It’s snowing. Not much, a few flakes here and there, but enough to notice from my window seat on the 17th floor. I can see it, there it is. Snow.

And so now I can say with certainty that it’s officially hockey season. I saw the white stuff, ergo the game must be on.

You know, it’s funny how much context plays a part in my perception of sports. To me, sports need that feeling, that vibe. Many of my most memorable sporting venues fit perfectly in their surrounds, here's some that come to mind:

Outdoor Rink in Portage-Du-Fort – Portage is a small riverside town on the Quebec side of the Ottawa Valley. It’s not much at first, pretty small,  I’ve only been there countless times because it’s on the way to two of our cottages. Last time I was there in the winter though, they still had an outdoor rink - which they still used for league games! It’s far from fuzzy, and usually farther from warm, but you can’t help but smile when you see it.

Ivor Wynne Stadium – A black and yellow steel structure in the middle of Hamilton. It’s tough, its cold, its ugly. But add a near-freezing rainstorm to a Tiger Cat football game and in some bizarre way, its well worth the time. Definitely not for everyone, but definitely in context.

Surfing the Outer Banks, NC - Find a spot a stretch of beach with a sandbar break where no one else is in sight (amazingly, the banks is one of the few ocean beaches you can still accomplish this fairly easily). Paddle out about 40 yards. Sit and wait for the waves to come. If they come, it’s the purest form of sport there is. If they don’t come, it’s no problem. Just watch the shore, the water, time going by. Enjoy.

(just as an aside, the complete opposite of good context is the golf mentality. On those same sandy dunes and roaring ocean waves on the banks, there are bright green golf courses. Alien grass, collared shirts. It’s an old man in a bubble. The golf mentality is afraid of context, it’s tired and scared and hides in the safety of Walmart-esque uniformity. The world is a blank canvas, on to which the same green grass can spread like the plague. The golf mentality made Orlando, and is making places like Puerto Vallarta into Orlando part II. The golf mentality wants to go to a location, but has to make sure it can bring its own reality)

Wrigley Field – It’s almost impossible to distinguish between the stadium and the neighborhood begins. You’re not at a baseball game, you’re inside Wrigleyville. I could spend all day there.

I guess it’s mentionable that sometimes context can take a back seat, thinking specifically of the reclamation projects that created football and baseball stadiums in Cleveland and Detroit (in stark contrast to the surrounding blocks) to feel good results, but I think those are the exceptions and not the rule. Generally speaking, it has to be about the context. I’m a sucker for the scene.

- Tommorrow’s Belmont Stakes will not be the superstar event it was hoped to be, far from it. It will still be well worth watching though. As usual, the extra distance of the Belmont attracts some very different training styles, and without a proven favorite this year’s race has a real up-in-the-air feel to it. My pick for a horse to watch? I’ll take Jazil, who opened at very worthwhile 10/1. Similar to the more well-regarded Steppenwolfer (at 9/2), he’s a strong horse that tends to start poorly but closes with a ton of speed. If the race sees some strong fractions from the gate, ignore both these aforementioned horses and look to Bluegrass Cat or Sunriver to run away with it. However, if the fractions are slow to average, watch for Jazil to closely stalk the field until the last half mile or so, timing his move. It could make for one hell of a finish.

- It seems the New York Islanders are making a serious pitch to re-acquire a lot of their old fans. Yesterday they hired the interesting trio of Ted Nolan, Neil Smith and Pat Lafontaine to run their hockey operations. Nolan, former Sabres coach, is borderline nut case who’s coaching style tends towards offensive pressing and a heavy reliance on goaltending. Needless to say he’s my kind of coach. Smith is a star obsessed general manager who loved to overpay for the big name in New York. His emphasis on big names should prove to be a huge asset on Long Island, especially since his free spending downside will be restrained by the salary cap. And finally, Pat Lafontaine, with his name in the rafters at the HSBC Arena, signed on as well. I have no idea what he’ll actually be doing as “senior advisor to the owner”, but his presence alone brings a further sense of legitimacy to the operation. Fans should be very pleased.

- Are the wheels really starting to come off the Detroit Tigers season? The question makes tonights Jays-Tigers game all the more interesting, and I for one will be taking it in. Unfortunately for the Tigers, they drew Chacin, the run support king, in the opener. Chacin is 6-2, which is good. He’s also sporting a 5.59 ERA, which is bad. The red-hot Jays batters should be enough to wipe out Bonderman’s undefeated road record, but this series is very much in the air from there. Detroit gets lucky and misses seeing Halliday, who went last night in a no decision.

- Only eleven more days until the kickoff of the RipCurl Pro in Mexico. As unique a sporting event as they come, the location of this event is actually kept a secret until the opening, which according to the ASP is to dissuade “unnecessary exposure to the small part of Mexico coastline insiders are calling ‘paradise’”. For my predictions, I’ll take Bruce Irons in Oaxaca (with the candlestick).

Best song on radio right now is “It’s a Hit” by Rilo Kiley, no debate.

Some quick thoughts before the weekend,

- Edmonton is all about system. So why did it take the Ducks until the 3rd period of game three to throw caution to the wind and stir things up? Carlisle will face serious second guessing if the Duck’s win game 5 but lose the series, considering how game 3 was there for the taking. The final last night was kind to the Oilers, who were a few lucky bounces away from a scoreboard that read 10-1. On the upside, it was the first time this series was more interesting than the NBA game.

- Glad to hear George O’Leary got a 10 year extention at UCF this week. He should stay there, the city and the players love him. Long-term the Golden Knights can become a consistent contender, given their location.

- Too bad I can’t say the same thing about UB basketball coach Reggie Witherspoon, who saw his contract extended for 6 more years and deserves to be a contender. He works wonders with mid-major level talent, and his system is great to watch. He will always be hard pressed however to attract a true talent to Western NY and the snowy travel of the MAC.

- 10 games for Michael Barrett is a joke. Who wouldn’t want to crack AJ Pierzynski at that price?

- The decision to have Preakness champ Bernandini skip the Belmont, and instead go after the Travers and ultimately the Breeder's Classic, seems odd to me. The Withers was a 4 horse field (not to mention a Grade III event I'd never heard of), and the Preakness was a crapshoot once Barbaro broke the gate and delayed the start.  Considering the horse's style, why pass up an almost sure thing in the Breeder's mile to wade into the strongest field in North America at a mile and a quarter? Says here the owner's rethink this after a thrashing at the Jim Dandy or Travers stakes.

- 2nd straight lay day in Fiji. Half of my final is still around, with Mick Fanning waiting to go up against CJ Hobgood in the 4th round. After his winning round 1 performance, my other pick Fred Patacchia was dropped by Aussie Nathan Hedge in the 3rd. Patacchia’s turns were strong, but he never seemed to settle well into any of his sets. Smoothest matchup so far was Joel Parkinson vs. Troy Brooks. Both rattled off some speedy, slick waves before Brooks squeaked it out 16 – 15.

- best song on the radio right now is "Blackened Blue Eyes" by the Charlatans UK, no debate.

Some quick thoughts I have to get out before the weekend,

- My bias towards lesser touted NHL players has led me to some serious highs and lows this year. Lowest was severely overrating the eternally injured Tuomo Ruutu in my regular season pool, guaranteeing a last place finish. I wasn't the only one hyping him the preseason, but I sure felt like the only one left at the party come October. Highest was spotting the omissions of J.P. Dumont and Chris Kunitz from this years playoff pool. I kept Dumont for myself (best write-in so far), and shared Kunitz with a co-worker who needed help (2^nd best write-in).

- Speaking of the playoff hockey pool, I’m currently sitting 13^th out of 160. This one’s my bread and butter, 2003 won it all, 2004 2^nd place. Sorry for the self horn-tooting.

- In what has to be the most up in the air NBA draft in years, is Rudy #### to the Raptors as much of a lock as its sounds? I say yes. And for a pair undersized shooting guards, who’s more underrated right now, Maurice Ager or Mike Gansey? I say both see decent floor time next year.

- The Preakness is a 3 horse field. Could be the smallest trifecta payout ever. I’d recommend boxing sweetnorthernsaint and Brother Derek, but that feels to me too much like dropping chips on the don’t pass line. Barbaro is the exact type of horse that deserves a chance for the crown.

-         - The Globe event in Fiji kicks off in two days. I’m taking former young gun Fred Pattachia to take down Mick Fanning in the final. Call it the double upset special.

- Best song on radio right now is Crazy by Gnarls Barkley. No debate.