hockeyhockeyhockeyhockey

YAAAAAAAAAY! The boys are back!

YAY! Gomer and Squishy scored. YAAAAAAAY! D'ags scored what sounded like a really awesome goal. YAY! Pricey sounded like he had a boring night for the most part! Booo the Panthers also scored on Sanford but it didn't matter 'cause they lost.

YAY!

Juniors play tonight! YAY!

HAMMIES COMING BACK SOON! YAY!

HABS ARE BACK!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY

Hockeyhockeyhockeyhockeyhockey!

Renind me to dig up this post when we're in the middle of January and my teams are all on losing streaks.

Hockey means random stick people drawings

Because I'm seriously procrastinating doing any work. This idea is completely borrowed from Number31. In a nutshell: The president of Belarus apparently was the guy behind Sergei and Grabs getting along again. Now, if Obama asked Looch to stop beating up Komisaurus.. what would he say? Well, apart from "in your dreams"? Maybe he'd ask for some concessions from the president in return?

(click for full size)

I probably should've added the healthcare bit in there...I was too busy laughing because I can almost see Looch actually saying "lumberer"......

Of captains and ex-goalies and whatever else comes to mind

When I said that Martin would pick a captain when he was ready, I didn't mean that he'd pick one before the end of the training camp. I really don't like this idea at all. I think it's much too early to pick a new captain when everyone is still getting to know each other and still working on establishing their place on the team. While Martin may have an idea of who the leaders are based on what he's seen during the training camp, leaders emerge during adversity (ie. REAL games that count). Not training camp. And not in the pre-season games. Yes, we know what some of these guys are like based on what they did with their previous teams but that was then, on a different team with a different set of guys.

Also, I'm not sure how well Martin picking the captain - versus the team voting for one, which is apparently what the Habs have traditionally done - is going to work. The last thing we need is a pile of resentment from the other players. Apparently the last this time happened was when Gainey got picked to be captain and it didn't go over so well with the players (which makes me wonder why this bit of information isn't coming to Bob's mind?).

The last thing they want to is kill a player's season because of they end up imploding under the pressure of being captain. The media will be all over the new captain for just about everything. From his lack of French (and no, please do not tell me Latendresse or Lapierre will be named captain. I will die of shock if that happenes), to how he plays, to what he eats for breakfast. Do you really want to put that all on a guy when the team is just starting to figure out it's way and when everyone is just figuring out their roles?

I could go on here, but I won't. Instead, we'll move on to another team naming their captain. The Juniors apparently named Nicolas Chouinard as their next captain. I'm probably the only one around here who cares, but oh well. Chouinard is bilingual (GASP) and was acquired by the Juniors earlier this summer via some trade that I seriously can not remember. In the one game that I listened to, he sounded like he had a good game so yeah... the article that I read this in seems to have disappeared along with all the other archived articles so.... I'll come back with more once that's worked out.

And speaking of the Q... Marc Denis has apparently signed with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens...not as the goalie - he's like, what, 15 years too old for that? - but as the goalie coach. Nice to see Denis doing something. I guess. Maybe. Going to miss Flandersdude yelling out Denis' name for some reason. Mind you, I'm just plain missing Flandersdude calling out anyone's name right now. GIMME FLANDERSDUDE RIGHT NOW.

Ahem.

Where were we?

Oh yeah, you probably heard that Philippe Lefebvre got a nice 3 year contract before being shipped back to Drummondville. Very awesome for a guy that didn't get drafted by anybody this year. Congrats! Welcome to the family, etc, etc, etc. Now. If you don't mind, until he becomes a Hab or a Hammie, he's getting blacklisted because he plays for the Voltiwhatsits. Sorry.

training camp!

We scored a goal! We scored a goal! Whooo!

In note form because... because.

• There was a lineup to get into the rink. For a flipping scrimmage. Practice started at 10 and they let people into the rink an hour later. The lineup probably strarted at least at 9. I suggested we donate some of these lovely fans to Phoenix.
• As much as this pains me to say, Mayer is way better glove side than Jaro. Only thing is, he's kinda shakey blockerside so I guess we're almost even.
• Gomer had fun scoring on Mayer during the practice. Now show up during the regular season, please.
• I like Bennett.
• I'm now Calling Cammalleri "Squishy" because Cammalleri sounds like calamari which I could never remember if it was octopus or squid. It's one of those squishy beasties. So anyway, that's why Cammy is Squishy now.
• Patches was on the warpath smashing everyone that was silly enough to get too close to the boards. Actually, he's been doing that for the past two weeks. We get it, you have something to prove, but please don't injure anybody before the season has actually started!
• Sanford... well... he did well until Patches came along and just ripped the puck past him. Err actually, that would be over him. Sanford went splat trying to stop it and Patches went over his head. Epic fail for poor Sanford.
• Turtle-Pleky hates me and wouldn't stand still long enough for me to get a decent photo of him...
• Actually Metro - who was practicing with Team A when the B-C scrimmage was over, kept hiding along the side of the boards. I swear if I didn't know any better, i'd say he was hiding deliberately from me. BOO.
• On the bright side, Patches stayed put along enough for a decent photo as did Stewie who was wandering around with Team A. Finally!
• Pricey has a new tactic for keeping the opposing side from scoring on him: hug the guy in front of you so he can't move. Seriously. I didn't get a pic, but Metro seemed to think it was funny. And he was the one getting hugged. Okay then....
• More pictures are here. And yes, I swear these guys notice when you stick a big camera in their direction. Buhh.

Shoot me

...no explanation needed...

Just shoot me. And then watch as I come back as a ghost and make sure Del Potro never wins another match in his life. Unless it's against Muz.

Will be off to Brossard AGAIN tomorrow so from here on out tennis season is dead to me. It always feels like the end at the US Open anyway. So look out hockey season. I'm coming for you. For real.

Frazzle time

Whoever predicted Delpo would be in the final should be given a medal. Seriously. With all this "Andy Murray is going to win the US Open!" and when that failed all the "Rafa is going to beat Roger and win the US Open" everyone forgot about Delpo.

I don't think I've seen one match of his on TV. Okay. Maybe one. But that's it. And Cilic annoyed me with all his errors so I called it quits.

But anyway, DELPO IN THE FINAL?

Frazzle. Frazzle. Frazzle. He completely smashed Tumbleweed. Completely. 6-2 6-2 6-2. How much of this crappy score is because of our poor Spaniard's NEW injury, I don't know. But what I did see from Delpo was some great tennis regardless of what his opponent was doing. And that my friends is bad news for us Roger fans. I've having nightmares of Delpo smashing his way through a set or so against Roger.

There is one tiny ray of hope here. And that is this: While Delpo has the capabilities of doing some serious damage to the TMF (and he very nearly did some devastating stuff in the semis at Roland Garros), he has never been in a Grand Slam final. This is good news because you can't ever undestimate the power of being in your first final. Just look at the last two years here. Nole in 07 and Muzzy in 08. Both newbies to the Grand Slam finals and both losing to the TMF. We can only hope Delpo does the same: choke under the pressure of his first final.

That being said... I still think that it'll be a tough match....adkjsdkjahsdkjahkweu

Frazzle... frazzle... frazzle...

In other happier news....

Congrats to Kim Clijsters! This is such a fantastic story for her. Coming back after two year break (and a having an adorable kid). When everyone else was imploding, she was playing solid tennis. I never saw her play before, but she looked to be playing with conviction in this tournament. She kept her cool for the most part. I like this very muchly.

Welcome back to the tour, Kim!

I think Jada could get used to sharing some camera time -and the trophies - with mommy.

The Shot

Behold. Roger Federer with the point of the tournament. Heck with that, let's just call it the point of the year even.



And now you know why he's The TMF.

Um wow

What. A. Day.

In terms of sports.

In order:

• 12:00 Sox begin their first game against the Rays
• 2:00 EP participates in her first ever fantasy hockey draft. Somehow I ended up with Chara. Don't ask how. I just traded for him. Yeah, I probably was on the losing end of the deal. Whatever. My goal is to finish last anyway.
  3:00ish Sox win against the Rays
  
• 3:30 EP learns that Delpo has beaten Rafa and will be in the US Open final
• 4:00 Juniors take on... Whatever the name of the team is in Victoriaville. EP forgets that they are playing because she's screaming at Roger.
• 5:00 Sox take to Fenway again for their second game against the Rays
• 6:30 EP remembers that the Juniors were playing and runs to find out what happened. Juniors won 4-1. YEAH!
  
• 7:00 Roger gets the point of the flipping match (highlights to come soon) which happened to bring him to match point on Nole's serve. Roger wins. HUZZAH!
• 8 something: EP learns that the Sox have swept the Rays. HAH!

Somewhere in there I also bought another set of Juniors tickets as a very,very,very,very,very,very,very early birthday present (they're playing in Verdun on my birthday). YEAH!

Roger played amazingly. Nole was reduced to begging at several points during the match. Which was probably more due to the fact that Nole just felt like being theatrical than the fact that he was playing badly. Because this was the best he's played this year in a Grand Slam. Heck, it's probably the best he's played all summer. When push came to shove, Roger came up with the points that he needed to get and he came up with the drop dead amazing shots to do it.

Too awesome.