A few random thoughts while watching Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals shred the Bruins for a first period hat trick in a 5-0 game (so far).


You just never know in sports. The Bruins have been playing some of the best hockey in the NHL for most of the last month, with goaltender Tim Thomas standing on his head, stopping practically everything coming his way. Not tonight, though, as Thomas gave up four goals in less than nine minutes and was replaced by Alex Auld halfway through the first period, when it was already 4-0.

Thomas didn't get much help from his defense, though, as the Bruins looked like they forgot their skates at the team hotel. Wow, 6-0 now, still first period. Apparently the Bruins have been busy celebrating Randy Moss re-signing with the Patriots for three more years.


Lou Piniella isn't wasting any time getting into midseason form. After Jason Marquis told reporters he would rather go elsewhere if he wasn't part of the Chicago Cubs starting rotation, Piniella angrily replied Chicago should just "let him go" if that was the case.

No surprise there. Lou Piniella has always been strung a little tighter than even most other baseball managers, not a group usually known for their laid-back ways. What is surprising though, is that one day later, Piniella apologized for his remarks and Marquis did not retract any of his.

There is definitely more to come on this story. It may take until July or August, but you will hear more from these two guys.


It didn't take long to get here. Just days after Astros owner Drayton McLane raved about how much Roger Clemens means to the Houston franchise and how Roger would be welcomed in the Astros camp with open arms, the Houston Chronicle is reporting McLane gathered the Astros top brass together to reach some sort of decision on how to handle Clemens if he decides to return to camp.

The Rocket had pitched batting practice to the club's minor league players for two days last week, but the resulting crush of media attention had turned into what club officials felt was a distraction. Suddenly McLane's arms aren't open quite so wide.


Spare a thought for Bobby Murcer. According to Associated Press Baseball Writer Mike Fitzpatrick, the 61 year old Murcer, a Yankee broadcaster for the last 23 seasons and former All-Star outfielder, is recovering from a brain biopsy performed Monday in Houston.

Murcer, who underwent surgery in December, 2006 for a malignant brain tumor, was forced to undergo the most recent operation after an MRI revealed "an area of concern, which could be scar tissue or another tumor." The popular broadcaster recovered from his 2006 surgery in time to work Yankee games last year; let's hope he will be back on the air this season as well.


Sydney Crosby needs a cool nickname. The Pittsburgh Penguins captain, still only twenty years old, may be out for a few more weeks with a high ankle sprain, but perhaps the time could be used to come up with a fitting moniker for him. "Syd the Kid?" Come on. By the age of twenty, Wayne Gretzky was already being referred to as "The Great One," so it only seems fitting that Crosby get something better than "Syd the Kid."

Considering how many honors Crosby has already won in just his first two years in the NHL - The Hart Trophy as NHL MVP, the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer, and the Lester B. Pearson Trophy as the league's Most Outstanding Player as voted by the Player's Association, all in 2007 - maybe he could be known as "Bling" Crosby. After all, barring a serious, career-threatening injury, Crosby should be racking up the hardware for most of the next two decades.

Probably more people saw the now-famous, or perhaps now-infamous, video clip of Patrice Bergeron of the Boston Bruins being hit from behind by Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Randy Jones than have seen Bergeron or Jones play in their entire careers.

Like people driving past a car accident who don't have any desire to see the bloody result of the accident but can't stop themselves from looking, sports fans have seen, over and over, the clip of Bergeron chasing a loose puck against the boards behind the Philadelphia net, only to be hit by Jones, smashing Bergeron's head and face into the dasher which separates the boards from the plexiglass above them.

Hitting is an integral part of the sport of hockey- picture the hard-hitting brutality of football multiplied by the three or fours times the speed the players can generate by flying across frozen water on skates. And one of the first things hockey players are taught when they are learning the game is always to skate with your head up. A player moving up the ice with his head down is a player who is asking to be popped, legally and cleanly and devastatingly.

But a player approaching a puck lodged against the end boards has no choice but to put his head down - he is decelerating to avoid smashing into the boards and he is looking down to see the puck and gain control of it - in short, he is at his most vulnerable.

If you watch the clip of Jones hitting Bergeron - and who hasn't? - you see Bergeron approaching the puck, Jones hot on his trail. Jones appears to slow for just a split-second, then makes either a conscious or unconscious decision to do what he does next - smash Bergeron from behind with both hands and his body. The Bruins player then crumples to the ice and lies motionless on his back.

On Thursday, Bergeron made his first public appearance since the hit in the October 27th game against Philadelphia, and the scene was sobering if not downright scary. The guy who can skate faster than some of are comfortable driving and can make cat-quick moves that the rest of us can only dream about walked slowly and deliberately to the podium.

He spoke softly and haltingly of headaches and blurred vision, and said, "it's hard for me to walk 200 feet without feeling dizzy and lightheaded." He made a strong case for the NHL as a governing body to crack down on the kind of hit from behind that put him in the hospital and could just as easily have put him in a wheelchair or even a coffin.

In 1969, a vicious stick-swinging fight between Ted Green of the Bruins and Wayne Maki of the St. Louis Blues in a preseason game in which Green was nearly killed provided the impetus needed for the league to start pushing players to wear protective headgear. It took a long time, but eventually helmets became just another accepted piece of equipment for a player to wear, like shin guards or elbow pads.

If this career-interrupting injury to Patrice Bergeron, a promising young star who is still only 22 years old, can push the league to start policing itself against this kind of vicious hit from behind, then maybe ten or fifteen years from now Bergeron can look back and see that something good came out of this frightening situation. Assuming he can even remember it.

Just wanted to whip a few thoughts out at you. That's right, a few thoughts. You were expecting something else? Come on, this is a G-rated site, or at least PG. Most of the time, anyway.

Thought #1 - Football players are wired differently than the rest of us. I know, this isn't exactly a goundbreaking revelation, but this weekend's NFL action reinforced my above point a couple of different times.

1) Chris Simms. Team officials won't say when Simms suffered the injury that tore his spleen. It's quite possible, maybe even probable, that they don't know. But there is no question it happened sometime during the Buccaneers loss to Carolina yesterday. Simms had to be helped off the field in the third quarter, missed a series, then returned to the field and finished the game after suffering not a bump or bruise, but a potentially life-threatening injury that later put Tampa's quarterback in intensive care.

Meanwhile, in his postgame comments, head coach Jon Gruden would say only that Simms had suffered from "cramping." Of course he did! He had a torn spleen and internal bleeding!

See? Different wiring. I don't know about you, but I can't imagine any scenario that would involve me suffering an injury serious enough to cause life-threatening internal bleeding, then finish out my shift at work before heading off to the hospital. "I'd love to hang out at the water cooler guys, but I've got this pesky spitting-up-blood thing going on, so I'll see you tomorrow."

2) Patrick Chukwurah. Monday Night Football cameras happened to catch the Denver Broncos linebacker matter-of-factly tossing his cookies through his face mask just prior to a snap in the fourth quarter of Denver's 17-7 win at New England last night. When I'm getting sick to my stomach, I'm doubled up over the commode, cursing life and watching to see if I cough up a lung. Not Up-Chukwura . He watered the Gillette Stadium turf, then continued on with the play. See? Different wiring.

Thought #2 - It's called stupidity. This has been bugging me for a while. Last fall, as NHL training camps opened up after the owners' lockout of the players cost the league an entire season, the Bruins ran a promotional campaign in Boston where the tag line was, "It's called Bruins."

They had a whole year to come up with something and that's the best they could do? "It's called Bruins?" What does that even mean, anyway? People who weren't hockey fans weren't about to embrace the sport or the team after the league took a year off, especially with a stupid slogan like that.

I guess it was appropriate that the Bruins stunk as bad as their ridiculous slogan, and I know what you're thinking: "It was a year ago, let it go already." You're right, and I'm amazed I even remember it considering I'm lucky if I can recall where I put my car keys five minutes ago. I'll drop it now.

Thought #3 - Trevor Hoffman set the all-time saves record Sunday. It must be a combination of the fact that Hoffman is a low-key guy and that he doesn't play in one of the so-called major media markets, but setting a record like that is a testament not just to excellence, but to sustained excellence. Congratulations to him.

That's about the extent of my thoughts for now. Thanks for letting me whip them out at you. Anybody seen my car keys?

Some interesting topics this week for the third round of the NDS, and as much as I appreciate receiving immunity, here I sit pounding the keys. Ted Williams refused to sit out the last day of the season to protect his .400 batting average and went 6-8 to finish at .406, inspiring me to submit an entry 65 years later. I will not sit out a round, and although I can't guarantee this will be the equivalent of a .406 post, I'm reasonably confident you won't want to saw my head off and stick it in a jar, either.

1) Which athlete do you idolize most and why? Let me start by saying I don't really idolize athletes as much as I admire their abilities. Watching a world-class athlete do his or her thing is impressive, but what I really like to see is someone working hard and competing to the best of his or her abilities. Thus it's just a much a pleasure to see Alex Cora "inside-out" a ground ball to the right side of the infield to move a runner from second base to third as it is to see a monster home run by Manny Ramirez.

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The first time I ever saw a hockey game when I was a youngster got me hooked on the sport. The speed and grace of the players, combined with the raw power and occasional brutality, left me breathless and convinced I needed to learn how to skate.

Growing up in a suburb of Boston I naturally rooted for the Bruins, and at the time of my youth there was a little-known defenseman for the club by the name of Don Awrey. Don Awrey was a god to this eleven year old kid, on a Bruins team filled with stars like Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge, Johnny Bucyk and Gerry Cheevers.

This was in an era (the early-1970's) where most of the players didn't even wear helmets, much less face shields, and the thing that separated Don Awrey from everyone else in my eyes was his habit of propelling himself feet-first, like a guy sliding into second base, into the path of an opposing player's slapshot. It didn't matter who the opponent was or what kind of booming shot that player possessed, Don Awrey would routinely put himself in harm's way to stop a shot before it could get near the Bruins' goal, then get up and hobble, if that's even possible on ice skates, back into the action. I still can't believe Don Awrey would do that.

When I learned how to play hockey, the first position I played was defense because I wanted to be Don Awrey. If that's not idolization I don't know what it is. Stupidity, maybe. After I took a few shots in the legs like Don Awrey I decided to play a safer position, like goaltender.

2) If you could live with only one sport, what would it be and why? Simple. Baseball. If I may borrow a quote from IrishNut, who borrowed it from the legendary Red Smith, "ninety feet between home and first base may be the closest man has ever come to perfection." A close second would have to be sixty feet, six inches from the pitching rubber to home plate.

I played baseball from the age of six until the age of 18, then again in an over-thirty league from age 34 to 39, when I finally decided to call it quits for good. More Craig Counsell than Barry Bonds, I love everything about the game. The strategies, the games-within-a-game, the feeling of a solidly hit ball jumping off the bat, even the sting of a poorly hit ball which seems to vibrate your arms all the way up to the top of your head.

I suffered through the 1975 World Series as a Red Sox fan, seeing the Sox lose Game Seven on a seeing-eye single by Joe Morgan of the Reds. Ditto the 1986 series. The cast of characters was different with one or two exceptions, but the result was another loss, in an even more gruesome manner which even the most casual sports fan is well aware of. Numerous postseason appearances in the '90's failed to result in a championship.

My dad died in 1998, having lived a long and full life which, to his everlasting regret, did not include seeing the Sox win a World Series. Timing is everything. Everyone knows about 2004 and the long-awaited championship. I know my dad saw it and was glad.

3) Of these four people, Wayne Gretzky, Hank Aaron, Joe Montana, or Michael Jordan, who do you think made the biggest impact on his sport? To my way of thinking, the answer would have to be Wayne Gretzky. Jordan came close, but "The Great One" changed the entire way NHL hockey was played. Before Gretzky, there had been great scorers for sure, but his arrival changed hockey from a defense-first mindset to Score! Score! Score!

When Gretzky entered the league as a heralded teenager, not even his most ardent supporter could have predicted how he was going to singlehandedly rewrite the NHL record-book. At one time he held virtually every single scoring record of note, and he still holds most of them.

Some eye-popping Wayne Gretzky statistics: Goals scored in a season: 92, with Edmonton in 1981-82. Points in a season: 215, with Edmonton in 1985-86. Plus-minus: Plus-98, with Edmonton in 1984-85, meaning when he was on the ice, the Oilers scored 98 more goals than they gave up that season. Career goals: 894. Career points: 2,857.

You can make a legitimate argument for any of the four above-mentioned stars, but with the possible exception of Jordan, the others were playing the same game as everyone else, just doing it better. When Gretzky was swooping over the ice, he was simply playing an entirely different game. He commanded the ice and was just unstoppable. He was the Great Gretzky.

----------So Roger Clemens was zipping fastballs past his son Koby during his first workout after signing with Houston for the rest of the season. That must go a long way toward reassuring the Astros their money is being well-spent. If Clemens faces a team of 19 year-old first-year professionals during the September stretch run, he will be untouchable.  

 

 

----------Here's a brain-teaser for you. I saw the end of the National Spelling Bee Thursday night on ABC (I know, I know, spelling is not a sport. Too bad, it's my post and if I had to watch it I'm at least going to get some mileage out of it). How is it possible that a Canadian girl was one of the final two contestants in the "National Spelling Bee?" It turns out students from any country where English is spoken are eligible. Wouldn't that make it the World Spelling Bee? Why is it the World Series is limited to teams from the U.S. and Canada, but the National Spelling Bee is open to anyone in the world?

 

  

----------Last week Washington Nationals manager Frank Robinson broke down in tears during his postgame press conference after having to remove catcher Matthew LeCroy in the middle of an inning. LeCroy had allowed seven stolen bases and made two throwing errors. Given how poorly the Nationals have played this season, it's a wonder Robinson isn't crying after every game. And what does that say about Kansas City manager Buddy Bell? If Robinson is in tears when he's ten games under .500, shouldn't Bell be having a hysterical fit or something with the Royals 27 games under?

 

 

----------The Boston Bruins are rapidly becoming the laughingstock of the NHL, which is like being the heaviest chick at the fat farm. First the Bruins trade away the MVP-caliber Joe Thornton. Then they miss the playoffs, which is not easy to do. You almost have to forget to show up to miss the playoffs in the NHL. Then they fire general manager Mike O'Connell, ignoring the fact that since they are so bad and have an owner unwilling to spend the money required to field a contender they might struggle to find a replacement. Finally, they find a suitable candidate for the GM position in Peter Chiarelli. Problem is, he's under contract in Ottawa until July 15. So, the Bruins have a GM who will be working for someone else the next six weeks. Amazing.

----------We are now one-third of the way through the major league season and still no managers have been fired. I figure as soon as one gets it, the axe is going to fall on probably three or four more in rapid succession.

 

----------The big controversy at the Memorial, at least in the early rounds, was over the bunker rakes. Jack Nicklaus wanted to make the bunkers more punitive, so the rakes were supplied with two inches between the tines rather than the usual one inch. The result? It's much more difficult for the players to make the ball do what they want it to do when they're playing out of the sand. Jeez. All the equipment advances in recent years making the game easier for the pros, and the players cry about bunker rakes. I wonder what Bobby Jones would have had to say about that?

 

 

----------Do you think Dontelle Willis is counting the hours until he gets released from the prison that has become the Florida Marlins? I don't know where he's going to end up, but wherever it is, it's bound to be a better situation than the one he's in right now.

It seems there are more than enough fools to go around in the world of sports, as in the larger world as a whole. The beginning of April seems as good a time as any, and better than most, to name some of them. So, here without further ado, or at least without much further ado, are a few of April's Fools. I realize there are probably many more deserving fools that haven't been mentioned, so feel free to add to the list....

April's Fools:

- Anyone who picked a Number One Seed to win the NCAA tourney. D'Oh!

- Boston Bruins GM Mike O'Connell. He got fired just last week, but before leaving, managed to trade two of their brightest lights (Joe Thornton and Sergei Samsonov), making an already weak team even weaker.

- Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells. It's hard to imagine the Cowboys would have signed Terrell Owens without both guys being in agreement over the move. Now I will be the first to acknowledge T.O.'s tremendous football ability, and with Parcells' well-earned reputation as a coach who can handle hard-cases, maybe this signing will work out for all concerned, but $8 million for a guy who has done nothing but destroy teams from the inside out??? Yikes.

- Donald Fehr, the MLBPA, Bud Selig, MLB. There's plenty of shame to go around. The fact that major league players have been juicing up for years and the Major League Baseball Players Association did nothing until recently but block every attempt to get any kind of substance testing throws a pall over what should have been a baseball celebration - Bonds attempting to overtake Hank Aaron's career home run mark. Yeah, I know, no one has proven Bonds took steroids. Well, this isn't a trial and in my courtroom Bonds is guilty as sin....Selig and MLB have nothing to be proud of either. They knew there was a problem for years and did nothing. "See no evil" only works for so long and always ends up biting you in your hypodermic scar....

- Alfonso Soriano. The $10 million dollar man had to be threatened with loss of his paycheck and loss of service time by the Nationals before agreeing to play in the outfield, thereby proving just how out of touch most professional athletes are with the rest of the working world.

And speaking of out of touch with the working world....
- Brett Favre. He's a three-time MVP who earned the right to take his time deciding whether to return this season or not, but come on, enough's enough. Do your teammates and fans a favor and make up your mind already! If Favre were this indecisive on the field, he would never have thrown a touchdown pass.

- Duke University lacrosse team. Nationally ranked in their sport, this bunch apparently thinks looking the other way and keeping your mouth shut after at best an undesirable incident and at worst an assault and probable triple-rape during a team party is good clean fun. Threaten them all with prosecution and expulsion from school, that should loosen a few tongues.

- Julian Tavarez. Here's a guy who never seems to learn from his past mistakes and eventually is either going to hurt someone or get hurt himself if he doesn't clean up his act. Punching a defenseless player after a home-plate play in which he stepped on the runner's arm is just the latest entry on Tavarez' rap sheet.