Glad I'm not Sidney Crosby

At a time when Canadians from coast to coast seem to be really feeling the effects of no NHL hockey, it appears that all the media and fan frustration is being focussed on one particular phenom on the east coast.

Sidney Crosby's decision to forego tonight's CHL Top Prospects Game has been met with so much controversy that you'd think the kid just Bertuzzi'd someone in broad daylight.

In my opinion it appears though that it is young Sidney who is being Bertuzzi'd by overzealous fans and ridiculous media-types who are desperate for anything even remotely interesting (read controversial) to report.

I feel for this kid, I really do. It started during the World Junior's tournament when TSN's Gino Reda did an pre-game interview with the phenom. When asked if he would consider joining the NHL as a replacement player, Crosby spoke from the top of his head (meaning he wasn't pre-coached on what to say by his agent) and stated that it would be something he would consider. I lost a great deal of respect for Gino Reda and the TSN people for basically railroading a 17-year-old kid into making a controversial statement.

To no one's surprise TSN followed up that interview with a taped statement from Crosby where he backtracked and stated that it would not be right for him to come in to the NHL as a replacement player and that that would be something he would never consider as an option.

To me, this looked like a shameless maneuver on TSN's part to stir the pot and to use this kid to create some much needed media hype.

For a kid who is just coming in to his draft eligible year I have been extremely impressed with Crosby both on and off the ice. On the ice there's no denying the fact that this kid is the real deal. Having been too young to have witnessed Gretzky and Lemieux at this stage in their careers, I think it is special to see young Sidney now; knowing that in 10 years my son will probably be talking about Crosby the way I talked about Yzerman or Lemieux or Gretzky.

Off the ice this kid is first-class all the way. He appears to be humble, well spoken, intelligent, and he has a clear idea of what he wants his future to look like and what he needs to do to make that picture a reality. There is no Alexander Ovechkin in Sidney Crosby.

But I think we lose sight of the fact that this kid is only 18 years old. He's still very much a kid. No matter how mature he may seem or how bright his future may be, he's still a kid. The expectations that are being placed on Crosby are ridiculous.

Now the hockey world is all in an uproar because he won't be playing in tonight's top prospects game. Whether he's genuinely injured or not I for one cannot blame the kid for not going.

First off, he's just come off the World Junior's tourney where he, as always, was the focal point of every teams top defenders. This kid was knocked down, slashed, punched, and cross checked at every available opportunity. Canada may have dominated but that's not to say that they still didn't have to give it all they had every game in order to be so dominant.

Secondly, according to TSN, the games that Crosby was supposed to have missed with his QMJHL team in Rimouski were all rescheduled to allow Crosby to be there. It appears the teams they were to play against all wanted to reschedule the games so that they could take advantage of the sell-outs that having Crosby in the lineup would produce. So not only is this kid carrying the responsibility of making his own team successful, he's now on the hook for the financial success of all QMJHL teams? Are you kidding me?

Thirdly, he's the first overall pick without a doubt. If teams could divide him up in to 10 equal pieces he'd probably be the first 1o picks. Scouts don't need to see Crosby play tonight in order to better decide if he's a sure-fire #1 pick. If anything, not having him there allows some of the other players to enjoy a little of the gigantic spotlight that would have been thrust on Crosby all night.

Fourthly, can we please have some major Canadian sporting events outside of Vancouver for crying out loud! Is it not ridiculous that a game involving players spreading from coast to coast is being held on the far west coast of Canada? Put the game in a central location. Winnipeg is an amazing hockey town. It's nicely located in a more central location. Players from the QMJHL and OHL have to fly across the country for one nights game and then return to start playing again for their respective junior clubs. Vancouver is getting enough attention already. Enough is enough.

If I'm Sidney Crosby I do the same thing that he's done. Say what you want about him needing to be responsible for the fact that he's in high demand and that he has an obligations to the fans and to the CHL to be there tonight, I don't buy it. Say what you want about the fact that there's hundreds of other junior players that would love the opportunities that Crosby has been given; there may be hundreds of other players that would love to take his spot, but there's only one kid in this country that has the skill level that Crosby does, and that's Crosby himself.

Tonight's game is going to be a dandy with or without Crosby in the lineup. There are a ton of talented hockey players in tonight's game- I for one am looking forward to watching a couple of our Warrior's boys- Kendall McCardle and Blair Jones- tear it up.

This kid is not Wayne Gretzky . . . yet. . . he's an 18-year-old kid trying to make his dreams of being a professional hockey player come true. Let's cut him slack and let him enjoy this time of his life. You'll have plenty of time to badger and harrass him when he's an unexcessible billionaire playing in the NHL.

It's January and I'm already talking baseball!

Just 3 months removed from one of the most memorable World Series runs ever, I find myself already getting the itch for the return of baseball.

After reading some of my brother Brian's pre-season musings, I thought I should perhaps chime in with some of my own.

It has no doubt been another off-season to remember in Major League Baseball. The past couple seasons it looked as though teams were returning to a certain degree of fiscal sanity when it came to the amount of money that was being spent on free agents. This year though all that sanity got blown out the window as many owner's tore open the wallets in hopes of getting that prized free agent who would take them to the promised land.

Some day soon I would love to see a small market team go on to win the World Series and prove that you don't need to have a $200 million dollar pay roll to be the best. The parity that has been created in Major League baseball is making it so that you almost need to have the league separated not by geographic location, but by payroll.

You could have the high-rollers division:
Yankees
Red Sox
Dodgers
Mets
Angels
Cubs
Mariners
Diamondbacks
Expos (just kidding)

Followed by the Wish I Were Richer Division:
Cardinals
Astros
White Sox
Giants
Padres
Braves
Twins

Next you could have the I'm Doing The Best I Can With What I've Been Given division:
A's
Tigers
Indians
Blue Jays
Reds
Marlins
Orioles

And finally you could have the, I'm Just Here To Have Fun division:
Devil Rays
Rockies
Pirates
Royals
Brewers
Expos (for real this time)

I think that might be a more realistic way to reallign the division in this day and age.

Anyways, on to some random thoughts from this off season.

Winners in the off-season:

Mets- Carlos Beltran is the real deal. Whether the "real deal" justifies a 7-year, $119 million dollar contract is still heavily debatable. Regardless, he will make the Mets better just as he made the Astros better.

Red Sox- Bringing back their backbone in Jason Varitek was key even if he's vastly overpaid as a $10 million dollar/yr player. Adding Matt Clement and Wade Miller to the starting rotation will help make up for the loss of Mr. Soul Glo himself, Pedro Martinez. Edgar Renteria I think will be a good pick-up too.

Seattle Mariners- Richie Sexson at first and Adrian Beltre at third. Wow. If Sexson stays healthy and Beltre proves that his stats were real and not just because he was in his last year of a contract, then Seattle is going to score a lot of runs. The biggest impact could be what having these two in the lineup does for Brett Boone. Ichiro could score 1000 runs this season with those three batting behind him.

Losers-
New York Yankees- in spite of my older brothers optimism that his Yankees have done good things this off-season, I think they're greed for championships is leading them to the grave. Randy Johnson is one cold day away from retirement (and New York has plenty of those in the early going). Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright are one-year wonders. My guess is that they turn out to be the next Esteban Loaiza.

Chicago Cubs- no new closer. Haven't rid themselves of Sammy Sosa. No replacement for Matt Clement (unless they think that will be Glendon Rusch). Cubbies still have lots of work to do.

Arizona Diamondbacks- Vastly overpaid for Shawn Green who appears to be on the downward curve of his career; vastly overpaid for Troy Glaus. He has to be the most expensive bandaid ever bought. Vastly overpaid for Russ Ortiz. And of course, the biggest mistake was the hole Wally Backman fiasco. What was up with that?

New York Mets- wait a minute, didn't I have them listed as one of my winners? Yep, they fit into both categories. Good for getting Beltran; bad for vastly overpaying Pedro. If he gives them more then this season I'll be shocked.

Anyways, it's been a fun off-season for baseball fans. I'm looking forward to the new season and to witnessing another chapter of New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox Baseball, I mean, Major League Baseball. I sometimes forget that there's more then just those two teams.

Oh Canada!

It will be a long time before Canadian hockey fans get to watch a World Junior team as good as the one that brought home the gold last night.

As I said in an earlier post, it is very rare, in any sport, to have a team that shows no flaws. Team Canada had no holes in their armour, no weak links in their chain. This team was as close to perfection in the sporting world that you can come. Looking back over the years I would have to say that the only team that even comes close to being as dominant as this year's Junior squad would be the Chicago Bulls team that went 72-10. Absolute dominance.

Not even when the Russians scored to make it 2-1 did I feel uneasy about Canada's chances of ending the 7-year gold medal drought.

Canada responded in a big way in the second period. I believe the Russians knew they were in for a tough game but I don't think they ever imagined just how physically punishing it would be on them. Just ask one Alexander Ovechkin. The chances that his shoulder was really injured are about as high as my chances for winning the Pulitzer Prize for this blog. The only thing that was bruised on that hot dog was his ego. All I can say is if that is all it takes to get a supposed "superstar" off his game then the Washington Capitals got screwed in the draft. Perhaps we're looking at the next Alexandre Daigle?

The fact that Canada outscored their opponents 41-7 is fairly impressive. The fact that only 3 of those goals came at even strength is mind-boggling.

What is really remarkable to me about this team is how many future NHL (or whatever pro league is existing in the next few years) stars are on this team. Usually as you look back on past Junior squads you can pick out one or two names that went on to become stars, a bunch of guys who became role players, and then the last few who just never panned out.

This year's team has more sure things then a college frat party. Phaneuf, Crosby, Bergeron, Carter, Getzlaf, Seabrook, Coburn, Webber, Perry, Fraser, MacArthur, Richards . . . it's an incredible list of talent to say the least.

Hockey Canada should be very proud of what is going on throughout the minor hockey ranks. Watching these kids play the great game of hockey makes you understand why Canadians are so passionate about this great game.

Way to go Canada! You made us very, VERY proud!

It's movie review time!

The Christmas holidays are always a good time to do some movie watching. This year provided no shortage of options. I believe I've lost count of the number of movies I watched in the month of December. The highlight of the movie watching month? I found a new holiday classic to add to the list of must see Christmas movies.

Of course the list of holiday classics alone takes up a lot of time during the Christmas season. You always have to make time to watch the Dali Lama of Christmas movies- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation- at least 3 times. Then there's good ol' Ralphie Parker and his quest for the Red Rider B-B gun in The Christmas Story. Once you've knocked those two off there is still a number of good choices to take in. I tend to move on to Jimmy Stewart and "Zu Zu's pedals" in It's A Wonderful Life. I'm also a big fan of Tim Allen's Santa Clause movies (I prefer part 2 to the original believe it or not).

This year though I added a new holiday classic to my list that may very well give Clark W. Griswold and his family a run for their money as far as air time is concerned. If you haven't seen Will Ferrell in Elf yet, it's never too late to run out and pick this movie up. Will Ferrell's facial expressions alone are worth the $25 it costs to buy the DVD. The guy is just plain hilarious. The movie is filled with holiday goofiness. It had me laughing from start to finish. The scene where Buddy the Elf (played by Ferrell) confronts the department store Santa (for not being the "real" St. Nick) is hilarious.

My holiday movie watching wasn't just devoted to movies with a Christmas theme. I took in a number of new releases as well.

Spiderman 2
The Manchurian Candidate
Anchorman
The Bourne Supremacy
Dodgeball
Meet The Fockers (saw it in Theatres)

If you haven't guessed by the titles of the movies, I'm basically an action and comedy kind of guy.

Being a big Ben Stiller fan I found that I loved Meet the Fockers but really did not like Dodgeball at all. Dodgeball seemed like a movie that was perhaps written overnight, or maybe even over an afternoon. A lot of the jokes went way over the line and after watching it I felt like I had just watched something that I really didn't need to see. The concept behind the movie had lots of potential, but they just seemed to be satisfied with getting the cheap laughs from dirty humor.

Meet The Fockers on the other hand continued the hilarity that started in Meet The Parents. I think Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand were perfect fits as Gaylord Fockers parents. I don't think you'll find a more perfect pair of movie parents. They were hilarious.

Of course everyone's favorite male nurse finds himself getting into the same predicaments that caused him so much trouble in the first movie. With his ultra-suspicious father-in-law watching his every move, Greg finds himself working hard to keep his ultra-liberal parents from embarrassing him. There are many great spots in this movie.

As for the other movies I watched over the holidays I'd give thumbs up to all of them all though I was a little disappointed in the way that The Manchurian Candidate ended.

Overall, I'd say it was a very enjoyable movie watching month in my household.

World Junior Hockey Championships

The Christmas season is full of good things for me. Turkey dinners, After Eights, Clark Griswold, Ralphie Parker and his quest for a Red Rider beebee gun, the smell of the Balsum Fur in the living room, nicely wrapped gifts under the nicely smelling tree . . . so many things that warm the heart and stretch the waistband.

Over the past few years though one of the things I look forward to most of all about the Christmas season is the IIHF World Junior Hockey Tournament.

With the absence of NHL hockey this year's tournament is feeding a craving for high-level hockey that many Canadian hockey fans have been dying for.

What a year for Team Canada to send what will probably be looked upon as the best Canadian Junior squad ever assembled.

As a big-time Western Hockey League fan I have had the opportunity to watch many of this year's squad play with their regular major junior team. What you are seeing from these kids today is what they put forth with their junior clubs night in and night out. These are kids with a gifting to play the great game of hockey.

During last year's Western Hockey League playoffs I watched in angst as Brent Sutter's Red Deer Rebels sent my hometown Moose Jaw Warriors packing in the second round of the playoffs. The difference in that series? Dion Phaneuf.

If you've watched any of TSN's broadcast's during this year's tournaments you'll have heard lots about the 19-year-old Calgary Flames prospect. I believe that Pierre Maguire is madly in love with the future star.

Canada's 2004-05 squad is a model of what a winning hockey team should look like. For those who questioned Brent Sutter's selections before the tournament began, I'm sure Mr. Sutter would enjoy watching you try to remove your foot from your mouth.

I'll admit, I thought he was nuts when he cut Brandon Wheat Kings forwards Eric Fehr and Ryan Stone in favor of Colin Fraser and Clarke MacArthur. I've gladly eaten my crow and realize once again that there is a reason why Sutter is head coach of the Junior team and I am sitting at my desk writing about them.

In life you strive for one thing- balance. Balance is what keeps you moving forward. Balance is what provides you with the healthiest lifestyle.

Team Canada is all about balance. Say what you want about the lack of a big name goaltender. We had one of those last year and look what that got us. The US was said to have had the best tender in this year's tournament and that ended up being their biggest weakness. Jeff Glass may not have faced much pressure so far in this tourney but he's been good when he's been needed. When you have a defence like Canada has you could throw Red-light Racicot between the pipes and still come out with a shut-out.

You rarely get to see a team play flawless hockey. Very rarely do you get to see a team that has all parts working in perfect unison at all times. From what I have seen in this year's tourney, Canada has played flawless hockey. They have had all parts working in perfect unison at all times. If you're a hockey fan, it really has been something special to watch.

Of course all that will be for naught if they fall short of their ultimate goal of winning the gold medal.

Only the Russians stand in their way now. And what about those Russians.

Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeny Malkin look to be the real deal. The only problem is it looks like perhaps all the hype around them has gone to their head. To quote Mike Myers from "So I Married an Axe Murderer", "Look at the size of that head. It's like an orange on a toothpick. It's got it's own weather system."

The Russians appear to be very confident and extremely arrogant. It will be fun to see Team Canada clean the ice with them. I really think that, in spite of the Russians two top-guns, Canada will walk all over them.

Been a long time. . .

It has been a long, LONG time since I last posted. Part of the reason was I kept forgetting my username and password so it was kinda hard to access my blog homepage. Anyways, I figured it was time to share some random thoughts.

Gone is 2004. Overall I would say 2004 will be a year that my family and I will look back on with great fondness. First off, we welcomed our second child, a beautiful baby girl, into the world at the end of June.

Another highlight of 2004 was when we purchased our first house. It's been a great house for us and we look forward to watching our two kids grow up there.

So from a personal perspective 2004 was a good year.

I wonder what the rest of the world would say when they look back on this past year?

It obviously ended in tragedy with the tsunami in Thailand and area. People might make fun of Saskatchewan but when I see pictures of the destruction and mayhem that has occurred over there I find myself feeling very thankful for the flatlands of the prairies. I can't even imagine what people are going through over there. The latest update has the death toll rising above 150,000 people. That's three times the amount of people that live in the entire city that I live in! We're looking at loss of life of Biblical proportions.

It sickens me to see the shots of the innocent little children who have been lost in this terrible tragedy. My heart sinks and I squeeze my own two kids a little tighter. I can understand why, when things like this happen, people question God's goodness. I can't understand why something like this had to occur but I can just add that to the already immeasurable list of things that I already don't understand. I'm content with not having to know why. I'm more concerned with wanting to know how much longer I have to spend on this planet to see these types of things happening. These tragedies make me long that much more for the day when my family and I are called home to Heaven. I don't question God's goodness, but I long for a day when this type of suffering is no more.

In the same breath I am amazed at the outpouring of support, worldwide, that has come as a result of the tsunami. The human race has shown me that in spite of our inheritantly flawed nature, there are still millions of people who are capable of doing good. The money that is being sent to these countries for relief; the volunteers who are over there helping people; it amazes me to see people from across the world coming together to help those who have been devastated by this disaster. It makes me wonder if this was the type of response that the Lord was hoping to see from His people all along.