Just heard the old Bryan Adams song on the radio and as I was listening to it I sat back and thought about how underrated that song is for B Adams. If you dig some of his stuff I recommend this song for you.

Oh wait, I'm going off on non-sports. Oops! Let's change that tune and head into the erection...I mean, direction of the sports world...

- An NFL minors makes more sense than having players who can't quite cut it on the NFL roster at the present time playing in Europe where the fan base isn't that good. I know people will say otherwise but how many times do you watch NFL Europe on the NFL Network and see an empty stadium? Practically every time I watch with the exception of the final playoff game which I watched for about 5 minutes.

In the late winter or early spring the NFL can showcase their minor league. Wouldn't teams rather keep tabs on their players in their own backyard rather than have some scout fly to Europe and give random progress reports to his team? Let's just say the head coach and any GM not named Matt Millen can take a better look at certain players than before. Also, this league can also showcase coaches who aspire to be NFL head coaches someday. This is a much better idea than playing in Europe. And I bet the fans will support it enough where their losses will not amount to $30 million per season.

- Who made the bigger mistake: The New York Yankees signing Roger Clemens to a ridiculous contract or Roger Clemens coming back to sign a ridiculous contract with the New York Yankees rather than a current contender for less? This afternoon's 2-1 loss is like old times isn't it Rocket?

- How do you foul out of a summer league basketball game when the foul limit is 10 instead of 6? Just ask Greg Oden. He could not help himself as he was touching everyone according to the score sheet. Now this is not a reflection of how he will perform at the NBA level during the 2007-08 season or during the rest of his career. However, the question remains: how do you foul 10 times? 10 times!

- There was a heavyweight championship fight tonight? Nobody noticed. Even the NHL thinks that's funny.

- Actually, the Buffalo Sabres aren't too happy about the Edmonton Oilers making an offer for Thomas Vanek. Basically, they will want to screw them in return for what they were forced to pay Vanek. They were only going to offer Vanek a salary ranging between 3-4 million.

Did I miss something or are the Sabres not handling this well. The only fault I see coming out of Edmonton is that they are a small market team who would have had to rob a bank twice a year to afford Vanek's salary. Other than that, any team can make an offer to any restricted free agent. Why would Buffalo be ####ing about this move when Edmonton played within the rules. Are there unwritten rules all teams have formulate that we don't know about? Is there collusion between the teams? If not, Buffalo needs to shake themselves and grab a dose of reality. If they decided to negotiate during the season rather than have an open policy which they don't negotiate new deals until the season ends. That has to change or else they will continue to be a vulnerable franchise. And Vanek could have been signed for much less than he will command over the next 7 years.

- The best rivalry in sports will go on Sunday with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Federer can make history while Nadal can make this duel legendary if he wins Wimbledon. Whichever happens won't matter as we'll be witnessing some form of great history during this year's final.

...Back behind the mic on Monday at 9AM. What's The Deeley-O will commence on Thursdays as usual. Check out the show at www.chevradioam.com and feel free to drop me a line. I'll be having an interview that day with Frank Coffey who is promoting this website: www.eTrueSports.com. Hope you can take a listen.

It's been a wild week in the blog world this week.  Starting with Canada's birthday to America's birthday all the way to today with some interesting blogs between and around the two birthdays.  Perhaps this is a generalization but I would think that nearly 100% of the blog writers have an incredible amount of passion for sports.  That is why we joined this site in the first place.  Blog on...

Baseball

- I love Roy Oswalt as a pitcher and I think he has the potential to turn in a great looking career as long as he stays healthy.  However, can you justify him as John Smoltz's replacement on the All-Star team roster?  Not over John Maine.  Not over Brandon Webb.  Not even over Tom Gorzelanny, which would have solved the Pittsburgh issue if Tony LaRussa had kept Brian Fuentes at home originally and chose Gorzelanny to be the Pirate rep.  Then LaRussa could have taken either Hanley Ramirez or Edgar Rentaria to be the backup shortstop.

The American League Roster for the most part looks good.  Jim Leyland did the best job, in my opinion, of any manager of recent years.  LaRussa on the other hand simply continues to make a mess.

Ever since his DUI he has not had a very good few months.  His team, the defending World Series champions, are looking like duds in the worst division in baseball.  And there has been talk about LaRussa potentially being replaced.  Today I began thinking about his coaching career and how he has been blessed with some very good teams during his career.  He may go to the Hall of Fame with his 2 rings, but his teams have been so loaded that he could have a good 5, 6 or even 7 rings as a manager.  Even Bobby Cox thinks LaRussa has urinated too many chances away.

- Seems strange to see John Maclaren managing the Seattle Mariners.  I will always remember him as the 3rd base coach for the Toronto Blue Jays and getting run over during a game by current Chicago White Sox GM Kenny Williams, which brings me to my next point...

- With the White Sox being 1000 games out of a playoff spot why would they want Ichiro Suzuki right now?  Do they plan on signing him during the off-season?  And if they give him the $20 million he'll be asking for, will they have enough to bolster the lineup that has been impotent offensively?  And will they continue to go on with Ozzie Guillen as the coach?  Someone once told me this quote that seems to describe Guillen very well: Short fuse, short success.  Albeit he tasted gold early in his tenure.

- Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi could not reach the microphone fast enough to blast A.J. Burnett on radio yesterday.  This made news this morning and here are a few issues...

1) J.P. was the one who gave the bogus contract to the guy in the first place. 
2) Blasting players through the media is chicken-bleep
3) Burnett was up in the top 6 at one point this season in pitches per game and out of the 6 pitchers, he threw the least amount of innings.  With a guy who has a history of arm problems that means the blame should also go to the manager, John Gibbons, for not handling him properly.
4) How can J.P. claim Burnett is scared to let his arm loose when he has topped out at 100 MPH a few times the last 2 seasons?  Absurd claim.

Again, Burnett was not a good signing when it happened and J.P. is just trying to cover his butt for one of several questionable decisions during his tenure as GM.  He should have been fired 2 years ago as he is about to enter year 7 of a 5 year plan that has blown up in his face.
 

Basketball

- Grant Hill appears to be heading to Phoenix this upcoming season to play for the Suns for under $2 million.  A lot of people are looking at him wondering how he could "turn his back" on the Orlando Magic.  I find that hard to believe since they have been looking to upgrade at the 2 or 3 guard position and they did so with Rashard Lewis.  Granted, Hill signed for a huge contract after he was dealt by Detroit.  However, this is the same guy who busted his tail just to get back onto an NBA court.

We seem to forget the kind of pain and damage he suffered with his ankle and how his career was suppose to be over.  He bled, sweated and cried every single day during rehab to get himself back onto the court.  He did it for the love of the game and he did it to prove something to himself and those around him.  People questioned his heart, and today there is no doubt that he has the heart to compete on that court every single night if his body tells him "it's go time".  He didn't have to bust himself to come back but he did anyway.

The Orlando Magic franchise understood what they were doing with this investment and like certain investments they can sometimes turn up sour.  The only good thing about this investment was that Grant Hill's comeback to the NBA was a feel-good story for those who have been told they could not come back to play basketball at a high level ever again.  Hill owes the Magic nothing and he is not turning his back on the franchise.  His comeback should have a long-lasting impression on every Orlando player and no value can be placed on that.

- With all that said, can Hill play in the Phoenix system?  Well if you can make baskets and run you should be good, so as long as Hill is healthy he'll fit in nicely with the Suns.  Now they have an 9-man team rather than 8.

Hockey

- Huge scare in Buffalo as Thomas Vanek was offered 50 million for 7 years.  Why was that a scare?  I bet Buffalo wanted to sign him at 5 million per year and now they will be stuck paying 7.  This contract may look like a lot but with this kid's upside and his age this may be a steal.  They'd rather be paying a 23-year old that kind of money rather than a Chris Drury who's production will go down over the next few years.  Granted, Drury is dubbed as a great leader but if Vanek scores 40-50 goals per season nobody will care about Drury.  Someone on the Sabres will step up to be a leader.  You can teach more players to become leaders than teach them to score 40 per season.  We could be looking at the second-best left winger in the NHL behind Alexander Ovechkin.

Tennis

- Federer v. Nadal.  Its like a Main Event at a Pay Per View boxing match.  I crave for that matchup in every single tournament they enter and as long as Nadal gets through and Andy Roddick does what he does best for Federer (lay face down), we should get to see another incredible finals matchup at Wimbledon.

Have a great weekend folks. 

I love talking about the Hall of Fame in case you haven't noticed.  

Wouldn't it be cool to instead of choosing who to put in we TAKE OUT certain players in the Hall of Fame?  In every sport there is at least one person we can take out of the ultimate sports enshrinement.  So here is what I will do for you: I will take one person out of the Hall of Fame from Baseball, Football, Basketball and Hockey.  Then you can either add to it or object to my selections.  Let's begin:

Football: Joe Namath

- Might as well go big or go home.  Joe Namath is in Canton because of 1 game.  He called his victory and his team came through.  His statistics makes Trent Dilfer look like Peyton Manning, and if Dilfer ever needed a reason to make the Hall of Fame he has it: Namath.  His final stats were: 50.1 Completion %, 173 TD's and 220 INT's.  I know statistics of quarterbacks were different back then, but is it too much to ask out of a Hall of Fame QB to have more TD's than INT's as well a completion percentage North of 51?  Let's face it, he's in the Hall for 1 game.  For that, Dilfer should be dusting off his typewriter to prep for his induction speech.

Basketball: Harlem Globetrotters

- There are a lot of people who have a strong connection with the Globetrotters and probably want a piece of me for taking them out of the hall.  Entertaining?  Yes.  But don't brag about your win/loss record when we know if they had to clown around against a legit team they would get bounced.  If their overall record was never revealed, I would have left them alone and would have went right after a team's number 3 or 4 option that made the Hall of Fame thanks to a dynasty.  But the 'trotters asked for it.  Sorry in advance.

Baseball: Ray Schalk

- I don't know if there is a person alive today that can say they have watched him play, so it might be unfair to take him out.  However, I made the rules so everyone is fair game.  Schalk's career numbers makes you think to yourself, 'he made Cooperstown?'.  Yes indeed he did.  There are benchmarks that have been obtained by many ballplayers, but Schalk's induction confuses me a little.  There is a significant dropoff in comparison to him and other catchers, even those who were close to his era.

Hockey: Clark Gillies

- The prototype for players who are nice role guys for a dynasty team.  This has 'are you #### joking' written all over it.  Basically what the Hall of Fame for hockey is telling us is Gillies had a bigger impact on hockey and the New York Islanders team during the early 1980's than Glenn Anderson did for the Edmonton Oilers, who is not in the Hall of Fame.  And since he played in a high-scoring era, his 697 points in 958 looks even worse.  So anyone who has played from 1995 and onward who has a better ratio than Gillies should grab a crayon and their best suit because they could be called to the hall next.

It's now your turn to drop some nominations.  Bring it.
 

The Toronto Maple Leafs made yet another move during this off-season by acquiring Mike Peca to help kill penalties and be the defensive forward the team needs. After obtaining Pavel Kubina and Hal Gill as well as re-signing Tomas Kaberle and Bryan McCabe, the team has stressed the importance of defense and protection their new starting goaltender, Andrew Raycroft.

With the new NHL, that may prove to be difficult. First off, all 4 defensemen mentioned are not the greatest when it comes to be a defensive defenseman. Second, Mike Peca has certainly slowed down over the past 5 years as that is sure to happen when guys get older. Third and finally, who will help Mats Sundin?

Sundin has been the face of the Maple Leafs organization for years yet there has been a lack of support for the Leaf captain for quite some time. The most skilled hockey player he has played with was perhaps Alexander Mogilny, who was planted on another line. When the two played together, they were magic. The problem? Lack of depth on the team. Considering the Maple Leafs were the most profitable team back then without the salary cap issues the league is faced with today, they certainly had the means to make their lineup deeper and chose not to. As of now, Sundin is the offensive force despite being in his mid-30's. This means the organization feels the youth movement is ready to take the next step. Or are they?

The Toronto Maple Leafs have one glaring problem they will be unable to address which is scoring. They did not add the forward that could get the most out of Sundin and vice versa. They did not get the scoring upfront that they need(ed). So the question remains: Who is going to score for this team? If you cannot score you cannot win.

With a hard salary cap to go along with almost 18 million dollars this season locked up on 4 defensemen it was going to be tough to obtain someone able to score. Although Peca could help this team, he was not the answer. The Leafs needed a player who can score and Peca is not that. Had the situation been different, such as them using the money differently prior to this pickup, it would have been a nice move to make.

This is just a glaring example as to why John Ferguson has not been the answer. Those who have looked at Pat Quinn and decided he was the problem was wrong. At least Quinn got to the playoffs! So far this off-season Ferguson has managed to lock in about 40% of the teams salary on 4 defensemen, draft a kid with their first pick who has played nowhere near a first rounder and has bought out contracts of Tie Domi and Ed Belfour, who should have never been re-signed by Ferguson to begin with.

This season for the Maple Leafs should come as no surprise for the fans. Be surprised if the team is a success because they are not built to succeed with the limited talent they have. There are plenty of teams that are stronger (on paper). This organization better pray that the youth movement and Andrew Raycroft have career years. Otherwise Ferguson is (or should) be fired and Paul Maurice will become a lame duck coach for the next GM who takes his place.

Be ready to carry the offense yet again, Mr. Sundin.

The enthusiam of this Canadian's perspective on the game of hockey is about as hot as the sport's TV ratings. Granted, the game has gotten better since the final games prior to the lockout. But that was to be expected. This isn't (BREAKING NEWS, BREAKING NEWS)...

A friend of mine just told me the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Andrew Raycroft from Boston for the rights of Finnish goaltender and young stud Tuukka Rask. In other blunders, the Leafs drafted a player who scored 46 from the Czech junior league over a player who led the QMJHL in points (drafted by Philadelphia). If John Ferguson is fired by tonight, it would have been at least a day late.

As a Toronto citizen, I have had the pleasure of watching the Toronto Maple Leafs organization continue to #### down their legs during crucial trading and drafting periods. This is another long list of blunders to add to their failure as a sports franchise. We are not talking failure in a business sense, as we all know the fans and ticket holders make their business, but as a professional organization they are simply the opposite of class.

I will admit, I have never been a big fan of Pat Quinn. He has run several effective players out of town for lesser or older talent that has gotten them nowhere. However, this past season was not a reflection of him but of Ferguson's poor job as General Manager. The alleged savior of the Leafs franchise that was suppose to bring the cup to Toronto has taken a step backwards and the next two years should prove that.

The fans in Toronto deserve much better treatment.

The Leafs brass can talk about the need for revenue and the squeeze put on by the Teachers Pension Fund (the majority owner of the team), but those are not excuses for the brain cramps. They have taken a number 1 pick and traded him for an average starting goaltender in Andrew Raycroft. Is Raycroft worth a number 1 pick? Absolutely not. Trading Rask was not the problem, whom he was trading for was.

To end this discussion with the Leafs, I must pose the question to Leaf fans: How can you stick by an organzition like this?

OTHER NOTABLES

- Chris Pronger wants to leave Edmonton for family and personal reasons. Sorry Chris, leaving a team who got to the Stanley Cup Finals is moronic. Edmonton has a fine education and is a nice place to live. The reason for you wanting to leave should be much more significant than that, otherwise this is a complete joke. You play to win, your family knows you are a hockey player and should understand and respect that.

- 5 player deal that is really Roberto Luongo for Todd Bertuzzi. Florida gets something for Luongo as they receive a goalie in Alex Auld and a sniper/spine rattler in Bertuzzi. Florida may be the best hideout place for him to get his career revived.

- Alex Tanguay for Jordan Leopold. Colorado gets a defenseman they need and Calgary gets a scorer they need. Good trade.

- Pavol Demitra is now a Minnesota Wild. Will this mean Marian Gaborik will go back to Minnesota and re-sign? Or will he be somewhere else? (The Leafs? Probably not, he's too young).

- Alexander Ovechkin is the funniest guy in the NHL. Wearing his jersey and announcing Washington's picks is outstanding humour (not to mention Capitals pride). He should be put into the Hall of Fame right now. There are worse guys currently in there.

- Wayne Gretzky is a legend. I just saw him on TV. That's a good way to finish.

Before I hit up the prediction that will probably be as incorrect as the other unbold predictions of the previous rounds, did anybody check out the Spelling Bee last night? First off, that out-rated last night's hockey game. Second, don't parents of these kids teach personality as well as school stuff? That home-school kid that was Jared from Subway's love child struggled with the questions, not to mention that hideous jump-shot with a Steve Nash shirt on. I feel bad for some of these kids because they are very intelligent yet do not have dialogue with strangers down pat. The ultimate hunk would be the gentleman who is brilliant, sexy and has the personality to get any woman he wants. Come to think of it, that reminds me of myself (haha, moving on...).

The Carolina Hurricanes took out the Buffalo Sabres in the 7th and final game of the Eastern Coference Final last night after Buffalo's defense was decimated with injuries. This is not to belittle the great play of Carolina who has been outstanding this entire season. In a perfect world, we would see a healthy Sabres team as well as a healthy Carolina team who was missing two offensive threats in Erik Cole and Josef Vasicek.

All this time, the Edmonton Oilers have been waiting, resting, healing, and studying the Canes. Advantage Edmonton. Having a long layoff should be shrugged off within the first couple of minutes in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup. After that, rust will not become an excuse if Edmonton get's down.

Talk about a series that has a fairly even matchup on paper; Carolina and Edmonton have had strong goaltending, solid D and a few scorers on their side. Oilers picked up Sergei Samsonov and Dwyane Roloson, Carolina got Mark Recchi and Doug Weight, who was a former Edmonton standout just a few short years ago.

This series is tough to call. It could go either way or it could go the opposite way I predict. The Canadians are behind Edmonton to win this Stanley Cup and 'bring it home to Canada'. Funny, the Toronto Maple Leafs claimed they wanted to help the Canadian teams by not taking it's stars away, and already 2 teams have been there from Canada before Toronto has (Calgary in 2004).

Having said that, I know better than to take the word of my fellow Torontonians so let me spell it out for you Spelling Bee-style:

C-A-R-O-L-I-N-A-I-N-S-E-V-E-N

Hope that was clear and concise. Canes in 7, going against the so-called 'hockey experts' in Canada including my good buddy and co-host The Schwartz. Who will I be cheering for? The ratings to go up to beat syndicated TV shows from The Deja-Vu Network. Best of luck.

As if being a Canadian makes me any better than any American in making playoff assessments for the NHL.

It does. Well, at least according to several American's we have encountered on blog-nation.

Having said that, here is how round 2 will be broken down:

EAST

Ottawa v. Buffalo - Two fast teams with some offensive talent. This should be a great series to watch as we should see two teams skate up and down the ice. However, sometimes we watch two great offensive-minded teams facing eachother and we only see one of them setting the tone and tempo throughout the series. This is another series where Sens goaltender Ray Emery is capable of out-playing his counterpart, this time it's Ryan Miller. As stated previously, Emery has his own rule implimented by The Dan: The Ray Emery Rule.

The Ray Emery Rule - Defined as the Sens backup goaltender to Dominik Hasek who needs to give up less than 3 goals for 4 games out of 7. If the rule has been succeeded, the failures of the Senators falls on the shoulders of the offense who's lethal force failed to pop 3 goals or more during those games. In sum, Ottawa's offense is so good they should never be held down to 2 goals or less in any game. - Ottawa in 7.

Carolina v. New Jersey - Eventually the Devils will lose - a playoff game. That does not mean they will lose a series anytime soon, much less than against the Hurricanes. Carolina survived a scare from the Montreal Canadiens who seem to have lost their stride when captain Saku Koivu went down with a Sherwood stuck in his retina.

Having said that about the Canes, they will be in against a tougher goalie in someone named Brodeur, plus a stronger defense as well as underrated offensive talent in Patrick Elias, Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez. Expect the Madden line to be shutting down Eric Staal and company. - Jersey in 6.

WEST (We serious about 5-8 seeds going through? Talk about a wild west!)

San Jose v. Edmonton - If you told the Sharks they'd have home ice throughout the rest of the Western playoff they would have laughed, seeing they've been laughing ever since the Joe Thornton trade. They were the hottest team in the West heading into the playoffs and I expect this trend to continue. Edmonton played Detroit tough and should play the Sharks tough as well. Difference will be San Jose's youthfullness which is underrated when it comes to playoff hockey. Yes, you'd like veteran presence but the younger players get you further. Detroit has proven that experience means less than everyone believes.

Edmonton's best move was obtaining Dwayne Roloson in goal. Jussi Markannen and Ty Coklin would not have beaten Detroit. The Oilers also have some talented forwards but I cannot see them rolling over San Jose at this point in time unless the Sharks decide to hit the wall at the most inconvenient time. - San Jose in 6.

Anaheim v. Colorado - Does Jose Theodore have it in him to steal games for the Avs? Such an interesting question as he certainly hasn't been the old Theodore who won a Hart Trophy just a few years ago. Colorado has owned Dallas in the past and their defense shined bright in round 1. Could this be a reflection of Dallas's passive offense or has their defense gotten that much better? That remains to be seen as Anaheim has offensive weapons of their own. This series comes down to how potent Colorado's offense is, how Anaheim can stop them and which Theodore will show up. If they can stop the Avs attack, Anaheim will win as they showed they can beat Mikka Kiprusoff (what will they do to a shaky Theodore?). But this series is so tight that I literally flipped a coin in front of The_Schwartz today. Here's what I came up with. - Colorado in 7.

Since there is no hockey tonight, it's all about basketball tonight as we have some games that could decide the fate of certain teams. For those watching the Nets/Pacers series, can someone tell me how hurt Peja really is? To me he just needs 7 layers of Theragesic and a knee brace to play 15 minutes. When he's in, Pacers win.

Expect an NBA one in the next couple of days. By the way, hope you guys know the blog contest on my show is about 13 hours away so send your response to chevradionoise@gmail.com. I promise not to take any e-mails down for MSN use though if the ladies don't mind...(j/k)

Another token hockey spot, but this will get The_Schwartz fired up (hopefully) because he breathes only two things: 1) Oxygen...2) Hockey. Here is what I came up with on my side of the playoff predictions:

EAST

Ottawa v. Tampa Bay - Difference in this series is Tampa's faltered scoring from their Cup run and their dismal goaltending. Though the Sens need Dominik Hasek, they will prevail. - Sens in 5

Carolina v. Montreal - Canes have surprised many but they have been pretty solid all year. Montreal hit their hot streak 2 weeks too early. - Canes in 6

New Jersey v. New York Rangers - Jersey rips off 11 in a row to steal the division nobody thought they'd get. The Rangers have been running on fumes to end the season. Though Lundvist could steal some games, he's facing the great Marty Brodeur - Jersey in 6

Philadelphia v. Buffalo - Buffalo has had inconsistent goaltending. Philly has had inconsistent goaltending. The difference is experience. - Philly in 6

WEST

Detroit v. Edmonton - Until they show their dominance early, I'm just going to remember the meltdown against Anaheim in 2003 and the lack of domination against Nashville in 2004. Detroit will still win. - Wings in 6

Dallas v. Colorado - This is not the same Colorado team as it was when it was making championship runs. Neither is this Dallas team, but they are a better overall team despite Jose Theodore's playoff experiences. - Stars in 7

Calgary v. Anaheim - This series could go either way because if Calgary doesn't score they will be ####. They need to find the back of the net and they will be a team to watch out for. - Flames in 5

Nashville v. San Jose - Sharks were dead in the water until Joe Thornton brought this team some life. Whoever they start in goal won't matter with the unfortunate end to Tomas Vokoun's season. - Sharks in 6

Well that's all from the The_Dan. More push ups and sit ups for the night. I'll play some 'In Da Club' while I'm working out, and repeat it over and over until my sets are done. Very good workout music. Cheers.