CasonBlog

Blogging thru Canes Recent History

2009-05-24T22:41:00.003-06:00

The history of CasonBlog in just a few links:

My first post, July 2005-I thought I was going to be a "serious" hockeybloganalyst
Just to prove I'm not the Rod Brind 'Amour hater that JohnSS thinks, this post from December 2005 and dis from December 2006. See, I'm no Rod hater...but I'm becoming a JohnSS hater, or should I say Johan SS...as in Schutzstaffel. You sir are worse than Himmler.
The blog photo I got the most mileage out of - Kovvy in a kilt from January 2006
My all-time favorite post combines a C-League game recap with the surreal - Art Bell and Coast to Coast AM from August 2006
My all-time favorite Canes photo and the accompanying post from June 2006
Fun time bangin' on the Maven from August, 2007
PhotoShopping Gary Bettman from August 2008
And the last pre-hiatus post on the return of Coach Mo from December 2008...what a stupie am I

Cason's Got a Brand New Bag

2009-05-24T15:36:00.004-06:00

Hi kids. I'm now blogging over at Canes Country. Check out my first post: Game 3 Sponsored by My Bloody Valentine 3D.

Thanks to everybody who kept venturing to this blog - even after I quit posting my inane commentary.

It's been a busy past few months. I started a new consulting job in March and I've been spending a lot time on my daughter's volleyball blog: http://jcasonvball.blogspot.com/

I'm now pretty deadly with a video camera and iMovie.

Coach Mo-Ja-Vu all over again

2008-12-03T15:35:00.003-07:00

So, it's out with the old-in with the even older. Coach Lavvy is out and Coach Mo is back.

Last two seasons, I rarely missed a Canes game on the DVR. This season, I'm forgetting to even program the machine. Last season, I did battle with the females of he C/B household for prime viewing time. This season it's some combination of Private Practice, Gray's McDreamy Anatomy and Starvivor nearly every night. I now watch more tape-delayed college volleyball on the Mountain West Conference Channel than Canes hockey. Part of that is because I love volleyball. The other part is because this Canes team that might only have a 50-50 chance of winning against the Florida Panthers on any given night.

Let's face it. The last two years have been a mess. The collapse, re-birth and collapse of last season leaves me thinking, "Fool me twice,.... screw you! I'm watching the Food Network. " And this season is shaping up like those other seasons samdwiched around 2006. Two years of Justin Williams injuries. Two years of waiting for Cam Ward to prove he wasn't a Conn Smythe fluke in 2006. Two years of watching "Wardo" give up a late softie. Two years of an anemic power play. Two years of watching the Canes get physically dominated by bigger, stronger and younger forwards. Two years of waiting for Andrew Ladd to blossom. Two years of trades and signings that amounted to a refresh of a boring status quo. Two years of watching Rod Brind 'Amour fade as a leader and a player with two-and-a-half years to go on a five-year contract.

A coaching change is supposed to infuse new life. A coaching change is supposed to embarrass the players and make them step up. And it's supposed to rekindle hope in the fan base. Yup, I can't wait till that Pittsburgh game tomorrow night...Oooh, wait a second...looks like there's a five-day old replay of a college cross country meet on the Big Ten Network.

Obama Wins

2008-11-04T21:18:00.003-07:00

Obama won big tonight and he deserved to win. He beat the Clinton machine and he beat McCain's Vaudeville routine. John McCain is a lousy political team player, and it cost him dearly. You can't count on "the team" when you've screwed them so many times. McCain spent so much of his political career pissing on his own party and sidling up to his "friends" in the media. He refused to push critical issues involving Obama's character and associations. He pulled the rug out from under the campaign when he sequestered Sarah Palin when her popularity was peaking. Then he sent her into MSM ambushes when he finally let her out. Now McCain can go back to the Senate and back to being Russ Fiengold's butt-boy. Wonder if Lindsay Graham will continue to serve as his boy Smithers.

I don't think we'll see the US lurch too far to the left. I think it will be a re-doux of the Clinton administration. Everything Obama has done thus far in his political life has been to benefit Obama. It won't take him long to see that Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the Kos crowd care little about the best interests of Barak Obama. I think Obama will have to triangulate to keep his head above water.

The Republican Party is broken. Crappy leadership. No vision. No core principles. No message. The country clubbers have abandoned the tenets of the Reagan Revolution, and the party is now rudderless. The party needs to replace lawyers and lifer politicians with veterans, entrepreneurs and visionaries. Who is (was?) the Republican Party chairman? I know who the Dem party chair is, and he's probably squealing again.

Taking Sides

2008-10-30T16:32:00.005-06:00

I'm with this guy.

I'm with this guy because he's made a sacrifice no community organizer, congressman who spent his whole adult life in political office or TV pundit with a tingly leg has ever made. Just like John McCain. Obama and his possee were perfectly willing to sell this guy out...probably still are if there is political hay to be made.

Not that I'm a huge McCain guy. Actually, I'd rather vote for one of Ronald Reagan's old cowboy hats. At least that might have some real Republican DNA left in it.

Weight's hit on Sutter and Bad Discipline

2008-10-26T11:36:00.005-06:00

It's been my contention for years that Andy Sutton is a Succubus and Brendan Witt is the NHL's version of Randall Tex Cobb, but to think Doug Weight would join the ranks of the rank seems implausible. Was it a clean hit? Technically yes, but Weight chose to go after Brandon Sutter's head when the puck was his for the taking. Bad guy? No. Bad decision? Yes. The next shift should have involved Brookbank or LaCouture pummeling John Sim-even if he was on the bench. Chad LaRose wanted a shot at Mini-Avery, but the punk wouldn't accept the challenge.

So much for the Canes supposed defensive depth. Yeah they are rather deep in stay-in-place soft guys who prefer reaching, grabbing and tripping to skating, discipline and hitting. That defensive depth let the Isles anemic offense pepper Cam Ward like Sonny Corleone at a toll station. Melichar for holding twice and tripping once. Enjoy the in-game buffet Joey.

And is it just me or does Joni Pitkanen seem lazy and unispired? Now a knee issue. Rest up Chachi, can't wait to have you back in full glide mode.

Corvo is Trade Bait?

2008-10-16T16:05:00.004-06:00

Hi gang. Slowly working my way back into the season flow. And now I've seen something potentially weighty piqued my interest. TFP and one other media outlet I saw promoted the idea that Joe Corvo is being shopped by the Canes. What am I missing here? This was a guy JR coveted long-time. Now he's expendable? What's changed? Has been out boozing and feeling up female pub patrons? Is the club so desperate with the injuries up front that they'd dump Joe for somebody like Peter Schaefer who can't even hold a spot on the Bruins roster? How can you be desperate when you are 2-1 with two in-conference victories under your belt? Somebody splain me this one.

A key roster tweak is still needed

2008-09-20T11:08:00.004-06:00

Justin Williams was just hitting his stride as a player in this league when he went down with the knee injury in December of last year. Consecutive seasons of 76 and 67 points made Justin an indispensable cog in the Canes offensive machine. Then last week, Kaboom! A ruptured Achilles tendon sets him back again. That has to be agonizing to a guy who knows the window of opportunity at this level is only open for a very short time. Good luck Justin. Make sure you max-out on glucosamine and chondroitin during your rehab.

So what to do in the waning days before the start of another season-another season the Canes can't afford to write-off because of key injuries. The Canes re-stocked the pantry with young defensemen this off season, but the forward corps looks very shaky. Cap'n Roddy, Whitney, Cullen, Walker, Ruutu, Eaves and Larose all have significant injury histories.

Here's what I'm not banking on:
1. Canes swinging a deal that brings in a Williams caliber player.
2. Jeff O'Neill suddenly becoming a dedicated two-way player.
3. Brandon Sutter showing up for game one with 25 pounds of extra muscle and the enhanced heart/lung capacity to grind out 20 minutes of ice time every night.
4. Some youngster or journeyman emerging from the league's worst farm system and have a breakout season.

So I say it's time to try again to move Kaberle or Seidenberg to create depth in the Canes forward corps. The Sens are said to be looking for an offensive defenseman. The Leafs have a Kaberle, why shouldn't the Sens? The Bruins and Kings are also looking for a puck-moving blueliner. The Kings only show four defensemen on their roster. And with all the exits they've had in the off season, Tom Preissing is the closest thing to a scoring machine on that roster.

Great Gig in the Sky

2008-09-15T14:43:00.004-06:00

Pink Floyd keyboardist, Richard Wright, has died. I love those "Behind the Music" features they do on VH1. Check out the one they did on "Dark Side of the Moon" next time it comes on.

Staalsy Franchise

2008-09-11T12:29:00.005-06:00

Big Red joins the upper-upper echelon of highest paid players in the NHL. From what I read, the extension kicks in next year and will bump Eric from $5 mil per to $8+ mil beginning next season. I like the deal. Earlier in his career, Staal would periodically morph into invisibility mode. He's now a proven leader on the ice and a force on every shift. He's also a friggin' ironman who has played 81 or 82 games every season since he joined the big club.

As it stands, only Sid and Ovy will be paid more. Staal will jump ahead of some guy named Richards, who I think used to be somebody with the 'Ning. And did you know Thomas Vanek makes more than guys like Jason Spezza, Jarome Iginla and Vinny Lecavalier? Anybody got the number for Vanek's agent?

Like it's 9/12 again

2008-09-11T10:46:00.005-06:00

Find them. Fix them. Finish them. And all their buttboys hiding in Pakistan.

Presenting the Carolina Tropical Storm Sardaukars

2008-09-10T11:18:00.006-06:00

I think I dig this new third impression gear. Has a dark, Nazgulie, Megatronesque, maybe Sardaukarish look to it. It's a bit superhero looking, but it's not a stylized constellation cow head, oily oblong gear or mighty fish stick guy. Plus how cool will it be going into overtime to hear the RBC PA announcer holler, "Hurricanes, Maximize!!!

Nothing old school about this get-up. I was hoping for something old school, but I guess I can live with this one. Not sure if Roddy is going to look like a warrior or a cartoon character in this wear.

Worse case scenario, Caniacs will have something to wear to the next Sci Fi or Comicon convention. I like bold marketing moves, and this one is definitely bold. Click here if you haven't seen the new stuff.

Spector on Ward and the Canes

2008-08-26T14:45:00.003-06:00

Lyle Richardson has a piece on foxsports.com today about the Canes chances this season. Lyle puts a lot of the focus on Cam Ward. I agree to a point. Ward has yet to become the stopper he looked to be in the '06 Cup series. Ward faced the sixth most shots in the league last season, and gave up the third most goals. He barely held a .900 save percentage and his goals against average was worse than those of NHL luminaries like Fredrik Norrena and Mathieu Garon.

Yes, Ward is going to have to be the ball Danny, but I still think defense is just as big a question mark. JR made significant changes on the blueline, but I'm still concerned about the impact the departure of Wesley and Hedican will have on the Canes play in their defensive zone. Wesley always played a steady positional defensive game, and when he was healthy, Hedican's aggressiveness and speed helped cover mistakes and disrupt rushes.

We're all pretty sure Tim Gleason and Joe Corvo will do just fine in their roles, but until Anton Babchuk and Joni Pitkanen have some time working with their new partners and in the system, we won't know if this is the crew to take the Canes back to the playoffs. We also don't know what will become of Nic Wallin and Frankie K as we get closer to the season. I am willing to make this bold prediction: Nic will be slower and Frankie will be softer. Like most of you, I'd be OK if Frankie were moved for a puck, prospect or pick and Seidenberg or one of the Albany kids given a chance. For some reason, I keep checking on the status of UFA vets like Aaron Miller, Keith Carney and every body's favorite skating Ent, Marek Malik. Oh well, still plenty of time to tweak the roster before Camp Roddy becomes Camp Lavvy.

Final Olympics Entry

2008-08-25T10:59:00.006-06:00

Another wonderful display of ant colony pageantry last night. Damn, them Commies know how to mobilize the masses and make them do things in lock step.

I hope the USOC bans Ralph Lauren from ever again designing outfits for our athletes. Team USA paraded into the Bird's Nest on opening night dressed like they were going to Judge Smails' yacht christening. They paraded in last night looking like Cabana Boys. Lauren has been putting this country club chic crap out for decades. Next games, I want Wrangler to get the nod. Huge cowboy hats, big shiny belt buckles and lots of dead animal hides. That's the American way!

A big Bravo Zulu to USA Volleyball. Gold on the beach for the men's and women's teams and a gold for the men's indoor. Ranked #9 in the world at the start of the games, the women's indoor team overachieved in bringing home the silver. These games will give another boost to volleyball in this country-especially the beach game. Any sport played by hotties in teenie bikinis is bound to be popular with at least half the population.

Cuban Sportsmanship on Display

2008-08-23T13:25:00.005-06:00

This morning I was watching a reply of NBC's Olympic coverage and heard the funniest line of the games from Jim Lampley. Cuban Taekwondoalist, Angel Matos, got disqualified in a match for taking too much injury time. Junior took the loss very badly. As you can see, he tried to take his frustration out on the referee's melon. After showing the video replay, Lampley laconically quipped, "After all, it's the first rule of Taekwondo: you can not kick the referee in the head." Nice one Lamps.

This fine display of Cuban sportsmanship was followed later in the morning by a boxing match that featured a kid named Correa who pulled off a Mike Tyson hat trick in his Gold Medal bout against a British opponent-a punch, a grab and a bite. Too bad for Correa. Daddy brought home the gold medal in '72. The Chicoms in attendance were pulling for the legacy to take another gold home to the beloved and still critically dead Fidel Castro. Old school SNL fans will get the reference.

Here's the video of Matos:

Movie Time

2008-08-22T11:28:00.008-06:00

So you're sitting there on yer back porch in Angier and you say to yourself, "Self, I wonder if The University of Arizona would be better for me than say...Chapel Hill or Wake Tech?" Well here's your answer. Check out this little movie project I worked on this spring:

Arizona Days/Arizona Nights and the trailer for the movie are both available on YouTube. You can also download the movie or trailer in much higher resolution at the UA's iTunesU site. It's a bit tough to get to on iTunes. You have to open your iTunes then navigate to iTunesU via the iTunes store. Once you've found the UA on iTunesU, you go to the Student Life section to get at the movies.

More Badminton and Olympic Coverage!!!

2008-08-18T13:29:00.015-06:00

On Badminton

I am now a Uuuuuuge international badminton fan. I couldn't get enough this weekend. South Korea's mixed doubles pair of Lee and Lee beating the top-seeded Indonesians in two sets was 1980 Miracle on Ice...only with shuttlecocks and tiny tennis rackets. Unlike ping pong where the ball moves so wicked fast that it's nearly impossible to keep up, an overhead smash of a badminton shuttle may leave the wee racket face at 200 mph, but by the time it crosses the net it's already about out of momentum. This gives the guys on the other side time to smash it right back, if they can handle the sudden change in speed and trajectory. They do have to fix the serve element of the game. That little pokey backhand thing is lame. They outta be able to rip it from the end line like Rod Laver back in the day.

On The Marathon

The Marathon started at Tianamen Square and the NBC analysts were good to remind us twice that Chairman Mao's temple was located on the square, but if memory serves, something else...something really big happened on that square...Aw shucks. Let me do a Google China search, I'm sure that will jog my memory. NBC weenies.

On Fencing
Beekeepers dancing and poking in the dark. You never know who gets the point because they both act like they won each tilt. And I didn't even hear any "En Gardes!" How do you have fencing without somebody saying "En Garde"? I would have settled for a "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father...prepare to die," somewhere in the action.

Plus the French won. That sucks. The French simply have no equal at pretending to be in combat. I think they should drop the silly little foil sabres and switch to samurai swords or pirate cutlasses. Let's see Mr. Gallic exuberance, Monsieur Julien Pillet , medal then. Two of France's four gold medals are in swordplay. One in team sabre and one in team epee. I think "epee" is one step up from the swordplay game we all played as kids while we were taking a leak in the woods.

The Russian Bear is Back

2008-08-14T15:52:00.009-06:00

WARNING-NON-HOCKEY POST

I've got this book at home about the Crimean War, and based on the events of the last week, I pulled it out and took a look at how that conflict started. In 1853, the Tsar wanted to snatch some territory from the Ottoman Empire-namely its possessions in what is now Romania. The Tsar approached the Brits in secret and offered to divide up Ottoman lands between them. The Brits said no. So the Tsar put the word out that he demanded protective control over all the lands under Ottoman control containing Eastern Orthodox Christians. The Turks told the Tsar to pound sand. The Tsar invaded, and the Brits and French joined the Ottoman Turks in the Crimean War to teach the Tsar a lesson. The Russkies get tossed out.

In the late summer of 1939, Stalin couldn't get the world domination deal he wanted with Britain and France, so he went with Hitler. In September, the Soviet Union invaded Poland right behind the Nazis under the pretext that a collapsing Polish nation could not protect the security of ethnic Ukranians and Belarussians living in the eastern part of the country. Those Poles who protested too much were executed or shipped off to Siberian death camps. The Soviet Politburo called the operation a "the liberation campaign."

In the winter of 1939, Stalin wanted to add to Soviet territory along the Finland/USSR border. He also wanted Finnish beachfront property to build a major naval depot. He offered the Finns some barren wasteland in return. The Finns told Stalin to pound sand. Stalin got Soviet artillery to shell a little Russian town, and blamed the provocation on the Finns. He then invaded and got the territory he wanted.

In the fall of 1956, a student-led revolt in Hungary gained momentum and eventually led to the Soviet puppet government agreeing to reforms and a withdrawl from membership in the Warsaw Pact. The Soviets would have none of that and sent in the Red Army to crush the uprising.

In the spring of 1968, the Soviets weren't happy with some reform momentum in Prague, so they sent in 200,000 troops from several Warsaw Pact nations to put an end to this democratization silliness. They threw out the existing puppet government and replaced it with one that more easily bent to Soviet will.

Jump ahead to 1979, when the Soviets were not happy with Communistness of their puppet Afghan regime. Seems they hadn't carpet bombed, tortured and executed well enough to keep this forever lawless land quiet, so they sent special forces to kill their puppet dictator and took over the country. Enter Charlie Wilson and the Mujahideen.

Now Putin, Pravda et al are telling the Russian people and a cowardly political opportunists all over the globe that the Georgians started this whole thing. Yeah, those nasty Georgians were mean to the poor newly minted Russian citizens living within Georgia, so it is Russia's Divine duty to lay waste to Georgia. And they're doing just that.

So you moral equivalence types just shut up. The U.S. invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan to depose evil and give oppressed people the chance to be free is not the same as Russia's move into Georgia. Our men and women in uniform are busy rebuilding, teaching, empowering and eliminating the terrorists who want to fill the void left by the old boss. Russians on the other hand are back in the business of crushing and subjugating. If "world opinion" sees events differently, screw world opinion. It won't the first time world opinion was dead wrong. World opinion should never serve as the moral compass for a nation of free people.

Mr. President, what do you see when you look into your pal Vladimir's eyes today? Wishing the old days were over forever is no longer possible. Willing the old KGB agent to be your bestus buddy never had a chance,and deep down you knew it.

This new Russian bear has added energy dominance and cyber warfare to its arsenal of weapons. Time to drop the hammer on the People's Republic of Putinia. (Now channeling John Belushi in Animal House) Who's with me? Let's do it!! ARRRRrrrrguh, sigh. Nobody, eh? Nice working with you there Georgia. Let us know how things work out.

Hating on Synchronized Diving

2008-08-12T17:11:00.008-06:00

Synchronized swimming with mad hops

I avoid watching Olympic competitions that involve judges. Biased and inept judges and theatrics of the kind we remember from Bela Karolyi and his kissing machine wife make these events into little more than gentrified WWF theatre. Give me Yao and LeBron-keep the tumbling robo-tots from China. Give me the US American freestyle relay team thumping the smack-talking Frenchies-keep Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding.

I began these olympics believing gymnastics was the best embodiment of what was wrong with judge-bias riddled athletic competitions...until I happend upon synchronized diving. This weekend, I watched a feel-good vignette about a teenager who left her family to train non-stop in synchronicity with her partner. She said she really didn't have any friends. She hoped that she might pick up with a real life after her days of competing in front of evil Russian and French judges was over. You should have stuck with straight swimming kid. At least then you could win or lose as judged by the most un-biased evaluator of all-the clock.

Americans Kelci Bryant and Arial Rittenhouse were hungry to earn the USA's first synchronized diving medal since 2000 (I didn't even know it was an Olympic sport before last weekend), but they came up fourth. According to the report on the USA Today Web site:

They needed to beat the Germans' score of 76.50 on the final dive, but their forward 2 1/2 somersault with a twist came up short. The judges awarded them a 72.0 for a total score of 314.40 — 4.59 points behind the Germans.

So they busted their butts to put their fate in the hands of a panel of judges? Was their tuck synch off or were their splashes not symmetrical enough? I wanna know, damnit!!!

Olympics Opening Ceremonies

2008-08-09T09:43:00.003-06:00

Two images stick in my head from last night. One is the 2008 drummers in silky silver pajamas pounding out a rhythm only a Borg could groove to. You want to see the value of diversity in a society? Take a look at those 2008 Chinese men with the same close-cropped and jet black haircut. Lighten their complexion and dye their hair blond and last night would have looked just like a Hitler Jungend festival.

The other thing that bugged me was when the cute little children in colorful costumes and representing the various ethnic groups of China handed the Chi-Com flag over to the boys from Leibstandarte Mao Tse-Tung. The colorful little parade turned into a lesson in proper fascist goose stepping.

I wish the Olympic folks would just ban all political showmanship from the event. It's cool to tell me about your culture and history, but spare us all the posturing about the martial glory of Mother China. You might impress the contingent from North Korea, but the rest of the world actually remembers and can access information about Tiananmen Square and the Cultural Revolution.

O'Neill

2008-08-08T15:34:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago, I thought talk of Jeff O'Neill playing hardball to secure an NHL contract was just plain silly. When I also read that the Canes were talking to him about a two-way deal, I thought that was almost as silly.

Reading today that he has been invited to attend camp makes more sense. Let's see Jeff show the club what he's got left in the tank and whether he respects the great privilege it is to play a kids game as a grown up -then maybe contract talks can begin.

Welcome back Jeff. Now get out there and outwork the rookies and journeymen.

And a Bettman for youse Thrash fans

2008-08-06T15:11:00.003-06:00

More mileage out of that troubling Kovalchuk in a kilt image.

Another Bettman

2008-08-06T14:46:00.002-06:00

This just in...The NHL's newest philanthropy to be a nationwide chain of shelters for wayward gay animals...and Sean Avery.

One Bettman PhotoShop that didn't make the cut

2008-08-04T17:42:00.009-06:00

Greg Wyshynski hosted a hilarious lil Gary Bettman art contest over at his Puck Daddy site. Carolina on Ice made the cut, landing entries in the top 231. Unfortunately, mine didn't make it. I sent it to Greg right after he announced the contest, but it must really suck. I'm crushed.

UPDATE: Crikey, it's in the top row. Sorry to whine unnecessarily.

VBall Road Trip to Colorado

2008-07-28T08:09:00.002-06:00

Heading out today to take my daughter to a college prep volleyball camp at Colorado State University. Good program at CSU. They finished last season with a Mountain West Conference championship and an NCAA tournament bid. We're also scheduled to check out CU Boulder and the University of Denver on this trek. I want her to look at New Mexico, but she doesn't dig Alboocracky. She's ready to get out of the desert.

I'll be on the Frankie K watch all week.

Steely Dan in Tucson

2008-07-23T07:48:00.009-06:00

I really wanted to hear Don't Take Me Alive

Big nasty storm on the way out to the casino/amphitheater last night cleared up right as the show got started. The Joey Defrancesco trio started the night off with some free-form jazz. Not a big fan of that stuff. Every so often, Joey sounded like he was about to break into that ballpark organ riff that goes, dah, dah, dah, dah, dadadadundadaaaahhhh...Chaaarrrrge!! A buddy of mine who attended the show last night called it Zamboni music. Seemed an amiable bloke, and he and the boys finished strong with an audience participation number about getting my mojo on. Shagadelic baby.

So the rest of the crowd starts filing in, and for the first time in a long time, I don't feel so old. Scores of Tommy Bahama guys in the Hawaiian shirt, microfiber shorts and leather sandal ensemble. Other than wife-of-Tommy Bahama guy, not a lot of women at the show. Oh yeah, there was a grandma who passed in front of me pushing her walker to the extreme of its performance envelope trying to get to her seat before Fagan and Becker made their entrance. And a nice mix of dads and sons. I dig that. Raise 'em right. It's never too early to teach them to just say "no" to Rap and those Flaming Lips people.

Becker and Fagan didn't look like they were ready to be fitted for portable oxygen tanks and scooters, but the boys are looking very seasoned. The other night towards the end of that VH-1 Who tribute, Roger Daltrey closed with something along the lines of: If we're still playing when we're 90 we may look like shat, but we'll still sound great. And the Dan sounded great last night. It was almost deja vu-2000. My concert-going shipmate, Captain Dan, recalls this as the set list:

Royal Scam-Love the jam session that segues into Walter and Donald making their appearance from opposite sides of the stage. Becker kinda waddles and Fagan has this gangly, stoop-shouldered scarecrow swagger thing he does. He's mastered how to look really cool when you don't have lick of motor skills beyond your hands.
Everything You Did
Show Biz Kids-Best of the night for me. Re-arranged from the studio version. Less machine-like, more jazzy. Fagan and the gals hit the Show business kids making movies of themselves, you know they don't give a F_ _ k about anybody else line twice. Very cool
Two Against Nature
New Frontier
Hey Nineteen
Glamour Profession
Godwacker
New Frontier
Gaucho-Ever heard Walter Becker sing? He's more Tom Waits than Tom Jones
Home at Last
Parker's Band
Aja
Josie
Peg
Love is Like an Itching in my Heart/band introductions
Kid Charlemagne
(encore) FM

As they came out for the encore, Becker complimented the audience and called us all M-Fers. Made me all warm and fuzzy. Musician of the night honors go to drummer Keith Carlock. Dude looked like Howie Long with a chili bowl haircut, but I felt that thundering in my chest most of the night-especially on Aja.

Steely Dan 2008-Make tonight a wonderful thing

2008-07-22T07:38:00.007-06:00

The Early Years

That's David Palmer on lead vocals, Denny Dias on guitar and I think Jeff Baxter on bongos.

Interesting summer for music in the Old Pueblo. A few weeks ago, Journey came to town with their new Philipino Karaoke singing Steven Perry sound-alike. Tonight is Steely Dan at the AVA Amphitheater. Great venue for a show, provided the monsoon gives us a night off. I've been a Dan fan since high school back when the movie "FM" came out. I spent the summer of '79 driving around in my dad's Dodge Omni with Aja cued up in the 8-Track player. Aja, when all my dime dancing is through, I run to ratchet, ratchet, bzzzzzzz-click youuuu....oooh.

This will mark my third Dan show-the first in Manassas was way back when, in 2000. Saw them again during a virtual sandstorm in 2006. The second show wasn't nearly as tight as the first. Let's hope Donald's voice is silky smooth.

Perusing YouTube, the boys seem to be dropping in some more obscure tunes on this tour. Here are some songs I wish they'd include:

Midnight Cruiser

Don't Take Me Alive

The Caves of Altamira

Doctor Wu

Time Out of Mind

Tomorrow's Girls

H Gang

In Florida earlier this summer, this was their set list:

Royal Scam

I Got the News

Everything You Did

Show Business Kids

Two Against Nature

What a Shame About Me

Babylon Sisters

New Frontier

Hey Nineteen

Black Friday

Green Earrings

Glamour Profession

Parker's Band

Josie

Peg

Kid Charlemagne

No Cuervo Gold. No fine Colombian. Just a few Stella Buds and lots of ear candy.

Possible Hurricanes third sweater?

2008-07-18T14:04:00.010-06:00

This just in from an "inside source" close to the guy who knows the guy who changes the urinal cakes periodically at the RBC. There's just something fishy about this design.

Here's another take from The NHL Tournament of Logos site.

I still like Ingmar's Whale-themed sweater the best.

Thanks Jack Pittman

THN Proteau the Five Worst Signings

2008-07-18T11:33:00.003-06:00

This Adam Proteau (Pro-tea-eeeew?/Pro-toy?/Pro-Tow?/) piece from 10 July is a good read-especially the dig on the Jackets signing of Mike Commodore:

This O'Neill nonsense and other stuff

2008-07-18T10:04:00.011-06:00

Wizzinator News
The word the other day from Luke that JR was speaking with Jeff O'Neill about a two-way contract to bolster the Canes depth at center makes me think that Matt Cullen's melon may not be ready for prime time, or that he's one Brooks Orpik experience away from Eric Lindrosville. UPDATE: Oops, just saw that Wufie already had the same take. Snooze you lose.
Speaking of Luke. I'm beginning to get a bit worried about his follicle future. This haircut has all the signs of a imminent descent into Trumpian come over syndrome.

Thrash and Kitties go ugly late
These two squads successfully scooped up the leagues UFA sloppy seconds...or maybe thirds. When asked about his new deal with the FLACats, Cory Stillman waxed Zach Mayo squealing, "I got nowhere else to go!"

Tampion Bay triples down
Vinnie is worth the cash, even if he plays into his fifties. I saw Gordie Howe playing in his fifties, but it was the WHL. How about Radim Vrbata for $3 mil and seven years of Ryan Malone just a few months out of a perpetual doghouse and with one good season under his belt?

Anniversary #3
Thanks to DLee and Team Carolina on Ice for reminding me of the third anniversary here at C/B.

Here's a link to my first post from July 15, 2005-when I fancied myself a serious homer/analyst
Here's the most visited post in this blog's history. Right before game seven of the 2006 Cup final. When the going got tough, I got whiny.

Thanks to all who find their way here or back here even when I have little or nothing to say. At the end of the Canes season, I started thinking that my energy for riffing on things Hurricanes was about used up. Now months later, I'm getting excited again about the upcoming season.

Despite being an Arizonan now for four years, I still haven't become much of a Coyotes fan. This despite the possibility that the Dogs could be very good this season. On February 7, the Canes come to Phoenix. At least on that night, I'll be wishing pain and suffering on Skelator Olli.

In Uthuh News
Welcome aboard Eye of the Storm. Another take is always welcome.

Frankie Kaberle-Destination Unknown?

2008-07-04T09:10:00.004-06:00

As the dust settles on the first week of free agency, looks to me like moving Kaberle and his modest salary might not be that big of a deal. I'm sure some clubs will leave roster space open for rising prospects, but there are a few clubs who might need a veteran puck-moving defenseman who scored the winning goal in the 2006 Stanley Cup final. The LA Kings only have five blueliners on their active roster. Bret Hedican might end up a late addition to the Kings roster now that San Jose has both landed Rob Blake and Miami University's own, Danny Boyle.

The Canes bestus trading buddies, the Ottawa Senators, have three defensemen on their active roster with Andrej Meszaros an RFA. Right now they don't have an offensive-minded defenseman. RFA Antoine Vermette is still dangling out there as well. Might Bryan Murray be fleeced again? He let Mike Commodore go. He let Cory Stillman go. The Canes still have Joe Corvo and Paddy Eaves-at bargain prices....not to rub it in.

The Buffaslugs are also short on blueliners. They're also trying to unload Maxim Afinogenov.

Denis Seidenberg had a pretty solid year last season. He'd be a nice 5th or 6th defensemen on some squad this October. If JR keeps him. That would be fine with me. If he could be part of a deal that moved Kaberle or helped the Canes re-stock the system, that would be fine as well.

So I think there are some easy deals to be done that would involve moving Kaberle for prospects and/or picks. There also might be the possibility of a more complex deal that might bring in a solid forward. Such a deal might mean packaging the recently signed Tuomo Ruutu or possibly Chad Larose. I think the fun has only just begun.

Other UFAs I like:
Pavol Dimetra
Jason Williams

RFAs I somewhat covet:
Jay Bouwmeester - dream on C/B
Patrick O'Sullivan

The Benefit of Covetatiousness

2008-07-03T14:08:00.009-06:00

Happy Trails Erik Cole!

With a hearty "click-it or ticket," the Canes resident daredevil blasts off to Edmonton

Howdy pards. Back from a family trek to Cali. Seal Beach south of Long Beach is a fantastic beach destination in the SOCAL. Nestled between the Seal Beach Navy weapons facility and the poorly disguised oil derricks of Long Beach Harbor, Seal Beach is clean, parking is easy and the quaint little downtown is only about 50 yards off the strand. We also visited the San Juan Capistrano Mission, toured the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach and spent an evening on the grass at the LA Arboretum listening to the California Philharmonic. It was good to escape Tucson's annual triple digit June for a couple of days.

So JR now has both of the blueliners he's coveted longtime. Joe Corvo and Joni Pitkanen will man the point on the PP. And the love fest continued yesterday with Pitkanen signing a three-year deal for team captain cash. Now JR has the guys he wanted. We know Corvo is the real deal. Lets see if Pitkanen is more than a big porcelain doll with a sliding upside. You look at Joni's page on TSN and you see a lot of missed games with knee, back and hip maladies.

Trading Erik Cole, an older catastrophic broken bone-guy, for a younger chronic sore joint-guy, looks like a pretty good deal. Younger guys heal better and quicker, so with Brind 'Amour and Williams both coming back from knee injuries, I'm glad the Canes were able to move Cole before his next Evel Knievelesque collision with an endboard. Not that I don't love everything Erik Cole represented to this team. He has the heart of a lion, and from today's N&O piece, he had a huge influence on the development of Eric Staal. Good luck Erik. Rip up that Western Conference. Make sure you take that click-it or ticket message to the ice road truckers.

As far as JR's big deal goes, I'm with DLee. Cole was a guy clubs like Ottawa and Edmonton had repeatedly expressed an interest in, and in a marketplace where everybody wants to upgrade on D, the only way the Canes were going to upgrade without truly breaking the bank ($7 mil a year for Campbell? $6.5 mil for Redden?) was via trade.

I bitched all last season and into my last post that the Canes needed to get bigger, meaner and more athletic on the blueline. Babchuk and Pitkanen are both big boys who can play angry. I'm actually more intrigued by the pending return of Anton the Refusenik than the acquisition of Pitkanen. A more mature Babchuk might be the real gem of this signing period. And he returns for cheap-Josef Melichar cheap. If Josef Melichar is worth a cool mil, I bet Pavel Brindl could be had for a fraction of that kinda cash! Boom that gaping hole at wing is immediately filled. In one off season, the Canes forward corps gets smaller, quicker and more enigmatic.

That leaves Nic Wallin and Frances Kaberle on the bubble. Wallin didn't want to go anywhere last season, and both are signed thru next season. I'd rather see the Canes hold on to Wallin. His poise and experience might come in handy if Corvo and Pitknanen get too pinchy.

And I'm really glad to see the club resign my boy Tim Conboy. Watch your back Josef Melichar, there's a psycho killer waiting in the wings. Qu'est-ce que c'est?

The 12-4 split heading to July 1

2008-06-25T14:55:00.005-06:00

My best guess of a Canes roster from among those who are most likely locks as of today:

Whitney, Staal, Cole
Samsonov, Brind 'Amour, Williams
Larose, Cullen, Eaves
Ruutu, Sutter, Walker

Corvo, Gleason
Kaberle,Wallin

JR has stated he wants to shore up the blueline. The Kaberle/Wallin pairing is probably no better than a third-pairing in this league. It looks to me like adding a top blueliner won't be enough. I believe the Canes need another stopper and a guy with the offensive upside Kaberle showed back in the day.

JR has stated he wants to get bigger and more physical on the fourth line. If Brandon Sutter is all grow'd up and ready to knock some folks around, a Ruutu, Sutter, Walker fourth line could wreak some havoc. So my concern is not whether the Canes can put together a physical fourth line. I'm worried about a one-pairing deep blueline and the smallishness of many of the other forwards. I heard all last weekend about the resurgence of the small guy in the new NHL. Good news is, the Canes are on the bleeding edge of Hobbit-hockey with Whitney, Samsonov and Larose (if he returns) on the roster. And if Zach Boychuk makes the squad, we'll have the makings of a Tolkein trilogy this fall.

OK, Now I hate Keith Ballard

2008-06-20T17:30:00.005-06:00

Maybe the Coyotes can afford to buy the Finnish Skeletor a helmet that fits. My favorite Coyote is now a Florida Panther and one of my top five "hate-him's" in the league is a Coyote. Great deal for the Yotes. Keith Ballard is a solid and developing player, but prone to taking bad penalties and getting caught behind the play after trying to make the big hit. I think he developed some bad habits playing with Nick Boynton. Ditching Boynton's nearly $3 mil in salary is also a winner.

The acquisition of Jokinen is huge for the dogs. Doan, Jokinen, Reinprecht, with youngsters Hanzal, Turris and Mueller. Every forward on this squad is a centerman. This should be a very fun team to watch next season. I'm definitely going to make it to more than the zero games I attended last year in Glendale. Good job Don Maloney!!!

For much smarter analysis, check out Coyotes Blog, One Fan's Perspective

Darcy, Trades? and Draft Day

2008-06-20T11:06:00.011-06:00

Darcy Hordichuk is a lunger more than a fighter. If he lands that first punch, he might win the decision. If he misses, he's toast. I still like Tim Conboy better in the enforcer role. Conboy has that borderline psycho postal employee intangible that's hard to find in this league.....outside Sean Avery. Speaking of the little tool, check out this video clip from YouTube. It features Hordichuk doing something really stupid and our boy Timmayy Gleason back in the day.

Now I know JR has stated he has no plan to move up. He did move up from #8 to #4 in 2004 to get Andrew Ladd. The Columbus Dinner Jackets need to get to the playoffs real bad. The defenseman of the future may or may not be enough to keep the faithful, faithful. They've flirted with Ryan Malone and they are taking a hard look right now at Patrick Marleau. How about Erik Cole or Justin Williams and a pick for that #6 pick? If Luke Schenn is still there at #6... Another possible move-up trade partner might be Nashville in the #9 spot.

Lets see if all the buzz around Pitkanen, Liles or maybe Streit comes to fruition over the weekend. I really like the idea of the Germanicish Mark Streit joining the Canes. I can see it now, Streit and Seidenberg - Hans and Franz. The Siegfried line. Hey Mike Comrie....You with your Hollywood Disney Channel girlfriend, and your designer trousers and your courtside seats at the Laker game. Come across dee meedle and see how we put you through Teutonic Hell with our huge bulging muscles. Yah, vee will crush you if we don't get caught up ice on an ill-advised pinch...

Pierre McGuire has the Canes taking Zach Boychuk in the #14 spot in his TSN mock draft. Just what the Canes need, another 5'9" centerman.

The Canes new Director of Defenseman Development

2008-06-05T13:41:00.003-06:00

Thank you Glen Wesley for being a Carolina Hurricane. Here's my favorite Glen memory from an post I made right after the Canes Cup victory in 2006. This was at the end of his first speculated final season. Here's a snip from the opening:
In the spring of 2004, my wife and I went to the Fridays in Cary for a nightcap after attending a particularly humbling home loss to, I believe, the Tampa Bay Lightning. Soon after we were seated, Glen Wesley walked in with his wife...

Please note that Glen was there to have a quiet late dinner with his wife. The Fridays in Cary is not a "scrip club." Glen didn't have a posse with him that night. He wasn't there to be the center of attention or to make it rain.

My Take on the Canes off-season game plan

2008-05-22T14:42:00.006-06:00

Luke discusses this briefly in his LSB post, and I want to take a do my own analysis in parallel to TSN's off-season game plan piece from Tuesday.

Last year's squad was smallish, lethargic and injury-riddled. So I would make the following the top three off-season priorities for the club:

1. Get younger, bigger and meaner on the blueline: Joe Corvo is now the PP quarterback for this squad. Looks like the club is stuck with Frances and Nic "No Trade Clause" Wallin, so as much as I admire and respect Glen Wesley and Bret Hedican, the time has come to move on. Bret might have already made his decision to ride off into the NOCAL sunset. Since the Preds will have a tough time signing both Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, I'd work the phones for a deal here. From today's TSN game plan report on the Preds, it looks like Suter might not be the golden boy any more. You think Erik Cole likes country music?

2. Get bigger, hungrier, meaner and faster on the 4th line: Props to the Lollipop Guild line of Walker/Bayda/Aucoin. These guys over-achieved when production was needed most, but JR has already indicated he wants to get larger down the forward lines and I concur. Problem is, there's not a lot of room on the roster even after Bayda, Aucoin, Letowski, et al have been cut loose. JR's move to bring on Eaves and Ruutu makes things even tougher. Eaves on the durability front and Ruutu on both the durability and discipline fronts. In the TSN feature, Scott Cullen suggests three guys the Canes might consider going after: Matt Bradley, Pat Rissmiller or Adam Hall. Not sure I'm all warm and fuzzy about the thought of any of these guys.

I like Tim Conboy in the psycho killer/#7 defenseman/4th line forward role. I could see pairing him with big and skinny Brandon Sutter and a guy like Bradley or Rissmiller.

3. Cover that six in goal: Cam Ward is proving to be spectacularly average with flashes of brilliance. Michael Leighton might be the guy to press Cam in the coming season, but I'd like to see the Canes pursue another good, young talent just in case years 5+ of the Cam Ward experience turn into a train wreck. Cullen suggests Alex Auld or Patrick Lalime. I say see what Boston might want for Tuukka Rask. The kid looks to enter the next season stuck again behind an over-priced Manny Fernandez and Captain Cartwheel. You think Erik Cole likes chow-duh?

Not hating on Cole. He's just one of the few marketable players on the roster. Cullen throws in Justin Williams as well. Have to ponder that one. Two knee explosions versus a broken neck...

Here are some UFA's I'd be intrigued to see in the sightless eye:
Michael Ryder
Mark Streit
John-Michael Liles
Chris Kelly
Michal Rozsival
Brendan Morrison
Pavol Dimetra

Mr. Subliminal Talks Lavvy and Homo-Erotic Staal Dreams

2008-05-17T13:45:00.006-06:00

Hi all, if yer still reading.

Good move (financially) to bring Coach Lavvy back. GMJR finally puts to rest speculation (he created) about Coach's status, and lets us know it's part of the usual end-of-season (failed season) process:
"I can understand why there was speculation," Rutherford said, "but I wasn’t trying to insinuate anything. It's a standard process each year. I wasn’t going to take that position until every one had the chance to meet."

So this morning I'm sitting there having that first cup of joe watching the Wings/Stars tilt and the wife asks, "Did any Staal bros play in the playoffs?" Boom, flashback to last night's final(?)dream. I'm at a gym or rec center...not sure why or where, when three guys come running down the hall whacking each other in the butt with rolled up towels. It's Jordan, Eric and Mark and they are all wearing nuthin' but a thong. Kinda like the scene in Zoolander where the male models are having the ill-fated gasoline fight, only with even more gayness. Shocked and horrified, I leave the gym only to find the boys (and Dad?) similarly attired and riding bicycles down an alley.

Bengals Pre-Draft Rant

2008-04-25T14:51:00.006-06:00

I used to dig Ocho...errr Chad Johnson's act. It was fresh. Dude was irreverent. It was all in good fun. After a season of watching Johnson throw hissy fits and drop balls at crunch time, this Bengals fan (since 1968) has had enough. I've had enough of the Bengals being a sideshow. I've had enough of seeing this team and evn finer city ridiculed for the parade of thugs and misfits who've donned the multistripe-ed jersey.

Last fall, Colin Cowherd did a bit on his ESPN radio show asking folks to suggest tag lines for the City of Cincinnati. You know, stuff like "America's Finest City" (San Diego). Herd got suggestions like, "Cincinnati - you have the right to remain silent." Great bit...but the underlying truth behind the comedy still stings this emigre Cincinnatian.

The other day Colin did another bit of analysis on the proposed trade that would send Ocho to Washington for two picks-including Washington's first round pick. He said the Bungles were stupid to pass up the opportunity. I concur.

Chris Henry and Odell Thurman are thugs. Chad is no thug. He is however a prima donna and a man totally absorbed in the larger-than-life alter ego he has concocted for himself. Ocho has become the Hyde to Chad's Jekyll. I say let some other franchise with deep pockets and the willingness to try stupid things (Washington) have Ocho and all his theatrics. Get some players in return that will help rebuild this franchise. Rebuild the patchwork Bengals linebacking corps. Get some run stoppers for the D-line. Hell, turn these picks into trades with other NFL clubs willing to pay a price to move up.

Come on Marvin, Katie and Mike, screw yer foolish pride and do something to make this team a contender. With a little luck, yet another Bengals rebuilding cycle could parallel that of the 49ers. How sweet would a third Super Bowl rematch be for those of us who remember 1982 and 1989? Only this time, the Bengals might have a Hall of Fame quarterback to lead the two minute drive at the end of the game.

Just to add salt to the wound here is a quick look back at the Bengals 31 picks since 1999
1999-Akili Smith -BUST
2000-Peter Warrick -BUST
2001-Justin Smith - BAILED
2002-Levi Jones - GOT PUNKED IN A BAR BY KEVIN PORTER AND HIS POSSE
2003-Carson Palmer - STUD
2004-Chris Perry - BUST
2005-David Pollack -BUSTED NECK
2006-Jonathan Joseph - GOOD COVER GUY/CAN'T CATCH
2007-Leon Hall - DEVELOPING SITUATION

From the draft team that brought you Ki-Jana Carter and Chris Perry, here would be a sign of a yet another Bengal draft apocalypse:
With the ninth pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals select night club brawler and lotsa babyses daddy, Darren McFadden.

Finally, a Craptacular Friday!

2008-04-11T17:49:00.003-06:00

It is better to play good than look good. Now we know the real reason he wore that one-way visor back in the day. Go Craps.

That Burns-ing Sensation

2008-04-10T17:20:00.005-06:00

With three years left on his contract, Peter Laviolette seems far from safe. In today's N&O, Jim Rutherford calls out Lavvy on several fronts. Seems like a very public beatdown for a guy you want to keep on board for three more years. The question in situations like this is, if the Canes do axe Lavvy, who is out there available and better? Awhile back, I floated the name of Brian Sutter. He is a former Jack Adams winner, but his track record as an NHL head coach is unspectacular (around .500). Couple that with the fact that his brother's kid will probably be in the lineup next season. Bad idea.

Hey, how 'bout Pat Burns? If this squad needs and infusion of accountability, he might be just the guy. And he's itching to get back behind the bench. This from the Globe and Mail on April 8:
"Burns, a three-time winner of the Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL's coach of the year, would consider a return to the NHL coaching ranks if the opportunity presented itself in the fall."

Jack and Timmayyy

2008-04-07T17:42:00.003-06:00

Year one of the Jack Johnson era in LA didn't go so good. His 11 points on the season placed him in around 9th place among rookie blueliners. That places him only 6 points above Tim Conboy. And Johnson played in 55 more games that the slightly psycho Conboy. Jack led all rookie defensemen in penalty minutes and had the worst +/- among rookies at -19.

The Canes acquired Timmayy Gleason and Eric (hardly knew ye) Belanger for Johnson and Oleg the human traffic cone Tverdovsky. Johnson logged more ice time and more PP time than Gleason this season. Johnson had around a 200 minute advantage in total ice time over Gleason. Jack played around 185 of his 1,600 minutes of ice time killing penalties. Gleason spent 239 of his 1,400 minutes of ice time ice killing penalties. That's around 27 addition pks for our boy. Gleason logged 19 points and was a +5 in a stopper role. As noted above, Johnson scored 11 points as a puck-moving and aggressive defenseman.

Next season might be the breakout year for Jack Johnson. Blueliners take longer to develop ya know. Yeaahhh well....Tobias Enstrom of the ATL and Tom Gilbert of Edmonton didn't seem to struggle all that much. JR's genius remains intact.

UFAs/RFAs I'm bullish on going into next year:
1. Sergei Samsonov (UFA)
2. Tuomo Ruutu (RFA)
3. Tim Gleason (RFA)
4. Aucoin/Bayda/Larose (UFA)
5. Tim Conboy (RFA)
6. Michael Leighton

Guys I'd like to see the Canes release:
1. Trevor Letowski
2. Jeff Hamilton
3. John Grahame
4. Wade Brookbank

Guys who should retire with full honors-special night and a number hoist to the rafters:
1. Glen Wesley
2. Bret Hedican

Hello Newman

2008-04-04T21:58:00.004-06:00

You take 46 shots on goal, enjoy an 18 minute PP advantage, and lose 4-3. You lose three of the last four games when everything is on the line, and I think you probably should go home early. Got to hand it to the Panthers even though they tried their best to hand it to the Canes.

It's been a season on the ledge and that ledge gave way tonight. I spent the first hour or so after the horn pretty pissed off that my boys couldn't seal the deal. It's now around 9:30 in the desert and I have to say I concur with Andy of Hurricanes Insider. Regardless of what happens in Craptown tomorrow, this was a season to be proud of for your Carolina Hurricanes. Here are my top-ten things Caniacs can be proud of:

The boys thrived for months at the top of the division despite extensive injuries to captain Rod Brind 'Amour, Justin Williams and Matt Cullen.
JR's acquisition of Joe Corvo, Sergei Samsonov and Tuomo Ruutu helped the Canes compete until the last day of the season. The addition of these guys and Patrick Eaves might also set the franchise up nicely for years to come.
Keith Aucoin and Ryan Bayda become legit NHLers.
Timmay Gleason stepped up and became a rock on the blueline. I like the Jack Johnson deal much more now than around 7 months ago.
Bret Hedican not only defied the detractors (like me) to made it thru the season, he was a stud. Thanks Bret. And thanks for another great final season Glen Wesley.
Tim Conboy and Wade Brookbank added that missing element of on-ice psycho the Canes needed to keep league thugs at bay.
Eric Staal deserves all the glow he got all season in the hockey media. He's become a power-centerman and one of the league's premier talents. Sign him long-time ASAP JR.
Scott Walker showed up every night and every shift. He took a ton of punishment and delivered quite a bit as well. He was the heart and soul of the all who aspired to grind for the Canes.
Trevor Letowski served admirably in perhaps the least glamourous role on the roster.
Peter Laviolette proved he still had this lockerroom.

Now that we're all feeling warm and fuzzy...damn it sucks to lose to the Newman's tonight of all nights. Thanks for the negative psychic energy vibe Mary Beth Wrenn...bitch.

But tomorrow's another day, right guys? Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Go Panthers! Beat the, the.... aw screw it. Go Jayhawks.

Traitorous Pyschics and Bitter Newmans

2008-04-04T12:41:00.016-06:00

Hi. Memba me?

If fading memory serves, it was these same Florida Panthers who dropped a bit of mathematical elimination on the Canes last season. How interesting that they get to a shot at the spoiler role yet again. To cry baby Jacques Martin and the Kitties, the Carolina Hurricanes are Seinfeld to their Newman. The Canes are sleek, successful and charming. The Kitties are boorish and bitter about their penchant for missing opportunities. The Kitties' venom for the Canes seems to know no bounds and you can bet Olli and the boys would love to break their hideous streak of 15 losses in the big ATM tonight. Should be physical from the puck drop. Look for an Ollie Jokinen hat trick - a goal, a slash/trip and a cheap shot in a scrum.

In a valiant effort to bring fresh to an otherwise dismal season of Panthers coverage, Sun-Sentinel writer Steve Gorton called on a pyschic for her breakdown of the contest:

If you believe in psychic power, they will finally beat the Hurricanes tonight at RBC Center. Mary Beth Wrenn, a professional psychic in Charlotte, N.C. since 1987, envisions it happening."I do feel the spell will be broken," Wrenn said by telephone Thursday.

.....Wrenn, who doesn't know any of the Panthers or of their streak before being told Thursday, nonetheless senses a "negative energy" around the Panthers in Raleigh.

Negative for whom there Mary Beth? That little detail seems somewhat important if we are to bank on pre-game psychic analysis. Oh, by the way....shut up Mary Beth you freaking Charlotte Copperhead. Now is not the time to hate on Raleigh.

In my ideal world of tonight, Florida folds up like a card table a la Tampa and both the Craps and Canes get into the postseason. The Canes "deserve" the spot for excelling despite all the injuries to key players. The Craps deserve it because OV8 and the boys are playing the best hockey in the Eastern Conference right now and they are the feel-good story of this hockey spring.

A Washington/Montreal first round match up sounds mighty tasty to me. Speaking of traitors, wouldn't it be great to have Montreal Gazzette columnist Jack Todd covering a Habs/Craps series? His take on DC and it's hockey fans could incite some epic rage in the District.

Keys:

Solid positional defense

No softies from Wardo
Soft and quick hands around Vokoun

Physical play right away

Fall down and draw penalties (oops, that was supposed to be a secret)

Paul McCartney Escapes Deranged Fembot

2008-03-18T11:28:00.009-06:00

Say Goodbye to Some Pretty Soily Company

The Succubus saga is finally over for Paul McCartney. Psycho Ex, Heather Mills, gets $48 mil, a one-way ticket on the Your 15 Minutes are Up Express, and a good chunk of Sir Paul’s life essence. Fatal attraction chick wanted around $250 mil. In his ruling the judge said, Mills' claim "is and was unreasonable, indeed exorbitant." Exorbitant Indeed.

Heather couldn't’t supply evidence of anything she brought to or gave up as part of the marriage…except the concept of an acrylic fingernail/guitar pick. I remember reading the Macca kids saw through Heather’s smokescreen right off the bat. I hope Stella McCartney gets the green light now to take a couple of designer stiletto heel whacks at Heather in some dark alley. Look for Heather Mills to appear in Penthouse…or maybe Swank, by the end of this summer.

Linda McCartney used to be the brunt of a lot of tasteless jokes and Beatle-Fan derision back in the day. Now you can see how much he and the kids counted on Linda to keep things on an even keel.

I think my favorite post-Beatle, Beatle song is George Harrison's What is life. Ringo's It Don't Come Easy is pretty good. With the exception of Number 9 Dream, most of the Lennon stuff seems pretty dry to me. I really don't care for Imagine, even when it's covered on American Idol. I'm also not a big fan of a lot of the more pop McCartney stuff. I want to shoot myself in the head whenever I hear the bells that signal the opening of "Let 'Em In." I like the Joe Piscopo/Eddie Murphy version of Ebony and Ivory more than the Paul/Stevie Wonder version. And the Michael Jackson collaboration is just plain creepy.

That being said, I still dig a lot of Macca stuff. So, in an effort to re-line Sir Paul's pockets in this time of great financial hardship, here's the C/B top five post-Beatle Paul McCartney songs:

Maybe I’m Amazed (the raw version from “McCartney”)

My Brave Face (Elvis Costello to the rescue)

Helen Wheels (love the "Say bye, bye riff at the end)

Silly Love Songs (with Paul on lead bass way before Spinal Tap)

Soily (click on "Take 7" on YouTube above-even better version than the Wings over America live version he did as an encore)

Ruutu and Corvo

2008-03-17T16:01:00.004-06:00

Shades of Bill Laimbeer

A couple of weeks into the Tuomo Ruutu era and I have to say junior is not long on the roster. You can see why this kid spent so much time on the IR with "The Indian." He's either thumping somebody or getting thumped by lots of somebodies on every shift. Our boy, Mikey Commodore, seemed to be especially fixated on hurting lil Tuomo yesterday. With two dumb penalties in the first period, Commodore wasn't much of a help to his new squad in the big reunion match.

One nasty little thing Tuomo does is that Bill Laimbeer box-out along the boards. When he senses somebody about to close on him, he launches himself backwards at the last second and lays a wicked body blow on the opponent. Eric Staal just establishes position and takes the beating. Ruutu likes to set the tone for the encouter by landing the first blow.

Another nasty little thing Tuomo does is whip dangerous passes across the neutral zone. The last one to a streakin Joe Corvo was money, but the 10 previous ones were rather frightening. Gonna have to keep an eye on Ruutu's penchant for doing the Brett Favre into triple coverage thing.

Joe Corvo was moving like Alec Baldwin in the Shadow yesterday. They didn't seem to have a clue on where he was or how to stop him. The Ottawa announcers were fairly kind all night to Paddy Eaves and Corvo. Only snarky thing I heard was one of them saying Corvo never shot that straight when he as a Sen. Luke covered Frankie's renaissance the other day, but my two cents would be that Joe being Joe lets Sister Frances Kaberle get back to being Frankie Kaberle again. Corvo's aggressive and attacking style is the goose the Canes need from the blueline. JR does it again. I am not worthy....

In Search of David Tanabe

2008-03-04T13:11:00.003-07:00

I've been wondering about David for awhile. He suffered a concussion on December 18 and went on the IR on January 4. Yesterday, he didn't make it to a team photo. All we know at this point is found in Luke's LSB post today:

Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford described Tanabe as "week to week" but if he's in no shape to leave the house even for a team picture, it's obviously not a good situation.

How about some deeper digging N&O crew? It's going on two months away from the team for the poor kid. What's he going thru? What's the prognosis? How are the club and his teammates helping him get thru this? One report I read said his parents were having to drive him around town.

Working for the Weekend

2008-02-29T16:45:00.002-07:00

Missed last night's game and only saw highlights on NHL On the Fly. Maybe we saw the other side of Joe Corvo last night? Just an observation from the 20 seconds I had to watch the highlights. I promise to spend some quality time tonight with the DVR.

Last night was video shoot night at the Arizona/USC basketball game. I had a crew in the McKale Center filming for an upcoming student recruitment/YouTube video. The house was packed. More than 14,000 Wildcat faithful in attendance - 50% red-shirted students, and 50% red v-neck sweatered octogenarians. My media pass got me a place down on the floor right by the exit for the officials.

If you saw the game last night, you probably most remember the knucklehead from the Zona Zoo student's section throwing a water bottle at the USC bench in the closing seconds. Well seconds before, USC forward Devon Jefferson dunked the ball and then proceeded to taunt the crowd his entire trip back up the floor. Not that Jefferson's Sean Avery emulating display justifies the attempted assault with a deadly beverage. I hear they got the toss on video (not my crew) and junior will be summarily transferred to ASU.

A few things I noticed last night.

Jay Bilas took time to sign autographs for kids and talk with the fans. He also had on a sweet pair of brushed black suede loafers.
The old people in the McKale Center were every bit as obnoxious as the students. Thousands of octagenarians screaming, waving bony fingers and foaming at the mouth at every foul call. One old coot was on Tim Floyd all night-from about five feet away.
OJ Mayo is the real deal. He works his ass off every play, and he's ice with the ball in his hands.
Our "phenom," Chase Budinger, has dreams of playing in the NBA. He looked like Butters from South Park last night. Nearly the entire USC squad had their way with him. He looked totally lost. After the game he showered and came out to sulk in the stands by himself. Later, I think his parents came down to sit with him. Man, the pressure these kids are under when they are still trying to figure so much out about themselves. And you know the haters, users and entourage wanna-bees are always circling like buzzards waiting to zoom in for their share of the goodies...or a chunk of the carcass.

Happy weekend all. I've got volleyball Saturday, Sunday and Monday night. In tribute to the potential return to action of Canes defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, I leave you with Dana Carvey and Steve Carell in a bit I think is titled, Germans Who Say Nice Things.

Ruutu Means "He Who Brings Much Pain" in Russian

2008-02-28T12:49:00.003-07:00

Tuomo Ruutu vs. Team Russia, 2007. In this episode, Ruutu blows up some Russians. Now put little Pontiac Firebird logos on those red sweaters and visualize a #8 in the role of the hapless #42. Ummmm...niiiiice.

It also appears our boy can absorb pain. Canes Country has a nice pic of Tuomo, Son of Frankenstein.

Bummer to see Timmay Gleason out of the lineup tonight. My advice. Eat a lot of fish and avoid bright lights and loud noises for the next couple of days.

Shrewd Dealin' or Just Plain Stealin'?

2008-02-27T09:35:00.015-07:00

Ruutu Mania Hits Raleigh

Back in the mid-seventies of my youth, I used to collect baseball cards. Across the street lived a nice kid who was kind of the neighborhood Gilligan. I got him into collecting baseball cards as well, largely so I could fleece him of any good ones he'd get in a pack. Hey Chris, how about Lerrin LaGrow for Rod Carew? It's a great deal for you Chris cause LaGrow is a pitcher and they're worth more than some old outfielder/first basemen. No, the only reason I want Carew is cause...my bat has his name on it, and I thought it might be cool to have the card of the guy who's (broken) bat is in my garage. I wasn't a total schmuck. I let him keep the gum. I hope JR is making sure Dale Tallon gets some gum.

I know it's a knee-jerk reaction after one game, but I already dig Tuomo Ruutu. Kid was a one-man wrecking crew in his debut. And he's got the Frankenstein stitches to prove it. Tuomo made every Devil on the ice nervous on every shift. He was in Elias' girlie little melon all night. In three years, I can't recall Andrew Ladd hitting anybody with the explosiveness Ruttu showed last night in the two colossal hits he laid on Colin White and Patrik Elias. Guy played like a hungry wolverine set free in a pasture full of sedated bunny rabbits. Ladd never seemed quite 6"1" 200+. Ruutu looked huge last night. He looked David Byrne in the big suit/roid-rage huge (see photo above).

That other escapee from the Indian, Sergei Samsonov, continues to thrive in the Canes up-tempo-always transitioning to the attack style of play. Have you noticed he's moving north and south with the puck much more lately? Much less of that cross the blueline and turn 270 degrees, and dump it to Wesley stuff.

Last night was the best game I've watched all season. Spectacular goal tending. Intense physical action. Venom was in the house from the cheap seats all the way down to down Staal's pointy shoulder. The first period was a demolition derby. The second was WWI in the trenches of the western front. In the third, the Canes took over.

So this is the crew JR and Lavvy will go to war with. I like this crew. All they have to do is play it physical and up-tempo and good things will happen. Last night was a good illustration of what speed, opportunism and a few human missile salvos can accomplish against arguably the best team in the east. Should be a fun stretch run.

Canes Orthopedist Applauds Today's Trade

2008-02-26T11:07:00.007-07:00

I was just starting to dig Andrew Ladd. I've liked his play of late in front of the net and on the rush. And I think his passing has been really sharp the last two weeks. Last year, I suggested they give him a shot at center. He will now have to "Commit to the Indian" for his next shot at stardom in this league.

My first take is negative. Maybe it's because Tuomo's brother Jerko Ruutu is a punk. Maybe it's because Tuomo has failed to live up to expectations for a longer period than Ladd. This is a move with an eye towards next season. As Glenn Frey once crooned, Johnny come lately, the new kid in town. Everybody loves you, so don't let them down. Next season, we'll welcome the new kid in town-Brandon Sutter.

Quote of the Day: Canes Orthopedist, Dr. Trapper John MacIntyre: "Broken bodies are my business. With the arrival of Tuomo Ruutu, business is about to get real good!"

Ruutu: Games Lost Due to Injury (4 Seasons)
37 Games - Ankle
25 Games -Back
11 Games - Knee
73 Total Games Lost - Missed 22% of possible NHL Starts

Ladd: Games Lost Due to Injury (3 Seasons)
18 Games - Knee
6 Games - Lower Body
4 Games - Shoulder
16 Games - Ankle
2 Games - Cracked Orbital
46 Total Games Lost - Missed 19% of possible NHL starts

The calculations above are matchbook cover math. But you get the point.

Centreman front and Center, Man

2008-02-20T13:12:00.007-07:00

I think JR has to make a move in the coming days to bring in a centerman to run the second line. Matt Cullen is still suffering from Marty Feldman Syndrome and the remaining cast of depth centermen are at best NHL/AHL tweeners. Most of the top-named centers who are reported to be on the block are prohibitively expensive. If they even get traded at all, Sundin, Jokinen, Richards and/or Marleau will likely end up on deep pocketed teams in a position to sell their sell their souls for that one player they think will put them over the top.

The Sens are reportedly looking for a top-two line forward. The Canes might be in a position to offer them Erik Cole. If he is still held in high regard by Bryan Murray and the Ottawa head shed, I'd pull the trigger on this deal. The Sens would finally get the guy they have coveted since the Marty Havlat days. Cole and Cory Stillman on the second line. Sounds great.

In return, I'd want Antoine Vermette and a prospect or second round pick. Vermette would be an instant upgrade at center over Trevor Letowski and Keith Aucoin-maybe even over a healthy Matt Cullen. This is a guy whose star is on the rise in this league, and as much as the Sens might want to keep him, he's a pending RFA on a team where he has to compete for ice time with Chris Kelly and Mike Fisher (and the Sens have already invested in a long-term deal with Fisher). Antoine is an aggressive young centerman who wins faceoffs and plays a high tempo game on the attack and on defense.

The move would provide the Canes with instant liquidity as they swap Cole's $4 mil contract for Vermette's $1 mil. Such a flush of cap space might open the door to the Canes swinging a deal to bring in a big physical blueliner like C/B Hall of Famer, Aaron Ward.

As good as this all sounds to me in the cozy confines of my fertile mind, my Spidey Sense tells me to look out for a deal involving Mike Comrie if the Isles appear out of contention. How many times has Mikey the Homewrecker turned Pop Star Despoiler been rumored to be on JR's tradar? Maybe as many times as Joe Corvo? Just sayin'.

Road Trip

2008-02-20T11:04:00.003-07:00

It's Rodeo Week in Tucson, so it will be a short school week. Number one son is off today to visit his grandparents in Florida. He's been a huge Florida Gators fan since around age 5, and tomorrow he takes the official campus tour. Despite my best efforts to convince him not to appear as too much of a homer, I fear he will don his Tim Tebo jersey, Gator hat and Gator Crocs.

Here's some insight into a teenage boy in all his glory. He packed no socks other than the ones he's wearing right now. He says that's why they invented washing machines. He is wearing a belt, but running it thru the belt loops in the back of his jeans wasn't a real priority this morning. I apologize in advance to the folks in the airport terminals he will encounter. My son will be the one sporting the Gator hat and the unsightly refrigerator repairman droop. Oh yeah, he lost his high school ID sometime before Christmas and didn't get around to telling us it was gone-gone until around 6:30 am today.

Have fun Sluggie.

Vegas Epilogue

2008-02-19T14:38:00.004-07:00

The 2008 Las Vegas Volleyball Classic is history, and my kid's team finished the tourney with a perfect record: 0-9. Overall, Tucson did not represent. Our fair city's two clubs sent three teams, and all of us finished around the 100 out of 120 mark.

Sunday featured a match between my kid's club and a Vegas club. In their starting lineup was a 6'-6" kid playing on the front row. In game two, my kid went up to spike a ball that was low and tight against the net, and Gigantor treated her with all the courtesy of an Ent sacking Isengard. My kid is a measely 6'-1". Now that kinda height would be considered big in Tucson, but on this stage she was a mere sapling. Looking on the bright side however, it was a nice spotlight match for all the kids in that gym since coaches from Stanford, Washington, USC, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan and Florida were in attendance to scout Gigantor.

We sat next to former UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian and his family on Sunday. Tark looked like every other doting grandpa in the crowd, except he sported a shiny gold Nike swoosh on the collar of his green polo shirt. Time has taken a toll on the coaching legend. When I and another dad hollered to him, he flashed a made for TV smile, but he didn't seem able to focus on us. He then needed help to get up the four bleacher steps to his seat. And he didn't even bring a towel.

Canes and Bruins tonight. Glad I missed another Jersey swamp massacre yesterday. What is the answer for a Devils blueline that has career days versus the Canes? You can't stop Johnny Oduya, but is there any Cane who can at least contain this scoring machine?

What Happens in Vegas...

2008-02-17T11:14:00.005-07:00

Greetings from Vegas, baby. We're up here for the Las Vegas Invitational volleyball tournament. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 400 junior girls teams playing at around a dozen venues in Vegas and Henderson. My first trip to this place. It took 45 minutes to drive from one end of he Strip to the other. The water show at the Bellagio was simply fnntastic. Bad Elvis impersonators on many a street corner. I'm talking about fat guys in white polyester costumes and flowing mini-capes. Guys with Richard Nixon widow's peaks trying to emulate the King's pompadour. The Japanese tourists seemed to really dig the Elvis's.

C/B kid #1 and her squad, playing in the open division, got mauled pretty good by two SOCAL teams and a bunch of East German-looking girls from Idaho. Played the second match against a team that has 5 of their starting 6 already committed to playing at Div I schools. Got to chat a few minutes with NC State's head coach, Rita Stubbs. At any one time, you might have 10-20 coaches watching a match. Coaches from Washington State, USC, Colorado State, Syracuse, UC Davis, George Washington, Arizona State were among the ones watching my kid's team play. There are coaches here from schools I've never heard of. Saw a guy in what I thought was a Miami Redhawks polo-had the Redhawks logo on it-but the name on the shirt was something like "Holy Name." Games all afternoon today, then I think me and the missus will hit the Strip.

Needless to say, I'm out of Canes range for the duration of the long weekend. Glad to see resolve instead of despair or panic in Hurricanes world. I just hope Mats Sundin gets traded soon, because I'm absolutely sick of every day being an As the Leafs Turn soap opera. How about a couple day moratorium on Foppa and Sundin updates that only say there is nothing to update?

C/B Link and Advertising Policy

2008-02-14T15:34:00.003-07:00

Hi all-I get a fairly steady stream of requests to swap links and place ads on C/B. I enjoy finding new blogs and bloggers to add to the lists, and I want this blog to be a big tent. So please welcome to the Blog Roll the following Caniacs:

Caniac D -Blogging on a Fox Sports community site. Don't know the feller yet, but maybe this will serve to promote an introduction.
Matt Karash - Yeah, he's a member of the Hockey Buzz Evil Empire, but Bubba vouches for him.
Dr. Frank: The Stinging Nettle - The good doctor blows in an out of here now and again with a pithy take. His blog is mostly about left of Mao politics, but he's a hockey guy, so he must be all right. Check it out. He's got a post today about Al Gore endorsing John Dillinger for Congress. You know Al Gore invented the Tommy Gun.

C/B Link Policy: I want to link to those who want to expand the hockey dialog fraternity. I don't want to link to you if you only want to expand your little empire. In keeping with this policy, a couple of sites with the name "Arena" in them have been excommunicated. I've had them on the roll for a couple of months, but got no love back. Man, I was really looking forward to seeing my very own stylized Web button join their roll.

C/B Advertising Policy: Folks in Raleigh or the Carolinas who want to advertise to Caniacs are welcome to make a pitch. For me this blog is a connection to the Canes and the Piedmont, so I'd enjoy working with folks to promote events and business in the region. I don't have any interest in joining a ticket brokerage network or promoting via link or ad, things not related to the Canes and hockey culture.

Mormina Time - Break it down

2008-02-14T10:23:00.003-07:00

With the flu bug making its way again thru the Carolina clubhouse, Joey Mormina was among the call ups from Albany. So I says to myself -Self, who the Hell is Joey Mormina? He's a product of hockey powerhouse Colgate, and thus a veteran of many a hard-fought Colgate vs. Palmolive tilts. Joey is 6-6 and 230 lbs, loves origami and was a July addition to the Canes farm system. He doesn't show up as a top prospect in the Hockey's Future db. Joey was drafted in the 6th round (193rd pick) by the Flyers and spent some time in the LA Kings system.

Here's a snip from a Hockey's Future interview with Joey from 2005:
HF: You’re a big guy, but you seem to play more of a finesse game. How would you describe your style of play?
JM: I'm definitely a defensive kind of defenseman by nature. Like I said, I've had to adjust and play on the power play. But, my primary game has been in the defensive zone, making good decisions, using my head out there, smart passes, working on the penalty kill. Pretty basic stuff like that. Nothing fancy, nothing overly physical. Just going out every night and trying to get the job done.

The video clip below isn't memorable because of the scrum, but the tasty hit that Joey lays on a Marlie just before all the sweater grabbing is worth a look.

The Soft Bigotry of Canadiocentrism

2008-02-13T12:10:00.016-07:00

Fred and Barney-the good old days
Looking over some of the articles and quotes iI found in after action reports after the big Ottawa/Carolina trade, I was struck by two things. One was how important it seemed in the Great White North that Mike Commodore and Cory Stillman were Canadians returning to the motherland. Two, was how thin-skinned Joe Corvo seems to be.

Canadiocentrism on the rise

It seems hockey players in Canada live life in a Britney Spears/TMZ-Canada bubble. Yeah? So is Ottawa really a tougher hockey town than Philly? And I guess only Canadians can handle that level of scrutiny. I like how it's just assumed that Canadians crave the opportunity to "come home" and play in places like, oh I don't know, say Toronto. Are they men, or are they Salmon? Do they have to swim back up stream to the creek bed of their birth or will any Canadian city or province suffice? Ol Chris Pronger couldn't wait to get out of Canada. Let's see, 50 below zero from October thru March, vs. Laguna Beach? Ooooh, tough choice. And do you think single guys - Canadian or otherwise - would rather take a shot at UNC Cheerleader Holly or Canadian Sunshine Girl Roxanne? You take Holly home to meet your mother. Roxanne takes you out back, kicks your ass and steals your HGH. I ranted a bit about this in today's CanesCast, but I think Andy wisely left that tirade on the digital cutting room floor. Here's Bryan Murray's take snipped from LSB:

“I don’t know whether it was the pressure or never having a life away from the building, but he felt that Joe would enjoy going to an American team,” Murray told the Ottawa Sun. “He wanted to play where there was less scrutiny. He just couldn’t handle the pressure here.

“People like to talk hockey here and they live hockey. They don’t talk (hockey) in Raleigh very much. He’ll probably thrive in that environment and I like guys who thrive under pressure.” (This isn't the first time the Senators have played that somewhat-odd card. Ottawa coach John Paddock has repeatedly mentioned that Martin Gerber flourished in Carolina because "they only have one beat writer.")

Here are some other snips:

"You welcome this: A couple of Canadian guys who have Stanley Cups. They've both been key factors in the Cup wins they've been on," said Ottawa centre Jason Spezza.

For Murray, bringing home two Canadians who should thrive in a hockey-mad environment, was a huge factor in the deal. With 17 Canadians now on the roster, the Senators have never looked so homegrown. And in a 13-year NHL career, Stillman has never been so close to his hometown.

Lighten up Francis
I guess Joe Corvo brought much of this on himself by asking repeatedly to be dealt to an American city. Despite what Murray and Corvo said, I don't think it's an American players are fish out of water in Canada thing. I think it's a Joe Corvo has a fragile psyche thing.

“It’s hard to understand if you haven’t played in Canada,” Corvo said. “The media here at times can be completely ridiculous, the way they can take some of the stories that are nothing and make something out of them.”

Welcome to Raleigh Joe. OBTW, I too like to take stories that are nothing and turn them into something. Usually it's something absurd, but I guess guys like me are Raleigh's version of the Canadian hockey paprazzi. Just don't let us catch you clubbing without your panties on.

Kaberle for NHLPA Player Rep

2008-02-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

Kaberle '08 is all about change. I'm talking Obama-like change. Powerful, emotional, symbolic and undefined. Kaberle '08 is also all about hope-hope for nuerotic Canes fans like me for whom the grass is always greener when you transplant new growth from somebody else's back yard.

As the official campaign chairman for Kaberle '08, I demand the support of every Hurricane player-especially the super delagates. Isn't it time for change? Isn't it time for a little hope? Isn't it time to make Frankie Kaberle the Carolina Hurricanes' NHLPA Player Rep?

Corvo and Eaves-Dig it, if...

2008-02-11T16:07:00.000-07:00

JR sends Cory Stillman and Mike Commodore to Ottawa for Joe Corvo and Patrick Eaves. Looks like JR finally got his man. Both Cory and Mike are pending unrestricted free agents, so they probably did not fit into the Canes plans for next season. At first glance you might look at this move simply as out-with-the-old and in-with-the-new; maybe just an investment in the future by JR. Corvo comes over on a very affordable contract ($2.5-$2.75 thru 2010) and Eaves is making less than a mil, and he'll be a RFA at the end of this season. Nobody is going to throw Dustin Penner cash at Eaves.

Corvo's presence might have more immediate impact. That impact might be realized in the box score, and it might be evident on the trade wire as we approach the deadline. With Corvo on scene, what's Frank Kaberle's role? Frank might be an affordable missing piece for somebody at the deadline. He did play real well in 2006. Memba his game seven goal all you GM's out there?

Patrick Eaves is intriguing. He's a coaches kid and a fiesty forechecker. He's prone to head and orthopedic injuries because of his style of play, but he leaves it all on the ice. He also has a scorer's touch Trevor Letowski et al don't display. Instant upgrade on the PK...once he returns from his latest malady. Have the Canes taken on a Mini-Cole?

So, bottom line is I dig this deal if:

1. Corvo is finally all grow'd up. No more whining about media zealotry. No more beating up women in bars. No more wild-ass passes in the defensive zone. No more golden hi-lites in the harido - and ditch the silly death metal goatee. This gay viking raider look has to go.

2. Eaves starts endorsing and wearing Ironman brand protective gear. No, not Under Armor - I mean Iron Man, as in Tony Stark. Boy does the club no good when he's on the DL, IR or unable to perform list.

Epilogue
Thank you Cory Stillman. You are a class guy. You embody what I love about most hockey players. No bling. No entourage. Team and family first. The Sens just got a lot better on the PP. I wish you were heading to the Western Conference.

Thank you Mike Commodore. You really grew up as a Cane. The Flames showed you no love, but you found it in droves as a Hurricane. Beyond the big hair, you are a bigger-than-life guy. The Ottawa clubhouse just got a lot more fun. I wish you were heading to the Russian Super Secluded Siberian League. I sense pain on the horizon for many a Cane forward.

High Noon in the Nation's Crapital

2008-02-08T12:15:00.000-07:00

I think we'll know a lot about the Canes chances at a stetch run tonight. Ovvy and company are hungry, physical and fearless. Mike Green leads all NHL defensemen in goals scored. Alex Ovechkin leads in goals scored and points. They've got two experienced goalies and a coach riding high on the glow of being a new guy who's had to wait a long time for his shot.

Bubba's in their house
One of our own is about to pull an end-around on the glass ceiling. Check out Canes Country tonight and tomorrow for some Bubbalicious updates from press row at the Canes/Caps game tonight. Sucks that he has to go to DC to get what is not forthcoming from the team he supports with such passion. Come on powers that be! Embrace the bloggers. If you think I'm a loose cannon, fine. Ban me. I live in Arizona anyway. If you need to ban Dave of Carolina on Ice because of his big fist an ubiquitous adult beverages, go ahead and ban him too. He'd probably find better entertainment along the way anyhoo.

Pitkanen..Againanen
Piece on The Fourth Period today expresses the belief that JR is looking again at Joni Pitkanen of Edmonton. When that deal last fell through didn't we all muse that his commitment to team and to commitment was questionable? He might end up a good fit with the current Canes blueline crew. His 16 points would make him a relative superstar.

Hold yer cards JR

2008-02-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

Britney gets Dr. Phil - The Canes get Dr. Somnambula

What in blazes was Mike Commodore doing pinching late on a Staal-on-three rush late in the third period? He must have counted four or five Mississippi's before he started lumbering to get back into the play. And when he does dive into an ill-timed pinch - as he did last night and previously in Pittsburgh - where's his backup? Is it still a surprise to his fellow Canes when he pinches? Sometimes it looks like Staal-on-five out there.

I'm starting to transition from musing about the missing piece(s) the Canes might bring in at the trade deadline to a more pragmatic look at who they might be able to dump at the deadline. Time to think about thinning this herd of its old, sick and more somnambulant members. Yup it's darn near Rent-a-Hedigucchi time. If this squad is still alternating solid nights with craptacular ones over the next nine games, they could well be 6 to 10 points out of the SE Division lead.

Regardless of whether the Canes are in the hunt or clearly in a tailspin, I'd like to see JR make some moves on or about Feb 26. Here's what I'd pleasantly surprised to see:

1. Erik Cole, his remaining power forward allure, his $4 mil, and his 11 goals off to a Western Conference Team. Unfortunately, he didn't show Nashville very much last night-one shot all night. Erik's only got two more points this season than Justin Williams, and Justin's been out since before Christmas. He's slated to make $4 mil thru next season. He's not worth that kind of cash at this point in his injury-plagued career.

2. Mike Commodore packaged to a place where better defensemen can lead the offensive charge and he can go back to playing a physical and positionally sound game in a 3rd pairing. Let his new club find a way to pay him the $3 mil or so he'll demand.

3. Andrew Ladd to Chicago for Cam Barker. I know defensemen take longer to evolve, but this might be a fairly even swap of two injury-plagued 2004 first round selection duds.

Deals that might bring the likes of J-M Liles, Marek Zidlicky (nice hit on Staal last night), Jarrett Stoll, and/or Phil Kessel sound nice.

The Never Ending Sean Avery Rant

2008-02-01T13:30:00.000-07:00

Sean Avery Finally Masters Sign Language

A tasty survey on tsn.com as of lunch time today:

Who is the NHL's best 'Pain in the Glass?'
Jared Boll - 1%
Alex Burrows- 9%
Daniel Carcillo - 4%
Sean Avery - 65%
Steve Downie - 10%
Ryan Hollweg - 1%
Other - 11%

Anybody surprised? Buehler? Buehler? These are the kind of numbers Ron Paul is polling right now in Area 51. And remember, "other" would include the likes of knee-slamming Jerko Ruutu and our boy Colton Orr.

About Last Night
Mats Sundin made a nice soccer guy play late in the third, but the Canes composure and discipline gave Antropov and crew all the fuel they needed for a meltdown. Not only did the Canes enjoy an 4-3 PP in the OT, but bad defense by the Leafs handed Ray Whitney and Roddy an in-close 2-1. Glad it was them and not Cole and LaRose.

Begrudging respect for Koval-Kilt

2008-01-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

Hope Kovvy's not hurt too bad. As much as I detest his showboating and petulence, he's no Sean Avery. I spent part of this evening looking at YouTube vids of past Avery shennanigans. In the first couple page views, You'll find a sucker punch on Shane Doan while Doan was on his hands and knees. And you'll see a stick chop to the neck on Rick Dipietro. Then waving the blade of his stick in the face of Darcy Tucker. And a bull rush on Marty Brodeur.

So hats off to Kovvy for this tilt with Avery last season after a dirty hit from behind in front of the bench. Note how Paulie Mara steps in and attempts to interfere with the ass-whooping Kovvy was about to put on Avery:

Fury is good

2008-01-30T13:27:00.000-07:00

Didn't get to see the first period last night. Thanks #1 Son for your mad DVR programming skills. Had to see the Walker brawl on the NHL Network later. Scotty's hit on Gomer was cleaner hit than Orr's on Cullen. And of course it brought out Avery in full punk mode. Nice blind-side attack on Walker there you little girl. Only hockey's pre-eminent bitch would drop the gloves and takes a full swing at Walker before Scotty even knows he's there. Scott Walker is a man. Sean Young Avery wishes he was half a man.

OBTW, did you notice that both Staal's were on the ice and in that corner? Marc Staal laid a wimpy cross-check on Walker before Avery did his one man Pearl Harbor re-enactment. Eric went after Avery but Tim Gleason and Jaro Jagr (of all people) joined the scrum ahead of Eric. Might have been nice to see a little Staalsy Civil War action. Any video out there of the Brookbank/Orr tilts?

In other news
Alas, no more George Hamilton, aka Zorro the Gay Blade PP Specialist jokes. The Canes big coup free agent signing looks like he's on the way out the door. I'm sure JR tried to peddle Jeff Hamilton to one of those teams looking for a deal on a sniping forward. The deal might be on re-entry.

Ray Emery's fine for being late to practice amounted to one-day's pay - around $14,500. Don't you wish $14,500 meant nothing to you? For guys like Ray, it's just "Straight cash Homey."

Hey dad's! Plan on sending your little princess to Arizona State University. She'll enjoy sun, fun, not too challenging academics (see question #2) and maybe even receive special invites to serve as a Super Bowl party ho errr hostess.

Lets get physical

2008-01-29T13:16:00.001-07:00

The Rangers are in the RBC tonight and I am looking forward to some bone-jarring action. Colton Orr and Avery should be made to feel like Simon Kenton on a Shawnee gauntlet run on every shift. I'd love to see Chad LaRose draw the Sean Avery torment assignment. Beyond the revenge factor, tonight would be a good night to deliver a little extra punishment from the forecheck to the defensive zone. The term "consistency" is one I've heard as the key to a Canes late resurgence. If that means consistently responsible on defense, consistently physical on every shift and consistently playing to win - as in no rope-a-dope, I'd agree.

If we are to believe that only one Southeast Division sqaud will earn a spot in the playoffs, the Caps seem to me the scariest team The are playing a very physical and fearless brand of hockey right now. Erskine, Ovy and Chris Clark all play with a deep mean streak. Then they have Brashear waiting in the bullpen if somebody takes a run at that impetuous little Ovy.

Rumor du jour
The latest I read yesterday on Spector was that JR was in negotiations with the Kings Dean Lombardi about Tom Preissing. Have you noticed how many times Bruce Garrioch's name comes up in Canes rumor mongering? Wonder why....But Tom Preissing at $2.75 mil thru 2011? That would make an under-achieving rebuilding mode castoff the highest paid blueliner on the Canes roster. And I bet he'd want a no-trade/no-movement clause. That's crazy! That Tom Preissing has devil eyes. I'm Brian Fellow!

Second Run Movie Review-3:10 to Yuma

2008-01-25T07:06:00.000-07:00

Nice Schofields Ben-just love that jacket

I love gritty Westerns. I took my oldest son to see 3:10 to Yuma last weekend and I'd give it 4P on the C/B 0P to 5P movie review rating system. Everybody in this flick is appropriately circa 1870 filthy. The two leads are a dermatologist's dream-Bale's nose wart and Crowe's facial moles dominate the closeups. Set in Cochise County, Arizona, Christian Bale is Dan Evans, a hard-luck farming Civil War vet facing eviction from his land by a nasty overlord. He gets entangled in the capture of notorious outlaw Ben Wade, played by Russell Crowe, and commits to helping transport Wade to a prison train (the 3:10 to the Yuma Territorial Prison).

Evans signs on for $200, a sum he hopes will buy him some time to get his farm thru the spring. Evans faces daunting odds in this endeavor. He's got thugs and cowards in his posse. His running mate (Wade), a homicidal Renaissance man, and Wade's gang of butchers are just a step behind. The movie is basically the story of these two men's road to redemption.

The guy who steals the show however is Ben Foster in the role of Charlie Prince. He's an absolute psycho and fiercely loyal to his boss, Mr. Wade. When we got home, my son said, "Dad, I think that guy played the role of the boy scout in that episode of My Name is Earl." He was right, and Foster's character there was pretty whacked too. So for best performance in a psychotic role, the award goes to...Ben Foster in 3:10 to Yuma.

Since we've got a few days sans Hurricanes hockey, I suggest you all check it out. Even though this was filmed in New Mexico, the scenery in this movie shows you what the Sonoran Desert looks like...just not so much snow.

Own a Red State Update Object du Art

2008-01-24T13:18:00.000-07:00

Ole Fred Thompson dropped out of the presidential race this week and Jackie Broyles at Red State Update needs your help to deal with the anguish. His original painting of Fred as Arthur Branch, District Attorney is up for bid on Ebay. Jackie just needs closure, so bid, bid till it hurts. The loss of a cherished man-crush is one of life's most gut-wrenching experiences. Sighhhhh, Danny Markov why have you forsaken me? The questions and comments strand alone is worth the click.

CanesCast #2 is live

2008-01-24T12:43:00.000-07:00

This episode features no MSG and no me. In Episode #2, Dave, Andy and Bob riff on the following topics:

The availability of Buffalo's Brian Campbell

The demise of Francis Kaberle

Buying and selling at the deadline

College hockey in the Old North State

Why Dave's wife is screaming in the background

OBTW: These poll results (see right) are trending in a way that is making me very angry...very angry indeed! No rich Corinthian leather for you people.

Game nights as Alamo re-sets

2008-01-23T13:05:00.000-07:00

Last night was like watching that old Alamo movie for the hundredth time. You know the outcome is gonna be bad, but somehow you stay glued. Then ole Davy Crockett shows up. Hey, maybe those Texians have a chance tonight! Now old Santa Ana is in for it. A bunch of shoeless Mexican conscripts can't beat the Duke even on his worst day. Oooh, I like it when Colonel Travis draws the line in the sand. How very Spartan of the dapper young lawyer turned warrior chieftain. When it's all over and the Duke is overwhelmed by the self-proclaimed Napoleon of the West's hordes, you sit back and say, Damn, why'd I sit thru that again? I knew what was gonna happen. This story always ends the same. Same thing with Canes games like the one last night. Substitute Kaberle, Commodore and Cole in the roles played by the Duke, Richard Widmark, and Chill Wills. Chad LaRose is this team's Chill Wills.

Naming Names

From the man who brought you Staal to Edmonton (e3), we now have Cole to Bubba (e3). For Marek Zidlicky? Pass.

Here are some names listed as players of interest to the Canes over at The Fourth Period . It's a feature they call, "Top 25 Available Players." Not sure what the threshold is for these guys to qualify as "available," but I'm sure it's pretty predictable. Team needs, contract status, lack of performance to date, etc. Let's break it down...

Marek Zidlicky-Moving Zid will give the Preds room to re-sign Ryan Suter and Shea Weber-guys they would probably much rather love long time than Marek. He's scheduled to go from $3.2 mil to $3.5 next season on a contract that extends thru the 2010 season. Big investment for a PP specialist. But hey, the Canes have had great luck with Euro PP QB's...cough cough Tverdovsky...cough Kaberle.

Jan Michael Vincent Liles - Blue Light Special version of Zidlicky. He'll make $1.4 thru this season and will become a UFA once this season is done. If he can be had on the cheap and his presence would guarantee a nightly healthy scratch on Kaberle, I'm all for it.

Brad Stuart - He's paid $3.5 mil this season and then can go UFA. I wouldn't pay $3.5 for him and I sure wouldn't want to negotiate to re-sign him for $4 mil plus. He's been shopped and packaged before and can't seem to find a home.

Not many really good options eh? Cole might bring a solid return, but to get the top defensemen this team needs, I think JR is going to have to find a club desperate for the speed and physicality that Erik might/could bring.

In the end analysis, one or two new bodies won't guarantee a change for the better in team culture. Those left still have to have a lot more fire in their bellies than they do now. I wish the Canes were playing like Texians at the Alamo right now instead of like the French at ___________(pick your conflict).

CanesCast is a go

2008-01-22T09:45:00.000-07:00

Check out yer boy and pals Andy of Hurricanes Insider and Bob of Canes Country in our first foray into podcasting. We're calling it CanesCast. We talk Erik Cole trade rumors, the recent play of Eric Staal, there's a strange "beeep" right at the beginning that seems to cover up one of Bob's profanity-laced tirades, and Andy introduces a brand new word to the English language. The first one to tell me what "interform" means gets a free one-year subscription to CasonBlog All Access, 24-7, Inside and Out Premium Service.

Andy Sutton is a Succubus

2008-01-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

Awhile back, I was watching an NYI/ATL tilt and was surprised at the extent to which Andy Sutton was booed by the ATL faithful every time he touched the puck. It was Prongeresque. I posted a query over at Southeast Shootout asking why the venom for the former Thrash. Matt Gunning of Do Thrashers Have Large Talons, pointed me to a post in his archives featuring the image in this post. I thought it appropriate to share Matt's rendition of Sutton on a day when Andy pretty much cost his club any chance to win in OT with a stupid crosscheck in front of the Islanders' goal.

Nice comeback Canes. Lady luck was good to the boys from down south as well.

Erik Cole Rumors

2008-01-20T09:46:00.000-07:00

Bruce Garrioch via Spector:

It's believed the Hurricanes would like Ottawa D Joe Corvo or W Antoine Vermette, but Rutherford hasn't been willing to move W Erik Cole. The Hurricanes want Vermette to help improve their penalty-killing unit. Giving up Cole would be a tough sell, but talk won't go away that Rutherford could also move him to Columbus for W David Vyborny.

Cole is on a $4 mil per contract thru next season. I love Erik Cole when he's at 100%, but his style of play puts him in harm's way, and then on the IR for extended periods. Erik Cole doesn't just tweak a groin, he breaks a leg...or his neck. From everything I've heard, Erik is a great teammate and a solid citizen. That being said, his trade value will probably never be higher than it is right now.

If Erik is the silver bullet JR needs to use to remake this club, I'd hate to see him go for a PK specialist (Vermette) or a puck-moving blueliner with a propensity to to turn the puck over (Corvo). Vyborny affordable ($2.2 mil) and a free agent after this season, so JR would have to bid for the guy in the off season if he wants to keep him. Would JR want to spend Cole money for a winger who's not the same caliber of player? Not straight up, but maybe as part of a package.

Now I'm just a simple cave man lawyer, but I think the Cole card should only be played to bring in a physical defenseman who just happens to also have solid offensive instincts-not the other way around. If JR is talking deal with Ottawa, I think Chris Phillips name needs to be part of the discussion. If he's talking to Columbus, Rusty Klesla should be on the table. I still hold out hope that Francios Beauchemin could be had, but I think the Ducks are back and that d-corps is pretty set. The re--appearance of Teemu Selanne is the only thing that might turn that roster over at this point in the season.

I'm about done with the Andrew Ladd experience. If he does retain some draft pedigree panache, I wouldn't mind seeing him moved at the deadline. Cory Stillman and Mike Commodore would probably command decent value right at the deadline. JR will probably lose both in the off season if he doesn't make a deal in the coming weeks. I'd be OK with moving any of the aforementioned. Whatever unfolds in the coming weeks, there is little doubt the October, 2008 Carolina Hurricanes will look very different.

Canes media group piles on Kaberle

2008-01-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

Wake me up before you go, go

This text from the bottom of the game-night preview on carolinahurricanes.com:

Edmonton hasn't been to Raleigh in the regular season since a 1-all tie there Nov. 11, 2001. The Oilers lost three of four games at Carolina during the 2006 Cup finals, including a 3-1 defeat in Game 7 as Ward made 22 saves and Frantisek Kaberle scored the game-winning goal.

Kaberle has no goals and 10 assists in 46 games this season.

Was that last line even necessary? "..and he's still not beating his wife..." Strikes me as Canes media group's way of saying, "Kaberle....Kaberle....YOU SUCK!" Bad run this season for the Andrew Ridgeley of the NHL. Come on Frankie, pull the trigger on something, a hit, a wrister, a slapper, even a decent outlet pass. Last night our boy passed up in a shot in the first period from the top of the left circle, on the PP, with a clear shooting lane, and with a comrade parked in front of Gerbs. He went on to double-clutch on a slapper from the blueline later in the PP and it got blocked. See the Cialis and Ho narrative in the post below.

In other news, Casey Borer was sent back to Albany today. If Nic Wallin comes back tonight the Canes will finally have a fully staffed worst defensive corps in the NHL!!!

It's Canes v. Oil in The Winter Flaccid

2008-01-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

Just to rub it in one last time.

Memories, like the corners of my mind. Misty water-colored memories of the way we were...

Babs, circa 1970

Canes v Oil in the Winter Flaccid. Two struggling teams facing a very tough road to a playoff berth. Shells of their former selves. Bitter Oil fans with an angst that only burning more of Chris Pronger's rental furniture can cure. Canes fans "celebrating" two really good seasons out of an entire decade in the Old North State.

C/B No Spin Zone Talking Points for tonight's game.

1. Scratch Frankie Kaberle tonight and send him and some high-end-Ho off for a weekend on a hilltop with two bathtubs and a big jar of Cialis.

2. Lavvy should send any Cane who makes a lazy pass across the defensive zone directly to the Rec Zone to begin bag skating.

3. Make Bret Hedican play without a stick since he only used his last night to hook people.

4. Send Emmet Tracy to that same marathon bag skate session the second he offers his excuse de jour. Make him skate holding a cinder block if the excuse is, "Ooooh, the Canes just ran into a hot goalie tonight."

Some of the best bloggers in the biz are Oil-Fans. Check out their stuff as we approach the Flaccid:

Battle of Alberta

Black Dog Hates Skunks

Covered in Oil

m79hockey

Lowetide

Uncle Coach Brian?

2008-01-17T13:13:00.000-07:00

Frances-Get yer soft little euro-ass off my ice!!!
JR warmed up the bus yesterday, and then promptly threw Craig Adams under it today. So who's next? Yeah, I know this guy has a ranch in Red Deer and he's coaching his brother's team. Might be nice to consider a former Jack Adams award winner with a mean streak if somebody is told by his boss that he really needs to resign so he can spend more time with his family.

So, would Brandon call him Coach Sutter or Uncle Brian? How might Cam Ward respond to Sutterworld part deux?

General Savage Would Know How to Fix These Hurricanes

2008-01-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Private Kaberle Report to "The Leper Colony"
Around this time in 2006, the buzz around the league was that the Hurricanes clubhouse was the place to be. Roddy and Lavvy's boys were a band of brothers. They had each other's back and held each other accountable. When JR brought in both Doug Weight and Mark Recchi, they both said as much. Adam Gold's interview with JR yesterday, the video on Canes Vision right now and now Luke's piece on Lord Stanley's Blog today lead me to believe that the first move in the mid-season makeover of this club will be another firing. Firing Trevor Letowski or Craig Adams won't change much. I for one think Trevor's been one of the few to play with real passion on a consistent basis.

In both interviews, JR points to poor work ethic over three full periods, lingering post-Cup complacency and bad clubhouse mojo as principle reasons for concern. That's not a problem trading for a puck-moving defenseman can solve. Face it folks, John-Michael Liles is not going to be the savior of this season. When JR says that even when the club wins something doesn't feel right, he's talking about a bad mojo that only strong leadership can solve. In baseball, the grim reaper always takes out the manager first. In the Gold interview, he made a point of indicating that nobody was safe from the reaper, except maybe Eric Staal - who if we are to believe one prognosticator, will soon be moved to Edmonton - is bulletproof.

The Canes have no games this Saturday and Sunday. I think Coach Lavvy needs to curl up in the Lazy Boy this weekend with a good movie. I suggest Twelve O'Clock High starring Gregory Peck. Playing the role of General Frank Savage, Peck is tasked with turning around a failing B-17 bomber wing in WWII. Starting with the gate guard at the base, Savage immediately starts kicking ass and taking names. From day one, he aggressively works to change the culture of the unit. He pushes the concept of "maximum effort," refusing to settle for any effort today that isn't demonstrably better than the one of yesterday. One of the key things he does is put all his underachievers and malcontents on a bird he designates, The Leper Colony. Those sent down to the crew The Leper Colony have to work their way out.

So if JR shows Adams and/or Letowski the door, I say Lavvy should make the fourth line the Cane's version of the Leper Colony and put Kaberle, or whomever is the top blueline under-achiever at that time, up front and let them only play as a forward on the fourth line until they earn their way back to the regular defensive rotation.

UPDATE: Adams to the Blackhawks for an underachiever Chicago will need to unload in the future.

Samsonov's first goal as a Cane?

2008-01-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

Dee plane boss! Dee plane!
Yeah, he comes cheap, but here are my quick takes on the Canes signing of Sergei Samsonov:
1. Zero goals in 41 games. That's Zeppelin caliber floating.

2. LaRose 5'10", Walker 5'10', Letowski 5'10", Whitney 5'10", Aucoin 5'9", and now Samsonov 5'8". Does Eklund have an e4 on Muggsy Bogues to Carolina?

3. Are the Canes in danger of becoming the Wirtz family's dumping ground for disenchanted Bolsheviks? That whole Anton Babchuk thing worked out real well.

4. If Danny Markov were a Cane, he would kick Samsonov's sulking little ass at the first sign of a pout. Have I beaten that dead horse into dust yet?

And Jan Michael Vincent as rumored in a deal coming with Avalanche for a pick? Great. I'd like to see JR extend this 5'10" or smaller thing to the blueline. Look on the bright side Caniacs. If the Canes miss the playoffs again this spring, they still might have a shot at doing Stonehenge with a Spinal Tap.

Friday Funny with Red State Update

2008-01-04T12:19:00.000-07:00

" New Hampshire hates Jesus!"
-Dunlap, 2008
I admit it. I'm a political junkie. I don't inject much of it into this blog largely because edgy and sarcastic takes on hockey rarely invite the death threats you get from offering political analysis. I know I'm at least a couple of months behind on most media trends, so forgive me if you all already know about Jackie, Dunlap and Red State Update. I think most folks discovered the boys when one of their UTube questions made it to the CNN Democratic Debate. I missed that media extravaganza. Must have been watching Full House reruns that night. Anyway, I discovered the boys from Murfreesboro just yesterday. Spent around an hour last night going thru dozens of these "updates," and laughed so hard on the "Gays Hate Obama" episode that I started crying.

I dig the fact that the boys are equal-opportunity comedic grenade throwers. They make fun of old and disinterested Fred Thompson with as much vigor as they do cute little John Edwards. To me, popular left-wing radio and TV pundits come across as hyper-caffeinated, snotty and perpetually angry. Right-wingers, with the exception of Rush and Dennis Miller, are dogmatic and paranoid about Hillary. Jackie and Dunlap offer refreshingly stereotypical southern man takes to the national political discourse.

Today they recap the Iowa Caucususses. Here are some other episodes I found particularly savory:

Jackie 08 Goes Negative

NA SCAR Tips For Democrats

Gays Hate Obama

Attorney General Ted Nugent

Jackie'08: The Christianisty Candidate

Adieu Johnny Grahame

2008-01-03T12:29:00.000-07:00

We got us a good old fashioned goalie controversy brewing!

Ladies and gentlemen. In this corner, in the black breezers, please welcome the pride of Petrolia, Ontario, Mr. Michael Leighton. The best goalie in the AHL makes his return to the show-probably tomorrow night in the ATL. I wonder if Ward will handle taking a back seat to Leighton with as much class as Grahame.

The Canes waived John Grahame. JR might have tried to shop Grahame and his 44 goals allowed in 13 games. Talk about dealing from a position of weakness. Like to see him end up in Denver. Grahame survived a Napalming by Coach Torts. He'll survive this setback as well. Good luck John. I'll miss your mask.

Lets hope Leighton will step in and shut the door on the cheapies Cam Ward has been giving up. I think this move probably fixes very little, unless something happens on the blueline. The Canes are still playing matador defense. C/B calls for more Borer and less Seidenberg.

Fatal Attraction Redoux at the RBC?

2008-01-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

This Glenn Close stalker-chick to throw out first boiled bunny?

New year, new blood in the lineup tonight. Casey Borer dons the sightless eye vs. Koval-MacKilt and the Thrash. Here's some talent analysis from Hockeysfuture.com:

He also has the ability to make good outlet passes. He is solid positionally and his skating is good. He sees the ice and follows plays very well. He is good in one-on-one situations and can contain opposing players quite well. His play along the boards is also quite good. Borer doesn’t shy away from the physical play and can deliver solid checks.

Found an article on College Hockey News on Casey from 2005 that includes this line:

"When Casey's on his game, he's a big, steady horse back on the blue line," SCSU assistant coach Fred Harbinson said. "One his best attributes is that he is a big puck-moving defenseman."

If the kid lives up to the billing, this might be a nice mid-season addition to the Canes blueline. I like this move much more than the Wade Brookbank call-up.

Help Wanted: Visigoth who can skate

2007-12-28T10:14:00.000-07:00

This from Lord Stanley's Blog yesterday in Lord Stanley's Blog yesterday, JR seems to be mulling the idea of bringing in an enforcer. I hate the idea. Jesse Boulerice delivered the most memorable goal from the 2002 (?) season, but little else. Darren Langdon was a capable brawler and a solid clubhouse guy, but I dismiss the idea that you have to put Grendel on your 4th line to make other squads behave. The Canes really need to get physical from the outset. They need to hit the bully in the mouth before the bully can pick and chose his time and victim. You hit Colton Orr on his first shift and make him the retaliator. Mike Commodore, Andrew Ladd (when his hands are free), Craig Adams and Tim Gleason all stand up for their pards when the call comes, but beyond Erik Cole and Craig Adams, few Hurricane forwards seem willing to blast opponents on the forecheck. The Canes are perfectly capable of enforcement without bringing in a Scott Parker.

I defended Scott Walker awhile back after the head-butt he delivered to Mike Fisher. Yeah, it was a bit dirty, but the Canes were getting whipped and he took it personal. He got jumped from behind by a visor-guy and got frustrated in his attempts to punch thru the Plexiglas. Other Hurricanes might have curled up in a rope-a-dope and then skated away with their head down. He's the ornieriest guy on this Hurricanes squad, he's a robust little 5'10" ball of piss and vinegar, and I say Scott Walker needs some help in the physical play department.

I don't think the lesson of the Ducks Cup run of last year is that size and intimidation now trump all. The leading scorers on that squad were Teemu Selanne, Andy McDonald and Scott Niedermeyer. These guys are not giants with nasty porn-staches. This year's Ducks squad is dominated by Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Chris Pronger - big guys with mean streaks who can finish, but the Ducks have suffered greatly this fall without the presence of Selanne and Niedermeyer.

If you look to the Ducks model, the Canes lack similar size-speed-skill-intimidator balance. So in my role as self-appointed roster consultant, I'd advise JR that a move that improved the balance would be good. It doesn't have to be a pure enforcer, it just has to be a large man (or men) with decent skills who relish the opportunity to inflict pain on every shift. If the Canes want to add some instant evil to the lineup, here are a few guys I'd suggest looking deeper at:

Chris Neil-a human anvil with emerging offensive upside. Affordable at $1.2 mil thru next season.

Trent Hunter - Solid all-around player who is second in the league in hits. He's got hands like Craig Adams, and he's also a UFA at the end of this season if it doesn't work out.

John Zeiler-I watched this kid the other night and he hits everything that moves. He's not very big, but he's got a mile-long ornery streak.

EVENING UPDATE: Not sure yet how bad the injury to Bret Hedican will be. If he's going to miss a chunk of time, me thinks that puck-moving defenseman JR has repeatedly mentioned might be the Canes first priority. I'm still not convinced that a puck-mover is what the Canes blueline needs. The boys gave up three goals on defensive breakdowns tonight. I think they need an ice-time hog who can deal pain and own the area in front of the net. Luke DeCock mentioned Brooks Orpik the other day. That's not much of an upgrade. The two guys GM C/B would pursue would be Keith Ballard in Phoenix and Francois Beauchemin in Anaheim. I'd like to see the Canes take care of the need on defense first, and then go find an affordable enforcer at the deadline if this crew can't make physicality and enforcement a team commitment.

Ninja Warrior Sunday

2007-12-17T08:52:00.000-07:00

The Bengals got whacked Saturday by the 49ers-reminisent of those two Super Bowl debacles. The Panthers score was 3-0 when I got bored, so I started flipping channels. Like Jerry Seinfeld once said, "Men don't care what's on TV. They only care what else is on TV." So I found this show called Ninja Warrior on the obscure G4 channel. This is reality programming at its best and on a shoestring. Nothing but metal scaffolding, fake zoo display rock, plastic greenery and huge pits of muddy water. You can have Survivor, give me Shingo Yamamoto the gas station attendant.

This show combines the best of the old American Gladiators shows with the Gong Show. Instead of Chuck Barris, you've got a screaming Japanese narrator dropping snarky riffs on what is at times the strangest cast of contestants. There's an American doing overdub narration between events, but it's the Japanese narrator and the subtitles that are the most entertaining. Here's a typical line: "The super soldier climbs up to the balance bridge...and decides to attack the obstacle with his crotch." The poor guy tripped on a balance board and ended up straddling the thing briefly, before he fell into the watery abysss.

Contestants include serious athletes, Japanese celebs and everyday hosers. The cast of recurring characters includes a guy who looks like an octopus who apparently shows everybody his dead octopus in a bucket right before his run. There is also an exotic male dancer who strips down to a loincloth, and a lady wrestler who dresses like Conan the Barbarian's French maid sex-slave. Kinda liked that last one.

In Defense of Eric Staal

2007-12-14T10:02:00.000-07:00

So it's a mid-week February night in 1989, and I'm heading out the door to the gym when the phone rings. Must have been a Wednesday, because on Tuesday's, Thursdays and Saturdays I did the three mile run along Sunset Cliffs in Ocean Beach. Also used to surf on weekend mornings. Every other month or so I ran a 10K in town. Best finish -44:50 in a Coronado to Balboa Park race. So the phone rings, and it's my girlfriend (now beloved wife). I tell her I'm heading to the gym, she suggests stopping over at her place. Never got to the gym that night. Never been in that kinda shape since. Not that I'd change anything, it's just priorities change as we go through life's transitions. Balance is hard, but it can be achieved.

Cam Ward got married right after the Cup finals two years ago. Cam had a crappy 2006-2007 season. Cam's play is better this season, but not great thus far. Eric Staal got married before this season. Think about the demands on his time and attention right now. He's got Pete Friesen breathing down his neck with dietary regimens and conditioning demands. He's got older and lower-salaried teammates, coaches and a GM looking at him to prove he deserves the cash and the "A" on his chest. Then he's got momma wanting to pick out linens, plant Geraniums, schedule romantic dinners and do all those other things newlyweds get to do. He's got photo shoots, PlayStation 2 game launch events, TV spots for NHL Network and those warm and fuzzy CBC vignettes with his bros, all while trying to maintain his commitment to job #1.

Yeah, Staal's floating a bit, and yeah he seems dis-interested and prone to taking nights off. At least he's not out peeing in public or "making it rain" in the clubs. If he starts to wear Cincinnati Bengals gear, then I'm worried. I say once Eric finds that balance, he'll be back. He's too good of a player; he respects the game too much, and he's too proud and well-grounded to become the next Jeff O'Neill. So I ask for patience with Eric Staal. Using marriage math, he's is still putting toothpicks in the jar. Married guy knows what I'm talking about.

In Defense of Scott Walker

2007-12-13T09:44:00.000-07:00

Street Fighting Man vs. Visor Guy

Scott Walker will probably be suspended for head-butting Mike Fisher last night. Does he deserve it? Yeah, he knows better. I think Walker was frustrated by the lopsided nature of the game, and in the end with being unsuccessful at trying to punch thru Fisher's freaking welder's mask face shield. I think you or I could take a Georges Laraque punch if we had that helmet and sheild apparatus. Hockey's code of chivalry, it's variation on the Marquis of Kingsbury rules, should be adjusted for visor guys. Some sort of star chamber, maybe a man-law group within the NHLPA should pass the word that visor guys are gonna have to lose the helmet at the outset of a bout. Maybe everybody should just drop the helmet. Might make lesser men think twice before dropping the gloves. Two more minutes in penalties means less than risking your boyish good looks. It's either that, or make Vinny Prospal masks the standard across the league.

Good on ya Scott Walker. You took it personal. Pitty your teammates don't share your passion right now. Me thinks Coach Lavvy, quoted in the N&O, would agree:

"I actually thought (Walker) was playing the body out there, one of the few guys that went out and tried to lay some hits in the first period," coach Peter Laviolette said.

Fellow Caniacs, this team is a mess right now. Wufie offers a very passionate treatise on the subject today over at Carolina on Ice. Here's a point he makes that I share:

As a paying fan, I deserve nothing less than total effort. THAT is what I pay for. Not wins. Not goals. Not saves. Not highlight reel plays. I simply pay for effort.

It's meritocracy time. In my mind, roster spots should belong only to the fittest and most committed-here and now. Nobody on this struggling team should think for one moment that their past accomplishments, or their longevity with the club, or the "A" on their chest, or how many TV commercials they've done, or the fact that they have three hockey-playing brothers and a dad who built a back yard rink on the family sod farm, should mean entitlement to ice time.

UPDATE: It's days like this when I want to actually be a journo. It would be juicy to be around this club the next couple of days. Wonder if Lavvy will start throwing phones like Hal McRae did back in the day? Walker as quoted moments ago on Lord Stanley's Blog:

"Things were happening so fast and you’re trying to keep your head down because you’re already cut. It’s tough to say. I’m trying to end the fight or keep my head down anyway, because he’s got a shield.”

Your Wednesday Night Alternative Programming

2007-12-12T21:19:00.000-07:00

Canes lose 6-0. Best system goalie plays in Albany. Top puck-moving defenseman a healthy scratch. Suckage meter pegged.

We take you now to lip-synching Swedes in silky karate pajamas:

Canes "big" free agent a bust?

2007-12-12T11:33:00.000-07:00

Defense? You want ME to play defense?

Jeff Hamilton watched three of the last six games from a comfy chair. He's been pretty worthless (1 goal, -5) at even strength. With Matt Cullen in the house, my guess is that JR might take a mulligan on signing Jeff in the off season.

Again tonight, David Tanabe and Craig Adams get the nod while Hamilton watches from on high. To borrow from Abraham Lincoln's quote regarding General McClellan's reluctance to go on the offensive against the Army of Northern Virginia, If Lavvy's not going to use Hamilton, might there be some team who would like to borrow (have) him? At less than $1 mil per year he's day laborer cheap in NHL terms. So is Hammy being dangled as trade bait? Anybody know of a club out there that might be looking for a one-trick PP pony?

I'd like to see some deep digging on what's up with Hamilton.

Three Ducks Trade Scenarios

2007-12-11T16:01:00.001-07:00

Now is the time on Sprokets wenn vee wildly speculate

Scenario 1
The signing of Bruno St. Jacques affirms that the Ducks will be looking to move a blueliner. Mathieu Schneider is wicked pricey now and will be more expensive in his next/last contract year. He's also 38 and Jewish. Old Jewish guys on the verge of retirement want to go to Florida. Tells me it's gonna be Schneider for Olli Jokinen, thus proving those some pundits who've teased a Jokinen deal for years were right all along.

Scenario 2
Todd Marchant has been a healthy scratch lately. He also makes way too much money to be sitting in the skybox. He's a grinding centerman. On the Ducks, everybody grinds...and kidney punches...and crosschecks...and so on. Thus, he's excesss baggage. So what team would be willing to take on a $2.5 mil/yr 4th line center? Without Kevyn Adams, the Blackhawks are a just a bunch of lost snot-nosed newbies in need of a Sargeant Hulka. Marchant will be the big toe those boys need. Marchant to Chicago for the Sergei Samsonov who will bring the (periodic) scoring touch the Ducks have lacked on their roster. I think Sergei just needs a change of scenery...again.

Scenario 3
Bruno St. Jacques was just signed and called up. He's from Quebec. The Ducks can't bring up one Gaul without restoring the cultural balance in the clubhouse. Too many Frenchmen on a team means surrender is the most imminent threat to your playoff chances. So to move Beauchemin, they must either sign a free agent mime or call up another Quebecois. I say they'll call up prospect goalie Jean-Phillipe Levasseur (sexy French, no?) and send down the Prussian-sounding Jonas Heil Hiller to make the deal work. France wins. Germany (Switzerland, Oh what's the difference?) loses. All is well in Francophone world. So, it looks like the Ducks will move Francois Beauchemin to the Canes for Johnny Crackers. Woooo Hoooo! Deal of the millennium baby!

There you go. Three very viable scenarios. One's gotta be right, right?

Bates Battaglia is looking for a new gig

2007-12-10T15:33:00.000-07:00

My second-fondest memory as a Caniac comes from game two of the first round of the 2002 Stanley Cup playoffs. Canes win in OT on a Bates Battaglia deflection on a shot from the point. Nobody left the ESA a stranger that night. After getting beaten and beat up by the Devils in the first round of the 2001 playoffs, this was the game that made me believe in the Canes. Then, just like yesterday, they ran into the winged-wheel buzz saw in the 2002 Cup finals.

2001-2002 was a good season for Bates:

Player (Pts)

Ron Francis (77)

Sami Kapanen (69)

Jeff O'Neill (64)

Rod Brind'Amour (55)

Bates Battaglia (46-21 goals)

Erik Cole (40 )

Bates was waived today by the Toronto Maple Leafs. You've gotta look at the "Ice Chips" feature on the tsn.com site for the announcement. Hope he finds a place to continue playing. If not, he's got that Sam Malone gig waiting for him back on Glenwood Ave.

For those into Cane nostalgia, click here to take a look at the roster that season. Many of those names are long gone from professional hockey.

Christmas comes early to C/B

2007-12-07T10:38:00.000-07:00

Now occupying a place of honor among my greatest office Christmas gifts

First there was the Homer Simpson hi ball glass. Then the gourd from Hawaii. Last year, it was the disco glitter lamp. This year, Roddy joins my collection. Many thanks to Dave of Carolina On Ice responded to my commentary on Hurricanes figurine night with an offer to send me my very own. Upon closer inspection of my new favorite collectible, the object du art appears to resemble Ralph Malph more than Ralph Macchio. So in keeping with this degrees of separation from Ralph Macchio trend, look for the Ray Whitney figurine to resemble the diminutive original Al of Al's Diner, Eric Staal to evoke memories of Richie Cunningham, and Cam Ward to favor _______ (your call to finish the riff).

Thanks again Dave.

Cason Wins 2007 Thorpe Award

2007-12-07T09:13:00.000-07:00

Congrats to (distant) cousin Antoine Cason for his recognition as the best defensive back in college football. Quite an accomplishment for a guy who plays on a team that gets little or no national glow. Antoine decided to come back for his senior year despite the fact that this Wildcat program is a mess. He's on track to graduate and he's a great kid.

When asked to comment on Cason's recognition, Coach Mike Stoops ripped off his head seat, threw it to the ground, pointed to the heavens as said, "Finally, we got one." No Mike, you got one last week at ASU and pulled the same theatrics. Stoops then stomped off to hurl insults and gesticulate madly at the nearest person or object that seemed to resemble a referee.

St. Pete is a Place of Death

2007-12-06T20:23:00.000-07:00

Laser guidance devices on the blades of their sticks couldn't have helped the Canes make a crisp pass tonight. On the PP, it looked like the Canes were more interested in working out their kinks than in putting a puck on net. By God, I'm gonna make that perfect pass tonight if it kills us, says Matt Cullen. Shoot the puck and crash the net!!!! Crash somebody. Crash something. Cute hockey is death.

Once again tonight, the boys just didn't have it. I think they worked hard, but in the end they performed like a bunch who were playing together for the first time. The cycle goes on. It's been a W-L-W-L end of November into December.

More ice time for Andrew Ladd tonight, including quality time in the waning moments and a second period fight. Anaheim fights...a lot. Can you say "showcase?"

Contrast the Canes v. Ning tilt with the Pens v. Flames later in the evening. That was a wide open and physical game. The Phaneuf-Crosby-Roberts dynamic was especially tasty. You can hate on Crosby for being the Justin Timberlake of the NHL, but the kid shys away from nothing. He's gonna have Forsberg-style maladies later in his career because every trip to the endboards ends up in a Twister scrum.

The Niedermayer Effect

2007-12-05T12:56:00.000-07:00

From the Toronto Globe & Mail via Spector:

Ideally, they'd like to move a contract before the talk of Niedermayer's return gets into overdrive and that's where the problems start. It'd be easiest to move Francois Beauchemin, who earns a modest $1.65 million (thru '09) rather than Mathieu Schneider, signed as Niedermayer's replacement at a hefty $5.625 million.

There's your affordable puck carrying defenseman. If Niedermayer is really, really planning to return really soon, the Canes might be able to pick up Beauchemin on the cheap (a pick?). His 10 points this season would make him the top-scoring defenseman on the Canes blueline. I still like the idea of Shea Weber or Ryan Suter for their size and physicality.

Recchi is out

2007-12-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

Still love using this picture. According to tsn.com, last night was Mark Recchi bobblehead night in the Burg. Today he was told to bobble his ass out the door. They say he's lost it. I think he had it as early as the summer of 2006. Look at the physique on that ole Recchin Ball! Why he's a modern day Buster Crabbe. Saggy man-boobs are way sexy. I outta know. (too much personal information?)

Recchi came back to the Pens cause that's where he and momma wanted to finish out a career. Good luck Mark. You deserved better. I blame the cult of Crosby.

PM UPDATE: Darren Dreger on tsn.com hints at where Recchi might end up.

Three takes on last night's tilt vs. da Ranguhs

2007-12-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

Cam Ward: When he's on, he's like Steve Austin moving in that 1970's slow motion simulation of hyper-speed. He also benefitted from some rare and solid team defense. He was also lucky. Jagr broke a stick ripping at a open net on the back side and Staal bailed him out nicely after he coughed up a juicy rebound.

Eric Staal: A top objective in every team's game planning vs. Canes this year seems to be getting somebody in Staal's grill. Case in point-Holloweg (?) crosscheck of Staal into the post well after the whistle. The kid now wears the "A." I think he needs to start dishing out some punishment. He's big enough. He's strong enough. But is he ornery enough? His peers-guys about his age and physical stature-Ovechkin-Getzlaf-Perry-Nash all deliver punishment when they get the chance. The only real scrum I saw Eric get into was in the closing seconds along the sideboards with his little brother. That was a fun moment. You could tell big brother enjoyed driving little brother's head into the wall with a well-positioned elbow to the back of the neck.

David Tanabe: He's at his best when he can just skate. I think maybe the rigidity and structure of playing defense first stifles the kid's need for speed and artistic freedom. I don't think he enjoys the grinding along the end boards, and since he's not much of a hitter he might contribute more at wing. The Canes use a forward to quarterback PP, and since David is number 5 or 6 on the defensive depth chart, I don't think there's the chance for much of a starring role on the blueline for Avi. I'd like to see more of him at wing on the PP...when the Canes are already up 3-4 goals. I'd also like to see a more extended Tanabe at wing experiment when the Canes have their next injury opening at forward. Go to Tanabe before bringing Bayda or Aucoin back up.

Overall a convincing win at the MSG. One that followed a convincing loss in Buffalo. And before that loss? A luck-enriched win vs. the Craps. And before that? A bad loss to Philly. I see a pattern. Thursday night the Canes are in Tampa. Tampa attacks bettter off the transition than the Canes. Even without Miami University's own Danny Boyle manning the point, the Ning blueline contributes more to the attack than the Canes blueline. I love watching Kuba and Ranger engineer the Lightning breakout.

Marvin Lewis and the lowly Bengals

2007-12-03T10:05:00.000-07:00

I'm a Cincinnati Bengals fan. Been one since my first game as a kid at Nippert Stadium in 1969. Last night's Ben-Gals performance made me want to hurl. The QB from lil ole Miami University who was told by his high school coach and Ohio State he should catch passes instead of throwing them once again made the Bengals' 2002 Heisman Trophy winner and USC glamour boy look like the second coming of Ryan Leaf. Ben just went about his business, finding ways to make plays, while Palmer launched 3rd down and ten bombs into the photo gallery.

When is Mike Brown gonna wake up and realize that Marvin Lewis is a fraud. He's a Brian Billick guy. At least Brian Billick is a fraud with a superbowl ring as a head coach. I think Bill Callahan could have won a Super Bowl in 2000 with that Ravens defense. Marvin Lewis' Bengals are never ready for the big games. The Bengals had no answer for the simple slant pass to Hines Ward. They gave him a 5-7 yard cushion every time, and he used em up. Marvin Lewis as a defensive genius my tuckus. Bengals defenses have been among the worst defenses in the league the whole time Lewis has been in charge. And Lewis' Bengals only play out of their minds when nothing is on the line. There is no team in the NFL that showboats more and brings less to back it up. Think back to Chad Johnson's little Hall of Fame coat bit during game one versus the Ravens.

Last night, Carson Palmer was throwing passes as though Manute Bol was his go-to receiver. And when he did find the mark with a pass, it was usually dropped. If you watch any Bengals games, you've probably noticed Palmer and TJ or Ocho Cinco yelling at each other on the sidelines when things start to go bad. Nice team chemistry there Marvin. Your boys got each other's back.

I've made it to now without bitching about the questionable character of many on the Bengals roster. That's all been dissected before. Bottom line is the Cincinnati Bengals are a team with no heart, no brains and no courage.

Baby You're Starz

2007-12-02T21:45:00.000-07:00

Is this Lorenzo Perez-a.k.a Rico Suave?
Very cool post on Kukla's Korner. He's got a link to the HNIC feature about hockey blogging. The piece prominently features JP of Japers' Rink, Bill of A2Y and Liz of On Frozen Blog. Who'dah thought a government lawyer, a defense analyst and a black shoe chief petty officer could be such damn handsome folks. A well done piece by CBC. I especially love how well-versed Ron MacLean is on the best blogs in the business. He doesn't just list them from a script in this feature, he does a live demo from a laptop to show folks how to find the best of the best from the blogroll on Tom Benjamin's site. Hello!?! Mike Sundheim!?!

The whole bloggers aren't journos thing comes up in the piece...again. Who is in this blogging thing to be a journalist? Do you want to hang with that hockey writers guild guy in the HNIC clip? Do you aspire to be that guy? If you do, good on you. Not me. I want to be Jon Press (except the goverment lawyer stuff). The hockey world now knows Jon Press - they know he's hip and he wears a brown sports coat (probably with black shoes) to games. We also have a sense of his personality, what he does for a living and his passion for hockey and hockey blogging. And that hockey writer's guild guy? We know his office is messy and he's skeptical by nature. Yaaawwn....

Same goes for the local hockey journos. I think I've seen a picture of Luke DeCock, but I know nothing about the guy (other than that he answers his emails promptly). His reporting is solid and often laced with humor, but I don't know the man behind the DOS machine. And I know nothing at all about " Lorenzo Perez. When I "Googled" his name, the first image I got was the Rico Suave pic above - and it came from a site you probably don't want your kids to see. So what do we know about you there Lorenzo? Or is your name really "Lorenzo?" Are you now or have you ever been in the witness protection program?

Point is, consumers of media are attracted to compelling personalities. We live in a "have a take-don't suck" world. Hell, the anonymous one stands as living proof that you don't even have to be honest to have a prominent place in the grand circus of hockey culture. Hockey is sports entertainment. Shouldn't the coverage be entertaining as well? I'd probably want to be more like Luke and Lorenzo if I could get to know them better and their handlers let them run free once in awhile.

Lyle Richardson and Paul Kukla were the first wave of new hockey media. Thoughtful hockey 24-7 guys who report and comment responsibly-guys who network their asses off. I hope the next wave includes the Sam Kinison's of hockey blogging. How about the Earl and Jes show on the NHL Network? Gotta be better than Gary Green's House of Malaprops.

Turr-a-bull. Just turr-a-bull

2007-12-01T22:14:00.000-07:00

Pick or create your own "less" to describe human sacrifice night in Buffalo - heartless, lifeless, emotionless, gutless, prideless... If I were John Grahame, I'd go on the IR with an undisclosed upper melon injury till I get moved down or out. Lavvy did a Coach Torts on the poor guy tonight. And we all know how well tough love works on Crackers. Sheesh.

Sometimes a blowout works to clear the mind-the whole you gotta hit rock bottom before you begin the road to recovery thing. I still say this team is N.K.R.-Not Kwite Right. The Ouija board says a shakeup in the works.

The Arizona Wildcats dropped nearly every pass and then the game to the hated Sun Dirtballs and their whiny little girl QB. Future NFL d-back and distant cousin Antoine Cason dropped two interceptions in the end zone. The dream season for Mizzou is done. They are still Oklahoma's bitch.

And my retinas are still hurt from watching hideous uniform day in NCAA football. Oregon with the metallic yellow helmets. Tennessee with the creamsickle jerseys and pants. And West Virginia Technicolor canary yellow. Death to the Nike design department.

On skittish forwards and christmas elves on defense

2007-11-30T12:32:00.000-07:00

I don't want to play defense...I want to be a dentist!

The image burned into my mind from Wednesday night's tilt vs. the Flyers is the one of Derian Hatcher doing a Rick Mahorn box-out of lil Frankie Kaberle for the Flyers first goal. In keeping with the spirit of the season, it was the Bumble vs. Hermie, and the Bumble wasn't going to be moved out of the pivot. Of course it didn't help that the entire cadre of skating Canes left big ole Hatcher deep in the defensive end. Both Hermie Kaberle and Nic Wallin got boxed out by the two Flyers camped out in front of Cam Ward. Not that Wardo gets a pass. He's coughing up pucks like his name is Ozolindovsky.

On two of the Flyers goals (I think the Mike Knuble goal in the third was the other), Cane forwards got bunched up along the sideboards near the blueline. It looked like a kindergarten soccer game where the little scrum around the ball moves slowly around the field like a planchette (cool word eh? had to look that one up) on a Ouija board at the height of an Elvis seance. Hard to play team defense when time and space belong to the enemy.

Since this summer, I've been calling for new blood on the blueline. A big, responsible, physical presence who can skate and at least keep the puck in play. That being said, defense is team commitment. If yer not gonna play defense, then you gotta score in bunches. The Canes forwards don't seem to want to play team defense. I don't want to root for a red, black and silver version of the Thrash. Oh yeah, that Ovechkin kid is in town tonight. Rumor has it, he likes to freelance with the puck. Might want to take away some of the boy's time and space.

As for the recent Hermie vs. von Seidenberg discussion on Canes Country and in Lord Stanley's Blog? Give me the Baron. At least he's not a smurf. He's played ten less games and still has better numbers. So he gambles a bit. I'd rather have Jack Sparrow than Shaggy manning my blueline. And Andrew Ladd doesn't want to go hard into the boards for a puck right now. Mr. #4 pick in the whole freaking draft is proving to be as brittle as two-week old Tim Horton's donut.

Figurine Day Fast Approaching

2007-11-27T14:40:00.000-07:00

Get Yours November 28!

Wufie covered this a couple of weeks back, but I found it necessary to re-set this looming disaster of a promotional give away. You know your swag sucks when you can't even bring yourself to show anything but the base of your giveaway figurine in the home page promo. Yeah, you can still click on the link and see this Ralph Macchio errrrr Mikey from the old Life cereal commercial as Rod Brind'Amour collectible in all its ceramic glory, but just try to hold back the chuckle.