The 0708 NHL Regular Season officially began last Saturday but lets be honest the season doesn't really begin until The Montreal Canadiens play their first game. Last time we chatted, I said I really liked Kyle Chipchura to make the team and he did. Im happy for him. As for Carey Price, I would have put him on my team as well, but I am surprised that he'll start the season with the Canadiens. Two weeks ago, head coach Guy Carbonneau said Price would be #1 somewhere, needless to say this was Bob Gainey's decision and I applaud it. Im still not sold on Grabovski making the team, but if the line of Grabovski, Kovalev and Kostitsyn produce than thats all that matters. On the surface, it just seems like another small player on a small team. All that being said, I do think the Canadiens are slightly better than last year. Below are 5 reasons y:
1) better goaltending duo
2) coach is no longer a rookie
3) hamrlik upgrade defensively over souray
4) smolinski better all round than bonk
5) i expect more point production from young players and vets too (kovalev)
But even though I think The Canadiens are slightly better. For now, I dont have them in my Top 8. Here are my predicitions.
1- OTTAWA
2- NY RANGERS
3- CAROLINA
4- PITTSBURGH
5- BUFFALO
6- NEW JERSEY
7- PHILADELPHIA
8- TAMPA BAY
NB. The Habs will be 1 of those teams battling for the 8th spot. Its not impossible.
In the West:
1- DETROIT
2- SAN JOSE
3- VANCOUVER
4- ANAHEIM
5- MINNESOTA
6- CALGARY
7- COLORADO
8- DALLAS
For all you poolers; PJ Stock and I had a hockey pool on-air earlier today. We picked 15 different players each. All players points will be accounted for: Here it is:
My Team
1- SIDNEY CROSBY
2- DANY HEATLEY
3- JASON SPEZZA
4- VINCENT LECAVALIER
5- MARIAN HOSSA
6- EVGENI MALKIN
7- OLLI JOKINEN
8- ILYA KOVALCHUK
9- PAVEL DATSYUK
10- HENRIK ZETTERBERG
11- MARTIN ST LOUIS
12- BRAD RICHARDS
13- ERIC STAAL
14- JAROME IGINLA
15- SCOTT GOMEZ
PJ's Team
1- JOE THORNTON
2- JAROMIR JAGR
3- JOE SAKIC
4- ALEXANDER OVECHKIN
5- MARC SAVARD
6- DANIEL BRIERE
7- MICHAEL NYLANDER
8- DANIEL ALFREDSSON
9- RYAN SMYTH
10- ALEXANDER SEMIN
11- SIMON GAGNE
12- MARIAN GABORIK
13- THOMAS VANEK
14- MARTIN HAVLAT
15- MIKE CAMMALLERI
Honestly, I like my team....barring injuries; I will prevail.
By now you have probably heard of the programming change at THE TEAM 990. Over the past year, the station has received many emails from listeners who wanted more local programming and more hockey talk. Well, starting Monday, October 8th I will be on 1 more hour per day and so will PJ. The Montreal Forum will be on weekdays between 10am and Noon. Furthermore, PJ and I will be on-air together between Noon and 1pm. And, PJ will host The Stock Exchange weekdays between 1pm to 3pm. Basically, we eliminate ESPN Radio for now, and have 2 more hours of hockey talk.
I also wanted to add that I will host @18 Mtl Canadiens Week in Review Shows (Saturdays between 4pm and 6pm) and co-host The Montreal Canadiens Pregame Show on Saturdays as well. Last but not least, I will host and co-host @ 70 of 82 Montreal Canadiens Postgame Shows. Lots of work ahead....put Im very much looking forward to it.
Thanks for all your emails....talk to you soon.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Chipchura looking good.
The Montreal Canadiens have a few more Pre-Season games left. So far, a few youngsters have caught my attention. Below, I have taken a look at 6 players that played with the Champion Hamilton Bulldogs last season. I have broken it down into 3 categories. (A) Very Good (B)Good (C) Not good enough.
Let's begin with:
Very Good
Forward Kyle Chipchura. He's a smart player. The kid has NHL poise. He works hard and conducts himself like a professional already. Not too mention, he has been a Captain at every level. He will never put up bigtime numbers, but he will be a 3rd liner for a decade; barring injury of course.
Another forward, Matt D'agostini, continues to find the back of the net. The last time I saw a kid at camp score like that, it was Michael Ryder four years ago. Ryder, made the team that year; I don't think D'Agostini will because he still needs to work on his overall game. All that being said, he will be a good player at RW next season. And, if by chance Ryder is traded at the deadline (he's UFA in July 2008), then D'Agostini could take over.
Good
Goaltender Carey Price has given up 5 goals in just over 4 and a half periods of play. Price, has made some big stops and he handles the puck very well. I also like his size, demeanor and his talent is cleary undeniable. All that being said, he has got to be even better. Will be interesting to see if Jaroslav Halak lets the pressure get to him the rest of the way. Last week, head coach Guy Carbonneau said Price will be #1 somewhere; something tells me its Hamilton.
Defenceman Ryan O'Byrne skates really well for his 6ft5 235 pound frame. He has a good first pass and will be a good shot blocker. However, when I look at all the bodies available at D and all the guaranteed contracts, it makes me believe O'Byrne will have to do something special the rest of the way. He had an opportunity to accept a challenge from Gordie Dwyer on Friday nite but he backed down. IMO, He would have left a more favorable impression had he accepted the challenge.
Not Good Enough
Jonathan Ferland, has good size at 6ft 2 and 212 pounds. He shoots Right at would be a candidate to be the 12th or 13th forward. Ferland, was born in Quebec and you would think he would do everything possible to make the big club, especially since he's 24 and should be ready for primetime. He's not. He has shown little or no emotion. He's lack of desire and lack of competitive fire has been disappointing.
24 year old Duncan Milroy, is a Canadian boy and also a right winger. He played 1 game in the NHL last season. If he wants to have an NHL career he has to work on his skating. Truth is he cant skate at the NHL level. He's another guy who has done nothing to impress.
I know you're wondering about Corey Locke and Mikhail Grabovski, IMO they are too small on an already smallish team. In ending, Im not sure how many youngsters will make the Montreal Canadiens; but I was one of the decision makers, Kyle Chipchura would be one of them. Only time will tell. Stay tuned.
Talk to you later...
Let's begin with:
Very Good
Forward Kyle Chipchura. He's a smart player. The kid has NHL poise. He works hard and conducts himself like a professional already. Not too mention, he has been a Captain at every level. He will never put up bigtime numbers, but he will be a 3rd liner for a decade; barring injury of course.
Another forward, Matt D'agostini, continues to find the back of the net. The last time I saw a kid at camp score like that, it was Michael Ryder four years ago. Ryder, made the team that year; I don't think D'Agostini will because he still needs to work on his overall game. All that being said, he will be a good player at RW next season. And, if by chance Ryder is traded at the deadline (he's UFA in July 2008), then D'Agostini could take over.
Good
Goaltender Carey Price has given up 5 goals in just over 4 and a half periods of play. Price, has made some big stops and he handles the puck very well. I also like his size, demeanor and his talent is cleary undeniable. All that being said, he has got to be even better. Will be interesting to see if Jaroslav Halak lets the pressure get to him the rest of the way. Last week, head coach Guy Carbonneau said Price will be #1 somewhere; something tells me its Hamilton.
Defenceman Ryan O'Byrne skates really well for his 6ft5 235 pound frame. He has a good first pass and will be a good shot blocker. However, when I look at all the bodies available at D and all the guaranteed contracts, it makes me believe O'Byrne will have to do something special the rest of the way. He had an opportunity to accept a challenge from Gordie Dwyer on Friday nite but he backed down. IMO, He would have left a more favorable impression had he accepted the challenge.
Not Good Enough
Jonathan Ferland, has good size at 6ft 2 and 212 pounds. He shoots Right at would be a candidate to be the 12th or 13th forward. Ferland, was born in Quebec and you would think he would do everything possible to make the big club, especially since he's 24 and should be ready for primetime. He's not. He has shown little or no emotion. He's lack of desire and lack of competitive fire has been disappointing.
24 year old Duncan Milroy, is a Canadian boy and also a right winger. He played 1 game in the NHL last season. If he wants to have an NHL career he has to work on his skating. Truth is he cant skate at the NHL level. He's another guy who has done nothing to impress.
I know you're wondering about Corey Locke and Mikhail Grabovski, IMO they are too small on an already smallish team. In ending, Im not sure how many youngsters will make the Montreal Canadiens; but I was one of the decision makers, Kyle Chipchura would be one of them. Only time will tell. Stay tuned.
Talk to you later...
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Kudos to Kovalev and Beckham...
It seems more often than not we always hear the bad stuff about athletes (ex: michael vick); but rarely do we hear people talking about athletes going above and beyond the call of duty.
Take you back to last March. Alex Kovalev, receives a letter from Jocelle Cauvier, a resident of Grande Riviere in Gaspesie. Cauvier, tells Kovalev that she is his biggest fan and has all of his jerseys and other memorabilia. Kovalev immediately invites her to the Bell Centre to watch the morning skate vs the Capitals and meets Cauvier, her husband and her parents after the skate. Kovalev, then invites them to the game, giving them 4 spots in his ''Kovy's Kids Loge.'' Not only that but Kovalev promises Cauvier a goal. He delivered scoring 2 goals and picking up the puck of his 1st on the nite and gave it to Cauvier personally after the game. Before Cauvier left that nite she invited Kovalev to visit her in Grande Riviere and Kovalev agreed to do so. Last week, Kovalev did just that. But the only thing that made the headlines was that Kovalev scrapped the mayors 1992 Harley. My colleague Genadi Boguslavski, is a Russian Reporter who works for Sovietsky Sports. He was in Grande Riviere with Kovalev. Kovalev didnt scrap the bike....what happened was he was sitting on it and lost his balance and the motorcycle fell on him. The wheel of the bike got caught in a railing and the wheel got deformed. Thats it. Just so you know, the mayor paid the bike $12,000 back in 1992 and sent Kovalev a repair estimate of about $10,000....a little much dont you think? As a matter of fact, the accident was such a non-issue that Genadi Boguslavski, didnt even write about it. Mind you somebody leaked the so called accident story to Radio Canada. I tip my hat to Alex Kovalev; he doesnt owe anybody anything and its awesome that he went to visit the Cauvier family. If you want a great read on Kovy's visit to Grande Riviere..check out this link.
http://www.rushockey.com/events.php?i=nhl&stream=nhl_news&id=609
Thumbs up also goes out to David Beckham. It will be almost impossible for him to live up to his $250 million dollar pricetag awarded to him by AEG, owners of the LA Galaxy. However, Beckham has been everything I wanted him to be and more. In his first appearance, he comes off the bench and the visiting team applauds him. He distributes 2 great passes but unfortunately they weren't capped off. After the game, he gives his jersey to an opposing player. Next game, he scores a vintage Beckham goal on a free kick. Next up, his Galaxy play the Red Bulls in New York. Beckham arrives in NY a couple of days before and shows up to the Harlem FC Academy and tells the kids to stay off the streets. His message was go to school and play soccer. He spent the day with them. Come gametime Beckham picks up 3 assists and more importantly in front of over 66,000 fans. Thats what I call an impact player. Want to hear another good one? A fan asked Beckham to autograph a soccer cleat the fan brought from home; instead Beckham removed his own cleat, autographed it and gave it to the fan. Thats awesome stuff I think. Beckhams latest injury is unfortunate because the MLS was gaining so much momentum. IMO, so far he has done everything asked of him and much more. I admire what he's done.
In ending, Martin Rogers from Yahoo Sports wrote an interesting article of the possibility of more stars coming to the MLS. He put together his Top 10 Wish List. Check out the link.
http://sports.yahoo.com/mls/news?slug=ro-mlstargets082207&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
thats it for now...talk to you soon.
Take you back to last March. Alex Kovalev, receives a letter from Jocelle Cauvier, a resident of Grande Riviere in Gaspesie. Cauvier, tells Kovalev that she is his biggest fan and has all of his jerseys and other memorabilia. Kovalev immediately invites her to the Bell Centre to watch the morning skate vs the Capitals and meets Cauvier, her husband and her parents after the skate. Kovalev, then invites them to the game, giving them 4 spots in his ''Kovy's Kids Loge.'' Not only that but Kovalev promises Cauvier a goal. He delivered scoring 2 goals and picking up the puck of his 1st on the nite and gave it to Cauvier personally after the game. Before Cauvier left that nite she invited Kovalev to visit her in Grande Riviere and Kovalev agreed to do so. Last week, Kovalev did just that. But the only thing that made the headlines was that Kovalev scrapped the mayors 1992 Harley. My colleague Genadi Boguslavski, is a Russian Reporter who works for Sovietsky Sports. He was in Grande Riviere with Kovalev. Kovalev didnt scrap the bike....what happened was he was sitting on it and lost his balance and the motorcycle fell on him. The wheel of the bike got caught in a railing and the wheel got deformed. Thats it. Just so you know, the mayor paid the bike $12,000 back in 1992 and sent Kovalev a repair estimate of about $10,000....a little much dont you think? As a matter of fact, the accident was such a non-issue that Genadi Boguslavski, didnt even write about it. Mind you somebody leaked the so called accident story to Radio Canada. I tip my hat to Alex Kovalev; he doesnt owe anybody anything and its awesome that he went to visit the Cauvier family. If you want a great read on Kovy's visit to Grande Riviere..check out this link.
http://www.rushockey.com/events.php?i=nhl&stream=nhl_news&id=609
Thumbs up also goes out to David Beckham. It will be almost impossible for him to live up to his $250 million dollar pricetag awarded to him by AEG, owners of the LA Galaxy. However, Beckham has been everything I wanted him to be and more. In his first appearance, he comes off the bench and the visiting team applauds him. He distributes 2 great passes but unfortunately they weren't capped off. After the game, he gives his jersey to an opposing player. Next game, he scores a vintage Beckham goal on a free kick. Next up, his Galaxy play the Red Bulls in New York. Beckham arrives in NY a couple of days before and shows up to the Harlem FC Academy and tells the kids to stay off the streets. His message was go to school and play soccer. He spent the day with them. Come gametime Beckham picks up 3 assists and more importantly in front of over 66,000 fans. Thats what I call an impact player. Want to hear another good one? A fan asked Beckham to autograph a soccer cleat the fan brought from home; instead Beckham removed his own cleat, autographed it and gave it to the fan. Thats awesome stuff I think. Beckhams latest injury is unfortunate because the MLS was gaining so much momentum. IMO, so far he has done everything asked of him and much more. I admire what he's done.
In ending, Martin Rogers from Yahoo Sports wrote an interesting article of the possibility of more stars coming to the MLS. He put together his Top 10 Wish List. Check out the link.
http://sports.yahoo.com/mls/news?slug=ro-mlstargets082207&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
thats it for now...talk to you soon.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Im back from vacation
I have been on vacation for the past 2 weeks. Usually I take 2 weeks off during the hockey season and 3 weeks off in the summer. We have 4 weeks in total but by working stat holidays or by replacing others when they're off, we can accumulate more. This was the first year that our family didnt have a vacation planned out at all. The first week we just stayed home and took it easy. Week 2 we stayed 3 days in Mont Gabriel in a beautiful resort like hotel. Check it out: www.montgabriel.com. From there, we went to Toronto and Niagara Falls. The kids loved Paramount Canada's Wonderland; Marineland however is very overrated. As for ''The Falls''; I have seen them 4 years in a row and everytime, I am more and more fascinated. Now that I am back, I took the day off today to catch up on everything sports.
NHL:
Mtl re-signs M.Ryder at 2.95m; which is a good deal for the Habs. Trust me the arbitrator would have given him more. The bad news is Ryder, will be UFA one year from now and will be gone. Should the Habs falter; don't be surprised if Ryder is moved in February 08. As for Bob Gainey making Patrice Brisebois an offer....Bob, please....let's get real.
Crazy money offered by Edmonton to Anaheim winger Dustin Penner. Kevin Lowe, isnt making many friends....BUT, its allowed....
CFL:
The Als have injuries and are 1 game below .500. They need a spark and his name may be Jarrett Payton.
BOXING:
I watched Vernon Forreast pick apart Carlos Baldmir. I know Joachim Alcine was watching too....he will likely face one of those guys. With all due respect to Alcine, I dont think he can beat Vernon Forrest right now.
BASEBALL:
5 out of 6 divisions have really tight races; which is great for baseball. As for Barry Bonds....any day now, he will become the new Home Run King. Who will catch that ball???
CYCLING:
more positive tests; nothing new...
USL: The Montreal Impact are in the middle of the pack. Disappointing season so far; but I love the trade they pulled off with Vancouver. Mtl acquired forward JOEY GJERTSEN; he will add puch to a lackluster offense. As for midfielder DAVID TESTO; he can do the job. Next position to fill is at Right Back. I know the Impact were interested in re-acquiring Adam Braz; but it didnt work out. Braz, left the Impact last year to join Toronto FC; but he hasnt been able to perform at that level. His association with Toronto FC, is all but over.
WORLD UNDER 20 CHAMPIONSHIPS:
I very much enjoyed the tournament. The atmosphere at the BIG O was electric. My son and I attended 3 games; good times. Congrats to Argentina. The do some things I don't like such as diving; BUT they do a lot more good things. Argentina played the best and they deserved to win. That Sergio Aguero is a special player; he'll have a fine career.
In ending, I was shocked to hear about the passing of John Gilman, CEO and Founder of FieldTurf. Noel Butler and I, spoke with him on air about 3 weeks ago. John, was a hard working man; he believed in his product and was very successful with it. The Under 20's was the perfect example. R.I.P.
I will be back on air tomorrow; between 11am and Noon with PJ and solo between Noon and 1pm; talk to you then.
NHL:
Mtl re-signs M.Ryder at 2.95m; which is a good deal for the Habs. Trust me the arbitrator would have given him more. The bad news is Ryder, will be UFA one year from now and will be gone. Should the Habs falter; don't be surprised if Ryder is moved in February 08. As for Bob Gainey making Patrice Brisebois an offer....Bob, please....let's get real.
Crazy money offered by Edmonton to Anaheim winger Dustin Penner. Kevin Lowe, isnt making many friends....BUT, its allowed....
CFL:
The Als have injuries and are 1 game below .500. They need a spark and his name may be Jarrett Payton.
BOXING:
I watched Vernon Forreast pick apart Carlos Baldmir. I know Joachim Alcine was watching too....he will likely face one of those guys. With all due respect to Alcine, I dont think he can beat Vernon Forrest right now.
BASEBALL:
5 out of 6 divisions have really tight races; which is great for baseball. As for Barry Bonds....any day now, he will become the new Home Run King. Who will catch that ball???
CYCLING:
more positive tests; nothing new...
USL: The Montreal Impact are in the middle of the pack. Disappointing season so far; but I love the trade they pulled off with Vancouver. Mtl acquired forward JOEY GJERTSEN; he will add puch to a lackluster offense. As for midfielder DAVID TESTO; he can do the job. Next position to fill is at Right Back. I know the Impact were interested in re-acquiring Adam Braz; but it didnt work out. Braz, left the Impact last year to join Toronto FC; but he hasnt been able to perform at that level. His association with Toronto FC, is all but over.
WORLD UNDER 20 CHAMPIONSHIPS:
I very much enjoyed the tournament. The atmosphere at the BIG O was electric. My son and I attended 3 games; good times. Congrats to Argentina. The do some things I don't like such as diving; BUT they do a lot more good things. Argentina played the best and they deserved to win. That Sergio Aguero is a special player; he'll have a fine career.
In ending, I was shocked to hear about the passing of John Gilman, CEO and Founder of FieldTurf. Noel Butler and I, spoke with him on air about 3 weeks ago. John, was a hard working man; he believed in his product and was very successful with it. The Under 20's was the perfect example. R.I.P.
I will be back on air tomorrow; between 11am and Noon with PJ and solo between Noon and 1pm; talk to you then.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
2007 NHL Draft Recap
The big question in Montreal going into the draft was, ''If Angelo Esposito is available at #12 will the Canadiens draft him?'' I thought the answer to that would be Yes; that being said I didn't think Ryan McDonagh would be available at #12. The majority of teams had MacDonagh in their Top 10. He is the best puck moving d-man in the draft and he has NHL size and strength. Those are 3 key attributes. I am not surprised the Canadiens selected a defenceman and a forward in Round 1. Thats the direction I thought they would take. But like I said, since I thought MacDonagh would be selected early; I thought Montreal would take Esposito at #12 and defenceman Tommy Cross at #22. The Canadiens scouted Cross a lot and he was on their list. But their #1 choice was Ryan McDonagh and I agree with their pick.
As for Angelo Esposito; my heart went out to the kid when the Canadiens passed on him at 12. There were a lot of reasons to draft him: local kid, habs fan, wanted to play here, already 6ft1 185, centre, talented, etc....etc...Once again, I wont blame the Canadiens for passing at 12; but I believe they should have done everything possible to make a move to grab him right after. We're hearing the Canadiens tried to make a move but couldnt find a partner. I think they waited too long. I will give you an example. Edmonton had the #15 pick. They selected d-man Alex Plante from the WHL. The Canadiens could have offered Pick #22 and #43, in exchange for Edmonton's #15. Chances are Edmonton would have made the trade. Why? Because Plante was rated #28 by ISS; chances are he would have been there at #22. One day, if Esposito has success the Canadiens will tell you that he wasn't available at #22. The fact of the matter is the Canadiens didnt want him bad enough. If they did, they could have swung a deal. What's funny is Esposito wasn't good enough for Montreal, but he was for Pittsburgh, who already has Crosby, Malkin and Staal. Angelo, congratulations! Going to Pittsburgh will be great for your career. One day, you will win a Stanley Cup. Good Luck.
On another note, the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to make the wrong choices. The Leafs were looking for a goalie. They swung a deal with San Jose and obtained goalie Vesa Toskala and forward Mark Bell. In return, they gave up their 1st round pick and other picks. Think of this: Toskala makes 1.4 this year and is UFA after that. Mark Bell, is a problem player and expensive at 2.2. Thats a total of 3.6 for a problem player and a goalie you might only hold on to for 1 year. Later in the day, the Florida Panthers obtained goalie Tomas Vokoun, in return they gave up a 1st round pick in 2008 and 2 other picks. Whats important here is that Nashville didnt want a 1st round pick in the O7 Draft. Vokoun, is one of the best goalies in the league. He has a contract for the next 4 years at a cap hit of 5.7 per season. Basically, instead of picking up 3.6M in Salary; Toronto could have traded for Vokoun, only costing 2.1M more per season. Toronto, would keep their #13 pick and could have selected Russian winger Alexei Cherepanov. Think of it: Toskala and Bell or Vokoun and Cherepanov. Toronto blows it again!
Speaking of Cherepanov. This kid has unbelieveable skill and the NY Rangers got an absolute steal at #17. This kid will make a lot of teams regret their selections.
Im filling in for Mitch Melnick on Monday, June 25th between 4pm and 7pm; we'll talk more about the draft then.
Enjoy your day...
As for Angelo Esposito; my heart went out to the kid when the Canadiens passed on him at 12. There were a lot of reasons to draft him: local kid, habs fan, wanted to play here, already 6ft1 185, centre, talented, etc....etc...Once again, I wont blame the Canadiens for passing at 12; but I believe they should have done everything possible to make a move to grab him right after. We're hearing the Canadiens tried to make a move but couldnt find a partner. I think they waited too long. I will give you an example. Edmonton had the #15 pick. They selected d-man Alex Plante from the WHL. The Canadiens could have offered Pick #22 and #43, in exchange for Edmonton's #15. Chances are Edmonton would have made the trade. Why? Because Plante was rated #28 by ISS; chances are he would have been there at #22. One day, if Esposito has success the Canadiens will tell you that he wasn't available at #22. The fact of the matter is the Canadiens didnt want him bad enough. If they did, they could have swung a deal. What's funny is Esposito wasn't good enough for Montreal, but he was for Pittsburgh, who already has Crosby, Malkin and Staal. Angelo, congratulations! Going to Pittsburgh will be great for your career. One day, you will win a Stanley Cup. Good Luck.
On another note, the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to make the wrong choices. The Leafs were looking for a goalie. They swung a deal with San Jose and obtained goalie Vesa Toskala and forward Mark Bell. In return, they gave up their 1st round pick and other picks. Think of this: Toskala makes 1.4 this year and is UFA after that. Mark Bell, is a problem player and expensive at 2.2. Thats a total of 3.6 for a problem player and a goalie you might only hold on to for 1 year. Later in the day, the Florida Panthers obtained goalie Tomas Vokoun, in return they gave up a 1st round pick in 2008 and 2 other picks. Whats important here is that Nashville didnt want a 1st round pick in the O7 Draft. Vokoun, is one of the best goalies in the league. He has a contract for the next 4 years at a cap hit of 5.7 per season. Basically, instead of picking up 3.6M in Salary; Toronto could have traded for Vokoun, only costing 2.1M more per season. Toronto, would keep their #13 pick and could have selected Russian winger Alexei Cherepanov. Think of it: Toskala and Bell or Vokoun and Cherepanov. Toronto blows it again!
Speaking of Cherepanov. This kid has unbelieveable skill and the NY Rangers got an absolute steal at #17. This kid will make a lot of teams regret their selections.
Im filling in for Mitch Melnick on Monday, June 25th between 4pm and 7pm; we'll talk more about the draft then.
Enjoy your day...
Friday, June 8, 2007
Stanley Cup and Canadian Grand Prix....
I went against the Ottawa Senators for the first 3 rounds of the playoffs. In the Final, I paid them the ultimate respect by saying they would lose to Anaheim in 7. To be honest, I am not surprised that Anaheim won as easily as they did. For one I was not sold on Spezza and Heatley; they made me eat my words for 3 rounds and when the going got tough; they collapsed. Im not surprised. The two players are talented but the jury is still out on them. To be honest, I am not surprised that Anaheim won as easily as they did....Don't believe me? Checkout my playoff hockey pool. www.officepools.com (login: team990)(password: montreal).I have believed in Anaheim for a long time. They had all the right ingredients and elements. They worked hard and stuck to the gameplan. The 2nd line of Getzlaf, Perry and Penner is so good and they'll be together for a while...The year Pittsburgh won the Crosby Sweepstakes; Anaheim got the 2nd pick and drafted Bobby Ryan. Imagine if they would have won the Draft Lottery? Think for 1 second....Crosby on Anaheim,,,,scary isn't it. Speaking of Crosby, I think his Penguins will be a force in the East for the next 2 years. In the West, I think Anaheim will be the best team for the next two years as well. Message to Teemu Selanne: Congrats on the Cup; well deserved. If thats your last game its fitting that you go out a Champion.
On the show today; Pj and I debated whether F1 Drivers are athletes. PJ said they weren't; I disagreed. Of course they are. Their fitness is impeccable; their eye-hand coordination is unreal; their focus is superb; their mental toughness is tremendous. For all those reasons and more; F1 Drivers are definitely athletes.
After the show; I went to Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Ile Notre Dame to take in the 2nd free practice session....I saw Michael Schumacher; he was visiting. Tried to get a quote or two from him; he's not a jovial guy...at least not with the media...other celebs included: Max, who supposedly plays the role of Tony Soprano's driver. Former Habs GM Serge Savard visited with Ferrari as well....
As much as I appreciate F1...its not fun working this event. We get extremely little cooperation from the teams. For one; Ferrari only spoke to Italian and Brazilian media at Pit Lane. And, over at Mclaren there was 50 reporters tackling each other to get a few clips...I got hit in the head from a few television cameras and it wasn't fun. Not too mention the 38 degree temperature making it tough....Im hoping for a good race on Sunday....not expecting any surprises...it will be McLaren or Ferrari again....
In ending, last week I was given an assignment by our GM at the station. He asked me to write a piece titled, ''If I were Bob.'' referring to Canadiens GM Bob Gainey and what moves I would try to make to revamp the Habs over the next month. The article will be posted on www.team990.com
On Monday, I am filling in for Mitch Melnick between 3pm and 7pm. It will give us a chance to discuss the article and talk about the Canadian Grand Prix. Enjoy the race everybody. Talk to you then.
On the show today; Pj and I debated whether F1 Drivers are athletes. PJ said they weren't; I disagreed. Of course they are. Their fitness is impeccable; their eye-hand coordination is unreal; their focus is superb; their mental toughness is tremendous. For all those reasons and more; F1 Drivers are definitely athletes.
After the show; I went to Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Ile Notre Dame to take in the 2nd free practice session....I saw Michael Schumacher; he was visiting. Tried to get a quote or two from him; he's not a jovial guy...at least not with the media...other celebs included: Max, who supposedly plays the role of Tony Soprano's driver. Former Habs GM Serge Savard visited with Ferrari as well....
As much as I appreciate F1...its not fun working this event. We get extremely little cooperation from the teams. For one; Ferrari only spoke to Italian and Brazilian media at Pit Lane. And, over at Mclaren there was 50 reporters tackling each other to get a few clips...I got hit in the head from a few television cameras and it wasn't fun. Not too mention the 38 degree temperature making it tough....Im hoping for a good race on Sunday....not expecting any surprises...it will be McLaren or Ferrari again....
In ending, last week I was given an assignment by our GM at the station. He asked me to write a piece titled, ''If I were Bob.'' referring to Canadiens GM Bob Gainey and what moves I would try to make to revamp the Habs over the next month. The article will be posted on www.team990.com
On Monday, I am filling in for Mitch Melnick between 3pm and 7pm. It will give us a chance to discuss the article and talk about the Canadian Grand Prix. Enjoy the race everybody. Talk to you then.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
My heart says Ottawa...my head says Anaheim.
I am 0 for 3 against Ottawa in this years playoffs. Those are my only wrong predictions. I think I know why I went against them too. I have no Sens in my playoff pool. As a matter of fact it was my intention to take some but it just didnt work out that way...when that happens you need to change your strategy. I liked Buffalo and Anaheim for the longest time and thought Buffalo would win in 7. Not because they were better but only because the past couple of seasons have shown us that Western teams run out of gas in the end. This year the crazy schedule saw Anaheim get 6 days off before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final....Ottawa got 9 days off. Its insane. ATTENTION GARY BETTMAN: I love Hockey....I can guarantee you, I love it more than you do. All that being said, hockey should not be played in the month of June. Either start the regular season 2 weeks earlier OR cut down divisional games for 8 to 6. That leaves you with a 74 game season. Neither will happen, but it should. Hockey played in June just doesnt make sense.
On the ice: I think its Anaheim year. I have always questioned the character and backbone of Spezza and Heatley. So far they have made me eat my words. But, this time around the challenge is particularly big. They will go up against PAHLSSON, R.NIEDERMAYER and T.MOEN; they're the best shutdown line in the league....not too mention PRONGER & S.NIEDERMAYER on D against them....these guys are 2 of the TOP 3 D-Men in the world....and should they make it past all of these guys they still have to beat JIGGY...who'se as hot as a firecracker right now in goal for Anaheim. The Sens will need their 2nd line to step up...I think they can BUT I love Anaheims 2nd line of Getzlaf-Perry and Penner...they can cycle like no other line can.
I will be in Ottawa covering game 4 and game 6 if necessary....Im pretty excited. Not everyday a reporter has the chance to work the Cup Game. Would be awesome if the series ends in 4 or 6 so I can be a part of it.
Ottawa has a great group of guys....its a terrific organization, they have an awesome locker room and an extremely sympathetic coach....My heart says Ottawa BUT I have liked Anaheim's team for the longest time. IMO, Anaheim has the best package of skill, size and grit.....Anaheim in 7.
Enjoy the Final everybody.
On the ice: I think its Anaheim year. I have always questioned the character and backbone of Spezza and Heatley. So far they have made me eat my words. But, this time around the challenge is particularly big. They will go up against PAHLSSON, R.NIEDERMAYER and T.MOEN; they're the best shutdown line in the league....not too mention PRONGER & S.NIEDERMAYER on D against them....these guys are 2 of the TOP 3 D-Men in the world....and should they make it past all of these guys they still have to beat JIGGY...who'se as hot as a firecracker right now in goal for Anaheim. The Sens will need their 2nd line to step up...I think they can BUT I love Anaheims 2nd line of Getzlaf-Perry and Penner...they can cycle like no other line can.
I will be in Ottawa covering game 4 and game 6 if necessary....Im pretty excited. Not everyday a reporter has the chance to work the Cup Game. Would be awesome if the series ends in 4 or 6 so I can be a part of it.
Ottawa has a great group of guys....its a terrific organization, they have an awesome locker room and an extremely sympathetic coach....My heart says Ottawa BUT I have liked Anaheim's team for the longest time. IMO, Anaheim has the best package of skill, size and grit.....Anaheim in 7.
Enjoy the Final everybody.
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