Tuesday, May 1:
BOSTON -- It's cold, soggy and raining here in the Hub. It's also Fenway Park. And that alone makes it perfect for a baseball game tonight.
They say there are some major changes coming to Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. The iconic ceiling won't be touched but apparently the 300 and 400 levels are to be razed and new sections (and private boxes) coming in. There are people who hate the place but it just screams "New York" with sight lines not unlike a Broadway theatre. You're never all that high up, even at the top, but you are far, far back, with a view unlike any other in the NHL. They've also vastly improved the lighting since I was last here, but it's still a "warm," more natural light, again unlike any other in the league. And brother, was the Garden rocking last night! The Rangers lost a game they should have won but the atmosphere inside was electric!
Friday, May 4:
So, where are the Philadelphia Flyers I watched in person Sunday afternoon? They were certainly absent last night in New Jersey and from what I gather, even worse at home Monday night when I was watching baseball in Boston. Speaking of invisible, defenceman Andreas Lilja was little more than a spectator last night, looking terrible on both the Devils' third period goal and the overtime winner. A weekend loss in Newark and the Flyers could soon be history. Either way, they're not going to win the Stanley Cup with their current goaltending mess, a bugaboo that has plagued the franchise since Berbie Parent departed.
Saturday, May 5:
As long as the Nashville Predators lost last night, as they did 1-0, coach Barry Trotz was going to get thrown under the bus by second-guessers. What surprised me was how many distinguished members of the hockey media criticized him for keeping Alexander Radulov and Andrei Kostitsyn on the sidelines for a second straight game. These two wingnuts thought it was a great idea to ignore a team curfew and were given suspensions after Nashville had lost games one and two in the Phoenix suburbs. Without them, the Preds won game three and Trotz understandably went with the same line-up. Thing is, if he had used Radulov and Kostitsyn last night and Nashville had lost, Trotz would have been under fire for breaking up game three’s winning line-up. The man couldn’t win -- and laying the game three defeat at his feet is grossly unfair.
It's been two years (today) since we lost Ernie Harwell. And that makes me feel old indeed.
Sunday, May 6:
I saw something last Monday that impressed me to no end. I got to an Applebee’s across the Hudson in New Jersey for a bite and a beer after taking in the Capitals-Rangers game in Manhattan. Now the chain, which stays open late, bills itself as a ”neighbourhood” bar and restaurant and their interior just blew me away. They gathered pictures of high school students, their teams and their celebrations and created wall murals from those photos. Any student or alumni with any sense of school spirit would be delighted at the sight. It’s a new thing, the restaurant staffers told me but they didn’t know if the idea was nation-wide or would expand to its Canadian locations. I hope so.
Kings in four over St. Louis?! Hands up if you saw that! I wasn't among you.
Tuesday, May 8:
"You're ridin' high in April, shot down in May..." And that's life right now for Joel Ward of the Washington Capitals. Last month, he scored the winning goal in a game-seven overtime in Boston to eliminate the defending Stanley Cup champion Bruins. Last night, in the final minute of play, with the Caps up 2-1 in Manhattan, he took a high-sticking double minor -- good call, by the way -- and watched from the penalty box as the New York Rangers tied the game with eight seconds remaining and won early in overtime to take a 3-2 series lead. The Caps were thisclose to taking their own 3-2 series back home. Now they have to win on home ice just to stay alive and force a seventh game. Have I mentioned that hockey is a cruel game? It's something Joel Ward knows all too well this morning.
Thursday, May 10:
Two months ago today, Environment Canada warned us that the mild winter weather would quickly be a thing of the past and that the rest of March and April would see "near-normal" temperatures. Immediately after that, we had a two-week heat wave, the likes of which we've never seen before in March (at least not in my lifetime or memory). Sadly though, they were right. March closed out in rather chilly fashion and April was its usual frustrating self. And May has been average at best. So, I only managed to put out the summer deck furniture today along with just the second cutting of the lawn. Hopefully that will spur the weather gods into some more "above-average" temperatures.
I can't believe how the Philadelphia Flyers folded up and died, losing four straight after I witnessed their series-opening win over New Jersey. (If I had told the rabid, upper-deck Flyers fans surrounding me that they were witnessing their team's final victory of the season, they would have strapped me to the clapper inside the Liberty Bell and let 'er fly). The Devils bore me to tears but they certainly were effective. They made the Flyers look downright terrible at times. Philly won't win a Stanley Cup until they get what they had in 1974 and 1975 -- stellar goaltending. And the worst part of the Flyers demise? No more Lauren Hart-Kate Smith duets until next season.
No hockey tonight. Whatever shall I do? I've watched more hockey in rounds one and two of the Stanley Cup playoffs than I have of most year's entire post-season. It's been mesmerizing stuff and I can't wait until Saturday night for game seven between the Capitals and Rangers. Don't really care who wins -- I like both teams -- but I just hope it'll be another thriller.
And a shout-out to the London Knights. My hometown team is just a win away from capturing just their second Ontario Hockey League championship. And if they can take one of the next three games against Niagara, then they'll go a step further -- in my opinion -- than they did in 2005. Seven years ago, everything was aligned for victory. London hosted the tournament, so their OHL championship series against Ottawa was somewhat meaningless as they were guaranteed a berth anyway. They won that series so they can't be accused of backing in but the Knights built a super-team, knowing they'd be in the Memorial Cup tournament no matter how they played that season (and they won the Memorial Cup, too, beating Sidney Crosby and the Rimouski Océanic 4-0 in the championship game -- but again, with the trememdous advantage of being on home ice). This year, nothing's been guaranteed and London has never won an OHL title without that cushion.
Saturday, May 12:
The jury it so right last night in London, Ontario, finding Michael Rafferty guilty of kidnapping, sexual assault causing bodily harm and first-degree murder in the 2009 death of eight-year-old Victoria Stafford. It was such a tough chore for the jurors, who didn't get a chance to hear or deliberate evidence that would have made their decision easier. The judge, I think, was extremely cautious in this regard, but one would think this would lesson the defence's chances of a successful appeal. As for Rafferty, good riddance. It's too bad he won't be placed in prison's general population. Word is inmates don't take kindly to child murderers.
A few blocks away, the London Knights captured just the second Ontario Hockey League title in their franchise history, a remarkable achievement for a club that has overachieved. The Knights will be youngest team at the Memorial Cup as this was an outfit that was being built to ultimately succeed next year and the year after. No matter what they do in Shawinigan, this league title can only bode well for the future.
Sunday, May 13:
Oh, there were spurts, but the Washington Capitals' fate was sealed in the first two minutes of game seven last night when the New York Rangers opened the scoring. From that point on, the Caps were losing battles along the boards, making ill-advised passes, committing too many giveaways and were generally a step behind the home team. The Rangers would ultimately prevail 2-1 and -- close as it was -- I never felt the Caps had a tying goal in them. As their summer approaches, they'll look back at the one that got away -- game five, when they were eight seconds away from victory only to see it all slip away.
Oh, and maybe they'll run into teammate Alexander Semin along their travels. For an invisible player in his series, he saved his worst game for last night. "Brutal" is being kind.
Monday, May 14:
Twenty years ago, I was bemoaning another late Manchester United collapse, as they surrendered the league title to Leeds on the final day of the season. Five-year manager Alex Ferguson was under the gun and I wondered if United would ever win another championship in my lifetime, having not taken once since the 1960s. Little did I know that a year later, the first of 13 crowns in two decades would be captured. It was almost 14, and yes, yesterday hurt, too. I ever expected Manchester City to lose to Queens Park Rangers but when they entered stoppage time down 2-1 at home to QPR and Manchester United was wrapping up a 1-0 win at Sunderland, it seemed certain United was going to capture a 20th championship after all. But City got off the mat, scored not once but twice, and took the title for the first time since 1968 on goal differential. Yes, City "bought" a title but a fresh champ is good for the game, and while United's mantra has always been to build from within with its youth program, they've never been shy about going after top stars when the mood suits them. The rules are there, City broke none of them. At the end, the more deserving team won it all. The Sky Blues closed the season in top form, winning their last six games, including the head-to-head match with United, while the Red Devils closed with three wins, two losses and a draw. After United forged an eight-point lead with six to play, they lost at 15th place Wigan, blew a late 4-2 lead at home in a draw against Everton and dropped the derby at the Ethiad. So the correct team won and United wraps up a rare year with nothing. Still, a pretty strong showing for a club in transition, one that was plagued with key injuries, veterans a bit beyond their "best-before" date and youngsters not quite ready for prime time. The warning signs were there for all to see with an abysmal performance in European competitions. Whether the kids go on to mirror the great success of the likes of Giggs and Scholes will ultimately tell if United returns to future glory or if it's truly a changing of the guard. One thing is certain -- as a fan they owe me nothing. I can't imagine a more fulfilling run. It's been an amazing 25 years under Sir Alex and he'll surely question whether he wants to stay on to try to mould another dynasty.
Tuesday, May 15:
Summer! Woo-hoo! Oh, it's not here yet of course, although any Canadian will tell you that it unofficially starts this long weekend and wraps up on Labour Day. But yesterday and today, we've been blessed with summer-like, low-humidity, no-clouds-in-the-sky conditions that Chamber of Commerce folks salivate over. And best of all, I'm off work and will be until Thursday!
The Detroit Tigers are going to give their fans collective heart failure. Today, they fell behind 6-0 at Chicago, scored eight runs in the sixth, had a 10-6 lead with two out and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth and barely escaped with a 10-8 win, as the White Sox' bid for a three-run, walk-off homer died at the wall. With that win, the Tigers are .500 for the season, a brutal record when you combine the talent they have with the lack of competition in the American League Central. It's still only mid-May and it won't take much to capture the division title but this far from the juggernaut people were calling the Tigers after the first week of the regular season.
Wednesday, May 16:
It's a four-game suspension for the Blue Jays' Brett Lawrie, who completely lost it last night in the ninth inning of the Blue Jays 4-3 loss to Tampa Bay. Having said that, he had every right to be steamed at umpire Bill Miller's incompetence behind the plate but he had no right to go over the top and slam his batting helmet to the ground at Miller's feet, whereupon it bounced up and his the arbiter in the hip. Lawrie is starting to get a reputation as a hothead and it's something he'll need to control -- a tough challenge for a young player who performs his duties with great desire and emotion. Frankly, a four-game suspension was light -- you don't throw equipment at the feet of an ump or anywhere else in the vicinity. But Miller is far from blameless in this. First of all, he missed the 3-1 pitch, which was clearly outside. Fine. Umps are no more perfect than the rest of us. But he didn't go up with the right hand until Lawrie had already started sprinting for first base to take his walk. Of course, Miller obviously thought Lawrie was showing him up, and he, the haughty 15-year veteran, wasn't going to take that from an uppity sophomore ballplayer. So he punched out Lawrie on a 3-2 pitch that was as close to the strike zone as I was, sitting on my couch. Miller should be just as ashamed as Lawrie today.
Friday, May 18:
Here it is, folks! The most widely anticipated long weekend of the year, the unofficial start of summer across the broad Dominion. Victoria Day weekend is when Canadians from coast-to-coast stock up on 2-4s of beer (leading to the unofficial name of "May 2-4 weekend", May 24th being Queen Victoria's actual birthday) and head to cottage country to open the long-shuttered windows and doors, let the musty winter odours escape and fill the summer retreats with fresh air. Usually, it's cold, wet, windy and miserable (as it was back in 1989, when The Bride and I tried our first hand at boating, having bought one over the previous winter. I could write a book about that crazy weekend -- and the two that followed it, our first excursion to the 500 with the current Indy gang and the opening of Toronto's SkyDome in the rain). But this year, the forecast calls for hot, dry and sunny conditions in this part of the country. Me? I'm working tomorrow and Sunday but that's OK. It's "shorts" weather and that's all that matters!
Sunday, May 20:
Why is it our non-human family members have to leave us with their much-shorter life lines? We had to say good-bye to our first equine beauty today. “Pacha” was a wonderful and beautiful chestnut horse, occasionally smart and occasionally dumb and we had him for 24 of his 28 years. He loved to jump. Years ago, The Bride entered him on a whim in a three-event competition -- dressage, stadium jumping and hunter jumping -- and the two of them finished second. We still have the ribbon and the video from that day. We hoped "Pacha" would live forever but a fractured hip left us with the only choice we could possible make. He was euthanized today. Happy trails, fella. You'll be missed dearly.
Wednesday, May 23:
I was long asleep by the time the Los Angeles Kings wrapped up their Western Conference final in Glendale last night (thanks to my work schedule, which has me getting up this week -- as my friend Charlene calls it -- the “crack of stupid”). L-A’s 4-3 overtime win that eliminated the Phoenix Coyotes, was their eighth win in as many road games in these playoffs, which is unheard of. And yet, when this outfit opens the final against the Rangers or Devils, it will likely be the underdog again. Heaven knows the Kings are unknowns in their own city, if the L.A. media coverage is any example. From mispronouncing player names, to stumbling over whether hockey is played with a ball, to displaying the logo of the N-B-A’s Sacramento Kings by mistake, it's been a comedy of errors. Bailey the Lion (named after Garnet “Ace” Bailey, who died in the 9-11 terrorist attacks) is the Kings’ current mascot. Maybe they could add a second, depicting the late Rodney Dangerfield, because these guys certainly get no respect.
Thursday, May 24:
This was always the day when we'd leave for Indianapolis in what was to become an annual pilgrimage to the famed 500 mile auto race. I saw 15 Indy 500s between the ages of 25 and 50 and I haven't been back there since. The 500 has become something of a farce and this year, without Danica Patrick, their meal ticket, interest has waned. And "bubble day" had zero drama with no bumping attempts. They had to trot out old Formula One retread Jean Alesi to fill out the 33-car field. Be still, my beating heart. Lots of tickets are available by the way. Years ago, we had to mail our renewal requests the day after the race to ensure we'd get tickets the following year. Those days are long gone. Call it karma for the politics that gave the 2002 race to Helio Castroneves instead of the deserved winner, Paul Tracy. It soured me on Indy and while I went the following year, I haven't been back since. And I have no desire to return.
The London Knights have one more game to play and if they win it Sunday in Shawinigan, they'll be Memorial Cup champs. No excuses if they don't. The Knights nailed down first place in the round-robin and gained a bye to the final so they should be well rested.
Friday, May 25:
Further to yesterday's diatribe about the Indy 500, the one thing that was magical was the friendships made and kept over the years. To that end, the "Indy gang" is meeting in New Jersey again this weekend, as it did two years ago, when we all took in a Broadway play and fine dinner across the Hudson in Manhattan. It was a wonderful reunion in 2010, filled with the sharp humour and love that each and every "Indy gang" gathering brings. Sadly, I'm missing it this year as my work schedule didn't allow me or The Bride to get away (a shame that, because this was to have been her first experience at one of these things -- and we're always rough on rookies -- heh, heh). But we'll be there in spirit, that's for sure!
Sunday, May 27:
RRRRRRRace Day -- 2012! The late Tom Carnegie would make that annual declaration (with the correct year, of course!) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to the running of the 500. And Race Day has morphed into Race Tripleheader. It always includes the 500 and the NASCAR evening 600-miler at Charlotte and always starts with a Formula One race from Europe. Usually it's Monaco, F1's crown jewel, as aesthetically pleasing to the eye as it is boring with its twisty, no-place-to-pass layout. It's not always Monte Carlo, though. In 2005, the F1 race on the U.S. Memorial Day weekend was the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring in Germany. I know this because I was in Essen, Germany that weekend and realized that Nürburg was just a couple of hours away by car. So I drove down, got a cheap-seats ticket and watched Kimi Räikkönen crash out with a broken suspension on the final lap, allowing Fernando Alonso to win (actually, my seats were not near Räikkönen's crash, but opposite a monitor that showed the mishap clearly). And I was able to get back to Essen in time to watch the Indy 500 on German TV that evening (commercial-free, to boot!) and see Danica Patrick's 500 debut. Sadly, the Charlotte race wasn't available on TV but it would have been a midnight start for me, and I was pretty gassed from a long day.
It's the Knights and host Shawinigan Cataractes this evening in the Memorial Cup final and that's dangerous for three reasons. The Cats will have an arena-full of fans cheering their every move, they've already beaten the Knights in the tournament and they're speedy, shifty and no joy to play against. London has to be at its very best to win tonight.
Monday, May 28:
Yeah, again I watched it all, and then some. The "some" was the overtime in the Memorial Cup championship game, won by the hosts over my hometown London Knights, 2-1. I'm gutted about that, but all credit goes to the Shawinigan Cataractes. I don't care if the tournament was on their home ice, winning three elimination games in four nights means you're deserving champions. The young Knights weren't built to win this year but down the road, they may regret dropping this game. Hockey's a funny game. You never know when you're going to get a chance to play in a Memorial Cup tournament. It was just the Knights' second trip in 47 seasons.
As for the races, Mark Webber won a close but frustrating (to the viewer) Monaco Grand Prix. Frustrating in that you just can't pass on that circuit, and it was a race that was tailor-made for drama, as Webber won by 0.6 seconds over Nico Rosberg. But the only drama involved the weather as the predicted deluge held off until after the checkered flag, rewarding (most of) the teams that avoided the temptation to switch to intermediate tires. Still, Webber was the sixth different driver to win in as many F-1 races this season, and that's something!
Indy: By far the best race of the three, with Dario Franchitti making a brilliant defensive move on the final lap to reject an impatient Takuma Sato and win his third 500. Sato tried to push through a small opening on turn one and Franchitti would have none of it. Sato spun out, Dario kept it together and he took the checkered flag under yellow. All race long, drivers in second place were setting up perfect passes coming off turn four, resulting in a record number of lead changes. Sato was in an ideal position to do the same thing but his eagerness -- and foolishness -- cost him the race.
Charlotte: It was the fastest Coca-Cola 600 in history but it was anti-climactic compared to past years or to February's Daytona 500. Nice to see the often overlooked Kasey Kahne take the checkered flag but he was so far enough in front -- almost five seconds -- that runner-up Denny Hamlin had no chance of making a late run. My man Jimmie Johnson was in it until he screwed up a late pit stop, peeling away while the gas man was still loading fuel. That slowed him down and the subsequent stop-and-go penalty imposed by NASCAR ruined any chance he had of winning.
Tuesday, May 29:
Man, we need rain. Our lawn looks mid-August brown and the scorching temperatures this week haven’t helped. And farmers, who had virtually no spring snow run-off from our non-winter, have parched crops in much need of precipitation. They say we’ll get some today in the form of thunderstorms but what we really need is a full day’s soaking. Friday, maybe.
Folks here are getting their shorts in a knot over the Toronto Blue Jays five-game losing streak (that was snapped last night). Last time I looked at the calendar, it was May and no major league baseball team to my knowledge has ever been eliminated by a five-game slide in the second month of the season. It’s why I’ve resisted the temptation to rip the under-performing Detroit Tigers, who really didn’t get it in gear a year ago until August and September. But they don’t look like a happy bunch. Manager Jim Leyland complained yesterday in Boston after being ejected for arguing what the umpires later admitted was a bad call, that everyone in the game -- umps, players, managers, media, et all -- “must be accountable.” If that’s the case, I’d love to have him explain the presence of Ryan Raburn in a major league uniform, let alone the number-two hitter in what is supposed to be a dynamite line-up.
Thursday, May 31:
Y'know, I've probably watched more Stanley Cup playoff hockey this season than in the last five years combined. But I'm definitely "meh" about the final. I know these aren't your father's New Jersey Devils, once the most boring (and yet, successful) team in hockey. Under good guy coach Peter DeBoer, they're a little more offensive-minded. But not by a lot. Both they and the Los Angeles Kings will forecheck you to death. And harassed defenders will do anything to get the puck out of the zone -- even ice it, which prevents a change of on-ice personnel. Last night, in the dying minutes of the third period and overtime, I swear there were more icings than shots on goal. Borrring. Still, I'm cheering for the Kings, born in 1967 and still looking for their first Cup. The Kings, whose first head coach was Red Kelly, whose first goalie was Terry Sawchuk and whose first goal was scored by junior hockey coach extraordinaire Brian Kilrea. The Kings, who have yet to lose a road game (!) in the playoffs, and who don't have to battle the now-ousted Lakers (and Clippers) for attention. I know that getting a fourth Stanley Cup ring would be a nice way for 40-year-old Marty Brodeur to close out a stellar career but my heart's with Los Angeles.
