Saturday, December 27, 2003
HAWKS WIN!!! HAWKS WIN!!!
SEAHAWKS 24, 49ers 17
BIG F'N WIN BY THE SEAHAWKS ON THE ROAD.
Now, we just have to hope and pray for THIS to happen.
BIG F'N WIN BY THE SEAHAWKS ON THE ROAD.
Now, we just have to hope and pray for THIS to happen.
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THANK GOD FOR TOM HICKS
Thanks to Mr. Hicks, M's fans are breathing a sigh of relief today:
The Rangers have signed Brian Jordan to a one-year deal.
Hopefully the Seahawks can beat the 49ers today down in San Francisco. If that happens, then I'm a Saints fan at High Noon Sunday. If the Saints beat the Cowboys, Seattle is in the playoffs. That's IF the Seahawks win today.
Being in the playoffs is better than no playoffs at all. Call me nuts, but if the Seahawks can make it to the playoffs, they have a shot. As always, we'll see what happens.
The Rangers have signed Brian Jordan to a one-year deal.
Hopefully the Seahawks can beat the 49ers today down in San Francisco. If that happens, then I'm a Saints fan at High Noon Sunday. If the Saints beat the Cowboys, Seattle is in the playoffs. That's IF the Seahawks win today.
Being in the playoffs is better than no playoffs at all. Call me nuts, but if the Seahawks can make it to the playoffs, they have a shot. As always, we'll see what happens.
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Friday, December 26, 2003
CANUCKS 2, FLAMES 0
Lo and behold, Dan Cloutier suddenly has two shutouts in his last three games, with the last shutout coming a mere six days ago. Tonight before a Boxing Day crowd in Calgary, he stopped 31 shots, and fended off an Oleg Saprykin penalty shot in the 3rd period that sailed wide. Later in the 3rd, Denis Gauthier got into a scrum with the Canucks' Bryan Allen. Allen got the two-minute roughing penalty, whereas Gauthier was tagged roughing (2 min), kneeing (5 min), and a game misconduct (10 min). Impressive indeed.
Make no mistake, Calgary has been hot lately, and for the Canucks and Cloutier to shut them down (and out) is no easy task. Calgary was held pointless for only the second time in 18 games, a span over which they are 12-2-2-2. The Canucks had a hot first month of the season, then treaded water. Suddenly they are 5-1-3 in their last nine games.
Scoring goals tonight for the Canucks were Mattias Ohlund (6th, on a power play), and Brendan Morrison (13th).
Interesting game stat note: Canuck defenseman Brent Sopel rattled off seven shots to lead all shooters, even though I doubt many people care who shot the most at the end of the night if they didn't score a goal.
Canucks tomorrow night at the Garage (CBC telecast for HNIC) against Edmonton.
Make no mistake, Calgary has been hot lately, and for the Canucks and Cloutier to shut them down (and out) is no easy task. Calgary was held pointless for only the second time in 18 games, a span over which they are 12-2-2-2. The Canucks had a hot first month of the season, then treaded water. Suddenly they are 5-1-3 in their last nine games.
Scoring goals tonight for the Canucks were Mattias Ohlund (6th, on a power play), and Brendan Morrison (13th).
Interesting game stat note: Canuck defenseman Brent Sopel rattled off seven shots to lead all shooters, even though I doubt many people care who shot the most at the end of the night if they didn't score a goal.
Canucks tomorrow night at the Garage (CBC telecast for HNIC) against Edmonton.
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Thursday, December 25, 2003
MERRY CHRISTMAS
Just three things so far on this Christmas early morning, and they cover three sports...
Christmas means we may be close to the end of Shawn Springs' horribly overrated run as a Seattle Seahawk. More so this year than in past years, though, as he's been playing hurt this year and hurting the team by getting burned incessantly and making stupid pass interference penalties. The article also brings up the point in the 2001 season where Springs violated the steroid abuse policy when the team really needed him. Such was/is not lost on the memory of Mike Holmgren, or mine, for that matter.
Frank Hughes brings us the story of Luke Ridnour -- spirituality, dedication, and simplicity.
My favorite part of the article...
The house Ridnour bought, a tiny duplex on Lake Washington, has been dubbed "The Comfort Zone" by [Brent] Barry and [Nick] Collison.
"It is like my buddy's place in Hermosa Beach," Barry said, "where you walk in and fall in the bed. You can sit in the bed, brush your teeth, grab a beer from the fridge and watch TV all by just walking in the place.
"He bought a 60-inch TV, so you walk in and the only thing you see is the bed and a huge, 60-inch TV on the wall. I want to buy him a VCR tape of a fire burning, so it will look like his house is on fire. If he walks by the TV, he is the same size as it. He looks like Frodo Baggins in there."
Said Collison: "I can't really talk because my place is not the cleanest. But his is really bad. You kind of come in, throw your stuff on the floor, plop down and watch TV. He's got some work to do there, definitely."
Nothing like a good mushy story about the Bavasi family for Christmas. Too bad I wasn't blessed to have my dad in Major League Baseball somewhere. Nice job with that, Billy, you lucky bastard. At least the Times made the good decision to get Larry Stone on this story, because a Finnigan article on the same topic would have triggered one response from me -- the same reaction Norm Macdonald gave on SNL during a Weekend Update sketch in response to a then-new Kenny G Christmas album: "Happy birthday, Jesus! Hope you like crap!"
Merry Christmas, y'all.
Christmas means we may be close to the end of Shawn Springs' horribly overrated run as a Seattle Seahawk. More so this year than in past years, though, as he's been playing hurt this year and hurting the team by getting burned incessantly and making stupid pass interference penalties. The article also brings up the point in the 2001 season where Springs violated the steroid abuse policy when the team really needed him. Such was/is not lost on the memory of Mike Holmgren, or mine, for that matter.
Frank Hughes brings us the story of Luke Ridnour -- spirituality, dedication, and simplicity.
My favorite part of the article...
The house Ridnour bought, a tiny duplex on Lake Washington, has been dubbed "The Comfort Zone" by [Brent] Barry and [Nick] Collison.
"It is like my buddy's place in Hermosa Beach," Barry said, "where you walk in and fall in the bed. You can sit in the bed, brush your teeth, grab a beer from the fridge and watch TV all by just walking in the place.
"He bought a 60-inch TV, so you walk in and the only thing you see is the bed and a huge, 60-inch TV on the wall. I want to buy him a VCR tape of a fire burning, so it will look like his house is on fire. If he walks by the TV, he is the same size as it. He looks like Frodo Baggins in there."
Said Collison: "I can't really talk because my place is not the cleanest. But his is really bad. You kind of come in, throw your stuff on the floor, plop down and watch TV. He's got some work to do there, definitely."
Nothing like a good mushy story about the Bavasi family for Christmas. Too bad I wasn't blessed to have my dad in Major League Baseball somewhere. Nice job with that, Billy, you lucky bastard. At least the Times made the good decision to get Larry Stone on this story, because a Finnigan article on the same topic would have triggered one response from me -- the same reaction Norm Macdonald gave on SNL during a Weekend Update sketch in response to a then-new Kenny G Christmas album: "Happy birthday, Jesus! Hope you like crap!"
Merry Christmas, y'all.
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Wednesday, December 24, 2003
KJR TIDBITS
Softy was eluding to his three wishes for Christmas when cross-talking with Mitch Levy this morning. He said he wanted to take the track out of Husky Stadium because it takes away from the atmosphere. Mitch, namely because he's one of the only people at KJR who has no Husky affiliation, said he wished for Husky Stadium to be blown to smithereens for the piece of dog messs (he specified three S's) that it is.
Softy's wish list:
-- take out the track at Husky Stadium
-- install escalators at Seahawks Stadium (how this didn't happen in the first place is beyond me)
-- more legroom at KeyArena (Softy: "If I were Gary Coleman, it'd work. But if my knee is in the lap of the person in front of me...")
No doubt Jeremy can attest to that last wish. If you talked to him about going to a Sonic game, that would be brought up within five seconds, I guarantee that.
Later that day on the Groz and Gas show, Mike Gastineau got onto the topic of last night's Sonic game and pulled a tidbit from the Percy Allen article that ran in today's Seattle Times.
The part in question was this, in the Notes section...
Late in the fourth quarter, Phoenix assistant Tim Grgurich, a former Sonics assistant, verbally challenged a reporter sitting along the baseline to a fistfight after the game and needed to be restrained by two Suns players. A team spokesperson said afterwards that Grgurich was caught up "in the heat of the game."
The reporter in question? You guessed it -- Percy Allen. They managed to get Percy on the air to discuss the incident, though I had just picked up my dad form work, so I missed the part where they explained the main reason why the challenge-to-fistfight was brought up. Groz did bring up that Grgurich is "wired a bit differently" than normal people. Percy was afraid that Grgurich might know some mafia people in Vegas from his UNLV head coaching days. They also said it was somewhat weird because Allen wasn't even covering the Sonics when Grgurich was an assistant coach for the Sonics. Weird stuff indeed. Last quote from Allen: "I thought it was going to be Pedro and Zimmer all over again."
One unnerving thing about the Allen article:
Mariners third baseman Jeff Cirillo made an appearance at last night's game. Also in the building was Seahawks lineman Walter Jones.
Mister Cirillo...please, just go away.
Yes, slow day, slow day. Merry Christmas Eve, y'all.
[edit 2:20am, 25 Dec: I just now realized it was probably a "holiday" wish list that Softy put on the air -- he's Jewish]
Softy's wish list:
-- take out the track at Husky Stadium
-- install escalators at Seahawks Stadium (how this didn't happen in the first place is beyond me)
-- more legroom at KeyArena (Softy: "If I were Gary Coleman, it'd work. But if my knee is in the lap of the person in front of me...")
No doubt Jeremy can attest to that last wish. If you talked to him about going to a Sonic game, that would be brought up within five seconds, I guarantee that.
Later that day on the Groz and Gas show, Mike Gastineau got onto the topic of last night's Sonic game and pulled a tidbit from the Percy Allen article that ran in today's Seattle Times.
The part in question was this, in the Notes section...
Late in the fourth quarter, Phoenix assistant Tim Grgurich, a former Sonics assistant, verbally challenged a reporter sitting along the baseline to a fistfight after the game and needed to be restrained by two Suns players. A team spokesperson said afterwards that Grgurich was caught up "in the heat of the game."
The reporter in question? You guessed it -- Percy Allen. They managed to get Percy on the air to discuss the incident, though I had just picked up my dad form work, so I missed the part where they explained the main reason why the challenge-to-fistfight was brought up. Groz did bring up that Grgurich is "wired a bit differently" than normal people. Percy was afraid that Grgurich might know some mafia people in Vegas from his UNLV head coaching days. They also said it was somewhat weird because Allen wasn't even covering the Sonics when Grgurich was an assistant coach for the Sonics. Weird stuff indeed. Last quote from Allen: "I thought it was going to be Pedro and Zimmer all over again."
One unnerving thing about the Allen article:
Mariners third baseman Jeff Cirillo made an appearance at last night's game. Also in the building was Seahawks lineman Walter Jones.
Mister Cirillo...please, just go away.
Yes, slow day, slow day. Merry Christmas Eve, y'all.
[edit 2:20am, 25 Dec: I just now realized it was probably a "holiday" wish list that Softy put on the air -- he's Jewish]
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MERRY CHRISTMAS
Well, it's that time of year once again, and the "A Christmas Story" TNT marathon has started, so that means one thing:
It's Christmas time, once again, it's on! (Bone Crusher reference there...if you don't get it, then ask your relatives to get Madden 2004 for you)
In all seriousness, Merry Christmas! And a World Championship Year....
(Yeah, if Quinton McCracken tears his hammy while opening up X-Mas presents, maybe that will happen...)
Over the next week here, I'll have my Top 10 lists of various sports topics, including your Seattle Mariners. So don't sleep on us...we'll be here. Why?
Because we're bored as hell, that's why.
Merry Christmas!!!
It's Christmas time, once again, it's on! (Bone Crusher reference there...if you don't get it, then ask your relatives to get Madden 2004 for you)
In all seriousness, Merry Christmas! And a World Championship Year....
(Yeah, if Quinton McCracken tears his hammy while opening up X-Mas presents, maybe that will happen...)
Over the next week here, I'll have my Top 10 lists of various sports topics, including your Seattle Mariners. So don't sleep on us...we'll be here. Why?
Because we're bored as hell, that's why.
Merry Christmas!!!
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HO-HUM
Some tidbits off the RotoWorld wire...
Concerning Brett Tomko:
Since the Rangers won't be able to afford Sidney Ponson after failing to complete an Alex Rodriguez trade, Brett Tomko has moved back to the top of their shopping list.
From the linked Fort Worth Star-Telegram article:
If Tomko comes to Texas, the Rangers' rotation might look something like this: Chan Ho Park, Tomko, Ricardo Rodriguez, Colby Lewis and R.A. Dickey or Joaquin
Benoit.
I hope everyone just had a good holiday laugh.
Now some Brian Jordan news...(you'll find it at the end of the article beneath all the Yankee blather)
Jim Turner, the agent for Brian Jordan, said his client is on the verge of signing with an American League team.
Well, luckily this means the expectations of the ESPN.com "Where Will the Top 50 Free Agents Land" pool will thankfully end up wrong for this one -- you may recall they had Brian Jordan (Rick Rizzs would call him a former two-sport athlete, I would call him an oft-injured past-his-prime underachieving hack) going to the Mariners. That Top 50 list had the Mariners signing only two free agents: Shig Hasegawa and Jordan. Ugh.
Mariner tidbits are hard to come by on Christmas Eve, yes they are.
Concerning Brett Tomko:
Since the Rangers won't be able to afford Sidney Ponson after failing to complete an Alex Rodriguez trade, Brett Tomko has moved back to the top of their shopping list.
From the linked Fort Worth Star-Telegram article:
If Tomko comes to Texas, the Rangers' rotation might look something like this: Chan Ho Park, Tomko, Ricardo Rodriguez, Colby Lewis and R.A. Dickey or Joaquin
Benoit.
I hope everyone just had a good holiday laugh.
Now some Brian Jordan news...(you'll find it at the end of the article beneath all the Yankee blather)
Jim Turner, the agent for Brian Jordan, said his client is on the verge of signing with an American League team.
Well, luckily this means the expectations of the ESPN.com "Where Will the Top 50 Free Agents Land" pool will thankfully end up wrong for this one -- you may recall they had Brian Jordan (Rick Rizzs would call him a former two-sport athlete, I would call him an oft-injured past-his-prime underachieving hack) going to the Mariners. That Top 50 list had the Mariners signing only two free agents: Shig Hasegawa and Jordan. Ugh.
Mariner tidbits are hard to come by on Christmas Eve, yes they are.
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RAMBLE ON
Bill Simmons strikes again, this time he's rambling...again (a good thing). As a Red Sox fan, he was amazed and very ungratified about the amount of time he wasted keeping track of the entire Alex/Manny trade that never happened. Part of his solace, though, is this:
Would the Sox have been better off with A-Rod and Magglio? Yeah, I think so. But Plan B (Manny and Nomar) isn't so bad. And I have no problem bringing either of those guys back, even after all this stuff -- Manny's too much of a space cadet to realize what happened, and Nomar's too much of a professional to tank the 2004 season. Especially a contract season. Besides, sulking interferes with his OCD.
Would the Sox have been better off with A-Rod and Magglio? Yeah, I think so. But Plan B (Manny and Nomar) isn't so bad. And I have no problem bringing either of those guys back, even after all this stuff -- Manny's too much of a space cadet to realize what happened, and Nomar's too much of a professional to tank the 2004 season. Especially a contract season. Besides, sulking interferes with his OCD.
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Tuesday, December 23, 2003
FRENCH ACCENT
John Levesque of the P-I pretty much summarizes most of our thoughts and gets a column out of it, saying that Bavasi is lucky that the Guillen and Cirillo trades didn't go through -- Guillen's move because Vizquel is old and decrepit, and Cirillo's move because Cedeno clogs the outfield. Other than that, he speculates that maybe Justin Leone or Greg Dobbs would be given a shot at an extra infield roster spot. Levesque then says Dobbs is a possible "big bat." That's nice to get my hopes up and all, but I figure for a major daily newspaper that maybe it wouldn't be too much to ask for Levesque to throw in a nice little stat line for Dobbs. I know I'm sitting here at a computer and all and could probably pull up Dobbs' stats in 20 seconds, but if someone out there is actually reading a print copy of the P-I, different story. Levesque then uses the Cirillo/McCracken OPS argument that we've seen many times here in Mariner blogspace, followed by the generally accepted thought that even the oft-injured Guillen is probably a safer bet than the shot-kneed Vizquel. That and the fact that most of the shortstops' names that are coming up as prospective trade returns for Guillen really aren't that much of an improvement. Nothing we already don't know, in other words.
Basically, Levesque's article is a more detailed, but less eloquent and less powerful version of Larry Stone's article from yesterday.
And for those of you who wonder why these post times are so close together...with the horrible 56k here back at the 'rents house, I pull up the pages I need and then keep the browsers up after I free up the phone line (though we do have Catch-A-Call), then type my crap into Notepad, then copy and paste it. O how I long for the T1 lines (or are they T3?) back at Central...
One last thing, Jeremy's Carl Lewis post uses the phrase "Believe it." The first thing that pops into my mind with that phrase is the ghetto-'70s-looking airplane footage that runs after the South Park credits on every episode with the graphic that says "BRANIFF. BELIEVE IT!"
Basically, Levesque's article is a more detailed, but less eloquent and less powerful version of Larry Stone's article from yesterday.
And for those of you who wonder why these post times are so close together...with the horrible 56k here back at the 'rents house, I pull up the pages I need and then keep the browsers up after I free up the phone line (though we do have Catch-A-Call), then type my crap into Notepad, then copy and paste it. O how I long for the T1 lines (or are they T3?) back at Central...
One last thing, Jeremy's Carl Lewis post uses the phrase "Believe it." The first thing that pops into my mind with that phrase is the ghetto-'70s-looking airplane footage that runs after the South Park credits on every episode with the graphic that says "BRANIFF. BELIEVE IT!"
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SUPERSONICS 116, SUNS 90
Before I take off on a Sonic post here and a Mariner post, I have to say that on what I characterize as a slow baseball day (as in most of the big stuff that came across the wire was rehash of what we already know), I learned exactly three things tonight:
-- the first case of mad cow disease on US shores occurred in my very state of Washington on Mabton, and the other (presumably non-infected) parts of the cow were processed in Centralia
-- thanks to constant reappearances on Comedy Central, Peter Gibbons once again has recemented himself as one of my greatest role models...except that whole penny-rounding thing was pretty fishy
-- again related to Comedy Central, my wishes have been granted; Chappelle's Show will be back for another season on Jan 21st. For those who saw it last year, pure hilarity. My favorite moment of the year for the Chappelle's Show's first season had to be the "remixed" R. Kelly videos. I saw Chappelle (w/Lewis Black and Guy Torry) last year at the Benaroya Hall and was lucky enough to get 3rd row seats (far back enough so you didn't have to crane your neck to see the performer) and it was beyond hilarious.
To the Sonics...
The top story of this game, needless to say, was the return of Ray Allen, who looked like he hadn't missed a beat (McMillan said so himself) even though he's been out for 1.5 months of the season. Granted, he only played 23 minutes, but that was enough time to lead all scorers with 24 points, and to pile up 7 assists as well.
For the team as a whole, they managed to put a team away for once and keep the pressure on. I think the Sonics color man Billy McKinney had noted that the Sonics' downfall has usually been having that one bad quarter where there's a ton of defensive lapses, coupled with a string of missed shots and turnovers. None of that tonight. Sure, I saw Vlad Radmanovic get burned a couple of times for easy layups, but that's Vlad. Anyway, the Sonics stomped on the Suns' hopes by outscoring the Suns 34-20 in the 3rd quarter.
Ron Murray, who no doubt will see decreased minutes as a result of Allen's return, contributed a solid 17 points off the bench, likely a much more suitable role for him.
Definitely not to go unnoticed was the double-double by Rashard Lewis tonight; he dropped 22 pts and grabbed 13 boards. Also to be commended were the 11 points and 7 assists by Luke Ridnour over 26 minutes. I wish this team had a healthy Nick Collison right now.
Yes, the Sonics are back at .500. No word if Connecticut alums Ray Allen and Jake Voskuhl (Suns, hack) went barhopping after a game. Two UConn players I've had it in the most for over the years: (1) Jake Voskuhl, (2) Donny Marshall.
Now at .500, the Sonics welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves to KeyArena on Saturday night. Looks like another flippin' channels night between the Sonics and Canucks for me.
-- the first case of mad cow disease on US shores occurred in my very state of Washington on Mabton, and the other (presumably non-infected) parts of the cow were processed in Centralia
-- thanks to constant reappearances on Comedy Central, Peter Gibbons once again has recemented himself as one of my greatest role models...except that whole penny-rounding thing was pretty fishy
-- again related to Comedy Central, my wishes have been granted; Chappelle's Show will be back for another season on Jan 21st. For those who saw it last year, pure hilarity. My favorite moment of the year for the Chappelle's Show's first season had to be the "remixed" R. Kelly videos. I saw Chappelle (w/Lewis Black and Guy Torry) last year at the Benaroya Hall and was lucky enough to get 3rd row seats (far back enough so you didn't have to crane your neck to see the performer) and it was beyond hilarious.
To the Sonics...
The top story of this game, needless to say, was the return of Ray Allen, who looked like he hadn't missed a beat (McMillan said so himself) even though he's been out for 1.5 months of the season. Granted, he only played 23 minutes, but that was enough time to lead all scorers with 24 points, and to pile up 7 assists as well.
For the team as a whole, they managed to put a team away for once and keep the pressure on. I think the Sonics color man Billy McKinney had noted that the Sonics' downfall has usually been having that one bad quarter where there's a ton of defensive lapses, coupled with a string of missed shots and turnovers. None of that tonight. Sure, I saw Vlad Radmanovic get burned a couple of times for easy layups, but that's Vlad. Anyway, the Sonics stomped on the Suns' hopes by outscoring the Suns 34-20 in the 3rd quarter.
Ron Murray, who no doubt will see decreased minutes as a result of Allen's return, contributed a solid 17 points off the bench, likely a much more suitable role for him.
Definitely not to go unnoticed was the double-double by Rashard Lewis tonight; he dropped 22 pts and grabbed 13 boards. Also to be commended were the 11 points and 7 assists by Luke Ridnour over 26 minutes. I wish this team had a healthy Nick Collison right now.
Yes, the Sonics are back at .500. No word if Connecticut alums Ray Allen and Jake Voskuhl (Suns, hack) went barhopping after a game. Two UConn players I've had it in the most for over the years: (1) Jake Voskuhl, (2) Donny Marshall.
Now at .500, the Sonics welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves to KeyArena on Saturday night. Looks like another flippin' channels night between the Sonics and Canucks for me.
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FOLLOW-UP
In accordance with Jeremy's simplistic yet hilarious post, I bring to you, through the SportsCenter Altar, what a couple of SportsCenter fans thought when they saw the replay of this Carl Lewis incident on the show. Here's thoughts from Brian Sieroty, Todd Seder, and an anonymous contributor.
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AN EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESENT...
DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRYYYYYYL
Going to a fast food place and drinking soda pop through a straw will never be the same. Why?
At a little party somewhere in the depths of California, there was a Straw(berry) present, along with the King of Pop. Okay, I know that was kind of a stretch, but humor me just this once.
Darryl Strawberry and Michael Jackson. One stuffed a bunch of coke up his nose, while the other had multiple plastic surgeries on his. A true match made in heaven, ladies and gentlemen.
At a little party somewhere in the depths of California, there was a Straw(berry) present, along with the King of Pop. Okay, I know that was kind of a stretch, but humor me just this once.
Darryl Strawberry and Michael Jackson. One stuffed a bunch of coke up his nose, while the other had multiple plastic surgeries on his. A true match made in heaven, ladies and gentlemen.
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Monday, December 22, 2003
KINGS 4, CANUCKS 4 (OT)
Now I know the LA Kings are ahead of their (somewhat pathetic) division, but the game stats are somewhat unnerving, making me almost glad I didn't have a chance to watch or listen to the game tonight.
Sure, the Canucks got a point in the standings out of it, but let's just say an early hole was dug.
Todd Bertuzzi scored on a wrister at 6:04 of the first period on a power play. This is very good for Todd, because he hasn't had a goal, let alone a power play goal, in forever. This is good for the Canucks as a team because they've been brutal on the power play as of late.
A mere 2:10 after the Bertuzzi goal, Alex Frolov of the Kings scored shorthanded, 20 seconds into a Zig Palffy tripping penalty, and 5:06 after that goal, Luc Robitaille scored a power play goal on a Naslund trip penalty. The first period ended with LA up 2-1.
Then came the second period. Since I'm just going off the game stats right now, I'll venture to guess the goalies were mostly doing their jobs (especially Cristobal Huet, who stopped 40 shots for the Kings). At 12:32 in, Ziggy Palffy scored to make it 3-1 Kings. 4:08 after that, Palffy tallied again for a shorthanded goal, 1:07 into the Vancouver power play. At this point, it's 4-1 Kings. Also at this point, I'd guess that the Canuck fans were doing either one of two things -- (1) asking for Dan Cloutier's head, or (2) bashing Brent Sopel or a couple of the other Canuck defensemen for giving away the puck, leading to the Kings goals. If it's two shorthanded goals, it can't just be the goalie, right?
Luckily the Canucks scored twice in the next 84 seconds following the Palffy shorthanded goal -- once on the power play by Sopel, and once on a rare goal by Artem Chubarov.
With the Canucks down 4-3 in the 3rd period, Jarkko Ruutu tipped in the puck with 3:51 left in regulation to salvage a point for the Canucks, on a night when the Kings scored four answered goals and had themselves a three-goal lead which they had 22.5 minutes to hold for the win. In that aspect, it's not a bad win for the Canucks, but they did dig a mighty big hole for themselves.
Canuck goals once again: Bertuzzi 9th, Sopel 2nd, Chubarov 4th, Ruutu 3rd.
After reading the quick recap, it appears the Ruutu game-tying goal was protested by Huet because a signal of the goal was delayed as the puck "trickled across the line." Ed Jovanovski was "caught flat-footed at the Kings blue line" when Frolov turned on the afterburners for his goal. Palffy's shorthand goal came when Mattias Ohlund tripped trying to keep the puck onside; Palffy then got man-to-man with Cloutier and deked him. Defensive giveaways, folks. They'll do you in just like an incompetent goalie will.
Canucks Friday at Calgary, and Saturday at the Garage with Edmonton on Hockey Night in Canada.
Sure, the Canucks got a point in the standings out of it, but let's just say an early hole was dug.
Todd Bertuzzi scored on a wrister at 6:04 of the first period on a power play. This is very good for Todd, because he hasn't had a goal, let alone a power play goal, in forever. This is good for the Canucks as a team because they've been brutal on the power play as of late.
A mere 2:10 after the Bertuzzi goal, Alex Frolov of the Kings scored shorthanded, 20 seconds into a Zig Palffy tripping penalty, and 5:06 after that goal, Luc Robitaille scored a power play goal on a Naslund trip penalty. The first period ended with LA up 2-1.
Then came the second period. Since I'm just going off the game stats right now, I'll venture to guess the goalies were mostly doing their jobs (especially Cristobal Huet, who stopped 40 shots for the Kings). At 12:32 in, Ziggy Palffy scored to make it 3-1 Kings. 4:08 after that, Palffy tallied again for a shorthanded goal, 1:07 into the Vancouver power play. At this point, it's 4-1 Kings. Also at this point, I'd guess that the Canuck fans were doing either one of two things -- (1) asking for Dan Cloutier's head, or (2) bashing Brent Sopel or a couple of the other Canuck defensemen for giving away the puck, leading to the Kings goals. If it's two shorthanded goals, it can't just be the goalie, right?
Luckily the Canucks scored twice in the next 84 seconds following the Palffy shorthanded goal -- once on the power play by Sopel, and once on a rare goal by Artem Chubarov.
With the Canucks down 4-3 in the 3rd period, Jarkko Ruutu tipped in the puck with 3:51 left in regulation to salvage a point for the Canucks, on a night when the Kings scored four answered goals and had themselves a three-goal lead which they had 22.5 minutes to hold for the win. In that aspect, it's not a bad win for the Canucks, but they did dig a mighty big hole for themselves.
Canuck goals once again: Bertuzzi 9th, Sopel 2nd, Chubarov 4th, Ruutu 3rd.
After reading the quick recap, it appears the Ruutu game-tying goal was protested by Huet because a signal of the goal was delayed as the puck "trickled across the line." Ed Jovanovski was "caught flat-footed at the Kings blue line" when Frolov turned on the afterburners for his goal. Palffy's shorthand goal came when Mattias Ohlund tripped trying to keep the puck onside; Palffy then got man-to-man with Cloutier and deked him. Defensive giveaways, folks. They'll do you in just like an incompetent goalie will.
Canucks Friday at Calgary, and Saturday at the Garage with Edmonton on Hockey Night in Canada.
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RICK MIRER IS WORSE THAN SPURGEON WYNN
Yes, I said it.
THIS is why rooting for other teams to win to help YOUR TEAM out sucks major ass.
Brett Favre is just awesome. Is there any other way to put it?
Anyways, after watching this Packers-Raiders game tonight, I'm convinced there's no way the Broncos are beating the Packers in Lambeau Sunday.
So here's the playoff scenario from Seahawks.com:
IF GREEN BAY WINS MONDAY NIGHT:
Seattle can clinch playoff berth with:
1) SEA win + MIN loss or tie, OR
2) SEA win + GB loss or tie, OR
3) SEA win + DAL loss + SEA has better strength of victory than DAL, OR
4) SEA tie + MIN loss, OR
5) SEA tie + GB loss
#3 is the scenario to pay attention to.
Like David and the P-I's Clare Farnsworth noted, the Seahawks, Packers, and Cowboys could all finish 10-6, and the Seahawks would get the tiebreaker over the Packers and become the #5 seed over Dallas because of "strength of victory".
Seahawks
Opponents Record Remaining Opponents
St. Louis 12-3 @Detroit
New Orleans 7-8 Dallas
San Francisco 7-8 Seattle
Chicago 7-8 @Kansas City
Pittsburgh 6-9 @Baltimore
Detroit 4-11 St. Louis
Cleveland 4-11 @Cincinnati
Arizona 3-12 Minnesota
Arizona 3-12
Total 53-82 .393
Cowboys (@New Orleans 12/28)
Opponents Record Remaining Opponents
Philadelphia 11-4 @Washington
Carolina 10-5 @N.Y. Giants
N.Y. Jets 6-9 @Miami
Buffalo 6-9 @New England
Washington 5-10 Philadelphia
Washington 5-1
N.Y. Giants 4-11 Carolina
N.Y. Giants 4-11
Detroit 4-11 St. Louis
Arizona 3-12 Minnesota
Total 59-92 .387
So as of right now going into Week 17, the Seahawks strength of victory over the Cowboys is .393 to .387.
This is very complicated, and I can't even begin to comprehend what will happen this weekend.
BUT the Saints HAVE to beat the Cowboys. This would put Dallas at 10-6. Of course, the Seahawks have to win at San Francisco. However, the game to really pay attention to is the Pittsburgh-Baltimore Sunday Night game on ESPN. If the Steelers win, that helps the Seahawks (23-16 Nov. 2).
OR.........
While this is highly unlikely, Arizona could upset Minnesota down in Tempe. Remember, the Cardinals did defeat the Packers earlier this season at home, so anything's possible.
If MIN loses at ARIZONA, and Seattle wins Saturday, the Seahawks are 10-6, and the Vikings are 9-7. Seahawks would be in the playoffs over the Vikings.
Basically, this is a confusing deal.
I just want the Seahawks to play in the playoffs. Anything after that is a friggin bonus!
If only this team would have won on the damn road....ARGGGGGHHHHHH!
THIS is why rooting for other teams to win to help YOUR TEAM out sucks major ass.
Brett Favre is just awesome. Is there any other way to put it?
Anyways, after watching this Packers-Raiders game tonight, I'm convinced there's no way the Broncos are beating the Packers in Lambeau Sunday.
So here's the playoff scenario from Seahawks.com:
IF GREEN BAY WINS MONDAY NIGHT:
Seattle can clinch playoff berth with:
1) SEA win + MIN loss or tie, OR
2) SEA win + GB loss or tie, OR
3) SEA win + DAL loss + SEA has better strength of victory than DAL, OR
4) SEA tie + MIN loss, OR
5) SEA tie + GB loss
#3 is the scenario to pay attention to.
Like David and the P-I's Clare Farnsworth noted, the Seahawks, Packers, and Cowboys could all finish 10-6, and the Seahawks would get the tiebreaker over the Packers and become the #5 seed over Dallas because of "strength of victory".
Seahawks
Opponents Record Remaining Opponents
St. Louis 12-3 @Detroit
New Orleans 7-8 Dallas
San Francisco 7-8 Seattle
Chicago 7-8 @Kansas City
Pittsburgh 6-9 @Baltimore
Detroit 4-11 St. Louis
Cleveland 4-11 @Cincinnati
Arizona 3-12 Minnesota
Arizona 3-12
Total 53-82 .393
Cowboys (@New Orleans 12/28)
Opponents Record Remaining Opponents
Philadelphia 11-4 @Washington
Carolina 10-5 @N.Y. Giants
N.Y. Jets 6-9 @Miami
Buffalo 6-9 @New England
Washington 5-10 Philadelphia
Washington 5-1
N.Y. Giants 4-11 Carolina
N.Y. Giants 4-11
Detroit 4-11 St. Louis
Arizona 3-12 Minnesota
Total 59-92 .387
So as of right now going into Week 17, the Seahawks strength of victory over the Cowboys is .393 to .387.
This is very complicated, and I can't even begin to comprehend what will happen this weekend.
BUT the Saints HAVE to beat the Cowboys. This would put Dallas at 10-6. Of course, the Seahawks have to win at San Francisco. However, the game to really pay attention to is the Pittsburgh-Baltimore Sunday Night game on ESPN. If the Steelers win, that helps the Seahawks (23-16 Nov. 2).
OR.........
While this is highly unlikely, Arizona could upset Minnesota down in Tempe. Remember, the Cardinals did defeat the Packers earlier this season at home, so anything's possible.
If MIN loses at ARIZONA, and Seattle wins Saturday, the Seahawks are 10-6, and the Vikings are 9-7. Seahawks would be in the playoffs over the Vikings.
Basically, this is a confusing deal.
I just want the Seahawks to play in the playoffs. Anything after that is a friggin bonus!
If only this team would have won on the damn road....ARGGGGGHHHHHH!
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SLOW IN THE MARINER CAMP
John Hickey didn't give me much to work with in today's article. Just some more stuff about the Mariners' pursuit of Rich Aurilia. You know, I like Rich Aurilia, though he probably seemed like a good player to me because those Giants teams he was on were so good. He's not that much of an improvement over Guillen, though, and he'll probably have a higher salary than Guillen. Basically, paying more for less is dumb. Unfortunately, Bavasi doesn't know that, ref. the Vizquel almost-trade.
Bob Finnigan. More to work with, but more to laugh at. I'm laughing mainly because of Jeremy's post from the other night.
From the Finn article...
The [Mariners] may have interest in the likes of...Jared Sandberg (Tampa Bay).
Jeremy is a prophet, ladies and gentlemen. And the Finnster didn't even touch on Li'l Ryno's local ties.
One of those could be left-hander Andy Van Hekken, the one-time Seattle prospect who went to Detroit in the Brian Hunter trade and made the majors two years ago with the Tigers. Because of their former connection and Van Hekken being a lefty, Seattle could take a chance there.
So that's all it takes? Does anyone out there have a former connection with Seattle and is a lefty? The Mariners and Bavasi should be on the market soon for the likes of Erik Plantenburg, Tim Davis, Dave Fleming, Lee Guetterman, Matt Young, Russ Swan, Greg McCarthy, et. al.
When it comes to links, however, none may be stronger for Seattle than that with Braden Looper, nephew of farm director Benny Looper and cousin of Mariners pitcher Aaron Looper. Bringing in Looper, who had 28 saves for the Marlins last year, would give Seattle five potential closers, so that move may be unlikely.
Well, thank goodness for that, I guess. I'll go out on a limb here and say the Mariners got the bad end of both the Zimmerman and the Looper siblings. It just seems like Jeff and Braden were better than Jordan and Aaron, though I guess the jury is still out on Aaron Looper.
Yes, kids, the Mariners' Hot Stove League has been one giant letdown this winter, and since there's no Tejada, it can only get so much better.
We're less than two months from spring training...
Bob Finnigan. More to work with, but more to laugh at. I'm laughing mainly because of Jeremy's post from the other night.
From the Finn article...
The [Mariners] may have interest in the likes of...Jared Sandberg (Tampa Bay).
Jeremy is a prophet, ladies and gentlemen. And the Finnster didn't even touch on Li'l Ryno's local ties.
One of those could be left-hander Andy Van Hekken, the one-time Seattle prospect who went to Detroit in the Brian Hunter trade and made the majors two years ago with the Tigers. Because of their former connection and Van Hekken being a lefty, Seattle could take a chance there.
So that's all it takes? Does anyone out there have a former connection with Seattle and is a lefty? The Mariners and Bavasi should be on the market soon for the likes of Erik Plantenburg, Tim Davis, Dave Fleming, Lee Guetterman, Matt Young, Russ Swan, Greg McCarthy, et. al.
When it comes to links, however, none may be stronger for Seattle than that with Braden Looper, nephew of farm director Benny Looper and cousin of Mariners pitcher Aaron Looper. Bringing in Looper, who had 28 saves for the Marlins last year, would give Seattle five potential closers, so that move may be unlikely.
Well, thank goodness for that, I guess. I'll go out on a limb here and say the Mariners got the bad end of both the Zimmerman and the Looper siblings. It just seems like Jeff and Braden were better than Jordan and Aaron, though I guess the jury is still out on Aaron Looper.
Yes, kids, the Mariners' Hot Stove League has been one giant letdown this winter, and since there's no Tejada, it can only get so much better.
We're less than two months from spring training...
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MORE SEAHAWKS SCENARIOS
IF the Seahawks lose on Saturday, which is a possibility:
The Seahawks would be 9-7. How could they get into the playoffs, you ask?
Well, if the Packers were to lose their final two games, they would be 8-8, and therefore eliminated from the playoffs.
If I'm the Seahawks, I'm packing the home uniforms for this weekend. Paul Allen has more money than God, so he should be willing to pay the 30,000 fine levied by the NFL when you don't bring the right uniform to the game (see Denver vs San Diego earlier this season).
All of this being said, I'm a member of the Raider Nation from 8 p.m. Central until Midnight tonight. The Packers are not a very good road team, and the Black Hole on Monday Nights can be tricky. Very tricky.
Keep in mind that this same Packers team lost to ARIZONA in Tempe, so anything's possible.
Packers lose tonight, Seahawks win Saturday...PLAYOFFS BABY! And if the Seahawks go to the playoffs, they have a chance to do some damage, despite their road woes. You think friggin Carolina scares me? Come on.
Anyways, Go Seahawks. I'm just glad that the Seahawks game this weekend will be seen here in Arkansas. Hopefully I can see another Seahawks game after this weekend. Too bad that the Seahawks possible playoff schedule has to be on the road, but that's life.
TOUCHDOWN SEATTLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Seahawks would be 9-7. How could they get into the playoffs, you ask?
Well, if the Packers were to lose their final two games, they would be 8-8, and therefore eliminated from the playoffs.
If I'm the Seahawks, I'm packing the home uniforms for this weekend. Paul Allen has more money than God, so he should be willing to pay the 30,000 fine levied by the NFL when you don't bring the right uniform to the game (see Denver vs San Diego earlier this season).
All of this being said, I'm a member of the Raider Nation from 8 p.m. Central until Midnight tonight. The Packers are not a very good road team, and the Black Hole on Monday Nights can be tricky. Very tricky.
Keep in mind that this same Packers team lost to ARIZONA in Tempe, so anything's possible.
Packers lose tonight, Seahawks win Saturday...PLAYOFFS BABY! And if the Seahawks go to the playoffs, they have a chance to do some damage, despite their road woes. You think friggin Carolina scares me? Come on.
Anyways, Go Seahawks. I'm just glad that the Seahawks game this weekend will be seen here in Arkansas. Hopefully I can see another Seahawks game after this weekend. Too bad that the Seahawks possible playoff schedule has to be on the road, but that's life.
TOUCHDOWN SEATTLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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ANOTHER PLAYOFF SCENARIO
Apparently everyone in the Seattle media with the exception of Clare Farnsworth of the P-I was under the impression that the only way the Seahawks could make the playoffs was with a win on Saturday at San Francisco coupled with a Minnesota loss at Arizona or a Green Bay loss at Oakland tonight or against Green Bay.
According to Farnsworth, though (and which has been clarified by the Seahawks after Softy's henchmen at KJR called them)...
The Seahawks also could get in if they finish in a three-way tie with the Cowboys and Packers, based on a better strength of victory percentage.
In other words, the Seahawks win at SF, the Packers win their two games, and the Saints beat the Cowboys. In this situation, all three teams would be 10-6, and since three teams are involved, the head-to-head tiebreaker is thrown out. And I guess Seattle would win the tiebreaker in this situation. The Seahawks would actually get the 5th seed over the Cowboys. Very bizarre.
That said, I'm rooting for the Raiders tonight.
According to Farnsworth, though (and which has been clarified by the Seahawks after Softy's henchmen at KJR called them)...
The Seahawks also could get in if they finish in a three-way tie with the Cowboys and Packers, based on a better strength of victory percentage.
In other words, the Seahawks win at SF, the Packers win their two games, and the Saints beat the Cowboys. In this situation, all three teams would be 10-6, and since three teams are involved, the head-to-head tiebreaker is thrown out. And I guess Seattle would win the tiebreaker in this situation. The Seahawks would actually get the 5th seed over the Cowboys. Very bizarre.
That said, I'm rooting for the Raiders tonight.
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Sunday, December 21, 2003
SEAHAWKS 28, CARDINALS 10
We'll take it. The second half of the game was almost as boring as the Detroit/Seattle game earlier this year where no points were scored in the second half.
There were some tense moments when Hasselbeck got his left shoulder landed on once and then twisted his ankle into the turf for the second injury.
Other than that, there were various nicks and general getting battered-ness that the Seahawks were trying to stay away from, being that they were up 21-3 at half and had pretty much had the game sewn up. The motive was to keep the players as healthy as possible for next week.
Because next week, it's Hawks at SF. And Terrell Owens has a broken collarbone.
Bottom line is, the Hawks fans are actually rooting for the Raiders to win for once, because a Raider win and a Hawks win means your Seattle Seahawks are in the playoffs. Granted, the first playoff game would be on the road, but hey, it's better than nothing. If they make it, it would have been ~2.25 years since a Seattle team made it to the playoffs. Thanks, Mariners.
There were some tense moments when Hasselbeck got his left shoulder landed on once and then twisted his ankle into the turf for the second injury.
Other than that, there were various nicks and general getting battered-ness that the Seahawks were trying to stay away from, being that they were up 21-3 at half and had pretty much had the game sewn up. The motive was to keep the players as healthy as possible for next week.
Because next week, it's Hawks at SF. And Terrell Owens has a broken collarbone.
Bottom line is, the Hawks fans are actually rooting for the Raiders to win for once, because a Raider win and a Hawks win means your Seattle Seahawks are in the playoffs. Granted, the first playoff game would be on the road, but hey, it's better than nothing. If they make it, it would have been ~2.25 years since a Seattle team made it to the playoffs. Thanks, Mariners.
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AT SPEEDY, WE CARE
Turns out the Mariners Cirillo-for-Cedeno deal wouldn't have gone through anyway. Either that or Gillvasi and Co. would have released him after hearing of this jewel...
Roger Cedeno can drive 111. That's DOUBLE what Sammy Hagar couldn't drive.
Roger Cedeno can drive 111. That's DOUBLE what Sammy Hagar couldn't drive.
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REDMAN IS GREEN AND GOLD MAN
3 year deal
Mark Redman has signed with the A's for 3 years. He will make 4 million in 2004.
Uh yeah, I would say that he's better than Ted Lilly. So for those of you who are thinking that Billy Beane has lost it, well, he hasn't.
Mark Mulder. Tim Hudson. Barry Zito. Mark Redman. Rich Harden.
Wow, that's what I call a good rotation...
"KILL" BILL: REDMAN IS TOO GOOD FOR MY BLOOD...WE WANT GLENDON RUSCH!
Mark Redman has signed with the A's for 3 years. He will make 4 million in 2004.
Uh yeah, I would say that he's better than Ted Lilly. So for those of you who are thinking that Billy Beane has lost it, well, he hasn't.
Mark Mulder. Tim Hudson. Barry Zito. Mark Redman. Rich Harden.
Wow, that's what I call a good rotation...
"KILL" BILL: REDMAN IS TOO GOOD FOR MY BLOOD...WE WANT GLENDON RUSCH!
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STUPID NON-TENDER MOVE OF THE DAY...
From RotoWorld...
Marlins non-tendered RHP Braden Looper.
Okay, they lose Urbina as well as Looper, both of their closers from last year's World Champion (ugh) team. So they have to patch up that closer void...
Marlins agreed to terms with RHP Armando Benitez on a one-year, $3.5 million contract.
Man. I don't even know what to say. Have fun with that in Florida, I guess...
Marlins non-tendered RHP Braden Looper.
Okay, they lose Urbina as well as Looper, both of their closers from last year's World Champion (ugh) team. So they have to patch up that closer void...
Marlins agreed to terms with RHP Armando Benitez on a one-year, $3.5 million contract.
Man. I don't even know what to say. Have fun with that in Florida, I guess...