(Get) A Sporting Life

Shit gets you down. A lot of shit gets you way down. And sometimes sports doesn't give you a break from shit, it only piles it higher and deeper. Granted my shit baseline is pretty deep these days. I've been unemployed for ten months and, if employers are to be believed, I'm simply unemployable unless 'you'd like fries with that' becomes my career path. So, you can imagine how "helpful" it is to me to sit down and watch Adam Wainwright blow out his Achilles tendon, or to hear the news last autumn about Oscar Taveras. And then we get to the St. Louis Blues. There is no way I can do a post-mortem because I simply cannot stand it or them anymore. They have mattered so much to me since I was a 10 year old kid that they have used me up. It turns out 36 years of futility is my limit. It is impossible for me to believe someone could be a fan, and I mean a real fan, and last longer than I did. Every year they trot out some Cubs "fan" who claims 70 ...

Isles’ Gillies given 10-game ban by NHL for hit Islanders forward Trevor Gillies(notes) has been hit hard by the NHL again, getting a 10-game ban Friday for a dangerous shot from behind in his first game back from a nine-game suspension. Gillies, one of the key combatants in New York’s fight-filled win over Pittsburgh on Feb. 11, played only four shifts Wednesday night before he was ejected for hitting Minnesota Wild forward Cal Clutterbuck(notes) from behind 2:23 into the second period of the Islanders’ 4-1 home win. In retaliation for Clutterbuck’s hit on Islanders rookie Justin DiBenedetto(notes), that drew a boarding penalty, Gillies drilled Clutterbuck and was given a major penalty for checking from behind and ejected. Clutterbuck stayed in the game and then played Thursday at the New York Rangers. It is a pet peeve of mine the way the NHL officials and the league office speaks so inaccurately when describing on-ice incidents. Whatever Gillies did he did not hit Clutterbuck from b...

I turned on the Blues/Capitals game a little late last night. At one point I heard John Kelly say something like "Strachan and Bradley squared off earlier when Bradley had the upper hand." Then I saw the video today. (Thanks to HockeyFights.com ) To say Bradley "had the upper hand" in this fight is a little like saying "After its last trip to New Jersey the Hindenburg lacked a bit of airworthiness."

Don't think I'm not paying attention to the St. Louis Blues. Oh, I am : The St. Louis Blues are working on another late-season surge. Paul Kariya scored twice, combining with Brad Boyes for a pair of goals during a 17-second span of the first period, and the Blues extended their winning streak to a season-best five games with a 6-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Thursday night. Alexander Steen, Patrik Berglund and T.J. Oshie added goals for the Blues, who've scored 23 goals during the five-game stretch. Last season, the Blues closed with a 9-4-1 surge to earn a playoff spot. "I'm new to the situation, but I'm aware of what happened last year," said coach Davis Payne, who took over for the fired Andy Murray on Jan. 2. "This is a new (season). We know exactly what we have to do and it's good for us to have that type of experience to know it's possible." Chris Mason made 29 saves for the Blues, who boosted their road record to 18-9-4 in t...

And I'm not talking about the stupid Super Bowl.

There is lots of talk about Doug Weight (yes, THAT Doug Weight) absolutely pulverizing Carolina rookie Brandon Sutter with a clean open ice hit. Take a look for your self: First, very clearly the kid had his head down , and that is always an invitation to get your bell rung. Second, let's do the math here. Doug Weight is listed at 5' 11", Sutter at 6' 3". Now, you tell me how the kid's head gets hit by Weight's shoulder if he isn't leaning down into it? Also, its very clear Weight did not leave his feet to make that hit. Third, Weight did nothing else wrong that could have contributed to an injury. For example, some players use the stick during a check. Weight didn't. The real problem here is you have a 19 year old kid who hasn't yet learned to keep his head on a swivel, otherwise you'll get it knocked off in this league, and not only by accidental shots like Weight's. What the hell are we supposed to do, put training wheels on all th...

Ever since the Blues had the audacity to make a perfectly legitimate free agent bid for Brendan Shanahan the powers that be in the NHL have had it in for the organization. A Blues GM couldn't burp without the league taking away a first round draft pick and giving it to New Jersey as punishment. Well that sort of shit coninues. Bid for curb on 'rentals' is angering Davidson NHL general managers began two days of meetings Monday in Naples, Fla., and one topic on the agenda was "rental" players. With the league's trading deadline of Feb. 26 approaching, some teams will trade for players to bolster their playoff chances and then lose them to free agency in July. What some GMs are apparently upset about is the idea of a team trading a player at the deadline and then re-signing that player the following summer, as the Blues have done twice in the last two years with Doug Weight and Keith Tkachuk. The Blues traded Weight to Carolina in February 2006 and re-signed h...

The Blues are doing a lot of gymnastics at this years draft, but I'm uncertain as to how much they are accomplishing. First we trade down from the 9th to the 13th (picking up another 2nd rounder), which is fine. We then use the 13th for a Dane called Lars. While I'm tempted to say WTF, I'll hold off. Still, I would have thought Eller would have still been around at the 24th or 26th pick. Second, we trade up from 24th to 18th (giving up a third rounder) to take a kid that obviously would have been there at #24. So I'll say it: WTF!!!!!! We are running around like a team with its head cut off.

I'm gonna assume there will be no "goal disallowed" shenanigans in the finals. Though, why I can just assume that even I'm not sure. (Brett Hull's Cup clinching "goal" anyone?) I'm just gonna hope for a well officiated Finals. So lets break down these teams, shall we: Goaltending : Everything starts with the net minders. Even in the "new" NHL, good goalies are gonna stop 91-94% of the pucks thrown at them. So it is Ottawa's Emery against the Duck's Giguere. Emery has gone 12-3 in the playoffs with 3 shutouts and a .919 save percentage. Giguere has gone 9-3 with no shutouts and a .931 save percentage. GASL will give a slight advantage to Anaheim here. Giguere played a bigger role in getting the Duck's to this point then Emery has. Emery has yet to face real adversity in these playoffs, while Giguere came up huge against Detroit. Anaheim +1 Defense : Both Ottawa and Anaheim have deep bluelines. Ottawa's defensemen have picked...

Well on their way into making themselves the most hated franchise this side of the Detroit Redwings, the Ottawa Senator's fan base carved out a new low : The Ottawa Senators want to make things right for a Buffalo Sabres fan who was assaulted after the team's most recent home game. Cyril Leeder, the Senators chief operating officer, said Friday the team has offered tickets to Renee Luck after learning the Buffalo woman was repeatedly punched in the face following the Sabres' 3-2 win in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday. Luck's face was swollen and cut after she was assaulted by two men as she and a group of friends were leaving their seats at Scotiabank Place. Luck was rescued by other Senators fans. Ottawa police have identified suspects, but have not pressed charges. So, let me see if I have this straight. Ottawa fans are upset that they lose a game, so they go and beat the crap out of a woman. Yeah, that seems about their speed.

I've noticed, belatedly, that someone else has picked up on how bad Kara Yorio's rant against playoff overtime in the NHL was. (I covered the issue here ). From Greg Wyshynski at the AOL Sportsblog : Keith Jones and Brian Engblom of VERSUS have proposed different variations of a plan in which OT would drop to four-on-four after one or two periods; they appeared close to throwing a tantrum last night as an entertaining Detroit/Calgary game crept deeper into OT. In an editorial in the Globe and Mail, Steve McAllister floated the idea that a regular-season skills competition could one day determine the Stanley Cup champion. (Is this what happens in Toronto when the Leafs miss the playoffs?) Whoever was wearing the antlers for The Bellowing Moose column on NBCSports.com last week agreed that it was time to consider a shootout: "Here's a suggested compromise for the NHL: play one overtime period five on five. If the game is still tied, play another period of four on four. I...

For the second game day news story in a row Blues forward Lee Stempniak gets the first mention at the hockey Worlds. Lee Stempniak scored twice to lead the United States to a 5-1 victory over Belarus on Sunday that put it in the second round of the hockey world championships along with the Czech Republic, Finland and Russia. ... The Americans were 3-0 up by the end of the first period, with scores from defenseman Jack Johnson and forwards Stempniak and Chad Larose. Chris Clark added a fourth U.S. goal 4:30 into the second period, and Stempniak added the fifth -- on a two-man advantage-- for his third goal in two games. Belarus captain Oleg Antonenko ruined John Grahame's shutout bid, deking defenseman Brian Pothier to flick the puck in over Grahame's shoulder. "We wanted to give John the shutout so it's a pity," Clark said. "That will be tougher against the Czechs." The Americans and the Czechs play Tuesday.

I hate fucking moronic drivel, espoused as some sort of "idea" because there is always some asshole who will take it seriously. Case in point is this silly little exercise by The Sporting News's Kara Yorio : And here they come for the fifth overtime. Aren't they warriors? Aren't they courageous? Isn't this the best part about the NHL playoffs? No, no and no. Hockey players are not warriors, and they are not courageous. They are incredibly skilled, strong-willed, athletic professionals who can make their bodies do outrageous things, such as play 140 minutes of hockey or more in a night. But they shouldn't have to show us that mental and physical strength. It shouldn't be allowed. End it now. OK, next playoffs, to be fair. But end it, already. Give the teams two 20-minute overtime periods, then go to the shootout. Even two extra periods might be too much, but this is called a compromise. The shootout isn't real hockey, you say? The bastardization of ...

Prelude to a laying down of the law? NHL suspends Simon for stick to face New York Islanders forward Chris Simon was suspended indefinitely by the NHL on Friday for his stick-swinging hit to the face of Rangers center Ryan Hollweg. Simon was given a match penalty for deliberate attempt to injure late in Thursday night's 2-1 loss to the Rangers. The length of the suspension won't be determined until after a disciplinary hearing. That hasn't been scheduled but is expected to take place next week, likely in Toronto. Simon was ejected with just more than 6 minutes left, and the ensuing power play led to the decisive goal in the Rangers' victory. Just seconds before he was hit, Hollweg drove Simon into the boards with a hard, clean check. Simon got up angrily and met Hollweg as they came together again. He then swung his stick into Hollweg's face, just above his neck. Hollweg's chin was bloodied, but he was not seriously injured and expects to play Saturday when the...

There is a nice article today in the PD about Blues draft pick and St. Louis area native Ben Bishop: Before coming to Maine, Bishop was mostly a self-taught goalie. He had never played for a team with a goalie coach. In Maine, he got one of the best, Grant Standbrook. One of Bishop's main attributes has always been his size — "You don't coach 6-7," Standbrook said — but Standbrook and Whitehead saw more than a big guy who could stand in front of the net. "I think it would be fair to say he was raw," Whitehead said. "The most intriguing thing was his athleticism. He has the ability to move despite his height. The second was his competitiveness. We thought this could be a great guy to work with." Bishop has been an eager student. "I called my dad the first week," Bishop said, "and told him there were so many little things I was learning, on wraparounds, or when a guy cuts across the net. You say, 'Oh yeah, that makes sense,' l...

-It is good to see Jeff Gordon show Eric Brewer a little love . "But we need to point out that Brewer has been playing MUCH better since Andy Murray took over as head coach." -Congrats to Bill Guerin on his All-Star selection. -Congrats to Lee Stempniak for his selection to the Young Stars game. -Speaking of Stempniak, Larry Wigge has a nice piece on him at NHL.com . -I see that Peter Sejna has just got called up from Peoria . Here, finally, is his chance to impress at the NHL. Mike Kitchen HATED Sejna, so he was never gonna get another shot at sticking while Mike was still around. Hopefully, he can show Murray he has the skills to add to the attack. The question will remian, does Sejna have the work ethic drilled into him yet? It would be a lot better for the Blues if the answer to that question is yes. There doesn't seem to be a lot of other talent at forward in the organization...at least ready to make the jump to the NHL.

No, the score is not a typo. The Blues actually scored 6 goals AND won a game giving up more than 3 goals. The defense sure didn't play very well, but, yet again, the Blues win the type of game they have to win to keep playoff dreams alive. The playoffs may still be on life-support, but we still have a pulse. Dennis Wideman had one of those up and down games that I'm sure is driving Murray nuts. Wideman gets caught running around in the defensive end too much, but the kid is a big plus on the powerplay. And you need the Wideman's to take full advantage of the truly dreaful LA penalty kill. On a better note, Weight might have had his best game of the year...and scored with a slap shot no less. Let's keep it rolling....

I swear to God, I'm not a paranoid by nature, but the officiating in the NHL is doing its best to make one out of me. From the PD : The club lost its bid Saturday to set an NHL record for consecutive first periods without allowing a goal. Nashville's Vernon Fiddler appeared to kick in the puck 2:08 into the period. Though the net came of its moorings on the play, neither of those reasons stopped officials from calling it good after a lengthy review. "I have to see the replay, but as far as I know, I made the first save ... it rolled down my leg and a stick never touched it," Legace said. "The puck was on the line and his toe went (forward). That's kicking in my book." It should be kicking in everyone's book. Chances are this team will not be making the playoffs, but the NHL has to do everything in its power to keep them from having other accomplishments as well. Typical. Of course it is frustrating to lose to Nashville again, particularly since a...

There is a nice piece in the Post-Dispatch on the resurgent Blues written by Jeff Gordon . In it Gordo praises: Andy Murray: "The Blues will never, EVER feel unprepared as long as he is the head coach." Manny Legace: "The red-hot Legace has been a primary beneficiary of the new atmosphere" Keith Tkachuck: "But he has been skating harder since Murray took the Blues helm and now he is getting results." Radek Dvorak: "He has been flying." Bill Guerin: "He has six goals and six assists under Murray," Martin Rucinsky: "He is a new man out there." He also praised, Stempniak, Wideman, McKee, McClement, Jackman, and Backes. But not Eric Brewer. I find this unfortunate. I sent Gordo an email to that effect after reading the piece and wondering if it was a snub. When I have seen the Blues of late it has been Brewer's play that has stood out the most. He is finally looking like the player I used to see play in Edmonton. He has ...

Finally! We can beat Chicago. Hmm...another shut out for Legace, two more power play goals, and yet another game without ceding a goal in the first period. If you had told me six weeks ago that this Blues team was going to tie an NHL record, I would have assumed it was one for futility. And I would have been dead wrong. I've been trying not to get my hopes up too high since the team has started to play better hockey under Murray...but it is starting to get difficult. There are a lot of encouraging signs. For starters we finally are getting decent goal tending, for another our defensemen are finally playing up to their potential (even with Backman out of the lineup.) The baby Blues are contributing, dare I say it, consistently. Tonight it was Wideman and Stempniak...Backes has looked pretty good as well. He likes to stick his nose in around the goal, and we can certainly use more of that. Our offense will not strike the fear of God into anyone, but if we can click more con...