Okay seriously, what's going on.

Halifax Mooseheads won two games. In a row. Head over here for a game recap.

The team was decked out in snazzy sweaters for their Canadian Forces appreciation night. I've received rather untactful hints from man of the house that he wants one. We'll see.

Anyways....

There have been lots of encouraging things for the Mooseheads in the two wins. And, for that matter the heartbreaking 3-2 loss in Saint John Wednesday, where the Mooseheads were tied 2-2 with just 2 minutes left only to have the Sea Dogs score.

The team's secondary scoring has seemed to have shown up, and Mathieu Corbeil is playing more than okay.

Even stranger, the Toronto Maple Leafs played Friday and Saturday night as well, and THEY strung two wins together. Previous to that the Leafs also only had one win. Last night during a commercial break I mentioned to John the Leafs were winning 3-0. I then joked that the destinies of the two teams are linked. "oh dear," he said.

Yes, oh dear, is right. If the Hockey Gods have indeed linked the destinies of the Mooseheads and Leafs, I'm not sure who I feel worse for, the Mooseheads or the Leafs.

Go Leafs? (The Moose are doomed.)

Next up, the Moose host the Shawinigan Cataractes, who lost 7-0 last night. Not sure if that bodes well for the Moose or if Shawinigan will be super-mad that they lost 7-0. I'm hoping their souls have been crushed. Regardless, if Mathieu Corbeil (pictured below) can keep playing like he did in the last three games, the Mooseheads have a chance. Which is more than they had for most of the season.


Quick note, this is a screen shot from SportsandMoore.com, great website with lots of video from behind the scenes of our show. Not pictured is myself who toils away back at the studio, usually running around like a nut searching for stats, scores and audio clips.

coming to you live from dialup internet in PEI.

Saga #2 ends. Saga #1 continues.

Here’s the biggest surprise of 2008. Brian Burke is the new General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. (Can you feel the sarcasm?)

Now, since this is such a big surprise, nobody’s been really talking about it for months and months. This, of course, means every possible angle of his tenure has not been talked about by every sports analyst in the country.

So this all means that I have a lot to say about this.

It's funny, saga #2 has resolved itself and yet Saga #1 is still going. Mats Sundin “says” he’ll be back in December. (Tomorrow is December). But he also said he’d make a decision by Aug 1. Soooo, don’t hold your breath.



Favourite quote of the week:

“The opposition has every right to bring down the government. But Stephane Dion has no right to take power without going to the people.”

Is Stephen Harper high? The opposition outnumbers the Conservatives.

In fact, I would say that whoever the coalition chooses to lead, they will have more of a right to govern than Stephen Harper. The majority of the country actually voted against him.

Finally some juicy drama out of Ottawa.

Saga #1 and Saga #2 collide.

I was just watching That's Hockey on TSN. And both sagas were mentioned in one Perfect Saga Storm.

#1:

It appears Mats Sundin is thinking about a mid-December return.

"Mats is currently training daily with the intention to return," Sundin's agent, J.P. Barry said. "He may still decide not to play, however, if his training regimen doesn't produce the results he expects."

So he might think about making a mid-December return.

#2

The Toronto Maple Leafs' ownership group is expected to officially initiate contract negotiations with Brian Burke very soon.

I think this is a bad call for Toronto. I just don't know why yet.


Sometimes even if you think it's a good idea, you shouldn't do it.

Did this just happen? Is it real? Can I touch it?

My god. Someone lost their mind when they thought this would be a good idea. And my theory that every idea goes through at least seven people before it makes it to the general public is definitely in play here. What seven people were like, Slapshot 3? Great idea.

I mean, slapshot 2 was sacrilegious enough. But to make a third one.... I can't even talk about it. Next Question.


Democracy.

pfft. who needs it when you have electronic ballot stuffers...

"Forwards Alex Kovalev, Saku Koivu and Alex Tanguay, defencemen Andrei Markov and Mike Komisarek and goalie Carey Price are not merely leading every other player in their Eastern Conference categories. They are ahead by ridiculous margins, their monstrous numbers fuelled by computer-vote programs written to carpet-bomb, around the clock, for all six at once.

As of Sunday early afternoon, four days into balloting, Kovalev, Koivu and Tanguay had vote totals in the 190,000 range. The next closest forward, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, was approaching 84,000"

That does explain it. I was extremely surprised to see the margins. I wouldn't say many of the Canadiens have had allstar-worthy performances thus far. But then again... Sidney Crosby has six goals in 18 games and he's behind the Montreal forwards...

Magic Mittens.

Kyle Wellwood just scored the nicest goal i've seen in a while. I believe that Gord Miller just said he had "magic mittens". Remember when Toronto put him on waivers? good call guys. as usual.

Also, when checking Wellwood's wikipedia entry, i found this gem: "As of November 2008, Wellwood is currently on a 121 game streak without taking a penalty, which is by far the longest active clean-streak. His last penalty was taken on April 10, 2006."



"How do you spell intimidation? L - U - O - N - G - O." - Pierre McGuire.

Dispatch: from the front lines.

I'm writing this crouched underneath a table. I figure the sky will fall fairly soon.

The Toronto Maple Leafs beat Ottawa.

It's only a matter of time. Duck and Cover.




Hangover.

And that's what happens when you don't play for a whole week. The Canadiens haven't played since Monday. It looks like Carbonneau should've just played Tanguay for the whole game. Because he was on fire.

Jaroslav Halak started the game because Carey Price had the flu. But Price ended up in the net in the end.



Holy Hockey Batman.

All teams are in play tonight! I heard that this is the first time that absolutely every team is playing at once in a while. Something about the lockout was mentioned. Or 2005? meh. There's a lot of hockey tonight.

Strombopoopoobus.

"And he went after me when he was on Stopulopulus," said Don Cherry on Coaches Corner tonight.

He was referring to the comments made by Sean Avery when he was a guest on The Hour, hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos. Close Don... real close. (Actually it's a helluva lot closer than i would've expected. But I can't give you any points since you actually work in the same damn building as him.)


Bad Prediction?

Um, so far the Lightening are playing like the women's Italian hockey team. Apparently the team is in disarray. On the Satelitte Hotstove, Al Strachan even said that the players are not on the same page. He also said that the GM came into the locker room at intermission during the Europe trip.

They lost 3-0 tonight.

McCabe Due South.

Fret no longer Toronto, love him or hate him Bryan McCabe appears to be heading out of town, with the deal becoming official today says TSN.

The defenseman, who waived his no-trade clause in his contract, will be heading to the Panthers to join other former Leaf Wade Belak.

Overall I think this is a good thing for the Leafs, as now when a defenseman coughs up the puck at an inopportune time, at least you won’t be paying him $4.5 million a season.

One more step by Cliff Fletcher to try and put the past years behind them, where they belong.


And since it’s still a slow time for hockey I thought I’d send you this tidbit.

To tell you the truth I spent the first little while trying to figure out how drugging a jockey would benefit in some way… is there such a thing as an “anti-groth hormone” what kind of pain are these people in.

Oh what’s that? They’re drugging the horse? Wait, even stranger, they test the horses? And my last question, is one I just don’t understand, and probably never will. It’s the Olympics. You know you’re going to get a drug test… why do you morons still take the drugs?


LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Brazil's Rufus became the sixth horse to test positive for doping during the Beijing Olympics. Rufus, ridden by Rodrigo Pessoa, tested positive on Aug. 23 for nonivamide, a substance prohibited for its pain-relieving properties, equestrian's governing body said Monday.

Pessoa was fifth in the individual jumping final. The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) said it suspended him Friday after an initial hearing, and added that the backup "B" sample will be tested Tuesday in Hong Kong - the site of the Olympic equestrian competition. The FEI said Rufus' test is the last of a series of probes at the games.

Four horses were previously found to be positive during the games, and a fifth positive test was announced last week. The six horses match the number of doping cases among athletes in other sports during the Beijing Games.

No longer orphans.

Three teams have been removed from the orphan list this week as they found head coaches.

The Toronto Maple Leafs hired Ron Wilson, the former head boss for the San Jose Sharks, the Leafs brass apparently wanted someone who was well accustomed to dealing with underachieving. (ummm?) However, unlike former coach Paul Maurice, Wilson is not promising that the team will make the playoffs (probably a safe assumption), and noted that this will certainly be a rebuilding period (what was the last 5 years?).

Anyway I can't help but note the opportunity missed here, I've said this before but I want to repeat these two things again: John Tortorella and Toronto Media. Why, oh, why was this opportunity missed? John Tortorella has always been at odds with the media, and he also loves calling out his own players to them. Can you imagine what it would've been like in a city where the press probably follows the head coach home at night and stakes out the house like paparazzi I am absolutely certain that if they had have hired him, it would've ended in a giant press conference clearing brawl.

Okay, I'm done with the Tortorella dream. Back to the orphan teams, San Jose picked up Todd McLellan (former assistant with the Detroit Red Wings). This is McLellan's first head coaching position, we'll see how that shitwagon rolls when the season starts.

Finally, and possibly the most intriguing. The Ottawa Senators picked up Craig Hartsburg as their new head coach. This will definitely be an interesting ride, he has won taken Canada's World Junior hockey team to back-to-back golds... But, it's Ottawa, the team is a little... off. If Dany Heatley plays the way he did at the World Championships this year then maybe they'll be in business. But if Jason Spezza plays like he did at the World Championships, maybe not. It also really depends on a ton of off season stuff... July 1 will really be huge for the Senators. So Hartsburg definitely inherits a team that has their share of issues. God speed, Hartsy... at least it's not the Leafs job?

Is today real?

am i really writing this blog right now? This is a test. Maybe i'm just asleep... and when i wake up tomorrow this post won't exist because what I experienced as March 29 wasn't March 29 at all. I was just dreaming about what March 29 would be like, if March 29 was a really gawd-awful, terrible day.

The day was going pretty good, I was hanging out this afternoon watching Jennifer Jones play Japan after losing to China yesterday and having to play an extra game to go to the finals of the World Championships. Jones came back from 3 points back, to steal a point in the extra end which sent them to the final to face China for a third time... third time's a charm?

Anyway, everything started going downhill shortly after that. I was enjoying a few brewskis at the Midtown Tavern in Halifax when suddenly i found myself sulking into those brewskis.... the Toronto Maple Leafs... yes that team that is neither going to make the playoffs, but isn't terrible enough to qualify for the top draft pick in the lottery... beat the Montreal Canadiens.... the team sitting atop the Conference.... 4-2. 4-2!??! are you serious?

To make it fair... the Canadiens were without a slew of important players. Defensive specialist Mike Komisarek is still out, captain Saku Koivu is out with a "foot injury" (Alexei Kovalev was wearing the "C") As well unsung hero Mark Streit who can play either D or forward was also out with a "foot injury. To make matters worse, Francis Bouillion took a nasty slap shot to the inside of the knee. He didn't leave the game but it didn't look like it tickled. Not to mention that Halak started in net instead of Price and let in some questionable goals.

Ok wait, let's talk about the fact that Halak started in nets instead of Price. When the Christobal Huet trade was executed, it was said that this solidified Price's spot as the top goaltender. If this is the case, why are the Canadiens starting Halak down the stretch to the playoffs? It is understandable that Price played last night and faced a lot of shots, but generally you want your goaltender on a roll and hot going into the playoffs. Besides, Price needs to get used to playing a lot... it's not exactly something that he's had a lot of practice at this season, since he and Huet basically alternated up until the trade deadline.

To make matters worse, i just got home and i'm really craving a flatbread pizza, which i can't make because i forgot to buy cheese this afternoon at the grocery store.

Habs, Leafs, Sens and Pens

Habs pulled out a shootout win over the struggling Boston Bruins, the Canadiens swept the season series. Boston did of course manage to get a point out of the ordeal which bodes well in keeping them in the playoffs. Judging by the way the season series went, it would be in the Canadiens best interest to have Boston stay in the playoffs. Koivu was the only player to score in the shootout, as Boston placed some questionable shooters in their list. Chara, Kessel and Wideman?


The Leafs and Sens played each other last night as well. Basically, I think it's funny when the Leafs manage to beat the Sens, but also I hate that the Leafs still think they have a chance at making the playoffs. The Leafs beat the Sens 5-4. Poor poor Ottawa. Stupid stupid Toronto.

And New Jersey who? New Jersey forfeited SEVEN goals to the still Crosby-less Penguins and managed to score only 1. Malkin topped 100 points with a 3-point night.



After last night the Penguins picked up a 2 point lead on the Devils and now lead the Atlantic Division. The Canadiens remain in first place in the Northeast as well as the Eastern Conference and now have a 5 point lead on the Senators (thanks to the Leafs). And Carolina still leads the Southeast (but Washington is closing in, with only 5 points separating the two now.)