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Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Marty, the Oil Kings, Curling And Many Other Things





Is Marty Brodeur the best goalie in hockey history??? It’s a question you have been asked over the past couple of days and it’s a question you will continue to get asked over the next few days. Brodeur recorded win number 552 to surpass Patrick Roy as the goalie with the most career wins in the NHL as his New Jersey Devils beat Chicago 3-2. You can see the highlights and post game ceremony by clicking on the link.

http://www.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?hlg=20082009,2,1040

How cool was it to see Brodeur take a page from basketball and cut out the net. I’m guessing that will hang proudly somewhere in what has to be a great collection of memorabilia. I wonder if he got a congratulations e-mail from Sean Avery?? Its hard not to consider Brodeur as one of the greatest if not the greatest puckstopper to ever play the game. Some will still consider Patrick Roy to have that honour, others might have Ken Dryden or Dominik Hasek and some might consider Vladislav Tretiak. I’ve always wondered what type of NHL career Tretiak would have had. Alas we will never know. The question to you…who is the greatest goalie in hockey history????
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The WHL is getting its first ever playoff edition of “The Battle of Alberta. The Edmonton Oil Kings go into Prince Albert for a tiebreaker game and come out the winner as Rhett Rachinski’s overtime goal gives Edmonton a 2-1 win over the Raiders meaning the Oil Kings get that 8th and final spot in the Eastern Conference and the right to play the Calgary Hitmen in the first round of the WHL playoffs.
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Have you seen Alex Rodriguez’s latest photo spread??? If you have, are you like me wondering what the hell is the Yankees 3rd baseman thinking. If you haven’t, here’s one of the pictures.



EWWWWWWWW!!!!!! Let me repeat myself…..EWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!! Did he inject something into his brain. This picture and the others can be found by clicking on the article in Details Magazine.

http://men.style.com/details/features/landing?id=content_8397

This will literally do nothing to help Rodriguez’s already damaged image. It may also have some wishing the 3rd baseman can start doing his thing in San Francisco if you know what I mean----not that there’s anything wrong with that. An old co-worker of mine might actually become interested in what A-Rod is doing now if he sees this.
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After being so dominant in Calgary, Kevin Martin and company have landed in Yorkton. The Canada Cup of Curling begins today at the Farrell Agencies Arena. Twenty of the best men's and women's teams in the country are set to battle, not only for their respective $25,000 winning purse, but more importantly, to qualify for the pool of 16 men's and 16 women's teams eligible for the 2009 Tim Hortons Canadian Curling Trials, December 6-13 in Edmonton, which will determine Canada's representatives for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. TSN will provide live coverage of the women's and men's semi-finals on Saturday, March 21, followed by the women's (8:30 am CT/10:30 am ET) and men's (7:30 pm CT/9:30 pm ET) finals on Sunday, March 22. SaskTel Max Local on Demand is also airing all round robin draws, plus the Page Playoff games, province-wide, on a 24-hour delayed basis. Here’s a complete list of the rinks taking part……

MEN'S TEAMS (listed in order of skip, third, second and lead)
Team Appelman - Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, AB
Ted Appelman, Tom Appelman, Brandon Klassen, Brendan Melnyk
Team Burtnyk - Assiniboine Memorial Curling Club, Winnipeg, MB
Kerry Burtnyk, Don Walchuk, Richard Daneault, Garth Smith
Team Ferbey - Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, ABRandy Ferbey (third stones), David Nedohin (fourth stones), Scott Pfeifer, Marcel Rocque
Team Gushue - Bally Haly Golf & Curling Club, St. John's, NL
Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Ryan Fry, Jamie Korab
Team Howard - Curling Beauséjour, Moncton & Gage Golf and Curling Association, Oromocto, NB
Russ Howard, James Grattan, Jason Vaughan, Steven Howard
Team Koe - Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, AB
Kevin Koe (third stones), Blake MacDonald (fourth stones), Carter Rycroft, Nolan Thiessen Team Martin - Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, AB
Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Hebert, Jules Owchar (coach)
Team McEwen - Assiniboine Memorial Curling Club, Winnipeg, MBMike McEwen, B.J. Neufeld, Matt Wozniak, Denni Neufeld
Team Middaugh - St. George's Golf and Country Club, Toronto, ON
Wayne Middaugh, Jon Mead, John Epping, Scott Bailey
Team Stoughton - Charleswood Curling Club, Winnipeg, MB
Jeff Stoughton, Kevin Park, Rob Fowler, Steve Gould

WOMEN'S TEAMS (listed in order of skip, third, second and lead)
Team Arsenault - Mayflower Curling Club, Halifax, NS
Mary-Anne Arsenault, Kay Zinck, Laine Peters, Theresa Breen, Peter Corkum (coach)
Team Bernard - Calgary Curling Club and Calgary Winter Club, Calgary, AB
Cheryl Bernard, Susan O'Connor, Carolyn Darbyshire, Cori Bartel
Team Englot - Tartan Curling Club, Regina, SK
Michelle Englot, Deanna Doig, Roberta Materi, Cindy Simmons
Team Holland - Kronau Curling Club, Kronau, SK
Amber Holland, Kim Schneider, Tammy Schneider, Heather Seeley, Jolene McIvor (alternate), Merv Fonger (coach)
Team King - Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, AB
Cathy King, Kaitlyn Lawes, Raylene Rocque, Tracy Bush
Team Kleibrink - Calgary Winter Club, Calgary, AB
Shannon Kleibrink, Amy Nixon, Bronwen Webster, Chelsey Bell, Crystal Webster (alternate), Ron Meyers (coach)
Team Larouche - Etchemin Curling Club, St-Romuald, QC
Marie-France Larouche, Nancy Bélanger, Annie Lemay, Joëlle Sabourin
Team Lawton - CN Curling Club, Saskatoon, SK
Stefanie Lawton, Marliese Kasner, Sherri Singler, Lana Vey
Team Middaugh - Coldwater & District Curling Club, Coldwater, ON
Sherry Middaugh, Kirsten Wall, Kim Moore, Andra Harmark
Team Scott - Kelowna Curling Club, Kelowna, BC
Kelly Scott, Jeanna Schraeder, Sasha Carter, Renee Simons

This should be a great event and I’m guessing a lot of Saskatchewan curling fans will pour into the 18-hundred seat facility to watch some top-notch curling. Saskatchewan has really seen and will see some good curling over the past year. The 2008 Scotties followed by this event followed by the 2010 World Womens in Swift Current.
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With Eric Tillman having another day in court, it has brought up a debate that has gone on since word of the sexual assault charge against him became public. There is no doubt if Tillman is found guilty on this matter that he deserves every bit of abuse that is heaped upon him. However if he is found not guilty, will he be able to live a normal life in Saskatchewan? We are not a forgiving bunch here and this will always hang over his head. Has his character been destroyed already and is his time as Rider GM over? With word that the team is considering bringing in Brendan Taman, you know the team is ready to move on with or without Tillman. I just wonder what Eric’s future will be and how he will be treated if he should be found innocent. Sadly I do think his image has been shattered beyond repair. That is not a condemnation of Tillman, that is a condemnation of today’s society.
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Greg Harder’s story in the Regina Leader-Post yesterday concerning Pats GM Brent Parker has some people talking. Parker suggesting he has considered stepping aside and letting someone else take over. Ask Brent this question in a month when the sores of this season have healed and see what he says. Unless the cancer that Parker battled through at the start of the season acts up again, I am convinced he will remain the general manager of the hockey team. If there is one thing Parker is not, he is not a quitter. Stepping aside with his family still connected to the hockey team would be quitting. Brent will be back, Dale Derkatch will be back and so will the wins. If the 3rd part of that sentence doesn’t happen by the 30 game mark then it may be time to call the Derkatch era behind the bench a failure but I truly believe there will be a cleansing of the dressing room over the next few months and that when this team hits the ice for the 2009-2010 season that they will be competing for an Eastern Division title once again. With Brandon hosting the Memorial Cup, it will be a tough to do that but I think they will be very good next season. Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t agreed with everything Parker has done over the past few years but I do know he is trying to bring Regina hockey fans what they deserve. If he wasn’t trying then I would say for him to get a suitcase and walk out the Brandt Centre door and turn left so that the train could pick him up on the nearby tracks. He has his detractors and I understand that but there is no one more passionate about his club than Brent Parker and he will make it his mission this summer to immensely improve his hockey team.
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MMA fans take note!!! The big waste of skin known as Kimbo Slice has decided to abandon mixed martial arts. Kimbo says he is now going to concentrate on boxing. Who’s kidding who MMA fans, wouldn’t you love to see Brock Lesnar step into the octagon against Kimbo. That would just be a train-wreck!!!
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While watching the Oilers game last night, I saw the new product that MacDonalds is hawking. Yes, go to a golden arches near you and purchase a Big Mac Snack Wrap!!!!! I’ll pass on that one. No word if you have to wring the tortilla out once you get it. I’m thinking this won’t be a huge seller.
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One more thing, I did laugh at the latest ad they have put out but really, don’t you want to take Budd Light outside and lay the boots to him!!! You know you do..its OK to admit it! I personally think Alexander Keith would kick his ass all over the bar.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

The best news I've heard all day is that Kimbo Slice is leaving MMA. He was a joke to begin with and still is a joke. He was NEVER a mixed martial artist and the only organization willing to market him as such - well their fate explains it all. Good Riddance Kimbo!

As for Brodeur being the greatest of all time. Personally, I'd say Martin Brodeur is right near the top of the list. His stats don't lie and it also helped that the Devils trapping style of play in the mid-90s was very condusive to his style of play. Though, as I wrote in my blog, (shameless plug I know lol) I do think this record is tainted with the Shootout Wins.

Anonymous said...

I had never considered Tretiak until you mentioned it. Tretiak certainly was at his best when he played Canada but would he be able to take the rigours of a full NHL sked for 10 years. I don't think so.

It didn't matter who won last night. Calgary would beat a PA/Edmonton team combined in 4 straight. The only good thing about that matchup is there should be a lot of butts in the seats in both rinks.

I'm hoping to buy Martin a beer at the Canada Cup this weekend to congratulate him(and Heebs too). I was hoping to get a good look at Jennifer up close and personal to see if she is as hot in person as she is on TV

You are bang on when it comes to Tillman

Parker needs to go

The Big Mac Wrap???

I hate Bud Light. Give me Pil anytime

Big D

Anonymous said...

Why do you and Pedersen and Vanstone keep being so positive when it comes to Brent Parker. This team has never advanced to a conference final under his reign and it is has been 15 years now. If it was Shivers, the three of you would have thrown him under the bus a long time ago. Well maybe not Pedersen because he is nothing more than a shill for the Rider organization. I don't question Parker's passion but I question his decision making. 15 years without so much as being in a conference final is terrible. How many other teams in the East have gotten that far over that time frame. Enough is enough

Randy