Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 27

Good afternoon hockey fans,

Well the season is over and Black Hawks are your new Stanley Cup Champs. They've ended a 49 year drought without the title in the Windy City and now it's the Toronto Maple Leafs who own the league's longest run Cuplessness (yeah, I just made that word up. It's my blog, I'll do what I want!)

So you're probably thinking that's it for hockey this year. But the Captain and the Rabbi haven't had their final say in the matter. Well look no further to find the newest episode of the show. In this edition, Ethan and I of course spend the first period running down the Stanley Cup Final that was. As I said earlier, the Hawks have won; Ethan and I talk about how they did it.

In the second period, we discuss the idea of playing the Canadian National Anthem in the Stanley Cup Finals regardless of whether or not there is a Canadian team in the post season. Ethan and I don't seem to the think so, but what to you, the listeners, think on the subject?

Finally, we close the show with a discussion in the third period with on the language policy of the Montreal Canadiens. Should the GM/Coach/major exec be required be bilingual? Specifically, should a qualified uni-lingual anglophone be excluded from these jobs because he doesn't at the moment speak French? Or should the team place emphasis on the fact that they are "Les Canadiens," the pride of French Canada when they make their hires?

We'll be back in a month with our final show. Until then, enjoy!

Captain Blye and The Rabbi: Epsidoe 26

Good morning listeners/readers!
And what a glorious morning it is. It's Friday! The long weekend it almost upon us! It's Sailpast at the RCYC tomorrow! The Active Stick is coming to town this weekend! THE HABS WON LAST NIGHT!!!!! And as promised, a new episode of Captain Blye and Rabbi.

In this week's edition, Ethan and I pick up where we left off discussing the four teams remaining in the post-season and how they wrapped up their spots in the Conference finals. The Sharks (sorta) shed the Choking Dogs mantra. The Hawks beat down the Canucks, exposing Roberto Luongo as a very overrated netminder. The Habs of course continued their miracle run by surviving two more elimination games, culminating with another game seven win on the road (no big deal) to send whining Sidney Crosby and the (now former) Stanley Cup Champion Penguins to the golf course. And the Flyers might have made history. We also discuss the first two games of the Conference finals and previewed last night's game at the Bell Centre (read: Habs win).

Finally we lay into the Crosby-Ovechkin argument one more time. We take this piece by the National Post's Bruce Arthur and look critically on these two superstars. Yes Crosby has had the better career after five seasons but careers take much more than five seasons to unfold. Sid might be number one right now, but the debate isn't over.

Enjoy and have a great long weekend!
Go Habs Go!!!!

What's this? A double-dose of Capt Blye and the Rabbi?

Greetings listeners,
I apologize for the screwy schedule/laziness of one-half of the duo in recent weeks. For your listening enjoyment, here are episodes 24 and 25 of the finest hockey show in the interwebs. Both shows discuss the playoffs, with the first round the main topic in #24 and the second round our point of focus for #25. Episode 25 also includes  a special topic on "Terrible" Ted Lindsay and how appropriate it was for the NHLPA to rename its player of the year award after this hockey crusader.

Tonight the show resumes and I promise, it will be better than ever.

Check it out!

Half-assed Second round playoff predictions

Eastern Conference

Penguins vs. Canadiens
Congrats GB. While you don't get your dream Crosby-Ovi Eastern Conference final, you're almost assured of Sid the Kid in the Stanley Cup final for a third year running. If Crosby & co.'s play in the first round is any indicator, Pittsburgh has shown that they're ridiculously talented up front, good (but not great) in their own end and able to slack a team three goals and still win. Very impressive. But the first round also showed us that Habs have great goaltending/team defence and an intestinal fortitude that they haven't shown all season. Hal Gill and Josh Gorges would be covered in bruises from all the shot that they blocked (if they were human). It also showed that Marc-Andre Fleury more often then not needs his teammates to bail him out from his far too frequent poor outings. The Pens should take this series, but it won't be a cakewalk.

Penguins in seven


Bruins vs. Flyers
Don Cherry must be proud. The big, bad Bruins are back. The B's were able to pound the Sabres into submission for the better part of six games and have been rewarded with home ice in the second round. But their opponents from Philadelphia know a thing or two about physical play. With the physicality aspect largely neutralized, this series will come down to two factors: goaltending and the health of Marc Savard. I'm still not sold on Brian Boucher as a real starter in the NHL. The Devils weren't the test that I thought they'd be, whereas Boston should give us a better since of Boucher. In contrast, I'm all in on Boucher counterpart in Boston, Tukka Rask. Rask has been solid when asked to start for the Bruins this season and was strong against Buffalo in the first round. With regards to Marc Savard, he's returning from a concussion not a broken bone. If he isn't 100%, the Bruins medical staff should be stripped of their right to practice medicine. Since I believe that they're not complete fools, it's logical to suggest that Savard will be (if nothing else) a huge inspiration push for Boston. And of should step back in as a first line centre.

Bruins in six


Western Conference

Sharks vs. Red Wings
I'm cheating a bit here since San Jose already has a 1-0 lead in this series, but I've been saying San Jose will make the conference finals since the beginning of the post-season. And last night's game helps to prove this belief. Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley finally got their names on the game sheet with a sweet passing play to put the Sharks up 2-0. If they can keep it up and the second line of Pavelski, Setoguchi and Clowe continues its very strong play, San Jose has a chance to shed their reputation of choking dogs in the post-season. But it won't be easy. As evidenced by last night's game, no lead (even a 3-0 lead) is safe against Detroit. The Red Wing are the most battle-tested, veteran laden team in this entire playoff. The core of this squad has won two cups and been to the finals three times. They won't lay down for anyone, especially not a team that has a history of failing in the clutch. But, but, but. If San Jose's top two lines play like they're capable of, I think that Sharks can end that awful run of post-season brain-farts.

Sharks in seven


Black Hawks vs. Canucks
I called the Canucks to fall in previous round. That they won has done nothing to deter me from my belief that they're the most overrated team left. They need Roberto Luongo to play at his best. If he doesn't, there's nothing that their skaters can do. The Canucks are not strong enough defensively to win without a strong performance from Luongo. As for the Hawks, they're the best team left. On offence and defence, they have the best personnel on paper. I know (as do the Washington Capitals) that Stanley Cups aren't won on paper. But the second half of their series against Nashville, the talent clicked to produce some gutty, intense performances. Heck, they were able to tie up game five on a 5-on-5, net's empty situation, finish the PK in the opening minutes of overtime and win it later in the extra period (the irony isn't lost that it was Marian Hossa, the player that was in the box for the end of regulation/beginning of OT). The Hawks are a better team than they were last year when they beat Vancouver without home-ice advantage. It's happening again this year.

Black Hawks in five

Look who got called in from the bullpen

Over at Ethan's sports blog, In The Bullpen, his colleague Dan Punch penned a piece this week on the whether or not Pete Rose's lifetime ban (from the game and more importantly, the Hall of Fame) should be lifted. Take a look at it for yourself. Dan believes that Rose should be in. Naturally, I don't. I posted a comment in to show my disapproval (take a look below for it) and the site's editor posted it as one the entries. Take a look for yourself.

Here’s the problem with Pete Rose. The Dowd Report (which Rose signed off on and verified in his 2004 book) declared that Rose bet on Reds’ games while he was player-manager with the Reds from 1985 to 1987. Jim Dowd later stated he believed that Rose bet against the Reds during this period. As the manager, Rose had direct influence on the results of the game. Everything from starting lineups to pitching changes to pinch hitting to the disabled list were under his control. If you take Dowd at his word, then Rose should be absolutely remain banned for life as there is no difference between what he and what the 1919 White Sox were convicted of: Making money on his own teams’ defeats.

Even if we concede that Rose didn’t bet against the Reds (which I don’t believe for a second), the fact remains that Rose (by his own admission) bet on baseball. And even worse, he bet on his own team. And not every night (which is a fundamental problem.) I understand that there is an argument of “But Rose only bet on his team to win” but there is an inherent problem with this. Going back to my manager point, Rose easily could have fiddled with the pitching rotation, moving his ace starter up a game or two in order to face the opposing team’s #4/5 starter and win a bet on Night A. Rose now knows full well that the next night (Night B) the Reds would be playing the same team (let’s say the LA Dodgers) and their ace. But on Night B the Reds need to start their 4th/5th starter, greatly reducing the odds of victory. And this is only one way he could have played with the outcome of games he bet on with a patent disregard for the games he opted not to (read: Didn’t care if his team lost).

I would have less of a problem (though not much less) if Rose bet on the Reds every night, but the Dowd Report indicated that he was selective as to when he placed his bets. In essence he created situations that would be most profitably to him, Pete Rose the gambler, and to the determent of the Reds.

As to your point of “Is it so hard to imagine Rose is telling the truth?” Yes it is. Rose lied about betting on baseball for 15 years until it suited him to tell “the truth.” When he was first banned by MLB, he denied betting on any type of sports. Later he shifted his stance to betting on horse and dog racing, the NFL, the NBA and NCAA basketball. Then it became baseball but not the Reds. Finally, when needed money he wrote his “tell all” book where he admitted what Jim Dowd had determined and what most baseball people already knew: He had bet on the Reds. There is a constant pattern of lying with Rose. I believe that the next logical step would to be for Rose to pen another book where he admits to lying again and concedes that he bet against the Reds.

Finally, the Charlie Hustle argument is BS because Rose was never accused/admitted to betting on baseball in his prime. He wasn’t betting on himself and his own ability. He was betting as a manager (and washed up player) and his wagers were based on his ability to manipulate the games. At this point of his player career, he was no longer seen as the hardest working player in the game; he was viewed a selfish man who only cared about breaking Ty Cobb’s career hits record, in spite of the fact that he was no where near close to the player that he once was and didn’t belong in an MLB lineup. If anything, I believe that this version of Rose (jaded, selfish, cynical) was quite capable of doing something as petty as throwing a game just to make a buck.

That Pete Rose was a “Crook and Liar” doesn’t bar him from the Hall of Fame. What does is that he gambled on the sport while playing and managing.

Capt Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 23, plus a bonus

Welcome back hockey fans. It's playoff time! For this week's show, Ethan I decided that you would get more bang for your buck if we gave it an extra two days. Lo and behold, the Flyers have bumped the Devils and the Sens saved off elimination in triple OT. In the first period, we review these series as well as the other two and compare our picks to what has happened (I suppose my Penguins to sweep the Senators wasn't quite accurate). In the second, we discuss the post-season happenings in the Western Conference. Finally, we close we a discussion of the NHL Awards. So far, the league has announced the nominees for the Selke (Top Defensive Foward), Calder (Rookie of the Year), Lady Byng (Gentlemanly conduct) and Norris trophies (Top Defenceman.)

Thankfully, Ethan and I only talked for a couple minutes on the Habs-Caps series. If we had gone for much longer, it might have sounded like this beaut.

I have just one request for tonight's games...

And it's not, "Please Marc-Andre Fleury, can you turn down the suck and turn up the awesome?" or even "I'm begging you San Jose: would you choke again and give the Avs a 2-0 lead in the series?" though those would be both enjoyable. No, today's request is very simple: Could the Chicago Black Hawks show to the rest of their fellow tops seeds how it's supposed to be done and take care of business against Nashville? And I don't mean with an overtime win (a la Vancouver) or a feisty but unnecessarily drawn out 2-1 win (like Buffalo). Could the Chicagos post a three, four or five goal win tonight and definitively say to the rest of the league "Were the big dogs. Come get us,"?

I'm rather petty and selfish when it comes to playoff hockey. I really don't like upsets. I cheer for the favourites. I generally want the best teams playing because I believe that it makes for the most exciting forms of hockey (except of course when my teams are involved, then upset away.) As much I as dislike the Leafs, I wanted them to win in 2002 for the sake of the game. A Toronto-Detroit series would have been much more competitive from a pure hockey standpoint the snoozer we ended up with (Detroit in five over Carolina). My all time favourite final was Colorado-New Jersey, and not just because the Avs won or Ray Bourque finally got his Cup. It was an exciting seven game series between the league's two best teams.

Which leads me back to my original point: I want to see Chicago crush Nashville tonight and in every game throughout the opening round. The Hawks are unquestionably the better team. If they can play like winners, it just might inspire the rest of the great teams to realize their potential and quit coasting


Please note: This doesn't apply to San Jose or Washington. In Washington's case, I want Montreal to win the Cup. San Jose's, if they were going to play like a winner they would have done some years ago.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi Episode 21 and 22, with a special guest!!!!!

Good morning hockey fans,
Skimming through this little bloggy thing of mine, I noticed that I didn't post last week's show. Largely through my own laziness/massive amount of time that I spent on real work. But I admit that it's no excuse. Therefore, for posterity's sake, I link to Episode 21. In that show, we opened with the hunt for 8th in the West. Colorado had just clinched the final spot and Calgary were sent packing. In period two, we discussed the upcoming home-and-home between the Rangers and Flyers, which turned into a pair of the most exciting games of the season.  We of course closed with a preview of our trip to Montreal and discussed the Habs-Leafs rivalry in general.

Now that mistake is out of the way, on to this week's shenanigans. Episode 22 was our first attempt at a three-person show as we invited theactivestick to help us break down our trip to the Bell Centre for the Habs-Leafs game on Saturday and get her thoughts on the Les Boys' chances in the post-season. In periods two and three, Ethan and I break down the first round of Eastern and Western Conference playoff pictures. Who wins, who gets upset and who wins it all in end. You can check out Ethan's picks here and my more snarky choices here and here.

Enjoy!

Unfinished Busniess First Round Playoff Preview: Western Conference

#1 San Jose Sharks vs. #8 Colorado Avalanche
The Sharks are the league second worst choke artists of the past decade (after Ottawa, of course). They failed to make it out of the first round last season after winning the President's Trophy. They haven't made it out of the second round since the lockout in spite of earning at least 107 points in the past three tries and a respectable 99 points in 2005-06. And the only time that they made the conference finals (2003-04), they lost to far less talented Calgary Flames team. Joe Thornton has never proven himself to be a playoff performer. Egveni Nabakov has been vastly inconsistent in past playoffs and wilted for Russia during a playoff-like situation during the Olympics. Patrick Marleau has never been a world-beater in post-season. All of this is true. But what's also true is that the Colorado Avalanche are completely gassed. Peter Mueller is out with a concussion and super-rookie Matt Duchene is only tonight returning returning from injury that kept him out of the last game of the season. I know that Joe Sacco doesn't trust Peter Bujai (and with good reason) but would have killed them to sign/trade for a servicable backup? Craig Anderson looked downright tired down the stretch in goal. The Avs were expected to finish last in the West (and the NHL). That they're even in the playoffs makes this season a success. But this is it for men in Burgundy and White. The San Jose Sharks might be the West's best chokers and still might lose to a team that they should beat. But that team won't be Colorado.

Prediction: Sharks in four


#2 Chicago Black Hawks vs. #7 Nashville Predators
Top to bottom, Chicago could have the best team in the Western Conference. They're stacked on the first line, have arguably the best defense in the NHL, can send out a pair of tough, shut-down units on the 3rd/4th lines and it looks like they've finally found an NHL goaltender in Antti Niemi. The only reason that I'm not calling for a sweep is the amount of respect I have for Nashville defence/goaltending combination. I think that they can shut the Hawks down for one night in Nashville to save face. But only one night. This one's over before it even starts.

Prediction: Hawks in five


#3 Vancouver Canucks vs. #6 Los Angeles Kings
I preface this prediction by declaring my anti-Canucks bias out in the open for all to see. I fucking hate this team, organization, its fans and pretty much everything it stands for. It was this bias that clouded my judgment at the beginning of the season so much that I called for Vancouver to miss the playoffs. However, I'm not blinded so much my rage to not give these devils their due. The Sedins have emerged as elite (and vastly underpaid) talents in the league. Heck, Henrik was instrumental in winning me my Fantasy Hockey league. These two were able to turn a mediocre whiner into 30 goal scoring whiner and slightly under paid centre into vastly overpaid centre. On defence, somehow they've put together a decent combination with former San Jose Sharks, head hunters, drunks, 9th rounders and Alex Edler. But truthfully this team comes down to their captain in goal, Roberto Luongo and which version of Bobby Lou show up. If it's the one that was steady for Vancouver prior to the Olympics and Team Canada during the Games, Vancouver should be fine. But if it's the one that allowed four goals to Colorado, Nashville and Detroit as well as EIGHT to the Los Angeles Kings, then it will be curtains for Vancouver. Especially because Los Angeles quietly has a very good goaltender in Jonathan Quick, a great defensive pairing in Doughty and Johnson (Drew Doughty himself has emerged as one of the three best d-man in the NHL) and sneaky forward unit that scores by committee (seven forwards with at least 15 goals, led Kopitar with 34). Call it wishful thinking; call it negative if you want but I see Bad Luongo making more than one appearance in this series.

Predictions: Kings in seven


#4 Phoenix Coyotes vs. #5 Detroit Red Wings
I don't have a lot to say other than the Detroit Red Wings are the hottest team in the NHL since the Olympic break. The Wings are 15-3-3 since returning, beating such playoff teams as Colorado, Chicago (twice), Vancouver, Buffalo, Nashville (twice) and Pittsburgh. Jimmy Howard has become the short and the long term replacement for Chris Osgood and is the choice of many writers for the Rookie of the Year. No one has been great but no one has needed to be. Mike Babcock's team is veteran laden and talented at every facet of the game. It would be great to talk more about Phoenix's feel good season continuing into the playoffs but they've drawn the worst possible opponents. The Red Wings know how to win. They will put on a clinic against the Coyotes.

Prediction: Red Wings in five

Unfinished Business First Round Playoff Preview: Eastern Conference

#1 Washington Capitals vs. #8 Montreal Canadiens:
I preface this with the following: I want the Canadiens to win. I hope that the Canadiens will win. But I can't see it happening. These are the Washington Freaking Capitals. They have the best player in the league, arguably the best forwards in the league and one of the smartest coaches. Defensively, the two teams are about a wash with the Habs slightly stronger. In goal, the Canadiens have the advantage. Jaroslav Halak is one of only three goaltenders who finished in the top ten in shutouts, GAA, Save Percentage and Winning Percentage (the others being Ryan Miller and Ilya Bryzgalov).  I know that Jose Theodore has been great in 2010 for Washington but call it a hunch the Bell Centre faithful will get to him at least once. In addition, the Habs have played the Caps tough this year (2-1-1 is quite reasonable) and Washington needs to get a few kinks ironed out before they steamroller the rest of the league. Montreal can surprise them on these aforementioned "kink nights" but that's about it. Ovi and co. are too strong to fall to (based on regular season points) the worst team to make the playoffs since the lockout.

Prediction: Caps in Six


#2 New Jersey Devils vs. #7 Philadelphia Flyers
I've been reading around the interwebs that the Flyers are the sexy upset pick in the East. The argument goes that Fat Brodeur has lost a step, Philly won the season series 4-1-1 and the Devils as an organization are a bit washed up. And all of this maybe true. But the Flyers are going with Bobby, er, Brian Boucher in goal. Boucher hasn't started a playoff game in eight years and hasn't won one 10. In fact, 1999-2000 was the only time he's been ever thought of a as a starting goalie. New Jersey won't be going all the way this year but Brian "The Waterboy" Boucher and the Flyers aren't going to be ones to stop them.

Prediction: Devils in Six


#3 Buffalo Sabres vs. #6 Boston Bruins
The Buffalo Sabres posses the league's best goaltender (Ryan Miller), one of the craftier coaches (Lindy Ruff), the best rookie defenceman (Tyler Myers), the league's second best penalty kill and just saw their best goalscorer (Thomas Vanek) return from injury in style with a four goal performance (Michael Cammalleri, please take note). Plus, there's a good chance that their first line centre (Tim Connolly) returns. The Bruins are still missing Marc Savard, still are playing with a hurt Zdeno Chara and without a Phil Kessel. Oh yeah, he plays for the Leafs. But the B's have the Leafs second overall pick. And next year's. Tukka Rask should be able to win one game in Boston and that's about it.

Prediction: Sabres in five


#4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. #5 Ottawa Senators
If only to be a jackass, I'm calling for a sweep. Ottawa is the most famous choke artists in the NHL over the past decade. The San Jose Sharks (I'll get to them in my Western Conference preview) come close but the even the Sharks' period of sustained craptasticness is dwarfed by the Sens. Ottawa had the talent to have won at least two Cups from 1999 until 2009. Instead, they died like dogs year-after-year and usually to the Leafs. The one time that they made the Cup Final, they were outmatched by an Anaheim team that was far inferior in talent but made up for it in physicality. As for the Penguins, what do I have to say? They're the defending champs, the two-time Eastern Conference winners, have two of the three best players in the NHL and world class supporting staff. If I wasn't being a jackass, I would point out that Brian Elliott is playing well enough to likely steal a game on his own. But since I am...

Prediction: Penguins in four

Eastern Conference Champs: Washington Capitals
Since I've been riding them all season, I'm not backing down now. This is the year that Ovechkin gets the monkey off his back, beats Crosby and the Penguins and leads the Caps the Stanley Cup Final.

And the winner is...

Before I do an long and drawn out playoff prediction piece, here's my prediction for who wins the Stanley Cup. Are you ready? Sitting down? Okay, here goes. The Stanley Cup winners will be.....................One of  Washington, San Jose, Chicago, Phoenix, New Jersey, Vancouver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh or Buffalo.

"Wait," you say to yourself. "All you did was name the ten best teams based on regular season record. That's no prediction. Any putz could do that. Why the hell are you wasting my time?" If you'll indulge me a few more minutes, I will explain.

The ten teams that I've listed do in fact posses the ten best records from the regular season or as I like to call them "The Top Third." The teams ranked 11-20 are therefore "The Middle Third" and the bottom ten are "The Last Third." With one exception, one of these Top Third teams have won every single Stanley Cup since the league doubled in size in 1967-68. Check hockey-reference.com if you don't believe me.

Even the supposed "upset" champions were in that top 33%. We remember Ken Dryden backstopping the '71 Habs to a shocking opening round win over a Bruins team that finished 57-14-7 (121 of a possible 156 points) and led by Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito. What gets forgotten is that Montreal finished with 94 points themselves, good for 4th in the 14 teams league. That they won the Stanley Cup shouldn't have surprised anyone.

Similarly the 1979-80 New York Islanders went into their final with the Philadelphia Flyers as the clear underdogs. The Flyers were the President's Trophy winners, finishing 25 points ahead of the Isles (116 to 91). But of course, those 91 points were good enough for 5th overall in the NHL. Yes, it was an upset in terms of the head-to-head battle but it wasn't as if the Long Island boys were crap; they were still a half-decent team.

The only time that a middle third team became King of the Mountain was in 1994-95 when New Jersey Devils swept of the Detroit Red Wings. But even if we grant that this was an upset, we must also take into account the elephant in the room: the 1994-95 season was sham of a year. The season was only 48 games, most of the players played themselves into shape and many teams month-to-month records are completely without reason. That the Devils were able to accomplish this feat in this screwy, shortened season I feel only continues to prove the point of how damn near impossible Stanley Cup upsets are.

One of the great myths that the NHL has managed to cultivate over the years is that once the playoffs start, anything can happen. It's a second season. That you can throw regular season records out and only focus on the games at hand. You've all heard the cliches. What the league has done is created a giant half-truth. It conjures up images of the great upstarts: '82 Canucks, '91 North Stars, the '96 Panthers, '03 Mighty Ducks, '04 Flames and '06 Oilers. Teams that scraped by in the regular season, barely making the playoffs. But when it mattered, these 6th, 7th and 8th placed teams went above and beyond the call of duty making all the way to the Stanley Cup Final...and then lost.

While we pat these dark horse teams on the back and admire their tenacity, we must remember that they were (at the end of the day) failures. We must not forget that in 1982, the Islanders swept the Canucks. That in '91, Pittsburgh massacred the North Stars 8-0 in game six. And that even though the Ducks, Flames and Oilers went seven games, the favourites dominated game seven every time. Honestly, I don't care that the Ducks, Flames and Oilers took the eventual champs to seven games. They all lost that critical battle. In these playoffs, there is only true victor: The Cup Winners.

The Stanley Cup playoffs is one of the most grueling events in all of sports. Four best-of-seven series played over a two month span. To win, teams need to stay completely focused for a extended period of time. With as many of as seven games against the same opponent, scouting and coaching staffs come to posses literally boxes of notes and tape by the end of a given series. They can know their opponents better than they know their own team. And of course, everything has to be clicking. Forwards, defencemen, goaltenders, special teams, coaching, scouting. All of it needs to be in place for glory at the end. I therefore submit that based on past evidence, teams that have not exhibited these features enough during the first 82 games will eventually be stopped at some point in the post-season. It doesn't matter if it's in game four of the first round or game seven of the Stanley Cup final. The end is result is still the same. There is still only one big winner at the end and won't be an underdog; if a team that I didn't mention at the top is able to make the Stanley Cup final, they will be dead on arrival.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 20

Welcome back hockey fans. As the season begins to wind down, the Rabbi and I take a look at some issues that affect the greater game. This week, we tackle "The Code." Using the Cooke hit and subsequent fight with Shawn Thornton, Ethan and I call into question the concept of players being able to police themselves. I haven't believed they've be able to for quite some time and Ethan seems to agree with me.

In the second and third periods, we take a look back at where it went wrong for the dregs of the NHL. First the East and then the West, we talk about why these teams ended up in the basement and what (if anything) they can do to get out of it.

Enjoy!

Look at me, standing up for the little guy in his fight for workplace safety

Workers deserve to feel safe in their place of work. They deserve to feel that fellow workers won't cause them life threatening injuries. And, their managers should be all for these workers' safety as it adds to the longevity of the product. I am, of course, referring this article in Globe and Mail today. The Competition Committee met today and not only agreed to fast tracking the GMs supposed "blind-side head shots" rule, but have made it clear to the GMs/Board of Governors they believe that this is discussion isn't over.

Now clearly, I haven't done something crazy like joining the NDP (heaven forbid) but this is an issue that won't go away until something drastic is done. I've advocated more than once (through this blog and through the podcast) that I feel that any form of headshots (be it incidental or intentional) need to be banned with serious penalties (both on and off the ice) for the perpetrator. And I'm not the only one who feels this way.

As Stephen Brunt pointed out in his column (linked to in this post plus and an earlier one), we are not going to completely eliminate concussions from the game. But why shouldn't we try to limit them? Why should the game continue to be played "The way it's always been done" if that only serves to endanger the lives of men who already take considerable risks every time they step on the ice?

All sports evolve with the times. It was once acceptable for football players to target a player's head or knees. Now it isn't. It was once acceptable for baseball pitchers to spit on the ball. Now it isn't. It was once acceptable for basketball players to throw each other to floor to court on layups. Now it isn't. It was once acceptable for hockey players to play without helmets. Now it isn't. The argument that "if something has always been this way that it must remain" is tired, ill-informed and flat out wrong.

Hockey is now being played at speeds never seen before. As such, the impacts have never been seen before. There is still plenty of room from the waist to the shoulders for hard clean, body-checks. They still send a message of intimidation and in some cases injury. What there isn't room for is the posturing that headshots are part of the game; they aren't. Hopefully the NHLPA can successfully negotiate them out of the game by next year. Hockey isn't a sport for wusses. But it also isn't a sport for serious brain injuries.

Fit to be tied...then came the shootout

First the obvious. The Toronto Maple Leafs deserved to win the shootout last night. John Mitchell and Nikolai Kulemin's goals were wonderful and Phil Kessel had Jaroslav Halak beat if not for the crossbar. Jonas Gustavsson stoned Scott Gomez while Brian Gionta seemed to think that it was a good idea to shoot right at Fat Gustavsson, er sorry, The Monster. All of this is true.

But it's not an indication at all of last nights game. For two periods (to quote the great Rasheed Wallace) "Both teams played hard man, both teams played hard." It was excited, fast, back and forth hockey. The scored netted a one apiece. And then, Kessel scored. And the Leafs killed off the a double minor (and all of the previous power-plays). Toronto had the momentum. But couldn't put Montreal away. Take a look at nhl.com's Play By Play description of the third period.

I'll wait.

Okay let's review:
2:56 FAC TOR won Def. Zone - MTL #94 PYATT vs TOR #42 BOZAK
3:02 MISS MTL #44 HAMRLIK, Wrist, Over Net, Off. Zone, 52 ft.
3:18 BLOCK MTL #6 SPACEK BLOCKED BY TOR #41 KULEMIN, Wrist, Def. Zone
3:55 HIT TOR #2 SCHENN HIT MTL #42 MOORE, Def. Zone
4:03 TAKE TOR TAKEAWAY - #84 GRABOVSKI, Off. Zone 
4:03 MISS TOR #84 GRABOVSKI, Slap, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 38 ft.
4:09 BLOCK TOR #2 SCHENN BLOCKED BY MTL #26 GORGES, Slap, Def. Zone
4:13 FAC MTL won Neu. Zone - MTL #91 GOMEZ vs TOR #51 WALLIN
4:35 BLOCK TOR #3 PHANEUF BLOCKED BY MTL #57 POULIOT, Slap, Def. Zone
4:40 FAC TOR won Neu. Zone - MTL #14 PLEKANEC vs TOR #42 BOZAK
5:09  GIVE MTL GIVEAWAY - #41 HALAK, Def. Zone
5:35 HIT MTL #52 DARCHE HIT TOR #2 SCHENN, Off. Zone

So far a pretty dominant period by the Leafs but with a number of shots blocked and flat out missed. Now comes the deluge:

5:59 HIT TOR #11 SJOSTROM HIT MTL #40 LAPIERRE, Off. Zone
6:14 SHOT TOR ONGOAL - #11 SJOSTROM, Wrist, Off. Zone, 35 ft.
6:21 SHOT TOR ONGOAL - #45 STALBERG, Snap, Off. Zone, 13 ft.
6:28 HIT TOR #45 STALBERG HIT MTL #40 LAPIERRE, Off. Zone
6:32 MISS TOR #22 BEAUCHEMIN, Snap, Over Net, Off. Zone, 33 ft.
7:28 SHOT TOR ONGOAL - #15 KABERLE, Wrist, Off. Zone, 48 ft. - GOALIE STOPPED,TV TIMEOUT
7:28 FAC TOR won Off. Zone - MTL #91 GOMEZ vs TOR #39 MITCHELL
7:35 BLOCK TOR #20 HANSON BLOCKED BY MTL #6 SPACEK, Snap, Def. Zone

7:52 HIT TOR #22 BEAUCHEMIN HIT MTL #6 SPACEK, Off. Zone
8:01 SHOT TOR ONGOAL - #20 HANSON, Slap, Off. Zone, 44 ft.
8:09 MISS MTL #91 GOMEZ, Wrist, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 41 ft.
8:27 STOP OFFSIDE

Just over two minutes completely dominated by the Leafs. Four shots on goal, one over the net and one blocked at the point until the Habs clear the zone. A very well played period so far for the Maple Leafs but they're unable to score. We continue.

8:27 FAC MTL won Neu. Zone - MTL #14 PLEKANEC vs TOR #42 BOZAK
8:48 BLOCK MTL #26 GORGES BLOCKED BY TOR #41 KULEMIN, Snap, Def. Zone
8:57 HIT TOR #42 BOZAK HIT MTL #14 PLEKANEC, Neu. Zone
9:23 BLOCK TOR #84 GRABOVSKI BLOCKED BY MTL #20 O'BYRNE, Wrist, Def. Zone
9:39 MTL #40 LAPIERRE HIT TOR #11 SJOSTROM, Def. Zone
9:51 HIT TOR #3 PHANEUF HIT MTL #40 LAPIERRE, Def. Zone
9:58 STOP OFFSIDE
9:58  FAC TOR won Neu. Zone - MTL #91 GOMEZ vs TOR #20 HANSON
10:27 MISS MTL #57 POULIOT, Wrist, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 43 ft.
10:51 TAKE TOR TAKEAWAY - #42 BOZAK, Neu. Zone
10:59 TAKE MTL TAKEAWAY - #74 KOSTITSYN, Def. Zone
11:10 BLOCK MTL #20 O'BYRNE BLOCKED BY TOR #41 KULEMIN, Wrist, Def. Zone
11:10 STOP PUCK IN CROWD
11:10 TOR won Def. Zone - MTL #14 PLEKANEC vs TOR #42 BOZAK
11:42 BLOCK MTL #74 KOSTITSYN BLOCKED BY TOR #2 SCHENN, Backhand, Def. Zone
12:16 BLOCK MTL #52 DARCHE BLOCKED BY TOR #36 GUNNARSSON, Backhand, Def. Zone
12:25 MISS TOR #45 STALBERG, Wrist, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 26 ft.
12:31 PENL TOR #11 SJOSTROM Tripping(2 min), Off. Zone Drawn By: MTL #26 GORGES

No shots on goal but the Leafs have had to block four Canadiens' blasts, while Toronto have managed one shot (blocked) and a missed shot. Less back-and-forth. with the now Canadiens controlling play by a silm majority. And then, Fredrick Sjostrom committs a stupid penalty. His team is beginning to tire. Beauchmin and Phaneuf stay on the ice, having been on for at least 15 seconds. And then this happens:

12:31 FAC TOR won Def. Zone - MTL #14 PLEKANEC vs TOR #39 MITCHELL
13:01 MISS MTL #6 SPACEK, Slap, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 52 ft.
13:10 SHOT MTL ONGOAL - #57 POULIOT, Wrist, Off. Zone, 25 ft
13:13 SHOT MTL ONGOAL - #57 POULIOT, Snap, Off. Zone, 21 ft.
13:26 TAKE TOR TAKEAWAY - #22 BEAUCHEMIN, Def. Zone
13:54 MTL #21 GIONTA(23), Tip-In, Off. Zone, 22 ft. Assists: #91 GOMEZ(41); #6 SPACEK(18)

The Maple Leafs' penalty kill, which has been so great up unitl this point, is fried. Previously it was challenging the Canadiens in the neutral zone and at the blue line, allowing no goals and just six shots in the previous five goes. Now, it backs off and allows the Montrealers to set up. Rather then zero or one shot, the Habs now muster up three shots including Gionta's equalizer.

The rest of the game is more of the same. Neither team is dominant and both defenses/goaltenders are unwilling to let in a game winner. Just five more shots for the Leafs and three for the Habs. Both team account for another seven blocked shots. Thoroughly enjoyable from this neutral fan's persceptive. The home team has wavered and is losing momentum but wouldn't given up the game winning goal. The road side has overcome the deficit but can't find their way to the back of the net. From my point of view, this is how it should end. A two-all draw, no one happy but both sides knowing that they earned the point. Instead, individualism triumphs over team. One-on-one becomes the story of a well played game of five-on-five. The Toronto faithful steal a point and while the visitors can't help to wonder "What if?"

This isn't the game I love. This is a farce. A side-show created so that "supposed" hockey fan can have a result. A winner. The problem is that sometimes, there isn't one. The two teams have played each other so evenly that a shared result is best one.

"For the good of the game," they said when the shootout was added. Not mine. Not mine.

Fantastic Friday Links

Going around the NHL, we begin in Toronto. The usually angry Jeff Blair actually liked what he saw from the Leafs last night in their 2-1 shoot-out win over the (Fatt Brodeur-less) Devils.

Meanwhile the Sens continued their slide into complete suckage last night, falling 6-3 to the Thrashers.

The Rangers continue to forget that making the playoffs involves holding leads and winning games.

The B's got their "revenge" on Pittsburgh  for the Cooke hit on Savard - if you define revenge as being a fight between Matt Cooke and Shawn Thornton but then proceed to lose a game that they needed to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. I for one do not. Then again I believe that Cooke should have been banned for the rest of the season.

Anaheim's James Wisniewski will sit the next eight games for a shady hit on Chicago's Brent Seabrook. You can take a look at it and get James Mirtle of Globe's take on the suspension/penalty call on the play.

In the NCAA Tournament Ohio University (not The Ohio State University) knocked off Georgetown with 97-83 BEAT DOWN! Other interesting results were Murray State over Vanderbilt, Old Dominion sent Notre Dame back to South Bend (and busted the Unfinished Bracket) and Villanova survived a scare against Robert Morris (with some strange officiating)

Those frustrating Toronto Raptors host The Durants tonight. My Dad and I were planning on going to this game last month. Then the Raps started to stink and we decided that they didn't deserve our money. Naturally, Durant will go nuts tonight/Raps will play like a real team/both.

Leafs-Habs tomorrow night at the ACC. Jim Hughson has a good preview of the game. The guys at Four Habs Fans and Pension Plan Puppets should provide you with all of your partisan/stripper information. Check them both out tomorrow afternoon. And a little story for this one. At the beginning of the season, brother and his Habs Fan roommate made a bet on the team that finished higher in the standings. The prize is the loser must take the other to a Leafs-Habs game and where the opposing team's colours. Looks like my brother is going to be clad in Bleu, Blanc et Rough tomorrow night.

No Avs until Sunday. The Boys in Burgundy play the Quackers in Anaheim. James Wisniewski will obviously not be in the lineup.

Have yourselves a Fantastic Friday and Wonderful Weekend

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 19

Welcome back hockey fans. It's absolutely amazing outside, with yesterday being one of the nicest St. Patrick's Day in recent memory (take this comment however you'd like). It almost seemed a waste to stay indoors and cooped up but that's where the Rabbi and I were last night to give you, our listeners, your weekly dose of awesome. In this week's show, Ethan and I lead with the seemingly unending topic of headshots (and reckless play in general). Last week, we were disappointed with the hit that Matt Cooke put on Marc Savard. Well guess who is is? Donald S. Cherry himself. Maybe there's hope for the old guard yet. We wax on Cherry's reaction to the Cooke hit as well as some discussion on dangerous plays in the league these days. In period two, we discuss the playoff situation in the East. While the individual teams are closed to settled, there still are some pressing questions: "Can the Rangers make the big dance?" "How far will Ottawa fall in the standings?" And "Who are you, and what have you done with Montreal Canadiens?" Finally period three takes a similar look at the Western Conference. Spots one through seven seem locked in. The question is who will get the final post-season birth: Calgary or Detroit?

As always, enjoy the show!

Monday Morning Links (posted in the afternoon)

Avs win. Hurrah! Avs get out-shot 51-22 by Dallas. Boooh!

Leafs lose. Meh!

Raptors lose, AGAIN. And Bruce Arthur says what we're all thinking. Why do I even bother with this team? I'm starting to feel like a Leafs fan.

Argos sign former Queen's QB (and Vanier Cup winner) Danny Branigan. Hey, he can't be worse than any of their other quarterbacks. In other news, the Argos have no quarterbacks.

The Habs are playing their best hockey of the season. I got nothing.

Ovechkin hits Brian Campbell from behind. Campbell is out for the season. Ovie was tossed for boarding. He might get suspended. Or he might not.

Update: Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post reports that Ovechkin has received a two-game suspension

From the department of "Should be obvious but normally isn't," even Don Cherry hated the Matt Cooke hit on Marc Savard. This is the same league the enacted the Sean Avery Rule mid-way through the '08 playoffs. To the NHL: Just ban the hit and use the "intent to injure clause" to enforce it.

NCAA tournament bracket is out. Upon first glance Duke got let off easy, Syracuse got hosed, Kentucky could have a tough road and Kansas looks really, really good.

Alberta beats McGill to take the CIS Women's hockey National Championship. Too bad the girls couldn't win three in a row. Still impressive. And their 86-game win streak is something out of UCLA in the 70s.

Speaking of UCLA, the Bruins will miss the tournament for the first time since 2004. Can't say I'm shocked. They've only lost five scholarship players in the past two years (and two of them were one-and-dones). 14-18, however, is unacceptable. Howland needs to recruit is ass off this off-season.

It's Monday, so Elliot Friedman's Monday notes column is out. Always a must read.

Finally, Brunt gets the last word in the Globe.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episodes 17 & 18

Welcome back hockey fans. Sorry I've taken so long to post. In last week's show, Ethan and I spend the first two periods (and OT) wrapping up the Olympics. The first period we devote to the men's team and its triumphant march to the Gold. Russia, Slovakia and finally the USA all fell to the mighty Canadian juggernaut. Okay we weren't quite a juggernaut. More accurately we survived the Slovaks and the Americans by the skin of our teeth. Still, Ethan and I break down the knockout phase with special attention paid to the final. In period two, we revisit the issue of whether or not NHLers belong in the Olympics at all. The third period brings us back to the NHL where we chat about the trade deadline. For all of the hype, could there be a more boring day on the hockey calender? Finally in OT, we return one last time to the Olympics and discuss our golden girls. They won (of course) but after the victory the Canadian Women's hockey team decided to celebrate on the ice. Some in the media have taken the girls to task for it. Ethan and I do not.

In this week's edition, The Rabbi and I open with a frank discussion on head shots in the NHL and what the GMs are proposing to improve the safety of their players. We wonder whether this will work and if it goes far enough. In period two we talk about ol' time rivalries and how they've become largely diminished in these past few years. Leafs-Habs was once life and death. We don't think it's the case anymore. In period three, we get into the topic the Vancouver Canucks "marathon" roadtrip. Yep, were on the road for 14 games but split up by the Olympics...which just so happened to be in Vancouver. Hmmm.

Check em both out!

Crosby scores for Canada!

Is there anything more that needs to be said?
Gold Baby!
Gold!

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 16

Good evening hockey fans. Welcome back to our second Olympic podcast. This week, Comrade Rabidoux and I review Canada's last couple games. We rundown why we lost to the Americans and why we beat 'ze Germans. In period two, we preview tonight's epic tilt between Canada and Russia. I find myself on the wrong end on an inquisition from the Rabbi, who has the audacity to question if Canada will win tonight. I defend this country's honour and predict the W. I'm thinking of turning Ethan in to the RCMP. In the third, we discuss the girls team and how well they've played so far. I'll be frank: they've been downright dominate. As of now, they already have a medal, can they take gold? Ethan and I sure think so. Finally, we go into overtime on Garry Bettman's statement that it's not a done deal for NHL players to be competing in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Enjoy and enjoy the rest of the game tonight. I know am.

Quick thoughts on last night's game, tonight's game and a post-Olympic notice

Great. We beat Germany 8-2. We should beat Germany 8-2. I'm not going to dissect the game because a) I'm likely going to do that on the podcast tonight; b) I didn't watch the whole game (went out with Miss Unfinished Business last night and turned the game off when Canada was up 4-1) and c) Did I mention that this is Germany vs Canada? Aside from that, I'm glad Weber blasted the puck through the net, that Thornton scored, that Iginla scored twice, that Pronger and Neidermayer didn't look like geriatrics on the ice and that Roberto Luogno was at least competent. I'm still not thrilled with the power-play though. Paging Mike Green...

On to tonight. I'm going to talk more about this game during the podcast but I'll say here that I expect Canada to win. Why? Quite frankly, I expect Canada to win every game it plays. For all the usual reasons (it's our game, most players in history, most players in the league, we're on home ice, blah blah blah). But also, the Russian are overrated. There, I said. Russia has elite level talent on the top two lines and that's it. Their 3rd/4th lines are old, slow and okay in their own end. This elite talent hasn't blown anyone out since beating a fifth-rate Latvia team 8-2. It couldn't beat Jaroslav Halak for more than one goal in regulation or go better than one-for-seven in the shootout. And it put a big four goals in against the Czechs. Defensively, they're okay. And just okay. Heck, they would be mediocre if it wasn't for Markov and Volchenkov (a man that they haven't been playing enough). In goal Nabakov is again okay, but he hasn't been tested and has never proven himself in ANY major competitions (Stanley Cup, Olympics, World Cup of Hockey). Is Russia good? Of course. But are they the boogie-man our media is portraying them as? Not chance.

When Ethan asked me who would win and medal in this tournament, I said Canada to win, with the US in second and Sweden in third. I still stand by this prediction. Regardless of how the team has played so far, I believe it has the talent to beat anyone in a one-off game. I expect tonight to prove me right.

Finally, I'm finding myself very limited by the scope of what I initially set out for this blog. I might love the Avs, but it's tough to write about them all the time when I don't have Centre Ice. I also feel that there's much more to write about than just hockey. So beginning after the Olympics, this blog will definitely be less Avs-centric and slightly less hockey-centric. The Toronto Raptors are in the midst of a great playoff run and the NBA as a league has never been as enjoyable since I started watching basketball. College basketball season is coming down to its wonderful conclusion. The CFL and NFL aren't on the surface but they're always on the horizon. And, I love talking about all things hockey. Come playoff time, that's all that will appear (with extensive Avs coverage, assuming they're in).

The "An Avalanche fan living in Leafs Nation who spent five years in Montreal observing the daily worship of La Sainte-Flanelle" will be replaced with something a little more appropriate. But it will still me writing. Being as honest and unmerciful as I can be. On that I promise to never change. (Bonus points to anyone who identifies the previous line.)

Canada 3, Switzerland 2 - We won...barely

What I liked: The sustained Canadian fore-check throughout the game; The Shark-Attack Line; The relatively competent play in our end; Martin Brodeur's performance (for the most part). You can sort of blame him for the first goal which was a great shot. But there's no way he can be blamed for the second. It's not the goaltender's fault when a centering pass is redirected in by his own player's skate (Patrick Marleau); Dan Boyle in both ends (again); Sidney's Crosby's goal in the shootout; Jonas Hiller's performance (from a pure hockey point of view; hated it from a partisan Canadian's POV); That this might have the effect of the Sweden loss in 2002 and knock some sense into these players.

What I didn't like: Canada's play in front of the Swiss net. It seems that our best players forgot the first thing that they were ever taught: Keep your stick on the ice; The officiating. How Crosby is high-sticked in the face and cut open and there's not a penalty called is ridiculous; The power-play. 1-7 on the PP is simply unacceptable for a team with this much talent. I've said it once and I will keep saying it: there was no reason to leave Mike Green off this team. If only to play 7-10 minutes a game as a PP specialist; The weird decisions to move Iginla from line to line. Just keep him Nash and Crosby; Chris Pronger's boneheaded play late in the second period that led to the second goal. Pronger was left out of position after he put Swiss forward Andres Ambuhl into the boards drawing what would have been a penalty and left Boyle and Marleau to play in front. Just dumb; That Canada likely needs to beat the Americans to earn a bye into quarter-finals.

Why we should panic: Because were Canadians and we didn't win 5-0 (or better.)

Why we shouldn't panic: Because we still won; Because Jonas Hiller is a real NHL goaltender who has won a Stanley Cup and backstopped the Ducks to victory in a triple-OT playoff game against Detroit in Detroit; Because there's still plenty of hockey to be played; And we still outshot Switzerland 46-25.

Captain Blye and The Rabbi: Episode 15

Good Evening Hockey Fans. Welcome back to another episode of the finest hockey show on the interweb. It's been a couple weeks but in this week's episoide, Ethan and I have caught the fever...Olympic Fever. We open with a discussion of women's hockey and specifically how dominate Canada (and the Americans) have been so far. We like, we love and we want more of it. In period two, we get into the Men's team and run down last night's 8-0 shellacking of Norway. We're a bit nitpicky, but I feel you need to be when so much is on the line. In period three, we expand the discussion and get into who we like to take home Gold (and silver and bronze for that matter). I take Canada. Ethan, the pinko, likes Russia. I've got his email if you want to send him hate mail. Finally, we go into a shootout and sort through a few things in the NHL that we haven't talked about.

Enjoy!

Canada 8, Norway 0 and Olympic Hockey Thoughts

What I liked: The second and third periods; Mike Babcock's decision to finally put Jerome Iginla with Crosby and Nash for these second and third periods; Dan Boyle's play on defence (great in both ends); The Shark Attack line; The PK; The power-play after the first period; Jenn Heil showing up and cheering on her compatriots; The Schwartz's Smoked Meat Sandwich I had last night; The obvious chemistry between Getzlaf and Perry; The play of Norwegian goaltender Pal Grontes. Yes, he let in eight goals but he still turned away 32 shots and was perfect in the first period; Eight goals. The notion that this team should take its foot off the gas is ridiculous. Goals matter in this tournament. Scoring margins matter. Keep up the offense. I'd love to see them score 10 next time against Switzerland (though I doubt they will since Jonas Hiller is real NHL goaltender).

What I didn't like: The Crosby-Nash-Bergeron line in the first period, which was thankfully jettisoned after twenty minutes; The power-play in the first period. Way too cute. Too many passes in the offensive zone and passing up perfectly good scoring opportunities. Shoot the fucking puck! (which they did after the first period); Pierre McGuire.

Let's not forget that we played Norway: I'm glad Roberto Luongo now has an Olympic Win (a shutout to boot) but he only faced 15 shots. None of which were particularly challenging. Martin Brodeur will go tomorrow night and unless he lays a total egg, will get the call against the United States; On a similar token, I'm glad that they peppered Pal Grontes with 40 shots (and scored five times in the third period). It's a very nice warmup win and hopefully the first period was just early tournament jitters.

I can't write a hockey post and not talk about the reigning Gold Medalists: 18-0 over Slovakia and 10-1 over Switzerland. The Canadian Women's team (and yes, I'm calling it women's and not ladies' hockey) has been wonderful for its first two games. Hat tricks for Meghan Agosta and Jayna Hefford. A goal and five assists for Hayley the Great. Caroline Ouellette has a tournament leading six assists. The defence has only allowed 21 shots. And the goaltenders have stopped 20 of them. Of course, we expected all of this. We expect the blowout wins over the Slovakias and Switzerlands of the world. Even tonight's game against the defending silver medalists from Sweden is expected to be another lopsided affair (5:30 start in Ontario and Quebec). As a Canadian fan, I of course want another big win (especially when total goals/differentials matter). But as a fan of women's hockey I'd love to see at least a competitive period or two. I know Canada will win but is it too much to ask for a tied, close game through 20 or 40 minutes? I want the game to grow and the only way to do so is show that the rest of the world can at least compete with Canada and the USA.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Epsisode 14

Welcome back listeners. In this week's show, Ethan and I open with discussion on the merits (or lack there of in my opinion) of Hockey Day in Canada. The annual festivities went off in Ethan's hometown of Stratford, ON and naturally the Rabbi is on board. Me, not so much. In period two we get into the trades of the past few days involving the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Calgary Flames. You all know by know that Dion Phaneuf and J.S. Giguere are now in Blue and White while Chris Higgins, Ales Kotalik, Ian White and a few others (read: Leafs) now play for the Calgary Flames. We discuss both the impact of these trades from both a hockey and emotional angle. One thing is certain: Dion is no Dougie. Finally, we close with a quick dismissal of the NDP's idea to initiate a Royal Commission on violence in sports.

Enjoy the show. We'll be back in two weeks with a full Olympic and mid-season show.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 13

Welcome back to the show! In this week's edition, Ethan and I weigh into the Patrice Cormier elbow on Mikael Tam and get into the necessary punishment that has to be laid out. It this just for the Q to settle, who have given him a season-long ban? Should the cops get involved? And what about the federal/provincial governments? In the second period, we move to the Northwest division to talk about the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche. Two weeks ago we discussed the Flames and Canucks and specifically how consistent the Flames had been. Wow, what a couple weeks has been. Now it's the Canucks and Avs leading the way while the Flames risk missing the playoffs. I even do some speculation, saying that Dion Phaneuf's days in Cow-Town were number. I swear we recorded this on Thursday. Finally, we create our own fictional All-Star starting line ups as there isn't a game this year and debate some the selections. Listen to Ethan get completely taken to task for his picks. He has to remember that the All-Star starters are based on performance this year and not as life-time achievement awards.

Check it out!

The Good, the Bad and the ugly of the Leafs trades

The Good: The Leafs acquire a player who has the potential of being top-five at his position; Vesa Toskala is no longer a Maple Leaf; Jason Blake is no longer a Maple Leaf; Jamal Mayers got his wish and is no longer a Maple Leaf; The Ducks solidify their goaltending situation. Hiller is a solid #1 and Toskala once upon a time was a servicable backup; The Ducks still have both their own and Philly's first round pick; The Flames can rebuild their second line around Stajan and Hagman and can build their second defensive pairing around Ian White.

The Bad: The Leafs lose approx. 38 per cent of their offence and now don't have a true second line. Hagman, Stajan, Blake and White combined for 55 of the team's 149 goals and none of that offence has been replaced. And they still don't have a first round pick; J.S. Giguere has been genuinely bad this year as a backup in Anaheim. There's no guarantee that he regains the level of play that made him a Conn Smythe Trophy winner; The Ducks have to deal with Jason Blake's $4-million contract for the next two years. More specifically, Saku likely has to deal with him.

The Ugly: The Flames have given up on a 24 year old who still has Norris Trophy potential. Not only that, they needed to get more than Stajan, Hagman and White for Dion. The players that they acquired are all solid contributors (except Mayers) but none of them are first line players; Regardless of what Brian Burke said today, there is no chance that Tomas Kaberle will end this season with the Maple Leafs. He will be traded for at the very least secondary scoring and a first round pick or a first line forward.

This is wonderful news

I couldn't be more overjoyed than to read Dave Stubbs' piece in the Gazette this morning. Jean Beliveau represents all that's right about hockey and I think I can speak for a great many hockey fans who delighted by his release from the hospital and to still have him as a part of the hockey and Canadiens community. Here's to a full recovery for le Gros Bill.

Couldn't have said it any better

I'll be posting material from In The Bullpen from time to time. It's Ethan's other, more sports based blog. This beaut comes from his fellow blogger Steven Bull about the Cormier hit and the need for action.

Cormier was suspended for the remainder of the season and playoffs this morning. Like Steven (and many others), I'm all for tough clean hockey hits. But not deliberate cheap shots that serve one purpose: injuring your fellow players. Players like Cormier need to be punished to the greatest degree provided by their respective leagues. I'm very supportive of the QMJHL's decision as hit's like Cormier's have no place in the game.

Now both the Bruins and the Avalanche owe Brian Burke a game puck

One of the biggest motivators for athletes is being told that they aren't good enough. It has a tendency to give the "slighted" player an F' You mentality and increase their level of play. In the case of Craig Anderson, the slight has led to huge increase in performance.

Brian Burke announced the Olympic roster for Team USA on New Year's Day; a roster that did not include Anderson. Since that announcement Anderson has a 7-1-0 record, a 1.69 GAA, a .956 save percentage and his first two shutouts of the season. The Avalanche are in the midst of a six-game winning streak and have moved back into first place in the Northwest Division.

So thanks, Burkie. It's too bad for Craig Anderson that he doesn't get to represent his country in the Olympics but the snub seems to have revitalized him and the Avalanche out of a mid-season malaise. And the Canadian snipers won't have to worry about putting pucks past him next month. We still have to deal will Ryan Miller, but you can't win them all.

And finally, a big thank you Burke from the Red and White Army fantasy hockey team. Craig Anderson stellar play has allowed the team to increase its lead to over 600 points. Gold stars all around.

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 12

We're back! This week, we complete the two-week state of the game in Canada with a review of the three Eastern teams. Moving West to East we review the recent play of the Leafs and Senators as well as the season of the Montreal Canadiens. We've talked a lot about the Habs this year, but not at all about their 2009-10 season.

Enjoy!

Captain Blye and the Rabbi: Episode 11

Welcome back dear listeners to another episode of the best thing to hit hockey since referee conspiracy theories. In this week's show, Ethan and I begin a two week trek across Canada to discuss the fates and fortunes of the six teams from our side of the 49th. Episode 11 is all about the West. We discuss the troubles facing the Edmonton Oilers, the Vancouver Canucks' turnaround and the consistency of the Calgary Flames. Finally we go into Sudden Death on the recently retired Curtis Joseph and whether or not he belongs in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Enjoy!

Captain Blye and The Rabbi: Episode 10

We made it to double digits!

In this week's edition, Ethan and I open with a post-mortem on Tuesday night's World Junior Final between Canada and the the US of A. We both agree that the Americans were the better team on Tuesday night, in spite of the fact that the Canadians were the more talented squad.
It's then on to the NHL for periods two and three where we took Monday's LA-San Jose game as well as Tuesday's clash between Atlanta and Pittsburgh as starting point to dissect what going on with those four clubs these day. It's been very good for the two Western Conference team, but quite crappy for both the Thrashers and the defending Stanley Cup champs. We look at why these teams have been performing in these ways.
Finally, we go into sudden death to wish a very sudden death to the "Eh! O'Canada Go!" Chant that TSN And Pepsi were trying to sell throughout the tournament.

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USA 6, Canada 5

If you followed my tweets of last night's game, you noticed that there was something about this team that I didn't like. I couldn't quite put my thumb on it beforehand, but the way that the Canadian Junior Team conducted itself turned me off. As the game progressed, I understood what annoyed me: There was an arrogance to this group and they played like a team that felt it could win on talent alone.

Understand that this was a very talented team. It wouldn't surprise me if it produced multiple NHL All-Stars. But it wasn't nearly as talented as the team in 2005. With the NHL lockout in effect, every available junior prospect played. The result was a team featuring Sidney Crosby, Dion Phaneuf, Ryan Getzlaf, Patrice Bergeron, Jeff Carter, Cam Barker and Corey Perry that rolled through the tournament winning every game by at least two goals, culminating with a 6-1 win over Russia - the Russian team featured Ovechkin and Malkin and neither scored in the final. This team had just one plan: Attack, attack, attack. They didn't a Plan B because they didn't need one.

Conversely, this team didn't face the adversity of the '07 or '08 editions. The boys in '07 survived the agonizing shootout with the Americans in the semi-final which featured the famously weird shootout rules (any shooter was able to reshoot after the first three had shot and could reshoot again provided there was a one player gap) only finishing after Jonathan Toews' third goal. That team went on from the brink of disaster to a 4-2 win over Russia, storming in front 4-0 before packing it in.

The '08 team actually lost a preliminary game, the first Canada regained the gold in '05. In a back and forth contest against Sweden, the Swedes scored with just seven seconds to play to upset the three-time defending champions. Rather than fall to pieces, Canada went on to win every game remaining including an overtime rematch with Sweden in final.

Even last year's team had to come from behind the in semi-final, with Eberle scoring late to force overtime against the Russians. They ultimately won in a shootout and followed it up with a dominant 5-1 win over Sweden in the final.

In comparison, this year's team only faced adversity in the group stage game against the Americans. The New Year's Eve clash saw Canada completely outplayed for most of the game, surrender two shorthanded goals (though it was effective three) and only wake up with minutes to play in the third period when they were down two. In no other game were the Canadians even close to being challenged, with all the the hockey powers on the other side of the draw.

Having not been challenged, Canada was never forced to make in-game changes. This was reinforced last night after Alex Pietrangelo was assessed a ten minute hitting from behind major and Jordan Caron was later sent to the box for slashing. Neither play was particularly flagrant from an NHL/CHL standard but the referees last night weren't calling a game by our standards; it was called based on IIHF rules. Rather than adjust their style of play, the Canadians continued as they always had. Rather then changing goaltenders after the third goal (like the Americans) or even the fourth, Head Coach Willie Desjardins waited until his team was down 5-3 with less than 15 minutes to play to remove the shell-shocked Jake Allen. And most egregious, rather than remembering that the Americans had scored numerous times on the odd-man rush Canada continued to put themselves into situations that would result in one, which in the end cost them the game.

What annoyed most me was the arrogance that Canada brought to the rink last night and practically every night of this tournament. Not once did this supremely talented team bring its A-Game. Not once did they truly play 60 minutes as a team. And not once did they respect their opponents (specifically the Americans) enough into game-planning for them. Rather they played the same, individual based game every night. It seemed to me that these players and this coaching staff was so assured in victory that they forgot to have a Plan B. Only in the two outings against the United States when Canada was already down two goals did they play as a team. On New Year's they were able to score a miraculous short-handed goal late and then hold Team USA to just one shot in overtime. Last night, Jordan Eberle put the team on his back in the third period only to beat by the counter-attacking that had done them in both games.

As a Canadian, I wanted Canada to win last night. But as a hockey fan I would have been disappointed had they won with the effort that they gave. The Duke of Wellington once said of his famous victory at Waterloo, "The Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton." To extend this analogy, the 2010 World Junior Hockey Championship was lost at the Team Canada Training Camp. The whole team, from the top down, was so assured in their triumph that they failed to make any adjustments even when absolutely necessary.

Some apologies

I'm very sorry readers for my lack of post in the last month. Thing have been incredibly busy. However tomorrow, I promise you all both the usual new episode of Captain Blye and The Rabbi plus a big post on tonight's WJC final between Canada and the USA.

Enjoy Overtime of this great game tonight.