It was a mad-house!  I wasn’t working for Alexander Ovechkin’s visit to the Olympic Superstore but I stopped by with my camera so that I could post up a few pictures here.  I’m really glad I did – less to see Ovechkin though than the crowds that were there to see him!  The store was packed!

The area around the stage where Ovechkin was signing autographs. We even cleared out some racks and shelves and it was still packed!

The line started at the back of the store near the Concierge desk, wrapped around to the Georgia Street exits and then back past the cash registers! Mad!

I did take a little video of when Ovechkin came out onto the stage where he’d be signing autographs.  The crowd was pretty excited.  I left shortly after he came out, and didn’t get a good photo of him myself (forgot to check the batteries in my camera with good zoom, oops).  But if you want to see more photos of his visit check out this photo gallery on the Vancouver Sun website.

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Quite a few people were heading out to see the Torch Relay go through Toronto yesterday but I haven’t heard any stories yet, nor seen any photos!  Christina?  Hardeep?  How did it go??  I hope you all had a blast!!  Let us know!

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It’s going to be a crazy long week until Christmas so I’m going to keep it short.  The next post probably will be too as I only have 10 hours between Olympic Superstore shifts and will need at least a little sleep   Hope you have a very Olympic day!

PS – I have been requested by quite a few people to Tweet when we get Red Mittens into the Olympic Superstore, and I will be doing that.  So if you’re anywhere near downtown Vancouver and would like to be included in my update, just follow me on Twitter @2010vanfan!

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Oh, and I nearly forgot!  Don’t forget to post a holiday message to your friends and family to enter them to win a Mascot Christmas pin!  I’ll be doing the draw from the entries (and the 2010vanfan Facebook group) on Saturday night!  Here are the details!

(I’m not very good at keeping things short am I? )

It was a lovely day.  A bit rainy, but generally relaxing (as a day off should be ).  Mostly I was sorting out paperwork at home, trying to catch up on emails as well as making sure that I have mailed all the pins that people have won here (I’m very sorry I’ve been so slow at getting them out, they should all be in the mail today, or if I haven’t heard from you then you will be hearing from me!).  I also took a bit of time today to head down to Hudson House Trading (with a detour past the Olympic Superstore) as they had phoned to say the have new pins in.

My stop past the Olympic Superstore meant I got to have lunch with Mo, say hello to a lot of people who I hadn’t seen yet this week, and have Krystal join me on my way to Hudson House, which made the trip way more fun!  Plus George found out we were heading down and promised to meet us there.  It became a little expedition!

I know we weren’t expecting it, based on how excited Krystal and I both got, but Hudson House had decorated their windows for Christmas!  Not that we weren’t expecting holiday decorations, but it was the products, colours and creativity that went into the windows that really thrilled us!  We spent ten minutes outside just looking at (and photographing!) the windows before we made it into the store!

The first window we saw - Olympic Green and Canadian Christmas Red!!

Canadian Christmas red & white - with a Mascot 'totem pole'!

Olympic Christmas in blue, green & white - The colours of winter in BC!

Classy Christmas in black, white and gold!

When we finally made it into the store it was also special.  Everyone was there with a happy smile and a welcome!  It’s always such a nice place to visit!  Suraj had set aside a ‘30 days to go’ Mascot pin for me which was very sweet considering there were none left in store!  And as we were talking Patti appeared!  Patti is a reader here at 2010vanfan, but more too!  She sends me photos for future use, and information on significant buildings or events, and keeps me up-to-date on news, particularly when I’m falling behind .  So it was just a lovely visit!  All sorts of new pins to peruse.  All sorts of friends to share and smile with (George did make it while we were still there).  And generally just a wonderful feeling of happiness and excitement.  That’s pretty hard to beat!  If you haven’t made it to Hudson House Trading yet, I’m pretty sure you will soon!

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Speaking of pins… and Krystal… (who has way more pin discipline than me, she collects Mascot pins and will not allow herself to get others, even when they’re great!).  Anyway, back to what I was trying to say .  Krystal is an artist.  I hope that she’ll maybe let me post some of her work on ‘Super Muk’ or maybe something with Quatchi and hot chocolate.  Today though I’d like to share a little comic book that she gave me a couple of months ago because the day reminded me of it, and it is really adorable and special.

Thanks Krystal for sharing your wonderful art!

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Just a reminder – Alexander Ovechkin will be at the Olympic Superstore between 5-7pm on Thursday, December 17th!  I believe that there are still some pucks, posters and prints available if you would like to get one signed.  Find out more here!

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And I have a pin contest on!  You could win a Mascot Christmas pin for your friend or family-member by posting a holiday greeting as a comment right here (don’t forget to include their name!).  Or… by joining my Facebook group – 2010vanfan (just search on FB for it).  Want more details?  Click here!

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Alright, I’m off to explore another day!  Happy holidays and Olympics to you all!

at

Washington Capitals (20-7-6, 46 pts) @ Colorado Avalanche (19-10-6, 44 pts)

What’s the Big Deal?

For the first time since his complete playoff collapse against the Detroit Red Wings, Jose Theodore makes his triumphant return to the Pepsi Center. Outside of that, this is the battle of two of the top teams in the NHL this season, with a few exciting players to watch.

Washington has the Midas touch this season, everything they do seems to be right. They come into the Pepsi Center tonight with a nine-point lead over the Atlanta Thrashers in  the Southleast Southeast. However (HOW-EVAH), the Caps struggle a little when outside of the division, with a 12-7-6 record outside of Dixie.

Colorado, meanwhile, is coming off one of their biggest wins of the season, a 3-2 victory of the Calgary Crybabies Flames. Calgary is in St. Louis tonight, so the Avalanche will once again not be able to take the night off. The Avs have owned the East this year, only dropping two decisions (a 4-1 loss to Pittsburgh that saw two empty net goals, and a 5-4 shootout loss to Florida).

Goaltending Probables

Jose Theodore (8-4-4 3.05 GAA)

Craig Anderson (16-7-5 2.57 GAA, 3 SO)

Injuries (CBS Sportsline)

Updated	Player	Pos	Injury	Expected Return
12/13/09	Milan Hejduk	RW	Knee	Questionable for Dec. 15 vs. Washington
11/30/09	David Jones	RW	Knee	IR. Out until at least late March
12/11/09	Kyle Cumiskey	D	Foot	IR. Out until at least late December
12/11/09	Ruslan Salei	D	Back	IR. Out until at least early January
12/13/09	Marek Svatos	RW	Groin	Questionable for Dec. 15 vs. Washington

By the Numbers (CBS Sportsline)

Washington Capitals 20-7-6

Colorado Avalanche 19-10-6

Infamous Prediction

The two players Colorado has to stop is Nik Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin. Now, as someone who is a fan of Alexander the GR8, I know how hard it is to shut him down completely. This is a guy who will bring it every shift he plays no matter the score. He could be good for a couple of goals tonight. Washington’s defense might let them down a little in the Rocky Mountains, and that might be the difference in this game.

4   3

Well, it may not be evident from the frequency that I talk about pins, but I am essentially terrified of actually trading pins!  I believe this is at least one of the reasons why I’m so happy giving them away as prizes right here (don’t forget to enter the latest pin contest ).  But, as we had the Coca-Cola ‘60 days to go’ pin reveal at the Olympic Superstore today, and as I had  been specifically requested to bring my traders I did.  And I even made some trades!  But as the people I traded with will attest to… I’m not the easiest person to trade!  I’m indecisive (I still don’t really know what I’m collecting) and I’m a bit protective of my 2010vanfan.ca pins (I want to still have some for Games time plus they’re sort of like children to me! and very hard to part with, though why else I got them I can’t even begin to fathom! ).  So I’ll beg your forgiveness here, if you’re trying to trade with me.  I’m still learning, and conservative about such things by nature, but I have to say I’m pretty pleased with today’s acquisitions!

The new Coca-Cola '60 days to go' pin design, at the revealing.

From very sweet George I got the remaining two RBC Mascot pins I needed in exchange for a glowing Coca-Cola bottle from the Torch Relay in Montreal.  From Patrick I traded a Visa pin for a super-awesome NBC One-year-to-go pin!  It’s huge and it has the Vancouver skyline plus a SeaBus!  I also traded a Britco trailer pin for a Jackson Triggs pin (okay, so I have a soft spot for wine pins one of my few decided lines of interest!).  And I believe I’m set for a future trade with Erin, and am looking forward to seeing her next week!  So, I guess I was pretty successful!  And maybe with some practice I’ll get less nervy, though I’ll still always prefer to give away pins right here!!  (Hint, hint – sign up for my 2010vanfan facebook group updates or if you don’t facebook send me an email at 2010vanfan@gmail.com and I’ll add you to my email list! My next contest will include my email list followers!).

Pre-reveal - George, one of our fantastic pin-oriented staff in the blue Olympic Superstore jersey!

Everyone watching the reveal in the Happiness Cafe! - big group, including Bob, Kim, Rosemary, Kate, Frank, George, Beth and Chris, and lots of others (did I miss you, please let me know! So many faces!)

My snazzy new NBC pin - photo courtesy of pincollectorssite.com!! Always a great source for pin info!

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OK – I have more info on Alexander Ovechkin’s visit to the Olympic Superstore!  Here’s the advertisement!

I'm not scheduled to work that night... but maybe they'll need some help

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One last head’s up before I’m off to sleep (thank you all for you concern on that front by the way!)… Doolin’s Irish Pub is hiring for the Ireland House during the Games.  Seriously!  How much fun will the Irish House be?!  Plus, it’s one block from the USA House, 3 blocks from Canada House, 3 blocks from the BC Pavilion/Robson Square, and basically really all of the excitement!  You can find more info here!!

Kessel, glad to not be facing the Bruins

The Raptors may not be able to beat a strong team at home, but it’s nice to see the Leafs are getting the hang of it. Matty Stajan and Phil Kessel each had three points and Vesa Toskala made 34 saves tonight to lead Toronto past the NHL-leading Capitals 6-3 tonight at the ACC — their third straight win on home ice and second against Washington in three weeks.

Some dude named Alexander Ovechkin got it going with a power play goal two minutes in and Nicklas Backstrom followed to give the Caps a 2-0 lead before Toskala settled in and the top line went to work. Goals by Stajan and Kessel tied it and a power play goal by Niklas Hagman made it 3-3 through two after another by Backstrom had given Washington a 3-2 edge. Stajan’s second just over five minutes into the third was the winner, with Lee Stempniak and Alexei Ponikarovsky adding a bit of insurance late.

An impressive win, even with Washington starting backup goalie Michael Neuvirth. Toronto is getting hot at home at the right time too, with five of the next seven at the ACC, including the Sens on Monday and the Coyotes on Wednesday.

The Torch left Montreal this morning, on its way to Ontario and I sadly had to leave Montreal as well.  I say sadly, but I should clarify. It would have been lovely to spend more time in Montreal.  It was my first time there but certainly will not be my last.  What a beautiful, charming, historical city.  So, yes, I was sad to leave Montreal, but not sad at all to return to Vancouver.  As we neared the city in the airplane, I thought there wouldn’t be much to see as snow had been forecast, however, my seat-mate, Andrew, pointed out the window as we flew over the valley, and there was Mount Baker without a cloud, standing clear and proud over the west coast.  Andrew said “That’s why we live here”.  And I couldn’t agree more!

Right, right, waxing poetic without really covering the day… I’ll get back to Vancouver many times in the next few months but will try to wrap up my Montreal story now…

Amy and I got up a bit earlier today (this was tough as I was up writing quite late last night considering there was so much excitement!).  We packed up our stuff and managed to retrieve her car from the parking lot (apparently parking is scarce in the area, there is a lot attendant who packs them in like sardines!).  She then very kindly drove me up to see the Olympic Stadium.  And really, though I’ve seen photos of it, I was unprepared for how huge it is!  It is really quite the monument and I would certainly love to attend an event in it one day.  I did take a couple of photos, and shot one final video, but I will try to post those all up tomorrow night when I have some time set aside for those sorts of tasks.  Besides, my photo of the Olympic Stadium doesn’t compare to this one…

Montreal's Olympic Stadium and the Biodome

But it was cold!  Very cold and windy so we stayed only long enough for a few photos before fleeing to Vieux Montreal for coffee and some breakfast!  Mmmm… petit dejeuner.    I had a crepe called La Cabane du Sucre, with scrambled eggs, ham, and maple syrup…. not really sure about that combination, but, when in Montreal… Then it was time to say adieu to Montreal and Amy very kindly dropped me at the airport before her drive back to Ontario.  I really had a wonderful time and as you already know, look forward to returning to Canada’s first Olympic city.

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Slight delay in the pin draw!  Oops!  I’m sorry, I’ve mis-laid my list of entrants and am feeling much too tired to find it tonight, so I will do the draw tomorrow night (once again, in said time for sorting out some blog issues).  I hope you all don’t mind.  Now, if you have been meaning to enter, but haven’t yet, you’d better do it now!!  Here are the details!

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And, if you missed my Twitter or Facebook updates last night… the really exciting news that was just announced…  Oh my gosh!  I’m not even scheduled to work this day but you know I’ll be there….

OK… I will stop stalling…

Alexander Ovechkin will be signing autographs at the Olympic Superstore on 17 December from 5-7pm!  How cool is that??!!  I will of course keep you posted with more info as it becomes available!  But I think I may see one or two of you there

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Sleep time, so I’ll say goodnight, bonsoir.  Thank you merci Montreal for a wonderful visit and a great first personal encounter with the Olympic Torch!

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Addendum – Here is the final video from Montreal.

Men's Journal's Ovechkin model

The pictures…if he was in them, I didn’t see him: Ovechkin

Now, the ladies of hockey are in shock by these photos. The girl is naked in 4 of the published photos (even though she is covered). Did we see Ovechkin in the photos? Well, how do you expect us to look at the person that has clothes on in the picture when you’re throwing a naked person at us???

Even the guys retweeting my tweet on the original article aren’t talking about Ovechkin…they’re talking about the hot chick in the photo.

So if we’ve got to sink this low to sell hockey to new fans…this is bad…really bad. I guess sex does sell.

After all, Tiger Woods and sex makes golf news headline news.

Dear Blackhawks,

I’d like to address this before you go into your last period.  I know I said that if you went into a brief losing skid you might steal my heart again.  I didn’t mean that you should lose to the Rangers.  I should have been more clear.

Dear Alexander Ovechkin,

The Sabres shutting you down delights me, but Royzie drawing a DIVING penalty against you delights me even more. Hah.  Hahahahahahahahah.

Dear Ryan Miller,

FOUR!!!! And the first time this year the Caps have been blanked, no?

Dear Sabres,

I’m a little confused about tonight.  Truthfully, I’ve felt conflicted about this for some time.  I want to say that one of my favorite things about this year’s Sabres is the even scoring down the lines.  But is that really such a good thing?  It would be if the Sabres were topping the Goals For charts – and you’re not even close.  If the Sabres win, it’s most likely because of good defense and bottom six bad-assery.  And oh, Ryan Miller.  Tonight we got a goal from our wee Portland whippersnapper (and hey, congrats for your first, Nathan!) and two from the blue line.  That’s great, but when the broadcast squad wants to lock Tim, Tom, Derek, Drew, and Jason in a room with Tallinder’s rush and goal replaying ad infinitum, maybe it’s time for Lindy to start thinking about the b-word for one of you guys.  I might even be starting to think about the T-word.  (I won’t say for who.)

(It’s totally Pommers.)

Busy week in the Northeast

This week has been a busy one in Montreal. Despite two awful performances against Toronto and Buffalo, somehow the Habs pulled off an impressive 5-1 victory over big rivals Boston. It wasn’t a regular northeastern grudge match, but Montreal’s centennial game, celebrating 100 years since the club were formed. Whether it was the host of past legends watching the current Canadiens team, or simply good fortune, Montreal have the potentail to be a good team.

Boston wasted little time getting back on track. The night after being turned over by the Canadiens, they were back in Boston as Phil Kessel returned to Boston with his new team Toronto. The game was dubbed ‘Kesselmania’ but the Bruins were very impressive, beating the Leafs 7-2.

Ovechkin in hot water

Alexander Ovechkin is rarely out of the headlines. Usually he’s there for game-winning goals or his cheeky toothless grin. This week, the Russian is the latest NHL player to be suspended for a knee-on-knee collision. Ovechkin’s hit on Carolina’s Tim Gleason saw Ovechkin come off worse, and his two-game ban will just about cover the time he would be out injured.

There has been a lot of talk in the press about whether Ovechkin should change his game. He is known as a physical player, but that is why he is so special. Ovechkin stands out in a league full of brilliant players. He stands above Sidney Crosby, Marian Gaborik and Pavel Datsyuk because of the physical element to his game. It gives him something extra that none of the other top stars have. I think it wold be very sad if he was forced to change his attitude. It was a bad chalenge, but I don’t think it was mallicious like we have seen from several other similar knee-on-knee collisions.

Poor Tomas Vokoun

The Florida goaltender didn’t have the most memorable of nights on Monday (literally). Vokoun had just made a howler, allowing Ilya Kovalchuk to score. As if that wasn’t bad enough his own defenceman clubbed him over the head with a hockey stick, leaving him needing hospital treatment.

Keith Ballard was venting his frustration by slamming his stick against the goal frame. However, his swipe clobbered Vokoun over his head. Ballard clearly unaware of what he has done, then took another swipe at the goal frame. See the video below if you don’t believe me!

The Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks are probably the most disappointing team so far this season. At least Carolina have an excuse for their dreadful start. Eric Staal has just returned from a long injury, and goaltender Cam Ward is still out. The Ducks’ season so far can be summed up with their game against Dallas this week. Leading 1-0 after a goal from former Habs captain Saku Koivu, they looked pretty comfortable. But in the third period, a minute of madness left Ducks coach Randy Carlyle looking like he’d just dropped his new Blackberry into the path of a Renault Espace.

Two years ago, the Ducks were Stanley Cup champions. People were beginning to take them seriously following the shame of being a product of Walt Disney. But since that victory, they have been disappointing. The looked good in last year’s playoffs, and nearly sent the Red Wings packing, but this season has been nothing short of abysmal.

Goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere is usually one of the most reliable in the league, but two huge mistakes a minute apart cost his side the game. First a weak shot was deflected past him by one of his own defenders in front of the net, before he let another poor shot through him.

Roll the tape!

Change in Philly

At the start of the season I jumped aboard the Flyers bandwagon. They looked like a team that could finally go all the way to the Stanely Cup finals, and they started the season well. However, recently they haven’y found it easy, and have slipped down the rankings. Following a comfortable win for the Cannucks in Philadelphia on Thursday, it was the end of the line for Flyers coach John Stevens.

However new coach Peter Laviolette hasn’t made an immediate impact. In his first game in charge against Washington on Saturday night, his side were thumped 8-2. This was a Capitals team without Alex Ovechkin! There is still al ot of time left for the Flyers, and they will fancy their chances against Montreal on Monday night.

Next Week

There aren’t too many mouth-watering games this week in the NHL. There are a few tasty ones though that should prove interesting. Wednesday sees Atlanta vist Calgary. Normally this wouldn’t be anything special but this season both sides have been impressive, and this gives us an opportunity to see how good they really are.

Two more hot teams match up tomorrow night as the Devils face the Sabres. Another one worth watching might be Vancouver’s game at Nashville.

And Finally…

Mike Cammalleri’s second hat-trick of the season as the Habs thump Boston 5-1 to start the next 100 years of the Habs in style.

This past week when the Caps played the Hurricanes superstar Alexander Ovechkin got himself hurt, Tim Gleason hurt, and was penalized 5 + a Game. During the game Ovechkin, trying to give his team more energy, takes a run at Gleason, and catches his knee, and sent both down to the ice in pain. Ovechkin and Gleason were both helped off the ice.

As a hockey fan, I love to see big hits. Players such as Rypien, off the Canucks, can excite me during his shifts, bumping and grinding against the opposition. There is a point where hits can get dirty. I cringe every time I see a hit to the head, hit from behind, and a hit to the knees. Ovechkin during his time in the NHL has made me cringe too many times with hits such as the knee on Gonchar, hit from behind on Briere, and the hit to the head on Jamie Heward. The thing that crosses the line for me on OV’s hits is that he does so with no respect for the other player. He hits them just to get the crowd or his team going but meanwhile the player is down on the ground in pain. You can say that during one play a player has turned or make a case for Ovechkin, but it has happened just too many times to allow for bad luck.

When Ovechkin was interviewed he said that he won’t change his dirty wreckless style because of the NHL’s punishment this time and that he won’t get hurt. This to me speaks volumes about his respect level. Its like a little kid gets in trouble for stealing another kids ball then says, no I will continue to steal the ball and I dont care. I wonder if Ovechkin behind doors apologizes to his victims? It wouldn’t surprise me if he doesn’t say a word. I wonder if he feels proud of himself? I am really curious to see how Russia does in the Olympics and how Gonchar and OV mesh (after Gonchar was taken out of the playoffs last year from Ovechkins dirty hit).

Finally the NHL has come to their senses by suspending the Caps skilled winger 2 games. Now part of the NHL’s decision might have been that Ovechkin is hurt and won’t be back in 2 games anyway. Ovechkin has got off the hook way too many times before without getting a single suspension. Hopefully the NHL can overlook that Ovechkin is a star and punish him like any other player. Lets get the respect factor back in the game and start with Ovechkin.

Haven’t been on here since the Washington loss. So I have a few things to cover.  I’m very very happy with the way the Sabres have responded after their 4th straight loss..  4 wins in a row. We’ll do a quick recap for the last 4 games.

Philly 4-2.  After their last minute frezny in the1st period, I’ll admit it. I thought, “here we go again.”  It was a very fun and eventful game to watch. It was like they finally woke up and played physical for a change. I love those kinds of Philly games.  This is also the game where Kaleta got suspsended for 2 games following his borderline hit on Ross. I wasn’t a huge fan of the suspension because Ross saw him then turned a second before Kaleta made contact.  There was also that Ovechkin lack of suspension because he’s a star player from the previous game I wasn’t thrilled about.

Carolina 5-1.  Easily could have been a shut out for Miller had Myers not turned the puck over, resulting on a break away for Matt Cullen. After the Tropical Storms were still leading 1-0 after the 2nd period. I was like oh my god, if they lose to the worst team in hockey I’m going to break something. Then they scored 5 unanswered goals in the 3rd. Thanks for waking up again. The Sabres were without Goose and Rivet, who had both been hurt in the Flyers game, and Kaleta serving his 1st game for the suspension.

Toronto 3-0. Miller got his 3rd shutout this season. Kennedy, Tallinder, and Hecht scored. It was Tallinder’s first goal in 76 games. (Yeah, I had no idea it had been that long either.)  Miller certainly gave the Team USA coach quite the show, and Wilson even said “I hope he plays like this in February.”

Before the game it was announced that Lalime was sent down to Portland for a 2 game conditioning assignment. The Sabres, like every other team in the NHL have a treacherous schedule this month, usually playing every other night. They know they can’t play Miller every game, so this is to get Patty ready.  Enroth was brought up to back up Miller.

Montreal 6-2. This was a fun one to watch if you were a Sabres fan. Not so much if you liked Montreal. The Sabres stormed out to a 4-0 lead before Montreal finally put one up on the board on a 2-on-1.For most of the game Montreal looked like they completely forgot what they were doing, and often looked lost. Halak was giving up some juicy rebounds, and the Sabres capitalized on them. Kennedy had another goal, which is nice to see because he works so hard out there. Vanek had 3 assists. It was Rivet and Kaleta’s first game back. Paul Mara obviously can’t give up his grudge against Patty and those two went at it in the 3rd period. Butler left the game with an ankle sprain. No word on how long he’ll be out.  The shots after 2 periods went in the Sabres favor 29-8. Yes, EIGHT. Perhaps their minds were on the Centennial celebration happening the following night. Either way, it was embarrassing. I almost felt bad for them.  Almost. I still don’t like it when Gomez gets anywhere near Miller.

Rangers tonight at 7. Can’t wait. Hopefully they get the streak to 5.

Also before I forget.  Ovechkin.  KAAARRRRMMMAAAAA. Hahahaahaha.

Dear Alex-  No.  Why even bother?  Ovie doesn’t care what anyone thinks.  And writing him a letter presupposes that he can read.

Alex Ovechkin is going to continue to hurt other players and the NHL powers that be have themselves to blame.  Ovechkin’s physicality is inherent to his game and his recklessness may be a byproduct of that.  It’s something a player should learn to curb as he matures.  The NHL has told Ovechkin he is special, his safety is intrinsically more important than the safety of less talented players, and that his behavior will be excused as long as Ovechkin brings money, fans, and attention.  The NHL, the Caps’ Front Office, and the media turn the tables against the victims with their deliberately-couched verbiage – “Exuberance.  Intensity.  Intent.  Power.  Speed.  Skill.  Size.”  It isn’t his fault.  Other players get hurt because Ovie is just plain better than everyone else.  Ovie’s recklessness isn’t dangerous because of his size, speed, or skill.  It’s dangerous because it is bred of an arrogance and basic lack of respect for other players in the game, and it will only get worse.

(Oh, and the ’suspension’?  Being held out of two games he almost certainly would not have been able to play due to injury is not a punishment, and two games’ pay is less than peanuts to him.  Frankly, I doubt that he’d have been suspended at all if he hadn’t been hurt.)

Dear Steve Mason and Keith Ballard,

To be fair, I can understand why you might be confused.  What with the naptimes and the mouth-guard chomping and the time-out box, the NHL is at times nearly indistinguishable from an overgrown kindergarten.  Regardless, you two are expected to act like adults.  Keith – I don’t care how upset you were; it is never okay to endanger another player because your anger overtakes your awareness of your surroundings.  Steve – I understand that an eleven round shoot-out must be incredibly frustrating and mentally taxing, but being a starting goaltender in the NHL is kind of a big deal.  You are expected to act like a big boy.  Attacking the boards with your stick is not what the CBJ fans deserve to see out of one of the faces of their franchise.  Maybe you should talk to Crunchy about keeping your emotions in check.  That guy sees a ton of stuff to frustrate him.

Dear Blackhawks Front Office,

Is your math different from the rest of the world?  Can you taste the numbers?  Is the less-talented half of the team getting paid in gold stars and skittles instead of cash?  Are these numbers in Canadian dollars?  If you take out Jochen Hecht, the Sabres bottom six is paid less combined than Brian Campbell.  Please enlighten.

Derek Jeter has had a great career. He’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer who has become a Yankee legend during his time in the Bronx, in which he has amassed five World Series rings.

With that being said, there is no way that Jeter deserved the honor bestowed on him Monday, when Sports Illustrated named the Yankees’ shortstop its Sportsman of the Year.

When you go back and look through the years at the past winners of the award, you immediately can think of why many of them won the award in their given year. The first winner, Roger Bannister in 1954, was the first man to run a mile in under four minutes. Tom Seaver took home the award in 1969 after being the lynchpin in the stunning title run for the Miracle Mets that year. The United States Olympic Hockey Team won the award in 1980 after stunning the Soviet Union and winning the gold medal in Lake Placid. Orel Hershiser won it after almost single-handedly carrying the Dodgers to a World Series title.

The same has held true in recent years. Tiger Woods won the award in 1996 after winning the Masters by a record margin. Lance Armstrong won in 2002 as he was in the midst of winning seven consecutive Tour de France titles. The Boston Red Sox won in 2004 after ending the misery of a legion of fans by coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the American League Championship Series to win eight straight games over Jeter’s Yankees and the St. Louis Cardinals to claim the franchise’s first World Series title since 1918. Last year’s winner, Michael Phelps, was a no-brainer after winning eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, breaking Mark Spitz’s record.

When rumors of Jeter winning the award first surfaced over the weekend, this reaction was met by Yankee fans with disdain. If Jeter wasn’t deserving, they said, then how can any player earn the honor?

The answer is simple; by doing something to earn the award. By doing something that makes them stand out, that separates them from the crowd. Anyone who watched the Yankees this year, as I did quite a bit, would recognize that Jeter had a great season. But what did Jeter do to stand out? He finished third in voting for the American League’s MVP, behind Minnesota’s Joe Mauer and teammate Mark Teixeira.

If Jeter wasn’t even the leading MVP candidate on his own team, how can he win this award? The answer is that Sports Illustrated clearly was desperate to sell more magazines. This quote from editor Terry McDonnell clearly proves that to be the case.

“This verifies my idea that he is on the level of Ruth and Gehrig,” McDonnell said. “He’s the greatest shortstop in the history of the game.”

What? On the level of Ruth and Gehrig? The greatest shortstop in the history of the game? Excuse me? There are so many levels of lunacy to that statement that we’ll just leave it where it is, and let it speak for itself. Instead, who are some people, both on the Yankees and elsewhere, who deserved the honor more than Jeter?

I don’t think anyone would argue that Teixeira isn’t the kind of player you’d tip for this award, but Mariano Rivera, CC Sabathia and Alex Rodriguez did much more this year – both good and bad, in Rodriguez’s case – to merit winning this award than Jeter. Rivera, at 40, once again dominated baseball for the umpteenth year in a row, further establishing his place as the greatest relief pitcher in baseball history. All Sabathia did was be the anchor to the team’s starting rotation, repeatedly pitching wonderfully on short rest throughout the postseason to lead the Yankees to their latest World Series title.

Then there is Rodriguez. From Sports Illustrated’s revelation that he used performance-enhancing drugs back when he was playing for the Texas Rangers, to his tearful press conference, to hitting a home run on the first pitch he saw in early May in Baltimore, to hitting two homers and driving in seven runs to finish the year with 30 homers and 100 RBI once again, to his repeated dramatic home runs in the playoffs to his game-winning hit in Game Four of the World Series, Rodriguez, in so many ways, was the face of not only the Yankees this year, but sports in general. He, if anyone, should have been the Sportsman of the Year.

But if you don’t like Rodriguez for the award, as I’m sure many people wouldn’t, here is a list of people from around the world of sports who would have been much more deserving of the award than Jeter:

Kobe Bryant – the Lakers’ star finally won a championship without Shaquille O’Neal, and his leadership of the gold medal-winning men’s basketball team helped lead to some dramatic improvements from the sport’s biggest stars, notably Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.

Roger Federer – after being left for dead after losing to Rafael Nadal once again at the Australian Open, Federer completed the career Grand Slam by winning the French Open, and again won Wimbledon to pass Pete Sampras as the man with the most Grand Slam titles in history.

Manny Pacquiao – the hero of an entire nation, the Filipino superstar claimed his titles in his sixth and seventh weight classes with victories over Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto, helping revive a dying sport and setting up an epic showdown with Floyd Mayweather, Jr. early next year.

Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin – the pair of superstars are helping to bring hockey back from off the map completely to being a part of the sports landscape again for the first time since the sport took a year off because of a labor dispute.

Usain Bolt – the Jamaican superstar demolished the record in the 100 meters.

Myron Rolle – the Florida State cornerback is going to put off playing in the National Football League to become a Rhodes Scholar.

Drew Brees – has lived in downtown New Orleans for years while becoming a superstar and helping give a community that is plagued with problems something to cheer about each and every Sunday.

Tyler Hansbrough – much like Tim Tebow has done at Florida, Hansbrough spent four years in college dominating his sport, and potentially like Tebow will in a few weeks, ended his career with a national championship in Detroit.

Tom Watson – he captivated everyone with his thrilling run at history at the British Open, where he came within one eight foot putt of one of the greatest victories in the history of sports.

Y.E. Yang – him winning a thrilling Sunday showdown with Woods not only was one of the biggest upsets in golf history, but he became the first Asian male to win a major.

I could go on from here, but you get the point. All of these people did something memorable, something remarkable, something that makes them stand out from the crowd. What did Jeter do this year to make that case? He may have a charity foundation, but plenty of players have charity foundations. He may have had a great year, but plenty of other players, including some on his own team, had better ones.

The fact of the matter is that Derek Jeter was the most popular player on the most popular team – nothing more, nothing less. In choosing him, Sports Illustrated proved that their award, once considered one of the highest honors someone could receive in sports, is nothing more than a popularity contest.

Ovechkin Getting Helped Off The Ice After His Collision

By Jesse Jones

This hit by Alexander Ovechkin on Tim Gleason of the Carolina Hurricanes has Ovechkin suspended for two games from the league. This was his second major penalty in a week. The hit also has Ovechkin day-to-day. He skated a little before practice today, but his knee is still sore and he did not participate in practice.

Some people were wondering if this suspension would make The Great 8 play less aggressively, but that’s not the case. Apparently Ovechkin isn’t pleased with being suspended, and will now play “more angry”. The NHL better watch out!

Washington Capitols superstar Alexander Ovechkin has been suspended by the NHL for a knee-on-knee collision with Carolina Hurricane Tim Gleason that left the two time Hart Memorial Trophy winner limping off the ice Monday night.  He was given a five minute major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct by the referees.

Ovechkin, the Capitols goals and points leader, will miss the next two games against the Florida Panthers on Thursday night and the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night.  He is listed as day to day with a knee injury but is expected to be back for the December 7th game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.

While this is the first suspension of his career it’s Ovechkin’s second game misconduct in the last three games.  He recieved a five minute major and was ejected from last weeks game against the Buffalo Sabres for a boarding call on Patrick Kaleta.  He also missed six games earlier this season with an upper body strain.  In his first four seasons he had only missed two games due to injury.

Ovechkin has stated that there was no malicious intent behind the hit and that he’s glad Gleason was not hurt too badly.  However, controversy visited him during the playoffs last year following a knee-on-knee collision with Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar for which he suspiciously recieved no supplemental discipline by the league.

Capitols coach, Bruce Boudreau, concerned about the players health, has said “He plays pretty reckless…I don’t want to see him getting hurt. Maybe he has to pick his spots a little bit better. It’s something that will have to be addressed by us, I guess.”  Ovechkin has stated that he will not change the way he plays.

The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com

Bruce Boudreau says that his star player, Alexander Ovechkin is reckless.   One might say that Ovie flies by the seat of his pants.  One might say that he isn’t happy unless he’s going Mach 3 with his hair on fire.   Then I realized what this is………

Poor Mike Green is going to have to die before Ovie changes his ways!  DAMN YOU OVIE!!!!!!   This also means that poor Semin gets man love.  But, at least it’s man-love from the greatest star in the NHL and a fellow Russian.  I’m sure Ovie is tender.

Washington Post:

The NHL has suspended Alex Ovechkin two games for his knee-on-knee hit on Carolina’s Tim Gleason on Monday night…

The suspension, which is without pay, is the first of Ovechkin’s career and means he’ll miss Thursday’s game against Florida and Saturday’s game in Philadelphia. He will forfeit $98,844.16 of his salary for the two games.

“I regret that this has happened,” Ovechkin said in a statement. “I’m glad that Tim wasn’t injured because I never ever want to see anyone get hurt. I am disappointed to miss these games and I can’t wait to get back on the ice next week to help my team.”

He added, “And by ‘help,’ I mean, continue playing the exact same way, taking runs at dudes non-stop and dealing with a meaningless two-game suspension for every three potentially injury-inducing cheap shots I dish out. I mean, Gonchar missed two playoff games after I kneed him, and that was only one of the three hits, so I’m really coming out in the black here. The more I think about it, I’d be crazy not to continue doing the exact same crap.”

It’s probably a fair punishment, given that Gleason wasn’t injured and that the suspension had to be assessed independently of the unrelated, non-suspended hits on Gonchar last year and Kaleta last week, but it’s hard to argue that Ovechkin is deserving of a light punishment because it’s his first suspension, even though that’s semantically true. Plus taking two games to rest his injured knee is probably a smart move for him and the Capitals anyway, so, whatever. Way to send a message, NHL.

Remember the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year when Alexander Ovechkin kneed Sergei Gonchar, got a two-minute tripping penalty even though Gonchar was injured, missed two games and never appeared 100% the rest of the Playoffs, and nearly every announcer — Pittsburgh and Washington alike, and even the highly biased author of this blog — argued that Ovechkin probably had the hit lined up, stuck his leg out as a last-second thoughtless reaction, and had no intention of actually kneeing Gonchar and injuring him?

Guess what? We were wrong. Turns out, Ovechkin actually is a big fan of the knee-to-knee hit, and he pulled off another stellar one last night on Carolina’s Tim Gleason, earning himself a 5-minute major penalty and his SECOND game misconduct in three games, and karmically injuring himself in the process:

If you’re keeping score at home, that’s three suspension-worthy hits by Ovechkin in a span of less than 30 games, going back to last year’s playoffs. It’s now not even debatable anymore: Alex Ovechkin is, by any possible definition, a deliberate cheap-shot artist. We all knew his reputation for taking wild charges at defensemen after they dish outlet passes and are off-balance so they fall down and announcers talk about how hard he plays, but those can at least usually be defended as message-sending collisions, if irrelevant to the play, and the actual hits themselves usually aren’t illegal (because the NHL stopped calling Charging some 12 years ago).

How could even the most ardent Caps supporter defend Ovechkin at this point, though? Did he again just stick his leg out on Gleason as a last-second reactionary move? Do we really believe that Alex Ovechkin, of all NHL players, really lacks the control over his own body to not dangerously collide with an opponent three times in 27 games? After multiple identical incidents, it stops being an unfortunate anomaly and starts being Ovechkin doing the damn thing.

I’m expecting a 5-game suspension for Ovechkin, which might not appease fans of Eastern Conference rivals, but it’s hard to suspend him for much more, based on precedent and the fact that they’ll technically have to suspend him based on just the Gleason hit, and not some combo for all three. Maybe the league will get lucky and Ovechkin’s self-inflicted injury will be severe enough to dissuade him from doing this in the future. Or maybe the guy just plays so much harder than every other player in the NHL, he ends up being the victim of unfortunate reflexive moves that he cannot control but which create the illusion of him kneeing opposing players with incredible frequency.

Probably the latter.

[UPDATE: Ovechkin has been suspended for two games.]

The Date: Monday November 30th, 2009

The Suspects:  Alexander Ovechkin and Keith Ballard

The Crime: Idiocy

Last evening provided sports fans with a litany of important information.  NFL fans discovered that Tom Brady is human. Leaf fans were provided further evidence that their team is no match for one of the best in the league. Most importantly, hockey fans were treated to two acts of supreme stupidity. While the incidents were completely different in nature, they both demonstrated how short sighted athletes can be in the heat of competition.

One of the incidents involved Alex Ovechkin, one of the most skilled and exciting players in hockey. Although some will insist his innocence, it is fairly obvious that he caused his knee-on-knee collision with Carolina’s Tim Gleason. I have never understood the thought process behind the knee-on-knee. Firstly, it leaves the perpetrator vulnerable to a penalty and/or suspension. Secondly, the victim can be seriously injured. Finally, the player who initiates the collision can be hurt. It is this fact that has always made wonder why anyone would even take the risk. Perhaps there has not been enough cases of the initiator being seriously injured. Ovechkin may have just helped change that, as he seems to have been injured during the play in question. Through his actions, Ovechkin showed tremendous irresponsibility not only to Gleason, but to the Washington Capitals. He is the face of the franchise, their best player, and just returned from injury. To risk injury and suspension is truly shortsighted. Not to mention this only adds to Ovechkin’s suddenly sagging reputation. His skills are astounding but his attitude of invincibility both on and off the ice is starting to get old.

The other stupid act on Monday evening was committed by Keith Ballard. While Ovechkin’s actions may be interpreted in different ways, I don’t see how one can offer anything other than condemnation for Ballard. After getting beaten by Ilya Kovalchuk on a breakaway that resulted in an Atlanta goal, Ballard attempted to swing his stick at his own goal post in displeasure. Instead he accidentally struck his goaltender, Thomas Vokoun in the head, cutting him open and causing him to have to leave the ice on a stretcher. It seems that Vokoun will be okay but that does not excuse Ballard. Swinging a stick (which has been  interpreted as a weapon in some legal cases – such as the McSorley case) is always extremely dangerous. That’s one of the reasons that making contact with the puck above the crossbar is forbidden. That’s also why there is a penalty for high-sticking. Thus swinging a stick in frustration with no puck and no active play can only by considered utterly moronic. No one on the ice was expecting it. Vokoun certainly wasn’t, and if a player happened to be skating behind him, he wouldn’t have either. You simply cannot be allowed to act out in frustration on the ice. You can’t throw your helmet, wave your stick, kick the air with your skate – you simply never know what will happen. For these reasons I am hoping the NHL set an example of Ballard. I’m sure he’s exceedingly sorry but that doesn’t  cut it.  He may not have indented to hit anyone but lack intent does not discount negligence. I think anywhere from 5 to 10 games would be appropriate.

Wow, I am too angry to write a a worthwhile conclusion now. Hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day for brain functionality in the NHL. Then maybe I can also think more clearly.

So village idiot and league tough guy Keith Ballard decided to take his frustrations out on  his own teammate, goaltender Tomas Vokoun. In reality Ballard was angry about Kovlalchuck’s goal and tried to break his stick over the cross bar. However, Ballard didn’t look before swinging for the fences and instead hit Vokoun, who was trying to find his jock strap. Vokoun was taken to the hospital for a deep gash to his ear, but will make a full recovery.

The video is pretty funny when you see Ballard do his best Sammy Sosa impression, but what happened after? Where did he go? You don’t really see him again…

Here’s a quick look at it:

In other injury news, Alexander Ovechkin was injured in tonight’s contest again Carolina. Ovechkin, who was given a major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct will not receive an MRI until sometime tomorrow. So, this begs the question, did Ovechkin throw his knee out to slow down Tim Gleason? To me it looked to be that way, and unfortunately both players were injured. You make the call:

Mind you this is Ovi’s second time of being thrown out of a game in the past 3 tilts. Granted he couldn’t come back in this one, but he was still ejected. Updates on Gleason’s and Ovechkin’s injuries to come.

**This one again will be notes during the game because it is the night before thanksgiving and I’m not going to have the time or memory after the game.**

I now know where Timmy Kennedy gets his awful interview skills from… his father. Like father, like son.

God I love Miller’s little spin he does before he gets off the ice. I don’t know why, but its awesome. Maybe I’m a sucker for superstitious  things.

2nd period..  much better than the first. There’s not a whole lot you can do on Ovechkin’s goal besides flattening him. He’s just so good.

It is RIDICULOUS how many chances the Sabres have had..

Seriously, if Miller wasn’t in the game this would be a blowout…

Ovechkin..  EJECTED!! for a boarding penalty on Kaleta.  The fans are cheering “refs, you suck!”  Perhaps they are blind as a bat and didn’t see the hit or the replay?? Come on….

Things they need to work on:

*not taking a penalty in the middle of a major (or any power play for that matter)

*SCORING ON THE EFFING POWER PLAY FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST

Okay. This is getting hard to watch.   Commence drinking.

2-0.  Now drinking Jack.

I officially want this to turn into a slugfest. And I’m not talking about the front of Buffalo’s jerseys.

I wonder if the Sabres remember how to score… 4 mins left in the 3rd.

Why is the Carruba Collision of the game Kaleta colliding with the boards?? Shouldn’t it be with another player? Just sayin..

God Varly.. GIVE ONE UP.

Thank god I’m getting drunk tonight.  4 in a row Sabres…  not good. Better be getting it out of the way now instead of in March.

Oh Philly next? FFFFFFFFFML :/

We here at Distinct Kicking Motion were able to obtain exclusive recordings from a phone conversation that took place earlier today between Russian superstars Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin.  Both have recently returned from injuries, and have already impacted their teams in the short time they’ve been back.  Let’s have a look.

(phone ringing in hotel room…)

Evgeni: Yes.  Hello?

Ovechkin: Evgeni!  How are things going in the Pittsburgh?

Evgeni: Too good that one cannot be true.  Who is this on the other end?

Ovechkin: It’s Alex, man.

Evgeni: Semin?  I thought we no talk from scuffle against Sidney last time around.  You hurt my captain with words of anger.

Ovechkin: haha No Evgeni.  Not Semin.  It’s me, baby, Alexander the Great!  OvechKING.

Evgeni: Oh!  My oldest comrade.  We drinking at last All-Star game and licking the girls after.  I have still gotten boner each time seeing the picture.

Ovechkin: Yeah, there you go.  So, Evgeni, how’s the injury coming along?  I saw you had a nice night in your first game back.  Three assists, or something right?

Evgeni: I dump the puck off before a score goes in.  Not big deal.  Look at the height of me, so I can do things on ice and on skates.

Ovechkin: Well done, yeah.  I came back and scored a goal right away, so that’s good.

Evgeni: The squad of mine can handle you.  More height, more drinking, and more of the girls.  You don’t meet friend Jordan yet?

Ovechkin: Staal?  Well, no.  I play against you guys but we’re not teammates or anything.  So, no, I haven’t met your friend Jordan.  I’ve chilled with Michael Jordan, and LeBron though.

Evgeni: Who these names are, I haven’t met.  Hockey skaters too?

Ovechkin: They’re two of the most famous basketball players in the world, Evgeni.

(silence on other end..)

You know basketball, right Geno?  Where they shoot the ball into the hoop?

(continued silence…)

Really, Evgeni?  You don’t know what basketball is?  The sport that’s played basically the same time as our hockey season?  Slam dunks? Three-pointers?

Evgeni: I had just got 3 points, first game after hurting!

Ovechkin: Are you fucking kidding me?

Evgeni: What is up?  You have a kid?  Name boy Evgeni!

Ovechkin: Seriously, have you even TRIED to learn anything about North America?

Evgeni: America home of the freedom.  But name son Evgeni Ovechkin, and I am grand-uncle.  I am a grand-uncle, and serious for this.

Ovechkin: You don’t know basketball.  And you still don’t have a basic understanding of rudimentary English!  How can you live with yourself?  How can you live, period?

Evgeni: I live as I go, with Jordan and licking the girls.

Ovechkin: Seriously, we were drafted in 2004!  FIVE years ago!  And you still can’t put together a basic sentence in the fucking language you’re surrounded by each and every day!

Evgeni: I keep that photogram each day too.  Draft time for us.  I see us young, and I go, ‘look at my tallness over Alex.’

Ovechkin:  After one year here, I was able to do interviews without an interpreter!  I can now communicate, express my ideas fully, and give competent and witty interviews.  I can do advertising campaigns.  Do you know how much more money I’m supplemented with each year?

Evgeni: The contract is the money, so keep the contract.

Ovechkin: You’re just another idiot with supreme talent.  You possess the Russian trait of laziness, in that you won’t even bother to TRY adopting to a new culture.  Look at Pavel Datsyuk.  He’s been here even longer than you and his interviews are a combination of trainwreck and comedy.  Do you really want to be like THAT?

Evgeni: Me and Pavel licked the girls in Stanley Cup championship last two times.  Both Pittsburgh and Detroit give such pussy, it was winning all the time.

Ovechkin: I can’t believe you’re competent enough to have played in two Cup Finals already, completely oblivious to the world around you.  It really is unbelievable.

Evgeni: Get traded to my Penguin team.  Use family tie-in – I am grand-uncle right?  So you come here, and winning time happens again with me, you, and Jordan.

Ovechkin: You forgot Sidney.

Evgeni: Captain-bitch not tall, and has no penis existing.

Ovechkin: What??

Evgeni: I explain at baptism.  I am called now to go play.

Ovechkin: What baptism?

Evgeni: You have son there, and it is baptism time.  I am out like shopping cart.  Pakah!

Ovechkin: Retard.  See you at the Olympics.