Well, Gentle Reader, it’s another beautiful day here for all manner of outdoorsy, autumnal activities, but only a crazy person would opt to do those things instead of watching hockey! So we’re settling back, keeping our fingers crossed that the tech crew at O2 arena has learned how to turn on the lights, and hoping against hope that the Ducks don’t remember how to play hockey before the end of today’s game.
Oh, that’s right! Today’s game is on VS! No Brian Hayward for us… we hope. Instead it’s Gary Green and Paul Romanuk, two guys we’ve never consciously heard call a game before. Nice of VS to bring their “A” team to the NHL’s stupid big media-event season opener, instead of just coopting the NHL Network’s feed. That’s just the sort of move a big-time sports broadcaster like ESPN would do.
After Bernier impressed us all yesterday, the Kings are doing what we all would have done if we were in their shoes – starting LaBarbera instead. In the studio show, Larry Murphy seems to think this is a good idea, because the Kings would just be “setting [Bernier] up for failure” if they left him in. Pookie says Cloutier is down in the minors saying, “Vindication! They set me up to fail! It wasn’t my fault!”
Oh no. They toss us out live to hear the anthems, and it’s the same chick from yesterday. A close-up of Andy McDonald shows he’s just as horrified to have her back again as we are. A close-up of Baby Nieder on the bench prompts Pookie to gasp, “He’s dying his beard to look more like Scott!” (His stubble is liberally sprinkled with gray that we don’t remember from last Spring. Nice try, Rob.) In all fairness, we’ll say the anthem singer did better today, but only marginally. It seems learning the words to our anthem was not a priority for her, and she didn’t mangle her own anthem as badly as she did yesterday. But still. We hope to not have to see anymore games in London if she’s a requirement at them.
In less notable news, it seems the Ducks are going with Hiller today instead of Bryz.
FIRST PERIOD
18:49 So far Getzi and Perry seem a bit pissier than they were yesterday, as if they woke up this morning and realized they’re 0-1 on the season.
17:53 These broadcasters have voices like cartoon characters. A shot of the Ducks bench at a stoppage in play prompts one of them to squeak, “Ah! Randy Carlyle! Mr. Grumpy!”
16:19 The Getzis get another shift deep in the offensive zone, but don’t force any fantastic chances. Pookie suggests they look like they’re still trying to decide whether they’re going to play hard today.
15:17 Baby Nieder gets pushed off the puck near the Kings blueline, and the announcers just simply call him “Niedermayer”. We take a moment to revel in the Big Niederlessness of the Ducks.
13:20 It took almost seven minutes, but this game has finally settled into normalcy: a really bad offensive-zone penalty by Bertuzzi (in this case, high sticking).
We’re sure it goes without saying that this Briere-shooting-out-windows commercial is really, really stupid. The part that really gets us is that he doesn’t even look angry in his “angry face” shots – he looks petulant and spoiled and like he’s got a bright light shining on his face. Pookie decides, “He looks like a guy I wouldn’t want to cheer for.”
13:10 Visnovsky gets things looking even more like yesterday’s game by taking his team off the PP with a bad interference penalty. As he skates to the box, the announcers give us the totally predictable report that Pronger was playing with an undisclosed injury during the playoffs last year (we hate these “no one knew it, but…” stories after the fact). It seems his ass hurt or something. Boo hoo.
11:17 The Kings head down the ice on a two-on-one, but Nagy wisely takes a high-sticking penalty well behind the play. We take a moment to discuss how we’re trying to get into this game but having a really hard time with it. It feels like we’re watching a game from a different league – these announcers are weird, the picture is strange, the crowd doesn’t sound like an NHL crowd… it’s like when you’re in a hotel room in Europe and stumble across a hockey game on the TV. That said, the London crowd is doing an NHL-caliber job of booing Pronger and his gimpy ass.
9:07 After the Ducks engage in some classic power-play overpassing, Perry makes a very nice move dragging the puck around the D and LaBarbera to take a 1-0 lead. Pookie grumps, “Bernier would have stopped that.”
7:36 Out of concern that his team is falling behind in the “stupid penalties” column of the stat sheet, Parros tries to even things up with a goaltender interference minor. We don’t think the Kings really look capable of taking advantage of this, though; they’ve had the puck in the Ducks’ end for about 13 seconds of this game.
5:36 We were trying to give them the benefit of the doubt, but we can hold back no longer: the Kings suck today.
5:07 Brady Murray gets called for a flying, leaping stick-hold on Parros in the neutral zone. The flow of this game is almost more than we can handle!
4:43 The PP collapses down around LaBarbera and the hapless PK unit, and Kunitz punches an atrociously uncovered puck into a wide-open net. 2-0 Ducks. LaBarbera looks exactly how you’d expect a career minor-leaguer to look.
2:47 Guess what! Hiller is still awake!
0:17 LaBarbera manages to hang onto a rebound, thus ending a shift-long clinic by the Kings titled “How To Repeatedly Give The Puck Away In Your Own Zone”.
0:00 Well, that period sucked. But then to make us feel better, VS gives us our very favoritest commercial EVER: Jitterbug! It’s the cell phone Sid feels comfortable using!
FIRST INTERMISSION
We’re making lunch and not listening. Sorry. You’re on your own for this one.
SECOND PERIOD
19:35 The announcers are talking about what a success this London adventure has been, and assures us the NHL has plenty more such media stunts in the works. Like holding an All-Star game there. They’re kidding, right? They have a hard enough time getting guys to go to All-Star games in North American cities – how are they going to get them to go overseas for it? Do they mean an AHL All-Star game?
17:41 After several minutes of Ducks pressure, LaBarbera dives to cover a puck just outside the crease and misses. It is almost uncanny how every time he goes down he makes himself miraculously farther away from the puck than he was when he was on his feet.
17:08 A cannon shot bounces hard off the back boards, Perry finds the rebound and makes no mistake in putting the Ducks up 3-0. The ones who did make a mistake on that play? Most of the Kings. Replay shows LaBarbera and JMFJ both looking shocked that rebounds off the boards are still in play.
15:47 Was yesterday’s result a fluke? It would seem so. Moen scores easily over a flustered LaBarbera on a sequence that was started by LaBarbera flubbing a puck behind his net, and the Kings D standing around with their heads up their asses. The announcers seem to think LaBarbera was hung out to dry, and say, “He was in a little bit of trouble there.” Boomer, aghast: “Just right there? He’s been in trouble since this game started.” Schnookie: “He’s been in trouble since he had to start in the NHL and not the AHL.” Pookie: “He’s been in trouble since he was drafted by the Rangers.”
14:19 The announcers mention that the Ducks have “an awful lot of character.” Pookie: “The have an awful lot of character and a lot of awful character.” And you can quote her on that!
11:08 WOOOO! Cammalleri gives us some hope by swaggering across the goal line right at Pronger, then just whips the puck up over Hiller, who doesn’t even flinch. We whole-heartedly approve of this Cammalleri kid.
9:51 Oh for fuck’s sake. With the Kings buzzing around the offensive zone, Parros and some King (no we can’t be bothered to pay that much attention) start fighting for no good reason other than that the NHL wants to show off that British people aren’t disgusted by fights. Yawn.
When we come back from commercial we discover it was Thornton in the fight. It should be noted that he was interviewed during intermission, and his little tuft of facial hair prompted Pookie to regale the room with a lengthy story about a mangled roadkill squirrel tail she came across when she was taking a walk yesterday.
7:43 EEK! A closeup of Kopitar looks like he’s been weeping through layers of mascara. Someone give him a hand dabbing that all off with a tissue! Just… wow. We knew he has raccoon eyes, but he looks especially disastrous today.
5:48 Perry carries the puck with confidence and speed around behind the Kings’ net, and Pookie urges, “Come on! Put one more in behind Hanna Barbera [TM Katebits] so Bernier can come in!” We start a soft “Bernier! Bernier!” chant.
2:55 We look up to discover the Kings are on the power play. We totally missed the play that led to this because we were too deep in a discussion about Jordan Parise’s Shattuck tattoo (no, Gentle Reader, we are not making this up, and yes, Gentle Reader, this was only brought to our attention yesterday) to pay attention to the game.
0:55 Paying attention is highly overrated. Nothing of note happened on that PP.
0:00 Remarkably, this period had a bit more Kings puck possession, but unremarkably it also still had Hanna Barbera in net for them.
SECOND INTERMISSION
The way they do the highlights, without any voice-over or anything, it feels kind of like they’ve started the third period without warning.
We get a little interview with Mike Cammalleri, and before he starts speaking we both say, “I bet he talks like one of the Chipmunks!” He doesn’t. Pookie declares she thinks he looks better with his helmet on, and that she doesn’t like his “perpetual frown”. “I’d turn that frown upside down,” she says.
THIRD PERIOD
Coming back from intermission, the announcers are telling us how vital it is for teams to have strong Octobers. One of these guys is going on about how the Ducks kicked ass last October, the Canes did the year before that, and the Lightning did before that. You know who also kicked ass last October? The Sabres. And it gave them a false sense of entitlement, so there you go. Don’t get us wrong – the points in October are worth the same as the points in March, but we’ll posit that how you play in April, May and June means a lot more for your Cup chances than how you play in October.
17:41 The announcers are now telling us that Bettman is right when he tells us no other North American sports league is as international as the NHL. Considering that the NBA draws players from five continents, we beg to differ.
16:51 Getzi is stymied by LaBarbera just as the play-by-play guys are telling us he has no idea how good he can be. Don’t worry, Getzi – you might still be a “future star” in some people’s books, but you’re a present-day superstar in our hearts. Now, about your teeth…
15:50 We are terrible diarists; it seems there were some matching minors called, but we didn’t notice what for or on whom because we automatically stop paying attention when Pronger is on the screen and people are talking about the issue of head shots in the NHL.
12:46 LaBarbera accidentally makes a mask-save on a Kunitz shot. At least, we can only assume it was an accident, because if he’d been trying he would have somehow ended up somewhere far outside the crease.
11:04 The play-by-play leads to the statement, “Mike Cammalleri. Another guy who’s played in some big games.” A pause settles over our living room, before Schnookie prompts, “Like?” Pookie finishes for him, “Los Angeles Kings vs. St. Louis Blues, February 7th 2007…”
10:19 Nagy gets the puck behind Hiller’s net and suddenly gets struck with the thought that maybe Hiller sucks as bad as LaBarbera; he tries to walk out in front and just toss the puck into his feet. Hiller, as it turns out, does not suck as bad as LaBarbera, and the score remains 4-1.
8:00 The Kings get some sustained pressure in the Ducks’ zone, and Pookie is unable to contain a cheer of “GREASE!” when Calder touches the puck. She apologizes, and Schnookie reassures her it’s okay, “It’s hard not to say it. It’s just such a great nickname.”
6:24 The crowd is as quiet as we are. As the puck squirts down toward Hiller, someone on the ice whispers, “No ice!” and it reverberates through the catacomb-silent arena. This has not been one of the most scintillating periods of hockey we’ve ever seen.
5:07 Pookie announces, “This game has now sunk below ‘doing laundry’ on my list of things worth thinking about.” It really does feel like a Ducks-Kings game now. Stupid Western Conference.
4:55 We get to hear about how Rob Blake is not going to be traveling with the Kings back to the States because he’s going to Toronto to film a part in Mike Myers’s stupid hockey movie. We are now officially completely over this movie. We’d like to issue a moratorium on people talking about it. And we haven’t really even heard much about it. That’s how stupid this movie talk is.
2:50 A close-up of Hiller shows that the Ducks logo looks eensy-weensy on the front of his sweater. Moments earlier Pookie remarked that the font on the backs of the Kings’ sweaters looks really small, too. “It’s like everything is shrinking,” she says now. “Or I’m getting bigger.”
1:35 The color guy completely loses his mind after Frolov gives up a puck to Pronger too easily for his liking. “It’s like he just gave up!” the guy shouts. Pookie: “Like the rest of us.”
1:10 Perry prolongs our misery by taking a tripping penalty.
0:00 In assessing this overseas extravaganza, the NHL Network announcers can only muster an “I give it a 4 out of 5.” What? The NHL’s own broadcast can’t even give this a 5 out of 5? Then how bad was it for reals?
But we shouldn’t complain too much. It was hockey. Weird, Western Conference hockey. But hockey nonetheless. Now bring on the real stuff!
I am so tired.
Hey, kms2! 82 and oh, baby! Right? :D Congrats to the Kings for looking so good last night.
poor kms2….all that beer and hockey is making you tired!
I am so tired.
Don’t you mean, “I’m so bright-eyed and bushy-tailed! Hockey’s back!” No? Oh, okay then. :)
it’s not 9 am where you are. Hey, Bertuzzi gets the first penalty again!!
ha!!!!! the stupid briere commercial!!!!
ha!!!!! the stupid briere commercial!!!!
Should we really be glorifying vandalism? They should have a disclaimer at the bottom of Briere’s commercial that proves they have permission from the owners.
(Professional shooter on closed course)
Hee hee, Patty! That’s all I’m going to be able to think about when I see that commercial now. Which is good. Because until now, all I could think of was that the “intense, angry” shot just looks petulant and whiny.
so…my kings look like shit today.
awesome.
I wish I could disagree with you, kms2. I’m so, so sorry. But! There’s still plenty of time for the Ducks to lose interest!
Did y’all see Mags on yesterday’s broadcast? I saw some comments that she was on the Eurosports feed. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the same feed, because the HDNet guys mentioned a thanks to somebody else’s camera’s (and the picture wasn’t as pin-sharp and HDNet’s picture usually is).
If so, about what time?
Briere with his “tough” face is one of the funniest things ever. I love that commercial. What’s with the weird dog? Are they trying to suggest that Briere is wandering around the ghettos of Philly, garnering the respect of hoodlums and stray dogs alike? Because that is hilarious.
There’s still plenty of time for the Ducks to lose interest!
Or decide they can’t be beaten.
Are they trying to suggest that Briere is wandering around the ghettos of Philly, garnering the respect of hoodlums and stray dogs alike?
How funny! I bet that is what they’re going for.
Even though it’s a silly commercial, I am impressed that he can call a window and then hit it.
But that’s not really a function of your toughness.
Ooh! They should have done it at a carnival! All brightly-colored with bouncy music. And he could shoot pucks at the little stuffed clowns or the under-inflated baloons.
No way Patty. Those commercials are highly edited. He definitely shot first and then they filmed the “call”. Briere is faking both his toughness and his called shots. Silly, hobbit!
I’m with you, Katebits, that commercial is definitely staged. You can see the wires and trick lighting!
(Just kidding. I remember seeing one of the very, very rare fluff pieces about the Devils once, that featured Neider and Guerin goofing around after practice. They taped a small piece of paper with a target on it just under the crossbar and repeatedly hit it from the other end of the ice.)
I’m sure that Briere can do that, I just happened to take notice of the sneaky editing. And anyway, I’m sure that’s just a computer generated hobbit! :P
I’m sure that Briere can do that, I just happened to take notice of the sneaky editing.
He can do it, Vs just wasn’t paying him enough to do it, so they had to edit it later.
It’s all tricks of the camera! You’re so right, Katebits! (And yes, the editing is highly suspect. As is the scripting. I mean, who hastily counts out, “Three up and seven over”, or whatever his coordinates are? He’s like, “45 up from the big hole, and 72 over…” YEAH RIGHT!)
What I mean to say is that I am highly suspicious that Briere can’t count up to seven.
My comments just got posted out of order. Sorry.
The more comments I leave, the worse I’m making it! I need to go back to my diary now, and stop messing things up here.
“Three up and seven over”, or whatever his coordinates are?
I got suspicious when the soundtrack started in Briere’s weak, high-pitched whine for “See that big hole?” and then got all deep and computery for the numbers “three” and “seven”.
Oho! Fancy! I just fixed my timestamp and got my comments to go in the right order. That was very strange.
So many good bits to your first period coverage. One that really got me was…
2:47 Guess what! Hiller is still awake!
Too awesome.
I don’t get the same commercials as you guys. But, scrolling across the bottom of the screen during intermission is that today’s watch and win word is “Icing”. It’s like I’m famous! Immortalized!
Green/Romanuk calling the game – pretty good for the most part but I hate the way he says Beauchemin, sounds like Bosha-MEHHHn (hard to describe in writing). Also one of them was talking about Corey Perry being an ironman and said, “He played all 82 games last night and all 21 in the playoffs.” 82 games in one night, that IS impressive!!
He can do it, Vs just wasn’t paying him enough to do it, so they had to edit it later.
I bet Briere was too busy looking nervously at the scary Philadelphia neighborhood to shoot with accuracy that day. I wonder if they brought some enforcers along on the shoot, just in case a local hoodlum tried to board Briere. Later on (at the next commercial shoot), Briere can spear the hoodlum.
Ew. I hate the Ducks now. Stupid Ducks!
“Patty (in Dallas)” is somehow making me think of “Debbie Does Dallas”. I guess it would make more sense if it was (Dallas in) Patty.
BTW, I thought the commentators were talking about Bertuzzi having the “gimpy ass” in last years playoffs?
Oh, and when Bert took that stupid penalty today, they flashed to Carlyle’s face and I swear he was thinking,
“I told Burk-e I didn’t want this ass-wipe! &*^%$#@!)& hell, goddamn….”
They could at least make this game better by showing more of Bernier on the bench. Wait, he’s 19 right? I’m at least sort of allowed to say that?
Katebits, I see now how they could have faked it. I was trying to make them faking the shot, but it’s a real shot, so you’re right, they filmed the call later. He probably actually called the pane with the hole the first time and then missed it by one! :D
They could at least make this game better by showing more of Bernier on the bench.
Heh. I just got finished yelling at the TV “Put Bernier in!” I hadn’t even bothered to stop and consider how old (young?) he is.
Later on (at the next commercial shoot), Briere can spear the hoodlum.
Hahaha!
My comments just got posted out of order. Sorry.
I was having that problem yesterday, Schnookie! I was correcting a stupid typo and it showed up before the the comment that had the typo.
So instead of a correction, it became more of a warning. :D
Why on earth are the Kings playing this Hanna Barbara dude when the have cutie pants Bernier just sitting there?! This is an outrage!
What’s the score? It won’t come in on my tv for some reason. But at least I’m not missing my sorta new baby crush Bernier.
About Time!!!!
Ooh! Cammalleri!
I love that guy!
Yay! Good work lil’ Kings!
I don’t care who you think won that fight but you have to go to hockeyfights.com and vote for Thornton!!! I have a bet with my boss about which team will win the most fights and I’m determined to win the bet.
Do you think the teams were on orders from Bettman to fight?
I hadn’t even bothered to stop and consider how old (young?) he is.
Bernier-cutie-pants is 19. He’s legal.
Hockey has blown the lid of my previously held qualms about sweating barely legal guys. I have no morals anymore.
I do think Thornton won, kms2! When it was over and Parros stood up, I thought for a split-second he was covered with blood, but it was just his stupid hair sticking out of the wrong side of his helmet.
Bernier-cutie-pants is 19. He’s legal.
Whew! In that case, I can say it guilt-free — “Put Bernier in!” Actually, I was going to say something to the effect of “I wish the Devils had a cute-pants back-up” but then I realized, “Oh wait! We do!” I’m not used to my team being stacked with hotties.
Is the (in Dallas) annoying y’all? I was going to try it for a while, because I’ve been spamming the hockey blogosphere with comments lately under that name and I just wanted those that don’t know me here to recognize it’s the same person.
Weekes is cute? I haven’t seen him yet.
I think Patty (in Dallas) is very charming. I can’t quite put my finger on why I’ve always liked it so much, do I’m totally in favor of Patty (in Dallas).
Weekes is cute?
Hmmm…I don’t think so. But he was backing up Lundquist for awhile and there aren’t too many who can come close to Hank’s level of hotness.
So the game is finally picking up. Maybe my Kings should learn how to play a full 60 minutes.
I’m disappointed that the Caveman show is obviously going to be stupid. I think the Geico commercials are hilarious. But the guys in the new show are not the same actors, I’m pretty sure. They don’t have the same great “takes” as the ones in the commercials.
Hockey has blown the lid of my previously held qualms about sweating barely legal guys. I have no morals anymore.
Heh. Welcome to the club. All of the players seem so much older than I am, even though they’re close to the same age as me (or younger).
Thanks, Katebits. I struggled to think of something cute and funny and original, but I’ve decided I kind of like it, too.
(I originally stopped typing it all because I thought I had to retype my name and email address for every comment. Eventually I realized I should just allow a cookie and then I didn’t have to anymore. :P )
Weekes is cute?
Hmmm…I don’t think so. But he was backing up Lundquist for awhile and there aren’t too many who can come close to Hank’s level of hotness.
Well, he’s not Hank, but few are! And sure he’s maybe not as adorable as everyone’s new favorite LA King, but I’m certainly not going to say Weekes isn’t worth a second look!
Patty, I like the (in Dallas) addition because it’s like saying, “I love my Stars!” with every comment!
As much as I hate John Zeiler, it absolutely kills me that the announcers cannot pronounce his name correctly.
Patty, I like the (in Dallas) addition because it’s like saying, “I love my Stars!” with every comment!
Uh-oh! I thought I was being more subtle! :D
I kind of like the broadcasters. The play-by-play guy is actually calling the play-by-play, for one thing. Which is becoming almost more than we can ask these days.
The other guy is somebody I still can’t decide if I like. He seems silly, but he makes some good points. Not silly and incorrect, at least.
I was a little ticked that Versus decided not to send their own team to a game they negotiated for an exclusive. But then I thought: it could be worse… they could have sent their own team!
But then I thought: it could be worse… they could have sent their own team!
:^::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
So true, so true.
The studio guys agree with kms2, that Thornton won that fight.
Drink everytime Cammalleri says, “No doubt” in an interview.
Wow, you guys outdid yourselves on the 2nd period. So many gems…
LaBarbera dives to cover a puck just outside the crease and misses. It is almost uncanny how every time he goes down he makes himself miraculously farther away from the puck than he was when he was on his feet.
Schnookie: “He’s been in trouble since he had to start in the NHL and not the AHL.”
his little tuft of facial hair prompted Pookie to regale the room with a lengthy story about a mangled roadkill squirrel tail she came across when she was taking a walk yesterday.
Drink everytime Cammalleri says, “No doubt” in an interview.
Haha!
I think they have a meeting at the beginning of the year and decide who gets what crutch phrase. Cammalleri, you get “no doubt”. Blake? You can use “obviously”. Lubo? You go with “fer sher”.
I think they have a meeting at the beginning of the year and decide who gets what crutch phrase.
Good one Patty (in Dallas). Do you think they flip coins to decide? Draw names out of a helmet? Play a rousing game of pin the tail on the donkey? (Loser gets a more difficult crutch phrase to use).
The way they do the highlights, without any voice-over or anything, it feels kind of like they’ve started the third period without warning.
They got me with that, too. Went to get a drink and thought, huh, that was a fast intermission, oh, wait.
(Loser gets a more difficult crutch phrase to use).
The loser gets “Therefore it is cogently evident that the salient points of my argument are…”
I’m a bit late to mention this, but I have decided 19 is not at all too young for me. And I’m sure Bernier really likes older women. (Like Katebits, I have been stripped of all my moral fiber by the NHL and its tantalizing morsels of almost-jailbait.)
The way they do the highlights, without any voice-over or anything, it feels kind of like they’ve started the third period without warning.
They do that in their On the Fly show and I’ve about decided that I like it. I don’t like when they have the highlight call up and talk over it, like they do on SportCenter. If they’re going to talk, turn down the actual game call in the highlight.
I know you folks like a daft nickname – since saying “calamari” yesterday instead of Cammalleri, he has now been officially dubbed Squid-boy in this house.
The loser gets “Therefore it is cogently evident that the salient points of my argument are…”
:^::::::::::::::
Squid-boy
Heh heh. Nice.
Iain! Long time, no see! How’s it going?
Squid-boy, love it!
nhnhnhnhnh squid boy squid boy nhnhnhnhhnnhhn
That was supposed to be the Batman song but I don’t know how well it turned out.
Hey, Pookie – I’ve been reading, just not commenting – I can’t keep up with the pace of it all! :)
Natalie & I are just happy to be watching hockey right now – even if it is the Kings and the Schmucks!
The Schmucks! Good one, Iain.
Natalie & I are just happy to be watching hockey right now – even if it is the Kings and the Schmucks!
It’s so sweet to see hockey again, isn’t it? This off-season was just brutal. And Schumcks? AWESOME.
this game is brutal.
Hey, I’m nothing if not puerile.
We were so close to buying tickets for these games, but we just couldn’t muster the enthusiasm for either team – if they had even involved one division-rival for either of our teams, we’d probably be there right now. Ah well, maybe next time…
Iain that nickname sounds like one I’d come up with. In fact, I’m not entirely sure “Squid-boy” hasn’t crossed my mind before. I like it!
Now that the 118 reasons are complete, I think the next Ookie project should be a comprehensive list of hockey nicknames.
What a great idea Iain!
Sorry, kms2. Still, you have the same record as the defending champs! That’s something!
Wow, that third period almost made me lose my will to live. That was brutal. But YAY HOCKEY! I mean, I’ll take dreadfully dull hockey over just about anything else!
That was pretty savage. Still, we’re off and running… bring on Thursday, and the Lightning!
I’m not too thrilled with this kind of schedule where they have 1 game, then 1 game, then none for 3 more days. I’d rather just wait until I can watch hockey all the time. :D
Still, we’re off and running… bring on Thursday, and the Lightning!
You bet! Less than a week until Devils hockey! Even if it doens’t look anything like the Devils hockey we know and love. What? Pando not on the PK?!?
I’d rather just wait until I can watch hockey all the time. :D
So true. We’ve got football on now, and I’m like, “Was the hockey all just a dream?”
And yeah, Thursday can’t come soon enough! I can’t believe Sutter looks like he’s actually trying to drag the Devils into a sort of present-day mentality, rather than keeping them rooted deeply in the “This is what won us the Cup four years ago” mindset. Although I’m very, very sad about this shift away from letting Pando do what he does best. This is the closest attention I’ve ever paid to a preseason though, so maybe I’m getting all worked up over nothing. Maybe I just need to let go and let Sutter!
The Western conference is not weird! *runs of crying*
That game was brutal though I’ll give you that. I’m so excited to write about my first real season game on the Humming Giraffe.
The Western conference is not weird! *runs off crying*
I can’t help it, alix! Bettman made it this way by allowing this stupid unbalanced schedule! But seriously, I’ve now seen two regular-season WC games, with nary an ECer in sight. It’s so strange! I feel faint. I need some familiarity to get my feet back under me.
(We’re also now working on our Western Conference season preview, and it’s making my head swim.)
Good for you branching out! Canucks actually got a fair bit of offence last night, I’m pretty pumped. Ewww I met a Rangers AND a Leafs fan last night(no offence Vinny) I seriously almost puked.
The Marauders better be glad they don’t have to play against my mixed-conference Sno-Cones! I’ve got Cammaller and Perry.
The Marauders aren’t scared of your Sno-Cones, Patty, no more than they’re scared of the Raccoon Wives. And by that I mean they’re not scared AT ALL! (Oh, BURN!) (That must feel nice, with the Perry and Cammalleri. That is, if you can still feel anything at all, having sold your soul for some Perry points. :P)
alix, are you suggesting (speaking of sold souls) that there is someone out there who is simultaneously a fan of both the Rangers AND the Leafs? Did they have cloven hooves and a forked tongue?
I didn’t see any hooves Schnookie, but they might have just been hidden from view. Yeah it blew my mind. In my head I was all like “How do you not wake up every morning and try to kill yourself?” And THEN he mentioned that his third favorite team that he sorta supports is the Flames. I’m really surprised my head didn’t explode. Corey Perry annoys the freakin hell out of me and I’m not even really sure why.
Does Corey Perry annoy you because he looks like Miranda from Sex and the City? Because that’s why he annoys me. And because he dives like a mofo and is a total whining little bitch. Other than that, he doesn’t annoy me in the least! :D
Yeah I think it’s mostly the whining and the diving and being a little bitch. Plus I think he might have hacked Louie a bunch of times with his stick in the last playoffs. Ok, so I do know why he annoys me. Ha! I had never realized that he looks like Miranda! He so freakin does! And she was the one I found most annoying on that show too.
I’ve actually only really ever seen Sex and the City in the hilariously nonsensical edited TBS version when I’m staying in hotels. I love how it becomes totally moronic when it doesn’t have profanity or nudity in it. X was a huge fan of Sex and the City, so we feel a certain smug satisfaction to see how devoid of any meaningful content it really is.
It is much better when you’re not seeing it on TBS. But yeah that show was pretty damn marshmallowy. I’m such a dork. I just read an article about Trevor Linden and his probable retirement and how Vancouver is home and I actually got misty eyed.
There’s nothing dorky about getting misty-eyed for that kind of article, alix! It’s only dorky when you read something like that about Brian Rafalski and how much he loves New Jersey one week before UFA day, and you get misty-eyed, and then he signs with Detroit on the morning of July 1. It’s only then that you’re a dork.
So true. We’ve got football on now, and I’m like, “Was the hockey all just a dream?”
I think today of all days makes it really feel like fall to me. Baseball season’s winding down, and hockey and football were both on tv in a weekend. Its fall!
It’s only then that you’re a dork.
Retroactively.
Its fall!
Plus, here there is an actual breeze blowing! (It’s still 90 effing degrees, but I’ll take what I can get.)
Oh, well yes that is unfortunate. Who knew Rafalski was such a slippery fox? I haven’t been a fan long enough to have gone through a retirement/number hanging thing. Pretty sure I will bawl like a baby when Trev retires.
That is, if you can still feel anything at all, having sold your soul for some Perry points. :P
That’s the beauty of fantasy teams. I can set my soul aside, without even having to sell it.
(And since my soul is still nearby, I can’t have Pronger on my team.)
Patty, I’m glad you’re able to keep your soul out of the fantasy hockey mix! That’s probably the best way to go about this sort of thing. :D
alix, I would concur that you’ll probably bawl like a baby. I sure did for Dano and Scotty Stevens!
Speaking of fantasy hockey, is it next week that my meatballs start kicking ass?
No, alix, I believe it’s this coming week in which my Marauders start kicking ass. :D
I’m having a hard time hating the Marauders because you have my darling Matty O :p But I’ll find a way I’m sure when we go head to head.
Would you hate us more if I told you I’m skating Matty three-a-days, and we subjected him to some cruel and humiliating hazing rituals? Because that’s just par for the course at Marauder camp. We’re an old-school, men-are-men sort of organization. When Swedes show up wearing cute little glasses, we make them prove their masculinity by doing elephant walks and stuff like that.
Oh no! My poor Matty 0! That is helping. And just so you know, I’ve cut Travis Zajac off from his macrame.
Noooooooooooo!!!!! Poor Travis! That’s… that’s… inhuman!!!! You’re a monster, alix!
I’m so tired that it took me way too long to realize that this is not the game diary and thread from yesterday. I kept thinking, “Wait, none of this sounds familiar.”
Aw, Heather, I’m sorry! And yeah, yesterday’s game diary didn’t sound as much like a death-march. SHEESH, but that game was boring!
Poor Heather! Sounds like you need a nap!
I do. I worked entirely too much this weekend and I’m not happy about it. I’m afraid I’ve reached the “if I nap now I won’t be able to sleep later” point but I’m debating it.
I slept for 3 hours yesterday afternoon, and fully expected to not be able to sleep last night, but no dice. I was completely wiped yesterday. I guess that first game of the season took more out of me than I expected! I say, “go for it!” In fact, I might go nap, too. Just to help support you in your napness.
I have to be up and at ‘em, leaving the house at 7:30 tomorrow morning, but even I’m thinking, “A nap at 5:30 wouldn’t screw my sleep patterns up too much, would it? Would it?” I think I’m going to risk it… What’s the point of being an adult if I can’t take naps at completely unreasonable times?
I think I’m going to risk it… What’s the point of being an adult if I can’t take naps at completely unreasonable times?
True. I have no sleep patterns at this point anyway so who am I kidding? A nap it is!
I’ve been trying to get work done all day and not stare longingly at my bed but it’s really not working.
Ahhhh! I feel so much better after that 30-minute power nap!