...randomness surrounding Guided by Voices, Robert Pollard, and other great indie rock bands; a quasi objective look at "my" sporting teams; the random horror film; plus other crap as we see fit...all with a Pittsburgh based feel.
Hide your BBQ Sauce!! Bruce Boudreau is back in the Burgh!! Truth be told, the Ducks have been playing better hockey since BB took over. They're 6-2-2 in their last 10, and are coming off a victory over Mike Yeo's strug-gl-ing Minnesota team last night. Some crazy Ducks fans are even talking playoffs, which would be crazy considering the start they had. Corey Perry is a load. Teemu Selanne is 50 years old, but still filling the net. George Parros will probably be a dick tonight. This game definitely has more intrigue to it now than it did a couple of months ago.
Even prior to the whole racist accusations and hand shake snub, I had started to grow a little tired of the Luis Suarez act. Dude is clearly our best player and possibly the only of the transfers brought into Anfield over the past year that's been worth a damn on the pitch (with the surprising exception of Craig Bellamy). Andy Carroll is pretty much a big worthless goof with a ponytail. I loved the Stewart Downing signing, but he and Jordan Henderson have done squat. I love Charlie Adam, but his production has been meh.
While Suarez is our best chance of putting the ball in the net, his constant whines and cries to the refs have been a tad embarrassing. Every time the dude goes down we see that stupid face (above), or even better, a flailing about and roll around on the pitch. He's not going to get the calls acting like a 3 year old who just had his toys taken away, and I really wish Kenny (maybe he already has?) would give him a talking to. Not sure it would help.
With all that said...this whole handshake saga has caused further embarrassment. I listened to all the excuses (cultural bias, Suarez has black grandparents, blah blah), and I even gave him the benefit of the doubt in the whole he said-she said thingy (after all, Patrice Evra is kind of a twat in his own regard). Suarez supposedly took the high road and said he would try to settle it with a hand shake. Then he pulls this crap. Inexcusable.
One of the things that first attracted me to Liverpool FC is the legendary faithfulness of their supporters. But the blind faith and conspiracy theories that have surrounded this whole ordeal has been even more ridiculous. Suarez has since apologized and says he wants this all behind him. But for me, it's a tad too late.
It could've been over with. Instead, Liverpool goes into the 5th Round of the FA Cup and a Carling Cup final with more bullshit surrounding them.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE KNOCKOUTS TODAY!!!!!!
To reach the Quarters over 2 legs...WINNERS:
Barca. La Liga is outta reach. Full bore ahead for Pep and the boys in the CL.
Lyon. The surprising run of APOEL comes to an end. Lyon is crazy like that.
Benfica. Rolling in Portugal. Should be a crackin 2 legs.
Arsenal. Even if Ibra slaps more dudes, we still like the English side here. Milan has their hands full in Italy with Juve.
Real Madrid. Would love to post some Stunned Jose pics...not happening.
Napoli. UPSET alert! Eff Chelsea.
Marseille. Sad to say. My Inter is awful. Marseille have the best kits in the competition.
Bayern Munich. In a domestic battle with Dortmund currently...still too much for Basel here.
THESE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!! (raise your Heineken)
"[He's] not just racking up the points, but you look at the plays he's making, he looks like Mario Lemieux out there, just dangling [the puck] and doing what he wants to do."
Asked for specifics about how Malkin tastes in your mouth...
"He's gigantic. On ice level, he's just a monster out there who can skate, sees everything, can put the puck inside out, inside your pants and out. He can shoot. He just has it all. You can't handle him one-on-one. That's what's tough. You don't know what he's going to do, first of all. And then he's got the strength, the size, the reach and the speed to really give it to you."
Yeah...he said it. That's high praise from a coach who was doing more whining than complimenting during last year's playoffs. We won't disagree. Malkin is dominating all over the ice right now. He's scoring huge goals at key times, setting up huge goals at key times, back checking like a Selke worthy forward. He's a beast amongst little turds. And then he's taking your girlfriend home.
Similar to Mario and Sid, he's making everyone around him better. The first line is absolutely sick right now. Letang is sick. Geno is mad sick.
what happens when Sid comes back? After all, 87 didn't appear to lose a step for those 10 games he played back in December.
I was a Malkin hater the last 2 years...I admit it. But that's because he sucked. "Sucked" is harsh...I'd say he was in the Top 50. But dude is back in 2008-09 form...and in those days, you had Ovie in the discussion. Eff Ovie. It's all Geno. Best Russian born player in the league, with an honarable mention to Datsyuk. Any coincidence that Geno's game thrives when he plays more like Datsyuk than Ovechkin?
My first reaction was that Carey Price's whines were justified. A further look into the NHL rule book shows they are not. There is a little-known codicil in the Faber College constitution which allows the "spin-o-rama" in the Shootout. Yes...the NHL rule book actually lists the "spin-o-rama" as a legal move:
"The spin-o-rama type move where the player completes a 360° turn as he approaches the goal, shall be permitted as this involves continuous motion."
Malkin's move was a continuous motion. Carey Price can shut his yapper. Damn. A sweep over the Habs would've been nice.
On another note: P.K. Subban must be Exhibit A for those (including me) wanting to abolish the instigator rule. He's the toughest player in the league, right to the point where he turtles. Yeah...Matt Cooke is also an exhibit. But at least he's tried to straighten out. Subban just continues to cheap shot and slew foot with complete impunity from Sheriff Shanahan.
The Empties Crushed bounty has been placed: A hundred bucks of my own money for the first of my guys who really nails that creep.
Final Note: Montreal's PP is 30th in the NHL. Note to Randy Cunneyworth: may wanna rethink the strategy of sending a forward out on your PP who hasn't scored a goal in a flipping YEAR. Here's looking at you Scott Gomez.
Pretty comical that...in between 2 hours of commercials and Madonna's lip-synced halftime performance...the biggest play in the NFL's biggest game of the year came down to this...
The Patriots were trying to let the Giants score, while the Giant's Ahmad Bradshaw was told NOT to SCORE. Bradshaw screws up, and awkwardly falls into the end zone for the SCORE. THAT was your game deciding play in Super Bowl X-?
SPOOOOOOOOOOOOORTS!
In the end, everyone was happy. Beliturd was probably pissed.
Watch the Beloved Stillers smash the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl X-something. The only thing that can save "America's Team" from their beating is a giant blimp crashing into the Orange Bowl. (I woulda said "spoiler alert" but the DVD cover kinda ruins it anyway).
To Paille's credit, he didn't come running after Orpik after this perfectly clean and boobie-blasting hit. Can't say the same for Chara, who acted like a little beatch after getting checked (cleanly) by Kunitz. God I hate that.
Great game from Brooks. Flower was better than Thomas, who probably made more "political statements" after the game. Eff him.
