He's baaaaaaaaaack!

Huzzah!

Lindy must have been listening- he put Gerbe in the lineup tonight! I'm so thrilled! I literally did a little jump/dance in the kitchen when they said it on the pregame show. WOOOOHOOOO!

AND, not only is he in the lineup, he's playing well! Lots of energy, he's had a couple of hits (I love it when he hits people, they are all so much bigger!) and a shot or two I think. He's playing with Gaustad and Kaleta, which you may recall, was a solid like in the preseason.

And we pick it up early in the 2nd period.

EWWW Ottawa just scored.. rats. Enroth had been playing so well!

Vanek- you totally missed your man dude. NOt cool.

Golly-gee, but Goose grows such a foxy 2-day beard.

And speaking of the Goose, he just got hisself a sweet goal. Nice work by Leopold to put it on net and Goose to tip it. SOLID!

HONK!

Chris Neil is so disgusting. Why did he have to score? Puke.

Oh gross. Gerbe is playing with Roy and Stafford- the two worst Sabres. Why did you do that to him Lindy?

Interesting bench shot of Lindy getting all friendly and "father-like" in his chat with Adam.

..........

That's one thing I really miss about going TO the games-- being able to start at whoever I wish all night.

Beau-ti-ful breakaway by Pommers but Karlsson caught up to him at the last minute and poked it away. Rats.

Attaboy Enroth! Solid Save on Alfie, then Brennan grabbed it from the air.. good work boys!

Royzie- you're playing with some effort tonight! Keep trying and maybe you'll score. Get there, bro.

I don't like this behind the net camera angle- I need the whole picture!

Awwww.. Gerbs was right at the net and JUSTmissed scoring. Man. That was close- some real good pressure.

And WOW could they get LESS enthusiastic people for the Independent Health commercials?

............

Oh man Harry, Rick and Rayzor are hilarious tonight!

Holy crow, Karlsson has a serious mullet.

2nd period is over- WOW Sabres are owning on faceoffs, but have 10 giveaways! BAD.

The O'Brien/Boyd commercials are SO depressing! And LOLZ at the people on the Blue Cross Blue Shield ones.. hahaha awesome dance moves- looks like me out there!

Time for the 3rd period. Let's Go Buffalo!

oh we're getting feisty out there. Wow boys. Channel that energy!

Looking at the bench again, is it me, or does Luke Adam just look lost? I think he just has those crazy wide eyes.

(fangirl moment) I love how Gerbe's numbers get all pulled into his hockey pants because there's nowhere else for them to go.

Yay Gerbe was the labatt player profile. It's your night my man! Make it happen!!!

Awww... what an effort by Kaleta and Gaustad! Too bad the Sens knocked the net off.

I'm having way too much fun tweeting about this game. Haha

GERBE GOT THE CARRUBA COLLISION OF THE GAME!!!!!! It's really his night. It's meant me be- he needs to score it here and win this game!

And we're going to Oooooooooovertime!

Now I'm totally stalking his videos on Sabres.com because I'm a spaz. (I'm in love)

His hair is out of control tonight- sticking out through his helmet. Gosh he's been playing SO well!

Why is he at the bottom of that dogpile? Way to pick on the little guy. Chris Neil, you're a jerk.

Shooooooooooootout time:

Vanek- misses net. Whoops
Michalek- SAAVE by Enroth!
Boyes- SCOOOORES!
Spezza- Scores. BOOOOOO!
Pominville- Scoooooores!!!!!
Alfie- Scores. Poop.
Roy- (will prob score)...... he doesn't. Grr.
Condra- (who I thought was Bondra all night) WOOOOOOOO SAVE!!!
Staffy- Blocked. Nice try, bro.
Butler- He faked Enroth out for the goal. :(

UGH. That was a sad ending to a really good game. Stoopid Sens.
*shoulda put Gerbe in the shootout!*

YAY they are interviewing him! Love the long hair.. the scar on his lip is sexxxxxy and the neck beard is gross. LOL I could go on but I'll spare you. ;)

HAPPY NEW YEAR everybody! Tomorrow I'll post my Sabres "new year's resolutions"...

YYYYAAAAAAYYY

Gerbe could be back for one of the 2 games this weekend.. and I can watch them!

HUZZAH!

:)

trust your feelings, Luke.,

Guys.. I just feel it in my gut that Derek Roy is going to get traded. I don't want it to happen, but I feel that it might. The team needs to free up some cap space, he's still got some prime years ahead of him (and there is an upside, even though he's been playing pretty poorly this season) and he is more expendable than any of the other "core" Sabres.

I love Royzie but I'm afraid that the Sabres don't feel the same way anymore. I feel it in my bones that something is going to happen to him.....or maybe I'm just overreacting to my abandonment of him (I bought my Gerbe jersey today!) and it's all in my head.

If the Sabres trade him, well, you heard it here first.

On the flipside

I'm trying to post more.. and I'm actually watching a hockey game- STL @ DET (2nd night in a row- go me!) so here we go..

I totally dig the commercials for the "NBC Sports Network".. they are well done.

And I may have already said this, but the Tim Thomas Discover commercial CRACKS ME UP.

Seriously, how is the team with the worst PP in the league in 3rd over in the Western Conf? And how did they just score a PP goal? Dude.

Tim Kennedy plays for Florida? Where have I been?

...........it's intermission so there's not much to talk about other than cheapo commercials.............

I think the Blues have some of the longest names in the league. Hmm.. this bears investigation. And they have 7 guys smaller than 6-feet tall... which is interesting when you notice how the VS dudes keep going ON and ON about how BIG the Blues are. Here is the list of all the teams' players under 6-feet. (yes I just looked at every team's site to find this info. Yes, I have no life.)

WHOA. The Blackhawks only have 1 player shorter than 6feet.
CBJ- 4 DET- 7 NSH- 4 CGY- 3 COL- 4 EDM- 3 MIN- 5 VAN- 2 ANA- 7 DAL- 6 LA- 6 PHX- 3
SJS- 4 NJ-3 NYI- 2 NYR- 4 PHI- 8 PIT- 8 BOS- 5 BUF- 6 MTL- 7 OTT- 1 TOR- 4 CAR- 4 FLA- 10! TB- 6 WSH- 1 WIN- 4

In case you wanted to know..

Ugh the Blues just scored again. 4-on-4 WHAT THE WHAT?

Then the Wings scored but I wasn't paying attention because I was reading this article, which I do want to talk about but it needs its own post. WOW. That is some heavy stuff and it hits close to home.

WHOA.. hold the phone. The Wings just tied it up with 8 and a half mins left., We got us a hockey game here, folks!

WHOA again.. now it's 3-2 Detroit. Way to get with it, Wings!

And the Red Wings win. YAY!

Gerbe-licious

First off- my mom and dad gave me a gift card for Christmas which will soon turn into a Nathan Gerbe jersey! :) Be sure I'll post pics when I get it.

now, for fun, since I just watched the Sabres Green team video, I'd like to break it down..



Follow along with me at home, folks.

First off, we have an interesting combo of Sabres players- Mike Weber and Nathan Gerbe. You may recall the original "green team" was Paul Gaustad and.. Ryan Miller? I forget who his partner in crime was.. then later it was Gaustad and Steve Montador for sure. I know that Weber was part of the activities of the Green team in the day, but he wasn't on the commercials before this year.

I find this particular commercial to be amusing- maybe it's just me. let's count the ways:
-In the freeze-frame before you start the video, they both look mad!
-Both guys look like they just woke up and haven't shaved in 3 days.
-The height difference- I know, it's old, but it will never not be funny. (and I love Gerbe and I'm totally okay with him being short, it's just amusing next to tall guys)
-the complete lack of expression on Gerbe's face. I don't think he moves a muscle other than his mouth. He barely even blinks!
-Weber's twitchy eyebrows. Seriously, check it out- his eyebrows are alive and moving of their own accord.
-Weber also talks out of the side of his mouth. It's kind of endearing.

... and I think that's about all I can critique for tonight. I'm "watching" the Sabres play the Caps right now.. so far so good. I really miss seeing Gerbe out there though! :( He practiced today- just skating, but at least that's a step. I want my man back.

It's my fault

Oops... I jinxed Gerbe.

Remember when I got my Derek Roy jersey for Christmas in 2007 and then the Sabres lost 10 games and then Royzie missed 4 games or something? Oh wait, you probably don't because I didn't have this blog then.. but I remember!

So Royzie has been my main man for as long as I've had a Sabre- his name is on my slug jersey, he's my dude. I've never had to wonder or worry about him having competition for the #1 spot. I like lots of Sabres but he was still the top dog.

Until Nathan Gerbe came along. Gerbe has slowly worked his way into my psyche and I can't seem to shake him. He's fun to watch and the more I read about him, the more I like him. He is one of those guys who really plays hard every night (like Derek Roy USED to be!) and I love that in a player. I am never not amused to see him line up against all the "big" boys. In general, I really just dig him.

That's not really news, I've talked about it here before.. and I was having a huge debate with myself before the season about getting a new Sabres jersey. I tried to go out on Slug appreciation day (and I was actually going to stick with Roy) but didn't make it to buy a new jersey that day. I thought I had made my mind up then- Roy had always been my Sabre, and I was going to stay loyal to him. But when I didn't get to buy a jersey that day, my resolve wavered.

A friend suggested that maybe the conflict it was because Roy missed so much of last season that I got used to seeing other players instead of him and once he was out there again the old love would return in full force.

Well the preseason started and then the season and they were both out there.... And I kept finding myself drawn to #42.

Houston, we have a problem.....

So I'd been raging about this issue- *silly in the grand scheme, but for me this is serious!* I've never had to choose between players before.

Then I decided to ask for a Sabres jersey for Christmas. And I want Gerbe on it, not Roy.

I made my decision public.. and that was good. It really wasn't a secret I liked Gerbe at this point anyway. No jinx yet (but then again, I don't have his jersey yet.)

Then I changed my facebook picture- to one of me standing in front of his portrait at the FNCenter. (first time I've seen his, it's on the 300 level and I hadn't been up there for 2 years)

And BOOM... next game out he leaves with a concussion and has yet to return.

So players beware, if I pick you, and publicly declare for you, you will most likely be either named to the all-star team (happened to a few of my minor league fellas) and/or injured/called up(if you're in the minors)/traded but one way or another, no longer playing.

Luckily for me, (and you, if you're said player), these absences are generally short-lived. I don't know why this happens to players that I like when I declare for them, but it seems to be a bad trend and I would like to publicly apologize for my bad juju. I just hope the curse doesn't re-assert itself once I actually get the jersey for Christmas!

Get well soon, Nathan Gerbe!

Perhaps it's time to get with it

I FINALLY have nothing to do tonight.. so I'm watching the Sabres game. So far, so good.

I keep tweeting about it but I figured if I was going to do that I should just live-blog it instead.

So here's what we have so far..

1st Period
-Kassian with a SICK pass to Villain (Leino, I like to call him villain) for the first Sabres goal. I really dig Kassian.. he can stay!

-Oh more Sabres scoring- Kassian himself gets one and then Vanek. WOOO it's 3-0!

-Miller OWNS the heck out of Jagr on a breakaway! WOOOO!

-The the lame-o Flyers score with 1 second left in the period and here we are, 3-1. Blah on that. Fun little fight between Tropp and some scrub from Philly- junior hockey style.

But oh how I miss Harry and Rick. I hate the stupid VS announcers- they never know what's going on. Eddie just called Tyler Ennis Nathan Gerbe for a whole replay- while we could ALL see that it was Ennis. *sigh*

2nd Period:
-Miller gets hit in the head with the puck without his mask. He's bleeding a little.. gets patched up and he's back at it. Cool. Hockey players are crazy.

-Bourdon hits Gerbe from behind- really hard into the boards.. NOOOO! Poor Gerbs is playing with who-knows-how-many stitches in his face as it is (from last Friday) and he leaves the ice after that hit. (according to twitter, he was holding his arm? that's BAD!) :( My poor boy.

-But nice work Matt Ellis to stick up for the little guy. :)

-Ewww the Flyers scored again. Gross. That one just bounced away from Miller. Can't have 'em all man. Crappy giveaway by Ehrhoff though!

... oh dear I left the room for a few mins to help my sis put away some groceries and the Flyers scored 2 goals! WHAT IS GOING ON?!?!

.. Okay it's the end of the 2nd. Get it together fellas..

3rd period

-I have been joined by my 5-yr old nephew. Maybe he'll be good luck for the Sabres.

-Just reported that Gerbe left with "upper body" injury... will not return. BOOOOOOO! :(:(

-GET WITH IT SABRES! 9:25 left.. let's do it!

-I LOVE the Discover commercials. The Tim Thomas one is hilarious. Sooo brilliant!

-And why do they show Sonic commercials when the closest Sonic is in Binghamton? I don't even like Sonic that much but it's just weird..

-yeesh Ryan Miller is having a rough night. he's had his mask knocked off twice.

-WOOOOOHOOOOOO! or should I say DREEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!!

Overtime

here we go..

-GRRRRRR That was SO not okay. Gragnani you are FIRED.

Have I mentioned lately how much I strongly dislike Claude Giroux? Because I CAN'T STAND THAT GUY! (Or anyone else on the Flyers for that matter)

:(

This was NOT how this game was supposed to go. Gerbe is hurt, the Sabres gave up (another) 3-goal lead, and then they lost. Gross all around.

I'm out.

long time

Tonight will be my 3rd Sabres game in 3 cities in 2 weeks.

Maybe I'll write about them..

but for now:

Let's GO BUFFALO!

Gutless

I was at the game tonight in Boston and I have to say..

I'm with Ryan Miller.. Lucic is a bastard.

That was a cheap shot elbow to the head. I hope the league looks at it and he gets suspended.

Run my goalie over because he's way out of the net? I won't like you for it, but that's the game. Shove your elbow into his face/neck? I'll call you a piece of "feces" and a dirty player.

Not cool, bro. Not cool.

And wow.. the Sabres sucked tonight. They played such good defence in the first period and then it all fell apart. So many give-aways... so many turnovers... so many frickin 2-on-1s and leaving players alone on the doorstep. YOU CAN'T DO THAT!

Ugh. Rough go all around. Hopefully they play better next time I'm in attendance. (which will be home against NJ next Wednesday)

fantasy hockey

It's time for a fantasy hockey Recap. This year I'm playing in 2 leagues- "Pylons, Sieves, and Tripods", a 6-team league on Yahoo! and Wicked Sweet League, a 12-team league on ESPN.

Strnagely enough, I am being owned in a serious way in the 6-team league, but leading the 12-team league in points. And there's really no excuse, because with only 6 teams, my lineup is pretty Boss. But I guess everyone else's is better.. who knows? I did make some changes to my team, so hopefully this week is less of a disaster.

I am going to try to get back to my old format (from 2 years ago!) and give you the breakdown on my team. (Maybe I'll do it more than once.. it's actually a fun idea and keeps me on track better.. if I remember to do it!) So here we go:

TRick Nashties (again without Captain LookatmeI'mRickNash) *Yahoo! League
Current record: 10-26-4 (LOL)
Standings: 6th place (out of 6)

Team MVP: They were all pretty useless but I'll give it to Ryan Miller with 3 games started, 2 W, 1.00 GAA, .966 Save % and 1 SO. Not too shabby.

Runner Up..there is no runner up because they all suck!

Most Useless Team Member: Ryan Whitney. he had 1 SOG, 1 Hit and 4 Blocked Shots. That's IT! Zeros everywhere else. And, considering that's all he's done this whole season, I just dropped him. Must have missed him in the great slashing of the team last night, but as of today, he's been replaced by Dennis Wiedman from WAS.

---------
Face First Into the Boards *ESPN League
Record: 23-7-4
Standings: 1 out of 12

Team MVP:Dustin Brown 3GP 2 G 1 A +2 2PIM 8 SOG 8 HIT 1 Blocked Shot (BS) 2 STG)

Runner-up: Thomas Vanek 3GP 3G +2 4PIM 10SOG 2 Hit 1 Special Teams goal (STG)

Most Useless Team Member:David Booth (I already dropped him) 3 GP -3, 3 Hit and 3 BS but 0s everywhere else. Goodbye my friend.. good luck in Vancouver.

...........

This concludes week 1 of the Fantasy Hockey Roundup. Remind me to do week 2 next Monday! ;)

wow

Even if I can't manage to blog regularly about the Sabres (and I have yet to see a game because my life is stupidly busy) I still am trying hard to do my Separated at Births so here is this week's edition: (not my best work, but I'm still seeing it)



-Actor Sage Brocklebank (better known as Buzz McNabb on USA's Psych

AND



-Zach Parise of the Devils

Separated at Birth? You be the judge.

Don't see it? tell me! (that's what comments are for)
Suggestions? Tell me! :)

And soon I'll publish some hockey songs.. heh heh and possibly watch a Sabres game so I can talk about them. WOO!

let's play

So the Sabres are 2-0.

I watched part of both games but didn't blog about it. It was fun though.

But it's Wednesday again and I am trying to be a good blogger and keep up with my SABs so here ya go..



-Former Syracuse Crunch player Jeremy Reich (he spent a few games in C-bus too)

And



-Current Blue Jacket Derek Dorsett.
Separated at Birth??
Reich is a bit more thuggish ruggish but I'm seein it..

bring it back!

Well the season starts tomorrow- so in honor of that, and the fact that my sis pointed this out last weekend and I have to share.. I'm bringing back Wednesday Hockey Separated at Birth! I'm going to try and do this every Wednesday but no guarantees.

So without further ado, I present you with..




-Tom Felton (most well-known as Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter movies)

AND


-Jeff Carter- of the Blue Jackets (formerly a Flyer, and since he looks like Mr. Felton, and used to be a flyer, he in henceforth known as Felon. Yep. But don't feel too bad, I have also christened Ville Leino (a Sabre who is also a former flyer Villain, so he's in good company.)

Separated at Birth? Brett (my sis) thinks so.. do you?

Bring on the hockey! :)

sure

Perhaps I should write about how excited about the Sabres I am (totally) and remark upon their improved roster and their chances of making it happen this year.. but you've already read that from people who write better than me.

In the next week or so, I'll share with you some new nicknames, a hockey separated at birth (yeah, I still do those) and perhaps some informed hockey commentary (don't hold your breath).

But all I really can think about is seeing Derek Roy play again (I don't really count game 7 cuz he wasn't up to par) for the first time since last December, and my newfound love for Nathan Gerbe (that really has been building since 2008- go back and read posts tagged with his name if you don't believe me) and hoping that the boys (any of them!) do some fun "documentary" work like the 'Hawks did when they went overseas. The Sabres aren't known for their off-ice fun (at least not on the website) but maybe things are changing. I hope so because I love the player-run funtimes (take your cue from the Blackhawks my friends- they KNOW) and hopefully they will share their experience with the fans. :)

So let's go Buffalo! I'm ready to get this show on the road already..

cheating

I'm really no longer a one-Sabre gal. This is a difficult admission for me, because ever since I've actively been following the Sabres (2006 playoffs was when it really happened, which was funny because I wasn't living in Buffalo at the time), it's always been about Derek Roy. I enjoy several other fellas- Goose, Pommers, Montador, etc, but when it came to a favorite- a #1 without a doubt one true Sabre- it was Roy. It's always been Roy.

But now, he officially has some competition. I think Royzie still wins- I had a lengthy (and pointless) debate with myself about getting a new Sabres jersey and whose name should be on it- and finally decided on Roy but then couldn't get out on Monday to buy it.

But his competition- and this won't surprise too many of you- is Nathan Gerbe.

Really though, what's not to like? Gerbe is all over the place when he plays- he's hitting and making plays and speeding to the front of the net. He doesn't back down from anyone and he works hard every night. He's like the little engine that could. Oh yeah, and he's 5'6. Hehe I love it. I don't have a thing for short guys, per se, but I'm only 5'3 so it's not like it takes much to be taller than me, so it works. (and interestingly enough, the last few guys I've dated have all been like 5'9 or shorter so maybe there's something to that..)

So the point of all this is to say Royzie is still my main man, my #1, but Gerbe is a very close 2nd.. like 1A. And if his preseason play is any indication, this is going to be a GREAT year for him, and for us who get to watch him. :)

Let's Go Buffalo!

This summer has been full of some terrible news for the hockey community, and yesterday's plane crash was no different. Wow. I just don't know what to say other than sympathies for all who suffered and those left behind from that and the deaths of Wade Belak, Rick Rypien and just a few months ago, Derek Boogard. I've been there (back in 2003 we lost a minor league player who I knew personally and frankly, loved) and it's black and dark and so hard to understand. We'll never know why but we can only hope to help the others..

Man we need some GOOD hockey news around here.. anyone?

yeesh it's been a while. The Sabres signed some dudes, some other teams signed some dudes, things were fun and we're still in AUGUST! Is it hockey time yet?

I'm about to start a countdown..

And news of the day- Derek Roy is on twitter.. man that's almost reason enough to mess with twitter.. wait, so does Nathan Gerbe? Hmm.. I may just have to jump on the bandwagon. Not yet though.. not yet. I don't think I can handle twitter.

It's tempting though.

BOOOO!

The Sabres traded Montador's negotiating rights to the Blackhawks. While I like the Hawks, they are not Buffalo and I will miss my boy. :(

Free Agency starts tomorrow.. who will end up where? There has already been a lot of action in advance, which seems kind of odd. Usually teams kind of hold off on the trading and whatnot until they can sign some free agents.. but everybody seems keen to keep moving. Interesting stuff.

The Sabres are definitely buyers. There are rumors that they will try for Brad Richards. He's a stud, and could definitely help us at center, where we are already weak (and please for the love of anything, DON'T re-sign Connolly) and will be missing another piece without Timmay. But Richards is a bit expensive.. though maybe they can talk him down a bit...

Tomorrow will tell.

Re-

The Sabres re-signed Gerbe! :) YAY! I really like him.

Now, as long as they also re-sign Montador and don't lose Roy or Goose, but get rid of Connolly, I don't care what else they do.

See, I'm pretty easy to please.

And the re-affiliation with the Amerks is a good thing for sure.

I'm pretty curious and excited to see what happens on Friday with free agency. The Sabres are (for once) buyers this time.

WOOHOO!

In other news, I re-subscribed to The Hockey News today. Yay!

NHL Awards 2011

I'm going to do a sorta Live Blog of the NHL Awards..

Jay Mohr is kind of annoying. I already knew this.

How hot is Ryan Kesler? Yeah.

And who is this guy they keep showing who looks like Luc Robitaille? Is it Luc?
<3 him.

And what is up with TimThoms's Mustache?

Oh hai Mess.. I should hate you but I just can't.

And how are Kes and Daniel Sedin chillin behind all the Bruins? That must suck.

How do the girls walk in those shoes?

Nick Lidstrom still has it. :) Why does it sound like they keep calling him Li(N)dstrom? GET it straight!

YAY Dierks Bentley! Love me some Dierks, and I love that he is such a hockey fan! :)

Cris Angel has the ugliest hair!

YAY for Kes winning the Selke! Speaking of ridiculous hair.. what exactly is going on with him? lol And is the microphone low enough? That's kind of awkward.

Oh my... how thin is Getzi's hair? Yeesh. Love Ryan v. Ryan.. that is some hilarious stuff! Love the hulahoop...

Jeff Skinner is cute. The Luc look-alike guy was in his row..

They are seriously having a ceremonial reveal of the NHL12 cover? HAHAHAHAHAHA

Awww.. I wanted Stevie Y to win the GM award, just to see him. I miss Stevie- he was so great! I am actually re-reading his biography right now. And Jay just called him "why"zerman. The Y sounds like an I! Izerman!!! YOU're killing me dude! And stop being so rude about the Oilers.. yeesh

Oh it IS Luc! Geesh he is one good lookin dude. Always has been.

Aww good I'm glad Ian Laperriere got the Masterton Award. I always liked him. I remember Darren Pang said once "He's a real stirrer-upper, he'll get in your kitchen." Even if he's an icky flyer he's pretty sweet. And his wife is totally un-skanky looking.

OH WOW- he got called out on twitter about Stevie and then talked about it.. wow. You suck dude. EVERYBODY knows how to say Steve Y's name.. DUH!!!!

COOL- the Army guys rappelled down from the ceiling? ROCK ON! Yeah, you people better stand up!! HOOAH!

Hey hey Vanek bringing in Favorite goal #2.. good job! Eberle's was pretty sick though.

VERY cool Bauer commercial. :) My skates are (14 year old but still awesome) Bauer's too.. I match Kane, Toews and Stamkos! (and plenty of other NHLers LOL)

LAMEst Herb Brooks impression EVER!

The "real housewives" chicks are skankier than anything.. how GROSS can you be?

Pavel Datsyuk wasn't on the Lady Byng list? WHAT the what?

Do your homework skankies- it's SanLouiee not Saint Louis. Double GROSS. Poor Marty is going a little grey there.. still looks pretty swank though!

The Pawn Stars clip was pretty funny. Only Chara and the Mustache to represent the Cup? I get that they are the ones who are up for awards.. but didn't they bring a random friend at least, a la Sharpie from last year? Hmm..

Oh please do not show Ryan Kesler during the Bruins victory speech! It was bad enough to watch him crying after game 7.. don't need to see it here too! :(

Umm how weird are these far east movement dudes? Give me Snoop any day!

As soon as they give out the Vezina I can be done. I think it's gonna be Thomas.. his stats were off the hoook- and the winner is..... Timmy. I'm okay with it. I don't like him per se, but I don't hate him and his numbers were INSANE so he totally earned it. Sorry Lulu..


I already saw the end (they re-aired it right away) so I know CoreyPerry won the Hart. That's cool, he's pretty studly.

C'est tout. Another NHL Awards has come and gone. Goodness I'm getting old. I remember quite a few of these. Prob my favorite was back in 1997 when they did fake hockey commercials such as "hockey hair club for men", "bubble hockey- goalie v. goalie" and I can't remember the other one. It was brilliant though.

Back to the Sabres

Wooo.. the Sabres released their pre-season schedule.

It looks like this:

Mon., Sept. 19 - Carolina at Buffalo, 7 p.m. (HSBC Arena)
Wed., Sept. 21 - Buffalo at Montreal, 7:30 p.m. (Bell Centre)
Fri., Sept. 23 - Buffalo at Toronto, 7 p.m. (Air Canada Centre)
Sat., Sept. 24 - Toronto at Buffalo, 7 p.m. (HSBC Arena)
Sun., Sept. 25 - Buffalo at Columbus, 5 p.m. (Nationwide Arena)
Friday, Sept. 30 - Buffalo at Washington, 7 p.m. (Verizon Center)

I'm thinking I'll check the Carolina game and then go to C-bus for the game there- since it's right after my bestie's birthday and we used to do hockey for her birthday every year! (but I missed it last year) I also want to go to a game in Washington.. that might be the perfect time to do it! Hmm...

I'll say it

I'm kind of relieved that the Canucks didn't win. Part of me wanted them to win (and a larger part of me wanted the Bruins to LOSE) but another part of me was slightly vindicated.

If *my* Canucks couldn't get it done in 1994, then it's kind of okay that *these* Canucks couldn't get it done in 2011.

And now it's all back to square one. We will start over in October and the Sabres will have as much of a chance as anyone (and the Canucks will still be with us in our lonely 41-seasons and NO Stanley Cups exile).

But first there's the NHL Awards (and it still bothers me that they are in hockey-less Las Vegas), the Draft and Free Agency. (And in Pegula-ville, that might actually mean something!)

I still don't like Chara or Tim Thomas (but I'd take his stats any day of the week) or any of those bums on the Bruins, and I do still like Kesler, Bieksa, and the Canucks (though not Lulu and his seriously strugglin stats- WTF dude?) but in reality, the Sabres are my number one team, and I will be much happier having them to cheer for again in just 3.5 more months..

:)

Anniversary

You know what today is, don't you?

17 years ago, the Canucks broke my heart.

I am not over it.

Pavel Bure never won a Stanley Cup, never even came close.

17 years.. and it feels like yesterday.

Ironically, I was playing Trivial Pursuit on Friday and got a sports question that was about hockey- and the answer wasn't Wayne Gretzky (if you play TP, you know how rare this is!) Guess what the question was- "Which team ended 54 years of frustration by winning the Stanley Cup in 1994?" AHHHHHHHHHH!! I mean, I obviously got it right but damn.. way to rub it in. As if I could ever forget that day.

In other news, I graduated from college 8 years ago today. Wow.

In other, other news, get it together, Canucks! Game 7 tomorrow. EEEEEEEK!

hello again

Hello again all.

I'm sorry I've been such a slacker on the blog lately.. We had a bit of a family reunion before my niece left for Japan for 3 years, and my sister who is currently stationed in Japan (air force) was in town as well. so woo lots of family time and not much internet-ness. But it's all good.

I did watch some hockey.. and what the what is wrong with the Canucks? Get it together boys! Y'all DO NOT WANT another game 7 in the finals. I do not want that. BOO!

And why isn't game 6 on Sunday? I have plans Monday night and I won't be able to watch it. GRR. (But interestingly enough, my plans involve a boy who is a PAVEL BURE FAN!!!! How great is that? I haven't met anyone recently who even knows who Pavel is, let alone is a fan of his.. WOOO!)

That's about all I have.. just checking in. I should possibly have some more coherent thoughts soonish. If I get around to it. (if anyone still reads this blog..)

rant time

I may have talked about this before, but I'm not sure.. and it's on my nerves today so I'll write about it anyway.

What is with the game times catering to the East Coast? Last time I checked, Vancouver was in the Pacific Time Zone.. so today's game started at 5pm local time- RUDE! What about people who had to work and didn't get home till 5:30 or so? I would be TICKED if I lived in Vancouver and had to miss the beginning of a WEEKDAY game because it started at 5. That's total bullshit, and it's because of ratings and junk on the east coast.

Let me tell you, back when I was a Canucks fan in 1994, all the (weekday at least) Vancouver games were played at 7 or 7:30 Pacific time, and we in the Eastern Time Zone just had to deal.

LAME. Totally lame.

Canucks Memories

It’s hard to describe just how I feel about the Canucks. As I’m sure you all know, they were my first favorite team. Not a single player from that team is still active, and obviously I’ve moved on in my allegiances. But there is still a part of me that want the Canucks to succeed-not gonna lie, I quite enjoy this current iteration of the ‘Nucks. But it goes deeper than that. Having experienced first hand the frustration of being a Canucks fan (and in my first year of watching hockey too), and being a current Sabres fan (pretty similar) I know what hockey heartbreak feels like. And it SUCKS.

So is this the year? Will they finally break the curse? I’ve had a feeling about this Canucks team all year. Y’all may recall the post I wrote back in November about Canucks memories so I don’t really need to say it again.
I honestly don’t know how I’ll feel if they do win. I never really know anymore.. so many teams and players take my fancy and just run with my emotions that I don’t know how I’m going to react. I didn’t expect to get so weepy when the Blackhawks were chillin with Stanley. So who knows? I do think that if the Canucks DO win, I will be happy, but it will be bittersweet. Because that could have been me.. back in 1994. My players have all moved on (though I can still name them- I did it last week and only forgot one guy- poor Nathan Lafayette- I remembered his number but not his name) and so have I. But I still carry them all in my heart.

the butler did it!

Folks, I am 99% sure I saw Chris Butler today. I was doing customer surveys at the Subway store on Chippewa.. and this fellow walked in. He looked totally familiar but I was having trouble figuring out why. (I often think people look like other people) Luckily, there were lots of people in front of him and he was playing with his phone, so I had plenty of time to stare without being obvious. And I'm pretty sure it was him. I went through my mental list of Sabres I'd have a had time recognizing outside of the hockey rink, and he fit.

Of course I didn't ask him, because that's not how I roll. But I did have to talk to him for my survey and he was very polite to me. :) He looked dead tired/hungover.. LOL it was a Saturday morning., and he was on Chippewa- and he said he had just gotten his hair cut around the corner.. and was going home. Haha then I felt like a creeper because I have to ask people the intersection closest to where they are going- for the survey so I can plot it on a map- and he kinda looked at me funny but gave me the info.

So there it was.. he's pretty cute off the ice. He was wearing a red and white checkered button down shirt and some really nice looking jeans. He also had a killer watch- but I swear it had the wrong time on it.. that was bugging the heck out of me. I really dig watches in general, so I always scope people's watches.. but yeah. It was odd for sure.

Oh and if anyone is wondering, he ordered a footlong chicken bacon ranch on wheat bread with lettuce, ranch and southwest sauce. ;) Yummy.

All the times I've done these surveys-in lots of different Subways.. and this one is my first Sabre-sighting! :)

ouch

Well, that hurt.

No more Sabres.

No more Blackhawks.

But the playoffs are still on, and one of the good things about liking so many teams is I still have some small emotional stake in the playoffs- so go Red Wings and go Canucks...

I feel like I have more to say but now is not the moment. Later..

this is it

Game 7- someone goes on, someone goes home.

I'm ready.

Are the Sabres ready?

Guess we'll see.

DEREK ROY IS READY!!! So no matter what else happens tonight, I will get to see my main man play at least one more game this year.. first time since December! YAAAAAYYY!

Will he be the difference maker?

Is this the year?

I don't want to see or hear anything more about Danny Effing Briere after tonight. (and I don't want too much tonight either, get it?)

I want Tyler Myers to stay mean.

I want Tyler Ennis to be all smiles after the game.

I want Derek Roy to step in and step up and be the hero.

I want Mike Weber to beat someone's face.

I want Rob Niedermayer to continue to show just why the Sabres picked him up.. THIS is why!

I want Brad Boyes to show up.... is he still on the team?

I want Drew Stafford to return to mid-season form.

I want Thomas Vanek to continue to shine.

I want Gaustad to own all comers in the faceoff circle.

I want to yell "The Butler Did it!"

I want to scream Let's Go BUFF-A-LO at the end of a game 7 win!

I want more SABRES hockey after tonight.

That's not too much to ask, is it?

oh me oh my

so.. game 6 didn't go quite as planned.. but there is still game 7- and that means..


DEREK ROY WILL BE BACK!!!!!!!!!

And the Blackhawks managed to get another win so they will be playing game 7 as well... whoa.

BRING. IT. ON.

inconvenient

Whose idea was it to have playoff hockey during the Easter Triduum? (Yes, that's a real word, it means Holy Thursday evening-Easter Sunday morning)

I have a tradition of going "internet dark" (and this includes tv dark) for the Triduum, but with game 5 of the Blackhawks/Canucks and game 5 of the Sabres/Flyers tonight and tomorrow, respectively, I'm a little sad about it. Still going to do my thing but it makes it much more of a sacrifice than usual. *which I guess is the point*

So, with that being said, I'll see you folks on the flipside! Luckily, I CAN watch game 6 of the Sabres, and Canucks (if it happens) on Sunday.. so until then..

Let's Go Buffalo!

C'mon Blackhawks.. I need to see you fellas one more time this year.

Oh, and congrats to the Red Wings for being the first team to move on. Some things never change..

a word or two

I've now seen a few playoff games. Strangely, I haven't seen either Sabres game, except for the last 10 minutes of Saturday's game. I was busy on Thursday night but listened to the 3rd period in the car, and listened to part of the 2nd on Sat and watched the end. (It's weird to have a life that doesn't revolve around hockey!)

I did watch the middle of game one, all of game 2 and most of game 3 of the Blackhawks/Canucks series and the 2nd half of yesterday's game 3 of the Ducks/Predators so I have seen some hockey. Here's what I think:

*Sabres need to stay out of the box. They seem reasonable 5-on-5 and their PK has actually been incredibly good, but you don't want to wear those guys out! They are back home tonight and hopefully will get it together for their home crowd. Coming back with a split is pretty solid.. we'll take it. :)

*The Ducks looked downright AWFUL last night. They were totally unorganized- had no defensive coverage (and Nashville was pressing, hard) and took too many penalties too. I don't particularly care one way or the other about either team, so it doesn't matter to me much who wins.. but that is certainly an interesting series.

*What is wrong with the Blackhawks? They looked rough in game 1, decent in game 2 and pretty good in game 3, but can't solve LuLu. I thought last night night was their best effort thus far, but still wasn't enough. Keith has been brutal on defence.. and this is the defending Norris Trophy winner! They've got to get it together or they are going home Super early. I doubt the 'Hawks can get past the Canucks, but I think they could squeak one win.. guess we'll see.

*And Raffi Torres' hit on Seabrook was pretty nasty. It was deliberate- he didn't even try to play the puck, though it was right there, and it was dirty. Intent to injure? Not necessarily, but he knew what he was doing.. the 2-minute penalty was warranted (and scored on) but perhaps a suspension of 1-2 games is also in order. He's nasty.

*The Canucks are ridiculously good. I know this-- I've seen the stats, and watched them play once or twice this year (and read about a lot more)... but the Sabres won their only matchup this year- in OT! That game was incredible.. and a true taste of how good the Canucks are. They are scary. And fun, not gonna lie. :)

*I haven't watched the Wings yet, but it appears that they are in their usual playoff form.. just going out and getting the job done. I have no idea why, but I kind of have a soft spot for Phoenix.. I really liked their performance in the playoffs last year (even against the Red Wings) and I want to see them succeed. Not likely this year though..

*I can't stand the Sharks, so go Kings! :)

*Washington is up 2-1 on the grossbadguyRangers. Good on them. We all know I despise the Rangers so go Caps go!

*Look at Montreal.. don't totally hate them, but don't love them either. NOT a fan of the Bruins though, so I'm down the Habs winning that series.

*TB and Pitt- also 1-1. I don't much like the Penguins so I guess I'm pulling for Tampa. I really should watch some games there. The Lightning should be an interesting team, with Stamkos, Lecavlier and St. Louis leading the way. Then of course they have to get past McFlurry and that can be difficult....

So there is your extremely informed commentary about the ongoing playoff series, as told by Sam. ;)

Let's Go Buffalo!

Happy Playoffs

PLayoffs start today! :) I will have some predictions soon.. but for now, I will bring back the old Hockey Separated at Birth. No time like the present, eh?



-Pat Monahan- lead singer of the band Train

AND



-Day Boyle of the San Jose Sharks

Separated at Birth? YOU be the judge!

yahoo!

The Sabres are in!

The Blackhawks are in! (but they are playing the Canucks, which means one of my 2 western loves will be gone after round 1. Boo on that.)

The game last night was a hoot- but something happened to me that's never happened in all my years of watching hockey. During warmups, a puck fell on my head. Now I say "fell on my head" because I didn't see it coming at all. I was sitting in row 3, by the Sabres end, watching them and pointing out players to my nephew.. when all of a sudden I feel this THWACK on the back of my head.. it was a puck. Don't know where it came from (obviously the ice, but I dunno who shot it) and I have no clue where it went.. but ouch! I was fine- it hurt but no damage was done. I was just happy it was me and not the 5-yr old I was with. Wish I had gotten the puck though!

But the Sabres won and we had a wonderful time- my 2 nephews were leading the opposing "Let's go Jackets" and "Let's Go Buffalo" chanting in our section.. it was adorable. :)

Let's Go Buffalo indeed.

Out and About

I was at the Buffalo Bisons (baseball) home opener today.. fun times. :) It was a good day for baseball- the sun was shining and though the wind was chilly, it wasn't too bad. I guess the Bisons lost (I left in the 5th inning) but oh well. There was a decent number of people there. (I was there for work, SUBWAY is a big sponsor, so we were giving away free stuff and had SUBMAN there and all.)

I spotted some interesting clothing choices in the crowd:
-Lots of Sabres gear- totally understandable, same city, people here love hockey and the Sabres are making the big playoff push
-Mets jerseys (also understandable, they are the parent team)
-Yankees jerseys- a bit random but not that weird, lots of folks out this way like the Yankees
-One dude wearing a Rochester Red Wings jacket- this was a little odd, since the Red Wings are a rival team, and we were playing the Syracuse Chiefs(another rival of Roch)
-A guy with a Columbus Blue Jackets jacket on.. totally random
-And the strangest of all- a dude wearing an Edmonton Oilers matching sweatshirt and hat. What the?

Also saw a dude who could have been Tim Connolly's twin. I am pretty sure it wasn't Timmay (though the people around me thought it was him) because he was too short and didn't look *quite* sketchy enough.

An interesting day at the ballpark. Eat Fresh.

speechless

Well, I could make a speech, but it would be based on nothing substantial and just thrown together off the top of my head. Now, granted, I am good at this (I do have a degree in Communications, AKA, "A B.A. in B.S.", as we often joked. But to speak about the Sabres' play of late, I would have to be informed, and information comes from watching hockey games, something I have done very little of lately. Not because I don't like the Sabres- and they have been playing some pretty solid hockey in the last while, but because my life has been very busy. Nothing new there, but I'm missing out on some great games in a tight playoff race.

All that drabble there is to (take up space?) say, Keep up the good work, Sabres. I wish to see more of you in the future. We have a date on Saturday in Columbus, and I'm looking forward to it. 'Til then..

Happy Birthday Pavel Bure!

Broken Boys

Good news is all around for my broken boys:

Sharpie may begin skating this weekend and is hoping for an end-of-season return from a knee injury.

AND

Royzie skated today and said he could be back for the 2nd round (if the Sabres get there)..

WOOOOOHOOOO!

thanks!

I am going through Derek Roy withdrawal... yeah, I'm pathetic like that. And since it's been said that he will not be re-joining the team in the playoffs, I decided to google search and see what I could find.

And I found this beautiful page of happiness from a recent signing at Dave and Adam's (sports memoribilia place, for those of you not familiar with Buffalo) and it just made my day.

I've missed that face. :) I'd prefer to see it on the ice at HSBC but I'm not gonna lie, I just enjoy seeing Derek Roy in general. Haha.

I told you I'm pathetic. I'm just not afraid to admit it.

what the what

I was joined at tonight's Sabres game by the one and only Heather B. and we had a great time.

The Sabres decided to show up tonight and played some solid defence-- and Ryan Miller was ON the money as well. Gerbe had a sweet goal that he worked hard for (seems to be a common refrain these days) and Vanek took advantage of a loose puck in front of Brodeur for the easy tap-in to make it 2-0. And there it stood for the rest of the game. (Vanek was all smiles after his goal- as well he should be- those are usually the ones that inexplicably get away!)

it was an excellent night. Heather and I had some quality conversation about the state of the Sabres and hockey and whatnot. :) We also got to get up close and personal with the Sabres and Devils (and Henrik Tallinder and Adam Mair- who I keep forgetting is a Devil. Amusingly enough, I found myself thinking Brad Boyes was Mair a few times tonight.. that's going to take some getting used to.) All in all, a wonderful game. Fitting for my last (regular season at least) game in our seats. We are not renewing the season tickets for next year, so it'll be back to scrapping up a few games a year in the 300 level. Bye 2nd row, it's been nice knowing you!

In other news, I am going to marry Nathan Gerbe and have his little fun-sized babies. (don't tell Derek Roy!) :) I love that man right now-- he is really turning it on and he works SO hard.

back

Well after the last serious post (I rarely get comments anymore- is anyone still reading this?) I'm back to my usual.

I was reading the Sabres Edge blog and they did an "around the league" deal- and linked this article saying that Sharpie is broken. NOOOOO!

The 'Hawks will probably make an announcement tomorrow about the serverity of the injury (or well that he has a "lower-body injury" and a possible timetable. Oooooh I hope it's not bad and he's only out for a few. He's had SUCH a great season! I want to see my man in the playoffs (I love playoffs, because I get to see players I barely see in the reg. season.)

C'mon, I've already been deprived of Royzie since Christmas (I can hardly remember what he looks like..) don't take Sharpie away too!!

hockey history

I have been thinking about this post for several days now.. not wanting to write it until it "felt right" and I could say the words that have been tumbling around in head and get them across in the way that means what I want them to mean. I don't know if now is the time, but I'm going to try.

I've been pondering the term "hockey history" and what that means to different people. With the sudden passing of Rick Martin, hockey fans in Buffalo (and elsewhere I'm sure) seemed to be not only saddened, but wounded by his death. I say "wounded" because the feelings and emotions being talked about were very personal- not just public recognition of his worth as a hockey player, but personal attachment of his value as a human being and a member of society. You don't always find that personal attachment when it comes to a "public figure". But Rick Martin must have been different. Buffalo is different.

For a lot of people (I might even venture to say a majority of people), they are born, grow up, and then move out of their parents' house-- but often not too far from "home". They get a job in a neighboring town, or a few hours away in the same state and keep up familial relations with parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, etc. They have large, local family gatherings and everyone knows what's going on with everyone else and people regularly visit their cousins. I would say this is reasonably regular behavior.

But for some people it's different. You move around a few times before settling 2,000 miles from any extended family. It's okay because the nuclear family is a big one so there's no shortage of companionship. But there is something missing- a bigger picture of grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Sure, those people exist, but they are seen in 3-to-5 year intervals and not known well at all. There is no resentment for this, it's normal. But then you realize it's actually not the "norm" and that many people do have personal relationships with family outside of parents and siblings. It's a little depressing but life goes on. Then you move away even further-- 400 miles from the place that YOU grew up and the cycle continues.

You wonder sometimes about your parents- when they die (hopefully MANY MANY years from now), will they be buried in Ohio, the place where they spent their adult lives, or in Louisiana- the place they came from and where the family still lives? You wonder about yourself- will you stay in Western NY or go back to Ohio- where you "came from" or somewhere else entirely? There's a sense of missing "history" and you wonder what kind of attachment your children (if you ever have any) will feel to a place. You don't really feel any attachment to one place so you sometimes find it hard to see how people can.

Then you meet Buffalo. You meet the folks who were born and raised in Buffalo and Western NY. They are proud of where they come from (most people are) and they stayed here and worked hard, just like their parents did. And they grew up watching the Buffalo Sabres and sharing the heartbreak of being a Sabres fan. They remember games at the Aud and the "French Connection" Line and all of the good ole days. They feel a love for their city and their TEAM and a sense of belonging to both of those entities- for they are tied together very strongly. Hockey is a part of Buffalo's history and if they were lucky enough to grow up in a household that cared about hockey (which is quite a few folks around these parts) then hockey is a part of their history as well.

But hockey was not a part of your history. It's not a part of your family's history. You had to come to it on your own. As a result, you don't have a history of attachment to any particular team. You move in and out of teams and players based on geography and favorites. You create your own hockey history, and as circumstances would have it, this history only goes back to 1994. That's when it all began. And you were never lucky enough to live in the same town as your favorites- not in Vancouver to see Trevor Linden or Pavel Bure, not in Detroit for Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan or Newark for Marty Brodeur. You've never met any of these men, and likely never will. But they are a part of your hockey history- you remember seeing them play and the emotion of that will stay with you forever. They made an impact on your life and you will never be quite the same as you were before your hockey odyssey.

And that is what I think that Rick Martin meant to the people of Buffalo. He came here to play hockey-- and he did that very well, from all accounts (I wasn't around to see it but the tape and the numbers don't lie.) He stayed around to make a life, but never forgot his hockey roots. Everyone spoke of him as very friendly and funny and a good person to have in Buffalo. A great ambassador for the city and the sport. A true part of Buffalo's hockey history. A shared history for anyone who was around to see it and know it and live it. And that shared history made the shared sorrow so profound. It was like losing a member of the family. Someone they all knew and loved and they will never be the same having known him (even if only on the ice) and lost him.

Rest in Peace, Rick Martin. You are not a part of my hockey history, but you are a part of where I live, and what I love about Buffalo. You will always be a part of Buffalo.

Thank you for being a part of Buffalo's Hockey History.

it sort of worked

I ignored the Sabres totally on Saturday and they gave it away to the Leafs. The LEAFS? Wow. That was embarrassing. (why can't I spell that right on the first try? Always forget the double R)

I also ignored them on Sunday. They came out and a sweet win over the Senateurs of DOOM! Good job.

I have a serious, thoughtful ramble post about "hockey history" and fandom and Rick Martin.. but that needs more time than I currently have to write it out. Stay tuned for that.. and in the meantime.

GO SABRES! *you really need to win tonight*

And

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TYLER SLOAN! :)

I wonder as I wander

So the Sabres seem to be on quite a roll these days. I saw the end of last night's game- and that smokin OT goal by the new guy. What spunk, what drive-- who are these Sabres and where have they been all my life?

Good on them. :) I will continue my practice of sort of ignoring them, because they seem to play better when I do. I can take one for the team.. for a while at least. Doesn't mean I don't care, just means I know when to not care. Or something of the sort.

In other news... anyone heard or seen anything about Derek Roy lately? I miss my boy- haven't heard a peep about his rehab since January. I wonder how he's doing. Maybe I'll send a note to the Sabres suggestion box that they give him a shout..

I'm back

I have returned from my sojourn to New Zealand and Australia. It's so strange to have summer in February. Does that mean they play hockey on my birthday in August? That might be worth checking out.. hehehe It was a cool trip, and you can soon see pics and whatnot on my facebook page (add me if you haven't yet!)

Looks like the addition of Boyes was a good one for the Sabres thusfar. I'm a bit sad that Connolly is still on the roster (coughcoughwasteofspacecough) and that we didn't try to ditch Staffy but it was a slow market and looks like Darcy actually made a decent investment. Good job!

The fellas did pretty well in my absence- good on them! Niedermayer scored 2 goals.. in 2 games---say whaaaatttttt? Maybe I should head south more often? (though I could totally do without the 13 hour plane rides.. and the 15 hour time difference jet lag catching up to me the last 2 days- those are brutal)

So let's talk about Zdeno Chara. I don't like the dude, never have. I think he's not a dirty player, but he doesn't always watch himself. As for his hit on Pacioretty- that was pretty nasty. First off- yes, they were going for the puck. But the puck was LONG gone when Chara smashed Max's head WITH HIS ELBOW into the turnbuckle. WOW. the tape doesn't lie
Chara says he didn't mean it- fine- BUT he knew where he was, and it was a little extra shove that just wasn't necessary. And if he was truly remorseful, he would have shown that a little more after he realized Max was down. He didn't. He continued to jaw with Gomez and didn't even look over to see what was up with Max. I've seen instances where someone gets hurt on similar plays- had his head down or such, and the offending player is over there is a second- checking on the guy. Not here. Now, I know they're not all angels, but they are human beings.

I'm in no way comparing this to the Bertuzzi incident (which still sickens me). It was a heat of the moment thing, rather than a pre-mediated attack. But it was still nasty and unnecessary and I feel terribly bad for Pacioretty and the Canadiens. (And I don't even like the Habs.) But he's a young player just making his mark and it's a pretty rough injury.

Do I think it should be a suspension? Absolutely. I'd give it one, two games. But the League needs to send a message. They claim they're all about protecting players and then they let this go- why? Because it's Chara. He's a "premier player". I would bet any amount of money that had this been Patrick Kaleta, or a player like him, he'd be suspended, no questions asked. But it wasn't and he isn't. Terrible terrible double standard there, NHL. Bad on you.

strange happenings are afoot

Jochen Hecht Scored!

Mike Grier Scored! (on a breakaway?WHAAAAAT?)

The Sabres beat the Senateurs OF DOOM!

Now, beat the Red Wings (you can do it, remember October of last year), trade Stafford and Connolly, and I may be ready to talk to you guys again when I get back from vacation. (assuming I actually get to leave tomorrow, unlike today.)

Peace out homies. I may try to follow trades when I'm in the Southern Hemisphere, but no guarantees.

picture pages

Since I am *not* currently on my way to vacation in New Zealand (darn weather), I am going to post some pics from last week's Caps game. :)



So serious all the time. Very focused.




He is quite possibly the smoothest skater I have ever seen. I could watch him skate all day and not get bored.



That's my boy! I know that guy. :)



Oh yeah, and some Ovechkin guy was there too!

that is that

I haven't been posting about the Sabres much lately because I have been super busy and they just aren't interesting me much right now. Derek Roy is out, and he's not the only reason I watch the boys, but he helps. They haven't been playing very inspired hockey lately and I don't want to watch it.

Now I'm hardly throwing in the towel and giving up my hockey fandom (I've been through worse, believe me) but it's harder to fit the games in right now..

All that being said, I was AT the game today and I have a few thoughts:

-The game wasn't terrible but the Sabres just couldn't finish a play to save their lives. They had some looks (and a lot of funny bounces) but couldn't bury the biscuit. Ugh.
- I don't know how many times I have to say it but please, for the love of everything, GET THE HECK RID OF TIM CONNOLLY! He's worthless and frustrating and lazy and I am so sick of him I could just cry!
-I still love Nathan Gerbe. :) And the fact that he looks like somebody's kid brother who's just tagging along with the big boys.
-They were SO undisciplined in the first period. People were booing and jeering the calls but honestly, those were legit penalties. The refs were maybe calling the game a bit tighter than sometimes, but the Sabres were being careless and they got caught. Plain and simple. So shut your bellyaching and move along.
-Miller was pretty solid today. He made some stellar saves (especially on the 5-on-3) but his boys couldn't give him any help up front. Rough.
-It's SO WEIRD to go to hockey games at 12:30pm. Does. not. compute.

But by far the highlight of the day was seeing my boy Tyler Sloan playing for Washington. This is the fourth time I've seen him, and it's still amazing. I saw his first professional game in Dayton back in 2002. I knew him personally! I interviewed him on my radio show. I gave him a ride in my car. I have his game-worn jersey from Syracuse. (which I wore, of course.) He knows my name. And he's playing in the NHL. SO COOL. :) I got some good pics of him too, which I will post eventually. Too tired to deal with it tonight.

(and one of these days I will get to a game early enough that I can show my cheezy sign I made a year and a half ago and he will see it and know that I am at the game and maybe I'll get a smile or a wave or something. one day...I blame the schedulers, who contrive to make Caps games on bad days and at weird times so I can NEVER get there early. grumble.)

Happy Hockey Day Across America!

C'est fini.

I have to say this now

I won't be here for the trade deadline- I'll be in New Zealand and may or may not have internet access (and probably won't care about NHL trades anyway) so I want to say this..

Please, for the love of anything, find some poor sucker to take Tim Connolly off our hands. Trade him for a 2057 draft pick, a bag of used pucks, a practice net, a set of water bottles with holes in them- I don't care, but please, come March 1, can be not be a Sabre anymore?

And also, SELL Staffy while he is hot. But sell him to a team far, far away like the Ducks or Sharks or Avs- so we don't have to play him 2893739857 times a year. Thanks. He is great at the moment, but I am sure that the shine will fade. I have realized that Stafford is a Sergei Fedorov-esque player in that he thrives when he is "the man", or when other teammates aren't playing as well. He likes the spotlight and if he doesn't have to share, then he's gold. If he does have to share, things get a little dicey and he vanishes.

Just my thoughts- but he is playing extremely well right now- so sell sell sell- his stock has never been higher, but Sabres, don't get sucked into his little game and find yourselves being backed into a corner this summer about his contract. HE IS NOT WORTH IT.

/fin

thank you Patty

I know Patrick Kaleta is tough to play against, and one of those guys you love on your team and love to hate elsewhere (thankfully, he's OURS!), but he is one swell dude to have in the community.

Tom Kaleta, Pat's dad, announced today that they have finalized the finances for building an ice rink in Springville! :) This is great news, since S-ville is only 20 minutes from where I live. Maybe my little nephews can play some hockey, which they are wanting to do but just makes no sense for us since we are so far away from hockeyness. They say the ground-breaking is scheduled for April and it should be completed by August. Rock on! :)

All-Stars

I'm really digging the fog "screen" with the projected names and numbers that the players skate through. Very cool.

-I didn't notice Shattenkirk or that random guy from the Ducks last night during the draft.. weird... oh wait are they rookies?

-My nephews are watching this with my nephews and they appropriately booing the Rangers and Bruins and Flyers and Senators.. hahahaha I have taught them well! Haha now they showed Tyler Ennis and Benj said "Yay now that's what I call my favorite!" hahahaha they are too cute.

-Let the games begin! :) I love super skillz.

-The goalie race was possibly the awesomest thing I've ever seen in an All-Star game. Rock on- and the backwards D-man race was fun too.

-Why did Team Staal pick Mike Green for fastest skater? He is not fast.

-I love love love the breakaway competition. It's impressive and fun. The level of talent on display is insane.

-Sharpie owned the accuracy competition. Why did Toews have a do-over? Bum.

-What's with the random kids on the benches? Are they the players' kids? Kids who won some competition?

-How hot is Sharp? Just saying. Daaaaaymnnn boy.

-Team Staal is OWNING! :) 18-6 WOW

-Shannny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-They are having the worst camera angle issues. figure it out peeps!

-The relay is nifty. I dig the puck control parts.. so sweet- and Tyler Ennis killed on that part- he made it look easy and I know that it isnt! Good job, bro.

-It is cracking me up that they are all chomping on gum like baseball players.

-I don't want to say this publicly, but it's true- Claude Giroux is kinda cute. Whoops.... yeah, I said it. It's like Marc Savard from last year- why don't they ever mic up someone I already know and like- like Kes or Sharpie?

-I want someone random to win the hardest shot competition- let's see what happens.........
Team Staal ahead after 2 rounds.. nothing too shocking yet.
C'mon Sharpie.. with the win! Still that was an odd choice- he isn't much of a hard shooter, just accurate and fast, like the announcers were saying. I don't mind him getting some face time though.
Here comes Chara and Weber- now we're getting serious about this shot. 104.6 for Weber- yeesh. 104.1 for Chara. WHOA. Make that 104.8 for Webs.. and he wins it. WOW.
Tricky Ricky.. what ya got for us? 88.5? Weak! C'mon bro.. you're better than that. yeesh not a good showing for you my man. Ovie broke the radar.
WOWZERS Chara beat his own record- 105.9 MPH.

-How about this shootout? The goalies are bustin. Woooo P K Suban finally scored on McFlurry! :)

-Nash finally got one through! Nobody can score on his own goalie..
Man.. this is kind of wild- there were so many misses in the first round.
Corey Perry is the last man standing. :) Good for him!

Team Staal with the win. yaaaay baby!

Absurd

I am watching the All-Star Fantasy Draft and it's HYSTERICAL! (and hot. Can't deny the hotness factor- they are all wearing suits and have their hair combed and yeah...sorry, I'm a hormonal female, what do you want!?)

Some points:
-Let's talk about the Captains- Gotta love Listrom, he's always classy. Marty St. Louis is cute and little and Patrick Kane is a DORK.
-Eric Staal looks constipated or like he has a headache, Ryan Kesler owns my heart and Mike Green is a lamer.
-I still (don't judge) think Eric Staal is kinda cute. (even if he makes weird faces)
-Team Staal OWNS!
-Whoa splitting up the Sedins! WHOOOAAA. And how awkward did Kes look after he introduced Daniel? Hahaha
-Dude. Shea Weber is Nashville's HIGHEST scorer with 30 pts? And they still got a pic but Buffalo didn't? GRR.
-Yay Thunder Bay Boys- called that one- welcome Sharpie!
-"I'm gonna go with my boy_____"
-'Hawks reunion over here with Byf.
-Toews totally looks like he's going to cry! LOL @ him and Kaner
-Yay Jeff Skinner- he's cute in a dorky little kind of way.
-Team Staal def. wins in hot goalie points.
-David Backes is gross (and wearing an ugly suit) but he's funny.
-Ooh Lidstrom just earned a hotness point with Richards.
-More hotness on the scene with Letang.
-It's killing me that Royzie isn't here. :(
-Speaking of, once again, HOW IS IT FAIR that there are no Sabres, Islanders or Panthers in this game? RUDE! (I bet if Royzie hadn't gotten hurt he'd be in but still... Vanek is pretty legit.)
-Havlat add some hotness to Lidstrom- plus he has the red beard thing going on.
-Ditto that for Kopitar (minus the beard).
-Ooh Tazer is so the whipping boy for tonight's festivities! Poor guy. He's taking it well, though.
-But at least our Sabre Rookie Tyler Ennis is on the right team- Team Staal! Yay for Ennis the Menace!
-I'm sorry, but the DEVILS (who I love still but are atrocious this year) have an All-Stall but not the Sabres? BULLLLLLLSHHHHIIIIITTTT!
-The numbers on the jerseys are cool looking!
-EWWWWWW Phil Kessel is so nasty I'm glad he's still hanging at the end.
-LOL Duchene is SO AWKWARD- it's very funny.
-Loui what is up with your hair dude? He used to be hot but now I dunno.
-Eric Staal wins- because he picked Statsny over Kessel== wooohooo!
-It would suck so much to be the last person picked!
-Whoa wait a minute- the last guy gets a car? That's lame. Whatevs.
-I have to wonder if they had jerseys made for everybody in both colors because they didn't know who was going to be picked when..

In conclusion, Team Staal FTW- they got all the right guys and they have to win! :)

I love All-Star Weekend. It's silly and fun and so much awesome facetime with the boyos. :)

missed connections

I'm reading a book called The Puck Stars Here: The Origin of Canada's Great Winter Game Ice Hockey by Garth Vaughan. It's pretty neat- he chronicles the start of ice hockey- not indoor organized hockey (which was more or less introduced to Canada by James Creighton in Montreal in 1885), but what came before. And it all started (like many things in Canada) in Nova Scotia in the early and middle 1800s.

Now that makes for a cool story and it's interesting in itself but what is really fascinating to me is the fact that I had ancestors in Nova Scotia just prior to that time. My something-times great Grandfather, Michael (not Michel, interestingly enough) Dupuis, went from France to NS (for reasons unknown to us) in the 1640s or so- we dont know exactly when but his son Martin was born in Port Royal, NS in 1665 so they were there then.

The Dupius lived in Nova Scotia in the area of Grande Pre and Port Royal (close to Wolfville and Windsor) until 1785 when the British gained occupation of Nova Scotia and expelled the Acadians. The Dupuis (at least the ones in my line of ancestry- don't know about others, though if I ever visit, and I want to, I want to try and trace them too) left for Louisiana and the rest is history (that's where my Mom (and Dad) are from).

And where was hockey (or hurley as it was initially called, after an Irish game) being played? In Halifax, Dartmouth, Windsor and Wolfville, primarily. Right where my people (had they not been French) would have been living.

So I can't help but imagine how life would be had the French not been expelled from Acadia. (Obviously I wouldn't be here and be me, since my Dad's fam came straight from France but that is not the point.) It's all about decisions made or not made, turns taken and not taken, and the paths we choose or are sent on. How close we can come to history and yet miss it entirely.

Just something that made me think...

what a game

I feel like I should write something since I was at the game tonight (3rd in a row!) ..

It was an intense game and there were so many frickin Habs fans there it was annoying! The ones around us were mostly okay but the 2 girls in the row in front of us were just obnoxious. They weren't wearing any pants (tights are NOT pants) and we could see the one girl's underwear- classy, eh? Ugh and they kept standing up and pounding on the glass and smashing themselves on the glasss- it was gross. And then they kept yelling at the random Leafs fans behind us- 1967 *which is, of course, the last time the Leafs won the Cup.* Honestly, it was funny for about a minute- but they kept saying it.. and then we'd cheer "let's go Buffalo" and they'd say "Never won a Stanley Cup". Woo. It's the middle of the regular season. Montreal hasn't won since 1993 so get with the times. And they were only up by 1 goal but they were so cocky about it- so we cheered extra loud and hard when the Sabres scored. And during overtime, we all went NUTS and they just sat there and whimpered. HA!

The poor Canadiens though- they lost about a zillion players tonight- their guys were dropping like flies. That's never fun- and most of them were just random plays or getting hit by pucks or falling wrong. No fun at all.

Nathan Gerbe had a little scrum with (gaghurl) Scott Gomez. It was amazing. Gerbe rocks my socks. :) He's so feisty and little!

I really love it when the Sabres win when I'm there because I get to see Patrick Lalime do his little victory dance- it's so cute! He has different moves for each player too- he and Montador (whom I also love) have a strange sort of routine going on.. it's hilarious to watch. :) He may not be the best goalie, but I have a soft spot for Patty Lalime- he seems like a fun guy!

Speaking of Steve Montador- he is very flexible. He has a stretching routine he does before the start of each period and WOW it's nice to watch. Sorry, had to get that out there.

There were some serious bullshit penalties tonight. The "goalie interference" on Gerbe was crap- he got shoved into Price- not his fault! And the Kaleta one at the end of the period was uncool. It was right in front of me- he was shooting the puck AS the buzzer went off. He didn't know how much time was on the clock. Crappy call there too. But the ref made up for a little bit later on one of the calls, I forget which one. The Gomez high-sticking was a little scary- any lower and he would have removed Gerbe's head! It was vicious, and I'm glad they called it, even though he made little contact. I hate that punk.

It was a fun night overall. And I didn't have to beat anyone up- that was lucky. :)

Wednesdays are for..

It's Wednesday and I have a hockey SAB for you, my friends. :)

I also have a few links to share.
Puck Daddy's Mid-Season MVP list
-Pretty good list here. I love that Sharpie and Kes made the cut. I would have put Royzie as the Sabres MVP because he was getting it done, unlike some other mofos. He picked Vanek, who hasn't been as good. (and not just cuz I'm a Derek Roy fan!) It's worth a read though- he has some interesting insights into teams I don't pay much attention to.

and
Puck Daddy's Mid-Season Goats- underperformers
- I think he's pretty on-par here too. Thank you for picking Timmay for the Sabres! See, it's not just me that thinks Connolly is a piece of crap. YAY! He is so harsh on Marty Brodeur though- but it is warranted. Marty's season has been abysmal. Poor dude- I do not know what is up with him! Another interesting read.

And now, on to the main event- this week's SAB. I was watching Prince Caspian the other night, which is a pretty fun movie. I am reading the Chronicles of Narnia- something I've always meant to do but never did. I read The Lion, The Witch, and the Warderobe forever ago, and have seen the old movies and the new one and saw it as a play once, but never checked the others. They are good books and quick reads. :) Anyway, so watching Caspian, I noticed a totally random SAB. I already used Ben Barnes as a Hockey SAB with Kris Letang.. this one is some random dude I don't even have a name for-he's one of Miraz's advisers and I don't even know who
the actor is, but he looks like..





Ryan Kesler!

Separated at birth? YOU be the judge!

Pretty crazy, eh? I had to rewind it and grab a screenshot- thank goodness I was watching it on the laptop, so it was easy. WEIRD. And again, I have no clue who the actor even is- maybe it is Kes! He has many talents, perhaps acting is one of them?

what the?

Tonight might have been the first Derek Roy-less Sabres game I've been to since 2003 (before he was a Sabre). Crazy stuff. I miss my boy! (and I was stupidly excited to see the little interview him him on the website yesterday!)

So yeah.. about the game. WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED, BOYS?!

The first period was sweet. They came out hard and had a ton of shots and managed 2 quick scrappy goals. And I thought we might have a shot. Haha yeah right, this is the Sabres, remember?

Then they all forgot how to play hockey. No one was skating hard, no one was hitting (except Gerbe and Ennis- what the?), they were passing the puck to the Flyers.. it was ugly.

I thought Gerbe was decent tonight. He was all over the ice, hitting guys and scampering around like a maniac, but to no avail. He was trying though, which is more than I can say for some of the Sabres.

I still cannot stand Tim Connolly's play. WHY IS HE STILL A SABRE? I have said this over and over again- and tonight I heard at least 3 other people comment on the worthlessness of Connolly. UGH.

Stafford wasn't too good tonight, and neither was Pominville. These guys need to step it up.

Mike Weber looked like he was going to kill someone tonight. He is an intense looking dude. I was really noticing him- he was right in front of my face all night (our seats are in row 2, section 116, so right inside the blue line- where he is for faceoffs and such for 2 periods so he was standing out for me tonight.) He's taller than I thought.. and again, I wanted to see him bust someone's face. He and Carcillo might've made a nice bout.

Goose and Hartnell was a sweet fight. Then Hartnell gave away his stick while he was in the penalty box. I saw it happen- craziest thing ever- some kid comes over and he just passes it over the glass. WHOA. That was pretty cool, even though I can't stand him. Points for him.

I sat next to a random cute guy at the game. He and his buddy were Flyers fans (gross), but he was wearing a Winnipeg Jets Teemu Selanne jersey- random! SO of course I asked him about the jersey and he said he's been a Selanne fan forever. Cool, cool. And I asked if he actually liked the Jets or just Teemu to which he replied "I'm a Coyotes fan". Good for him. We sort of had a conversation, but I felt like he didn't want to talk to me. (he seemed impressed when I actually knew something about hockey..) It was entertaining enough- and he was cute-- and not rude about cheering for the flyers- he was cheering but being cool about it-- so yay for that.

Time to move on- unlike half of Buffalo, I'm not living in the past. Briere is gone- yes, I know- he scores on us all the time, that bastard- now GET OVER IT! Next game-Hurricanes.. bring it on! (no more Ray Whitney though, which is sad. I enjoyed seeing him!) I may be in attendance at the next game.. we'll see. Till then..

spread the love

I told you I'd get back to my Derek Roy pining- and here we go.

I googled him (this is hardly a new activity but sometimes random things appear) and found some gems today- I did the picture search. There's the always classic laser background shot from his bantam hockey days (he would be 13 or 14 in this pic) -



And then this really nice shot of him signing at Dave&Adam's. I don't know why I like it so much but I have a thing for the pics of hockey players signing things with their heads down-- and looking very concentratedly-(is that a word?) at what they are doing. I have one of Brendan Morrow that's brilliant and a rather old hockey card of Pavel Bure with the same situation going on that just melts me. Thank you, whoever took this picture. Plus, I just love how his hair is curly- it looks soft and I want to touch it! (I know, I'm terrible!)




And then there's this- which could rightly be called a "Hockey Freak of Nature". I don't even know what to think about this one- they are on cafepress- and you can get shirts and whatnot that say "I <3 {insert Sabre here}" but I think that Royzie has the only teddy bear. What the?



But ya know what- that bear looks really soft and snuggly. But then again, I dunno if even I- a self-proclaimed and unashamed Derek Roy fangirl- could go there. It's just too weird. (this coming from the girl who has a Derek Roy light switch plate cover- it was on ebay and cheap and I love it LOL)

I know.. I need help. I probably just shot whatever credibility that I gained by that decent and well-thought out post about the World Juniors all to hell. Oh well, I am who I am and I don't plan to change. I love Derek Roy primarily for his hockey talent (when he chooses to share it with the general public- which was happening quite a bit this year, for a change.) I also happen to be a woman who enjoys a good looking man. And Derek is a good looking man. Good combination in my book- you really can't go wrong with that. :)


And one more link of fun before I stop embarrassing myself
some old pics of Derek that I found on a site for his old bantam team. The pic from draft day is hilarious- his dad looks kinda scary though!

I should blog more

And now back to your regularly scheduled Sam-wanderings and drooling over (pining away over) Derek Roy, etc.

I need to keep up with the blogging. My production has seriously slowed since I started this baby back in 2008- it's been almost 3 whole years!

I don't think it's that I love hockey any less (like that could happen), but my life has gotten progressively busier and I have less to ramble about. Well, that's just silly! So it's one of my not-exactly-but-sorta New Year's Resolutions to blog more- both here and over at my livejournal, which I have had since 2003. I also noticed that my lj-production slacked off a bit when I moved the majority of my hockey rambles to here. Guess my life just isn't that interesting.

So what to babble about today? I didn't watch the Sabres last night- I was going to, but I had a phone call with an old friend of mine- then my sis called from Afghanistan (I LOVE modern technology!) so I was busy. Then I wrote that crazy post about Canada/USA and the World Juniors- see below- please read and review, if you would be so kind!

But it looks like the boys lost.. in overtime. Yick on that. January always seems to be a terrible month for the Sabres. I could look up some stats but I'm feeling lazy. I know we had that painful 10-game losing streak in January a couple of years back, and we always have some mad west-coast trips. Strugglin.

I dunno. That's all I have. My poor fantasy teams are like the Sabres this year- nothing good going on and I've kind of ignored them for large stretches of time. I'm trying to get back into it, but it is most likely too little, too late. Whoops!

Stay tuned.. next I might talk about the stupidity that is the political all-star balloting b.s.

A rare thoughtful post

Okay the title is a bit misleading. I do sometimes post thoughtful things- I try not to just post whatever is on my mind without thinking- but this one is going to get a bit deeper than I usually do with my meandering memories and random game recaps. Tonight I'm going to talk about Patriotism and Cultural differences. Yeah, I know- deep stuff. More like what you might find in a Sociology class than my hockey blog but it is here nonetheless. And I hope you will read it. It may provide some serious insight into my hockey-warped brain. Or may not, depending on how well you already know me. So here goes nothing..

With all of the chatter in Buffalo about the World Juniors, there has been a serious undercurrent of anti-Canadian sentiment and some nasty USA/Canada discontent. This is not very typical of our dealings with our neighbor (neighboUr?) to the north, as generally we tend to get along pretty well- at least since 1812. Many Americans (especially in the mainstream media and entertainment outlets) tend to regard Canada as a little backwards, somewhat meek and very non-confrontational, also as a land of snow and flannel-wearing, hockey-playing lumberjacks. While some of that may be true- Canada is a pretty polite and clean place in general- it would be like saying all Americans do is sit around eating hotdogs and throwing footballs while wearing dirty white t-shirts and cowboy hats. (much of that happens too, but I digress.) Perhaps the most telling point of that stereotypical Canadian is the hockey playing (or at least hockey fan) aspect.

Much as it is considered "un-American" to not like baseball or football, it is considered "un-Canadian" to not like hockey. And it's less of a Patriotism thing than a Cultural norm- something that is just accepted as fact. If you are Canadian, you should like hockey. This does not mean that every Canadian likes hockey (not every American likes football either) but they are probably at least somewhat familiar with the sport because of so much media coverage and exposure to the game throughout their lives. Again, I hearken back to the football analogy because it seems most appropriate to my experience as an American. Even if you don't quite get all of the rules, you are expected to have a rudimentary understanding of the game and you are often derided for not caring enough about it. (at least this is true in my life- it's not a rude thing, but I am certainly looked at funny when I say I don't really care about football but REALLY LIKE hockey.)

All you have to do to really see the difference is to look at hockey in the media. In the US, football, baseball and basketball are well represented on ESPN and the national news channels- CBS/NBC/ABC/FOX. Where is the hockey? Occasionally on NBC (only after football is over and never in primetime) and on VS- a channel which shows the niche sports- MMA, Bull Riding, Soccer, non-premier football matchups- a very glaring difference. In Canada, you see hockey IN PRIMETIME on CBC- the main news channel. Hockey is to Canada what Football is to the USA.

Now let's look at the World Junior Tournament. This is the premier hockey tourament for players 20 and under. It is also an international hockey event. It's a BIG DEAL. But in the US, we just don't care that much about hockey- outside of a few regions and our NHL teams. It's just simple fact. So where do the IIHF folks set up the Tournament when it's scheduled for the USA? In a border city, of course- because Canadians LOVE the World Juniors. ( I read today that a Canadian friend of mine has been watching the World Junior tournament since 1989. I've been a devoted hockey fan since 1994 and have watched Olympics and World Cup hockey but never the World Juniors. Case in point.) And then people claim to be surprised when Canadians flock over the border to attend these games. I don't know why- it's obvious. It's not that Americans don't care about our Countrymen doing well in an international tournament- I imagine that, given the choice, most folks would cheer on the red, white and blue- but it just doesn't really register on the national scope the way it does in Canada.

Think of this for a moment- right now the college football bowl games are going on and people go NUTS for them. Painting themselves in team colors (whether they went to the school or not), having huge parties and celebrations for mere football games played by 18-20somethings. Similar ages to the kids playing in the World Junior tournaments. Hmm.. ever think of that? Also check the NCAA Basketball tournament- similar situations and no one even thinks twice about getting excited about that. Sports are exciting- especially when they involve something the average person can relate to. We all love the underdogs and "our boys" (wherever and whoever they are) and the storylines. Many Americans can remember throwing around a football or playing a little hoops in the parking lot as a kid- it's a fairly shared experience so no one thinks it's strange to get excited about some kids you don't even know playing a sport that you do know so well.

Well- imagine for a moment that in Canada, that shared sport is very likely to be hockey. And then maybe we're on to something here. It's not about a lack of patriotism on the part of the Americans- we do care about our guys and gals- we just can't relate (most of us) to the feeling of blades and ice and pucks. It's not a shared national experience. And it's not necessarily any more patriotism on the part of the Maple Leaf-bedecked folks either- but again- shared emotions and experiences make it much more relate-able and real and "worth" watching.

I've been called a "Canuck" and a "Canadian" quite a few times in my life. Sometimes it was meant derisively and sometimes not, but I chose to take it as a compliment. It usually comes about through hockey discussions. I choose to see it that someone finds me to be so steeped in the traditions and history of hockey (of my own doing) that I seem "Canadian" in my love of the sport. I think that's cool. It doesn't mean I actually WANT to be a Canadian- it's a beautiful country but I like mine just fine. I feel very blessed to have been born into the United States of America- it's a wonderful place. Sure, we have our issues, but I wouldn't want to live anywhere else!

That being said, I have at times wished that I was in a more hockey-friendly place. I love the game so much and I feel like I've missed out on so many hockey-related experiences that I can never have because of the culture of the place in which I was raised. Only in that sense do I wish to have experienced another place- but wait- I can- through literature. And I do. Which is probably why I'm writing this now.. I have read so much about hockey and specifically the impact that the culture of hockey has on young Canadians that I feel like I can speak about it in (hopefully) an informed manner- especially with my contrasting experiences as a hockey-loving American who was born and raised in a very un-hockey environment. I had to make my own hockey- and I did.

So to all the haters out there, I just want you to stop and think a minute before you accuse your fellow Americans (or neighboring Americans) of not being supportive of their country or not being Patriotic because they aren't going ga-ga over a tournament that is happening inside the US border (barely). Instead, realize the cultural difference between our two countries that are so close together geographically but worlds apart sports-wise.

And then go out and cheer on your team in whichever way you desire and have fun because, after all, isn't sports supposed to be about fun?

Thoughts?