelli. I can understand starting a fight to try to get momentum on your side, but it pretty well backfired on Waltz and Cifelli as both were pretty well outmatched.

Looking at the week ahead, two games in Springfield, IL on Friday and Saturday. Look for this to be a matchup of possibly the two fastest teams in the league, with also some good physical play. The Junior Blues traditionally have been a physical team, but now have become a team built on speed. Fortunately, the Wildcats can play a fast-paced and physical game as well, so this should be a very good matchup.

A new addition to my reviews, the three stars of the weekend:
Third: Adam Cardwell, 1 goal, 4 assists, back to the league lead in scoring (9-21-30, 2 points ahead of Mahoning Valley's Derek Graham).

Second: Adam Sponseller, 2 goals, 1 assist, and a fight with Bret Waltz. Sponseller has been a great addition since coming back from suspension, with 10 points and 45 PIM in 10 games.

First: Grant Everett, 3 goals and a fight with Justin Lee. Everett's first NAHL hat trick and a fight were two of the biggest events of the weekend. Look for him to possibly get consideration for NAHL South Player of the Week honors.

Honorable mention: Mike Jarboe. In the offensive explosion and physicality of the weekend, Jarboe's rock-solid play in net gets a bit overlooked. He faced 46 shots, making 42 saves. On the season, he ranks third in the league in GAA (2.17), second in save percentage (.933), and first in wins (11). And if Pointstreak could get itself in gear, I'm thinking his numbers would look even better.

I'll have more later this week after the Tuesday night Coaches' Show, and from Springfield, IL!

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Now playing: Guns N' Roses - IRS
via FoxyTunes

Also, autograph collectors...

2007-10-31T14:57:00.000-06:00

As Ron over at Hound Central is embarking on a new TTM autograph adventure, and I'm sending out a giant batch as well, I have decided to update my TTM/IP Autograph Guide from a few months back. Enjoy!

For those wondering, I've spent the last few days writing page-long letters (by hand) and sending a total of 90 cards to 27 players: Jiri Fischer, Konstantin Pushkarev, Eric Brewer, Joffrey Lupul, Marc-Andre Fleury, Gilbert Brule, Milan Michalek, Miroslav Satan, Pascal Leclaire, Martin Straka, Sandis Ozolinsh, Nikolai Zherdev, Anze Kopitar, Alexander Semin, Ruslan Fedotenko, Chris Simon, Ian Laperriere, Mario Lemieux/Sidney Crosby, Mark Messier, Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Alan May, Pascal Dupuis, Manny Legace, Michel Goulet, Dallas Drake, and Larry Playfair.

I should have information posted on my autograph site in a few days.

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Now playing: System of a Down - Forest
via FoxyTunes

From the Scratching Post: Coaches' Show

2007-10-31T08:39:00.000-06:00

So we finally got the Coaches' Show under way last night. As I've said before, I'm not a great interviewer, but I'll do what I can with this show. And I thought it went pretty well. Since a lot of readers here are from out of town and couldn't get the show on the radio, here's some of the notes from what Coach John Bowkus and I talked about.

The Alaska trip was good. Any time you can go into three tough arenas and get five wins in six games is certainly a good things. The boys showed some real resiliency in the first game, being down 3-0, and coming back to win 4-3 in a shootout.

Good leadership from the captains, and really all the veterans. The young players have come along quickly, with some of the rookies getting game-winners, and in just the past three weeks, getting Matt Kenline, Shawn Jameson, Jake Watchorn, Tyler Tosunian, and Justin Javorek into the scoring.

Jeff McNeil and Adam Sponseller have been great additions. McNeil has had some bad luck with illness and then a suspension, but has played well when he has gotten to play. Sponseller was suspended early on, but has been a great addition both for his scoring and play on the second line and the power play, his physical play, and his veteran leadership.

The Fairbanks brawl showed the team's ability to play physical play, willingness to stand up for each other, and how a fight can turn the tide of a game (and sometimes more). A brawl in an exhibition game in 1980 by the US Olympic team helped turn things around for them, and eventually they won a Gold Medal. In 1997, the Detroit Red Wings had a line brawl with Colorado, and Claude Lemieux later said "They won the Cup that night." Perhaps the Fairbanks line brawl helped to turn a poor start on a road trip into a very successful one.

Two games this past weekend against Topeka, a 3-2 Wildcats' victory and a 2-1 loss. Main difference between the two games was that nothing was clicking in Saturday night's game. Passes were off, shots weren't going on net, and the team took a few stupid penalties. At the other end, the Roadrunners outshot the Wildcats 24-4 in the first period, 12-2 in the second. While they generated a lot of shots, they had few good scoring chances. The Wildcats had some good chances, but missd the net a lot. Mike Jarboe definitely helped keep the Cats in this one (By the way, Jarboe was named second star of the game Friday and third star Saturday).

The tone was set early by Topeka in both games, as they scored fourteen seconds into the game Friday, and then had the aforementioned 24 shots in the first on Saturday. The sudden offensive jumpstart put the Cats back on their heels a bit, but as coach has been telling them this year, they didn't give up. Friday night, for the second time this season, the Wildcats won in the final two minutes. On October 5, it was Jeff McNeil in a deflection on the power play. This past Friday, Adam Krefski with the "magic bullet" shot that hit the crossbar, Topeka goalie Bryce Merriam's back, and then in the goal. Bowkus said Topeka is a team that will constantly put up a fight and should be a team contending with us for control of the division.

Had either game gone to OT, coach said he feels like we would have the advantage. We're a fast, good offensive team, and when you play a 4-on-4 OT, speed is the most important thing. Obviously it can vary from game to game, but all things considered, we're a fast team. That's big in a 4-on-4 OT.

In general, everyone is very happy with the team's play all over the ice. The Cats currently have three of the league's top five scorers (Adam Cardwell, Luke Salazar, and Grant Everett), and four of the top 20 (Skylur Jameson). But it's not just scoring: Justin Javorek leads the league in PIM, and we have three of the top 20 in that category. Down at the other end, Mike Jarboe is 3rd in the league in save percentage, 9th in GAA, and first in the league with 9 wins (once Pointstreak gets their act together...), and six of seven defensemen are on the positive side of +/-.

Unlike past seasons, this team has has several good leaders on it, and has forged an identity very quickly. It's rarely a bad thing to get off to a fast start, and I think a 12-3-1 record probably qualifies as a fast start.

Two games coming up this weekend, a home-and-home against the Texas Tornado. Friday is in Frisco, 7:30 start, and the Hanson Brothers of Slapshot! fame will be in attendance. Saturday we'll be at the KYC, Police and Fire Appreciation night, so all police and fire employees will get $5 tickets with ID. The schedule will be back to normal on the radio this week, so we will be on 94.9, as well as the B2 Network.

A couple other thoughts on this weekend, the Topeka-WF rivalry is heating up. No fights this week, but plenty of almosts, with Cardwell and Steve Shafer getting locked up, Shafer throwing a few punches, and Cardwell making no effort to fight back, while somehow the penalties were matching double minors. Lame. Later in the game, Topeka's Bryon Paulozzo attempted to go knee-to-knee on Cardwell, resulting in Javorek jumping him (no penalty came on Paulozzo for the dirty hit). And to think, Topeka fans all willfully overlook their team's actions and call US the goons!

Three instances of matching roughing or delay of game minors in Friday's game, followed by a hit from behind that resulted in a dazed Brett Kaneshiro and 12 PIM to four players, with Ricky Brown and Caleb Wolfgram nearly having their second fight of the season against each other. The good news is Kaneshiro was quickly back in the game. To quote John Buccigross, "He was okay, he's a hockey player." That's the only time you'll ever hear me use anything said by Buccigross in a way to honor him. I hate the guy.

Anyways, check out the website DropYourGloves.com as well. Recently they've added a section on NAHL fights. You can join the site for free and post your reviews, for those watching in person here in WF or online via the B2 Network. And if you have video from YouTube or anywhere else, post that too!

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Now playing: Pearl Jam - Spin The Black Circle
via FoxyTunes

Huh.

2007-10-29T00:06:00.000-06:00

Why did I make myself watch that?

Congratulations to the Boston ~~Yankees~~ Red Sox on ~~buying~~ winning another World Series.

For those waiting on my analysis of the Wildcats' weekend, I might have it tomorrow.

Key word: might.

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Now playing: Beck - Loser
via FoxyTunes

Wait for it...

2007-10-28T12:07:00.000-06:00

This post won't please anyone. The pro-fight hockey fans will slam me for it, the anti-hockey-violence people will too. Flyers fans will absolutely crucify me for it. But I need to talk about the hit on Patrice Bergeron from Randy Jones last night.

The pro-fighting crowd will hate me for this, but Jones deserves about a ten-game suspension for this hit. My reasoning behind it is this: Steve Downie got 20 games, for a less brutal hit.

And now here come the anti-violence crew: less brutal? He left his feet and came flying in! How is that less violent?

Additionally, the Flyers as a team are repeat offenders. Yep, I hear the Flyers' fans screaming now. Why penalize Jones for what Boulerice and Downie did?

Let's take a look at the hit. Jones was coming into the boards at an angle. Bergeron was coming in pretty much straight on, with his back to Jones the entire time. Jones could have changed his trajectory several times, to meet Bergeron from the side rather than from behind. With the way Bergeron was positioned, it seemed obvious he was going to move to his right, the side Jones was pursuing from. If Jones moves a bit to the right, he meets Bergeron in the side, thus avoiding the hit.

Instead, Jones continued onward toward the left, toward Bergeron. Bergeron got to the puck, Jones came behind him, and his body missed Bergeron. So instead, as his momentum carried him forward both toward the boards and away from Bergeron, he put his forearms out and into Bergeron's back side. Bergeron went face-first into the boards, with Jones crashing into him, skates up in the air momentarily (look closely as contact is made into the boards). I think everyone in the arena, watching at home, and hearing the news later thought his career was done until the news came in the evening that thankfully, it's "only" a concussion and broken nose.

The injury doesn't matter. It's the hit itself. If you want to give Steve Downie 20 games for a hit that looked worse than it really was (the elbow made no more contact than on an average hit, his right skate was still on the ice at the time of contact, he flew through the air because his center of gravity was above the victim Dean McAmmond's body after making contact when McAmmond fell, and McAmmond actually had the chance to defend himself), then you have to give Jones at least half that. Frankly, I would initially argue for the same 20 games. Downie and Jesse Boulerice's actions in the past weeks have put a black eye on the Flyers, and the game of hockey itself. Granted, Colin Campbell's idiotic suspensions have done more than these actions (I would give 5 games to Downie, 10 to Boulerice, and 3 to Jones), but I digress. A hit from behind into the boards on an unsuspecting player is far different from a hit from the from on an unsuspecting player who has made the decision not to keep his head up and watch for what might be coming. Unless Bergeron's head can move 360 degrees, I doubt he could have watched for the hit. McAmmond could have and chose not to.

I could possibly settle for five games due to Jones' lack of a personal history. But at the same time, that shouldn't matter. A dirty hit is a dirty hit, regardless of the player giving it or the final outcome in terms of injuries. The league should consider giving him twenty, but I would be fine with giving him 10. As long as the rulebook and suspensions are applied evenly (which we know they aren't, but that's for my rant next week when Jones gets off with a slap on the wrist), that's all I want to see.

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Now playing: Led Zeppelin - The Ocean
via FoxyTunes

Simply Drew On Drugs

2007-10-25T17:31:00.000-06:00

No, I'm not on drugs, but I'm writing on drugs. Steroids and HGH in baseball to be exact.

For the fifth odd-numbered year in a row (1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, and now 2007), I don't care about the World Series. I haven't seen the Wildcats play live since October 6. And I already made my comments on the Browns. So, I have nothing big to write about. And with that, it's time to turn to the next biggest news in sports, the ever-continuing MLB performance enhancing drug (PED) controversy.

Former Senator George Mitchell has said he will name names in his report, which will be released after the World Series. And those named have been notified and given a chance to respond.

So now, here comes the speculation. Who is named in this report?

I have a huge list of players (over 170, in fact) I think are potentially on the list. And since I'm bored, I'm naming them here. Any questions as to my reasoning, leave a comment. *Deep breath* Here goes...

John Rocker, David Bell, Jerry Hairston Jr., Gary Matthews Jr., Darren Holmes, Scott Schoenweis, Paul Byrd, Paxton Crawford, Jason Grimsley, David Segui, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Brian Roberts, Jay Gibbons, Miguel Tejada, Wilson Alvarez, Dave Martinez, Ozzie Canseco, Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, Ivan Rodriguez, Bret Boone, Jason Giambi, Jeremy Giambi, Juan Gonzalez, Rafael Palmeiro, Barry Bonds, Gary Sheffield, Bobby Estalella, Armando Rios, Randy Velarde, Benito Santiago, Chuck Finley, Lenny Dykstra, Ken Caminiti, Troy Glaus, Rick Ankiel, Dave Hollins, Jim Leyritz, Guillermo Mota, Matt Lawton, Mike Morse, Sammy Sosa, Brady Anderson, Mike Sweeney, Mike Lowell, Adrian Beltre, Shawn Green, Luis Gonzalez, Joe Crede, Shea Hillenbrand, Scott Spiezio, Bobby Bonilla, Kerry Wood, Mark Prior, Andres Galarraga, Gabe Kapler, Larry Walker, Omar Vizquel, Todd Helton, Eric Gagne, Travis Fryman, Brian Giles, Kevin Brown, Chipper Jones, Steve Finley, Jim Edmonds, Jeff Bagwell, Albert Belle, Jim Thome, Dante Bichette, Jay Buhner, Raul Mondesi, Ruben Sierra, Brad Fullmer, Nomar Garciaparra, Terry Steinbach, Mike Gallego, Cal Ripken Jr., Eddie Murray, David Justice, Tony Tarasco, Glenallen Hill, Marty Cordova, Travis Hafner, Rickey Henderson, Josh Beckett, Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, Vladimir Guerrero, Milton Bradley, Rob Dibble, Norm Charlton, Albert Pujols, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, Pat Burrell, Aaron Rowand, Chris Carpenter, Mike Timlin, Mike Piazza, Jamie Moyer, Jhonny Peralta, Morgan Ensberg, Ryan Klesko, Aaron Boone, Kyle Farnsworth, Carlos Baerga, Ron Gant, Rod Barajas, Jay Bell, Marcus Giles, Moises Alou, Tim Salmon, Tony Batista, Andruw Jones, Bobby Abreu, Eddie Taubensee, Mike Cameron, Darren Daulton, Darryl Strawberry, Eric Davis, Reggie Sanders, Edgar Martinez, Dean Palmer, Damion Easley, Eric Karros, Jermaine Dye, Javy Lopez, Jose Guillen, Mark Teixeira, Alex Ochoa, Hank Blalock, Pete Incaviglia, Matt Williams, Mickey Tettleton, Paul O'Neill, Tino Martinez, John Kruk, Greg Vaughn, Melvin Nieves, Phil Nevin, Richie Sexson, Bobby Higginson, Randy Johnson, Chad Curtis, Tony Clark, Carlos Pena, Phil Plantier, Derek Bell, Richard Hidalgo, Matt Stairs, Ben Grieve, Jeff King, Johnny Damon, Carl Pavano, Tony Saunders, Miguel Cabrera, Ben McDonald, Jeffrey Hammonds, Roberto Alomar, Sandy Alomar Jr., Mark Wohlers, Scott Rolen, Jeromy Burnitz, Mike Lieberthal, Gregg Jeffries, Howard Johnson, Dave Parker, Edgardo Alfonso, Robin Ventura, Darren Dreifort, Chan Ho Park, Bo Jackson, Gary DiSarcina

But let's not forget one key piece. Look at who Mitchell works for: the Boston Red Sox. You think he'll name any Sox? Doubt it.

We'll see, the list is due in two months or less.

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Now playing: Guns N' Roses - Move To The City
via FoxyTunes

Wait, why did I once like this team again?

2007-10-22T19:37:00.000-06:00

Red Sox right fielder J.D. Drew is reportedly very upset that he has to play for another week or two, that the World Series is cutting into his vacation time. Go count your $70 million again.

Manny being Manny. Anyone else tired of this garbage yet? I was tired of it when I lived in Boston, what does that tell you?

Jason Varitek complaining after the series is over about not getting any breaks and no calls going in their favor. You won the series. Get over it and move on.

We're a far cry from those teams of the early 2000's, with Johnny Damon, Trot Nixon, Kevin Millar, and Derek Lowe. The "idiots" are gone, in favor of players with an almost robotic approach to the game. They sold their soul for high OPS+, VORP, and WARP3.

Then again, I could see it in 2005. A once jovial group who loved the fans suddenly was aloof. Try asking for an autograph in 2004 and most of the team (sans Manny, Pedro Martinez, Tim Wakefield, Curt Schilling, and David Ortiz) would oblige. In 2005, suddenly it was Damon and Mike Myers, no one else.

Better be careful Red Sox, or you'll end up just as low as the Yankees on peoples' hated teams scales.

Yet another reason to be scared...

2007-10-22T14:21:00.000-06:00

So in my last post I said I was going to stick to writing about the Browns, Wildcats, and any of the few positive pieces of news from today's NHL. I feel I may have to drop the Browns from this list.

I'm a member of the Cleveland Browns Football Club group on MySpace (btw, for those of you on MySpace, feel free to add me, just message me and tell me that you're a reader so I don't reject you accidentally), and the point was brought up that the Browns might be able to make a push for a playoff spot, or even the division. Seems a bit of a stretch, but really, let's think about this.

Raise your hand if you expected the Browns to be 3-3 at their bye week. Keep your hand up if you thought they could ever possibly even have been 4-2. Keep your hand raised if you thought they could actually hang in against New England and maybe even pull out a win if Jamal Lewis is healthy. And keep your hand raised if you thought anyone other than Brady Quinn would be starting under center in week 7. By now, there should be no hands raised. Even I had the Browns at only 2-4 at this point with BQ the QB.

But now, let's look at the schedule the rest of the way. The Browns have to face some truly bad teams: Cincinnati, St. Louis, Baltimore, and the N.Y. Jets (with apologies to SFO blogger Corey Mansfield). They face some really mediocre teams in San Francisco, Buffalo, Houston, and Arizona. The two remaining teams are good in Pittsburgh and Seattle. Think the Browns can go 6-4 against that group? I think they can. Maybe even better.

But, again, do I want them to be a playoff contender? Because I have four reasons why I might not: Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Indians, Ohio State Buckeyes football, and Ohio State Buckeyes basketball. Can I take 5 major losses in one year? Has this ever happened in sports history?

Final thought for tonight

2007-10-22T00:15:00.000-06:00

George Chimples, US '02, said it best in an AIM away message: "Being a Cleveland sports fan is like having Mike Tyson come into your home every morning and stomping on your children's testicles."