The Sports Illustratedannual picturesque cakewalk through bikinis and sunsets was released yesterday to amountainofpresscoverage. It's also reportedly more profitable for the magazine than "sports." Which is, in this day and age of web porn, sexting and twitpics, quite an accomplishment. Old-fashioned, booooooooooobs insanely attractive women in borderline swimwear are still a hot commodity. How quaint. It's kind of like finding out that, despite the piles of apps and video games, kids still like Lego. Except this is about grown men and boooooobs. It just warms your heart.
The NHL rumour-of-the-day has the Columbus Blue Jackets entertaining trade offers for their captain and franchise winger, Rick Nash. If a trade does come down prior to the Feb. 27 deadline, then it will have huge implications for your fantasy pool. The 27-year-old Nash is a premiere talent stuck in a very bad situation. The Jackets are a virtual certainty to finish last overall this season, and there is chatter that the franchise is about to embark on a re-build. Excuse me, but hasn't this team been in a constant re-build since entering the league in 2000?
The usual suspects figure to kick the tires on Nash. That list of teams includes Boston, Pittsburgh, the Rangers, Philadelphia, Toronto, Washington, Vancouver and Los Angeles. Central Division rivals Detroit, Chicago and St. Louis may also be interested, but Columbus GM Scott Howson may be reluctant to deal Nash within the division. At any event, Nash has a no-movement clause in his contract, so he is the one calling the shots here. And as loyal as he is to the franchise, it's hard to imagine he's keen to stick around much longer, considering the Jackets appears far from being contenders.
Nash has 18 goals and 39 points in 56 games this season. The past few years he's failed to live up to the lofty expectations he set early in his career. He scored 41 goals as a sophomore and 40 in 2008-09. He had 32 and 33 goals the past two seasons, but keep in mind he accomplished that without the benefit of a quality playmaking centre. Nash is a power forward who needs someone to get him the puck; from there he's more than capable of putting it in the net on a regular basis.
If Nash lands with a good team - and chances are he will - you can expect him to be a perennial 40-goal scorer. He should experience an immediate spike in his production. This is something poolies need to keep in mind, particularly if a fantasy rival owns Nash. Now is the time to be pro-active and look to improve your team. In a few short weeks, there's a pretty good chance someone else's team will be much better.
There are plenty of sports that seem to have emerged from the minds of 12-year-olds on a sugar binge -- sky-surfing, street luge, slamball, to name a few. But this takes things to a... wait for it.. electric new level.
The Ultimate Tazer Ball league is getting some press for its, um, inventive adaption of indoor soccer, football and self-defence gadgetry into a full-blown sport. It's full-contact with four players a side, using a comically giant soccer ball on a 200-foot by 85-foot soccer field. The tazerin' can only on the player holding the ball, and the shock has to be just a split second between the shoulders and the waist.
The "league" has three teams of six players, the LA Nightlite, San Diego Spartans, Philly Killowatts and the Toronto Terror. The Canadian team has to play and practice in the States because stun guns are illegal up here. Which doesn't bode well for future Canadian expansion once this thing really takes off.
Co-founder Eric Prum told Canoe, “There’s some novelty and humour in it because it’s so different -- it’s Tasers, but it’s also a lot of strategy and physicality, like hockey. What we do know is we have a league we’re serious about.”
That makes somebody, then.
The league's first big showcase will be a tournament in Thailand in March.
The Detroit Red Wings assumed a place in history Sunday night by winning their 20th consecutive home game, tying an NHL record shared by the 1929-30 Boston Bruins and 1975-76 Philadelphia Flyers.
Detroit received goals from Niklas Kronwall, Pavel Datysuk, Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen as they edged Philadelphia 4-3 before an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd at Joe Louis Arena. The Red Wings, who haven't loss at home since Nov. 1, have a 23-2-1 home record this season. The only teams to defeat them in regulation this season are the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames.
During the streak, Detroit has won three games via the shootout and one in OT, but there have also been a few laughers, including a 7-1 victory over Winnipeg and an 8-2 triumph over Los Angeles. In total, the epic streak has spanned 102 days and covered close to half the team's home schedule.
Overshadowed by the record-tying victory was the fact that captain Nicklas Lidstrom played in his 1,550th career game, setting a NHL record for most games played for one team in a career.
The Wings will attempt to set a new record Tuesday against the Dallas Stars, where The Joe will undoubtedly take on a playoff atmosphere.
The Nashville Predators pride themselves on being a franchise that does more with less – and they have the numbers to prove it.
Through Tuesday, the Predators had 69 points, good for a fifth-place tie with the St. Louis Blues in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. Their cap hit this season is the third-lowest among all NHL teams at $49.8 million. This combination means the Predators are spending the fewest dollars to gain a point this season. It requires the cost-conscious Preds only $722,449 for every point in the standings.
The Predators will remain a cap floor team for the next few years at least. They do not generate enough revenue to justify being among the top spenders. In fact, it will be extremely challenging for them to move to the middle of the pack. This presents some unique challenges as the franchise attempts to remain competitive. Goalie Pekka Rinne’s cap hit will go from $3.4 million to $7 million next season when his new contract kicks in. Captain Shea Weber is already making $7 million this season and is a restricted free agent this summer. The Predators control his rights for next season, but after that he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent. And finally, blueliner Ryan Suter will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer and has informed the club he will not negotiate a new contract until after the season.
GM David Poile must navigate some choppy waters when it comes to Nashville’s three best players. And how he manages this delicate situation will impact on the competitiveness of the franchise in the coming years. The Nashville Predators are getting good bang for their buck now, but it remains to be seen just how long they can keep it going.
Not surprisingly, the Columbus Blue Jackets are the worst team money can buy this season. They are spending a whopping $62.9 million dollars and have earned a mere 36 points. The Jackets are the NHL’s worst team by 11 points – and they’ve spent a fortune in the process.
Here’s how NHL teams rank in dollars spent per point this season, going from most economical to least. Salary cap figures are courtesy of www.capgeek.com.
In the course of one night, Sam Gagner immortalized himself in Edmonton Oilers' history by trying a club record with eight points in one game. The 22-year-old joined Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey in that exclusive club.
Gagner's performance that night, along with the four points he collected in his next two games, took him from having close to the worst offensive season of his career to having his best. The lesson learned here is not to judge a player based on a single performance. His out-of-this-world game against the Blackhawks skewed his statistics for this season, something poolies need to recognize.
Take away the eight-point performance and Gagner has only seven goals and 26 points in 45 games. That level of production is actually less than his career points-per-game average, which is troubling if you drafted Gagner with the idea he's about to break out offensively.
I've never been a huge fan of Gagner, truth be told. He doesn't possess a great deal of speed - it's almost as though he's playing the game in slow motion. He's a good playmaker, but just doesn't seem to have the drive that will result in high goal totals, and in turn high point totals. To wit: in his first four seasons he never scored more than 16 goals and has never matched the 49 points he had as an 18-year-old rookie.
But we should be more concerned about what Gagner will do in the future. Unlike teammates Jordan Eberle, Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, I don't see Gagner becoming an elite point producer. His three teammates all have the potential to hit the 100-point mark. Gagner, on the other hand, seems destined to top out in the 65-point range. There's nothing wrong with that, but it's in stark contrast to some of his supporters who argue he's the second-coming of Adam Oates, a player with similiar skills who was a late bloomer.
Congratulations if you were able to deal Gagner in the last week and received significant assets in return. And I'm sorry to say this, but if you acquired him with the hopes that one game will serve as a springboard for him, then I believe you're sadly mistaken.
That crash you heard over the weekend was the Ottawa Senators hitting rock bottom. Well, at least that's what the Sens would like you to believe.
The Ottawa Senators opened a five-game homestand over the weekend with losses to the Islanders and Maple Leafs, extending their season-high losing streak to six games. Saturday's 5-0 loss to their provincial rivals was one of their most disheartening losses of the season. It's one thing to lose a hard-fought game that was close in the end, but it's another thing entirely to never be in the game.
The Leafs thoroughly dominated the first half of the contest, and by 8:25 of the second period the score was 3-0. Sure, the Sens held a distinct shots advantage in the second half - and actually directed a total of 50 at James Reimer in the game - but they never displayed the will required to mount a comeback. There are times when you sense a 3-0 lead can be erased. This was not one of them.
On Friday night the Senators were just as lacklustre, dropping a 2-1 overtime decision to the Isles. The loser point they were awarded is the only point they've picked up over the six-game losing streak.
The homestand continues on Tuesday against a very good Nashville team. On Thursday, the powerful St. Louis Blues will provide the opposition. It's not out of the realm to suggest the slide could reach eight games this week.
This is the bad news.
If you're an eternal optimist, you can point out that the Senators were pegged by many as bottom-feeders before the season. You can also claim, rightly, that Ottawa still occupies a playoff spot by three points, has one more point than Toronto, and is only three points out of fifth place.
All this despite a six-game losing streak. If you asked owner Eugene Melnyk, management, the coaching staff and the players if they would take this position in the standings before the season, they would have shouted an emphatic 'yes.'
The Senators haven't responded particularly well to the adversity associated with their first lengthy losing streak of the season. But there's no reason to press the panic button just yet. There's plenty of hockey to be played, plenty of time to right this ship, which has clearly sprung a few leaks.
Just two years ago, the idea of Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin both missing an All-star game was unthinkable. They were 1 and 1(a) in terms of the best players on the planet and by far the NHL's most marketable players, with both men embracing their roles as ambassadors for the game
Fast forward a couple of years and the unthinkable has happened. Neither player was on hand in Ottawa this weekend, but for vastly different reasons. Crosby missed his second consecutive All-star contest with perhaps the most infamous head injury in the history of professional sports. Ovechkin, meanwhile, skipped the game because he supposedly did not want to be a distraction, having just been assessed a three-game suspension for a dangerous hit on Pittsburgh's Zybnek Michalek.
With Crosby known far and wide as 'Sid the Kid', perhaps we should begin referring to Ovechkin as 'The Incredible Sulk.'
Ovechkin acted like a petchulant child this week. I don't believe for a moment that he was doing the league a service by staying away. If anything, I strongly suspect he wanted to take out his frustration on the league for being suspended. The true victims here were the good people of Ottawa who paid excellent money to attend the skills competition and All-star game. They were expecting to see one of the NHL's great personalities, but instead saw Ovechkin exposed as selfish and immature.
Veterans Teemu Selanne and Nicklas Lidstrom also passed on the game, although they were up front about their desire to rest and quitely asked the league not to select them. So in effect, neither were thumbing their noses at the NHL establishment. Besides, Selanne and Lidstrom have earned the right to decline an invitation; Ovechkin has not.
In the end, there were only a few surprises and memorable moments during the weekend. Zdeno Chara set the new record for hardest shot in the skills competition, Patrick Kane donned a cape and glasses, and Daniel Alfredsson had two goals and an assist in front of the hometown crowd.
All-star weekend in recent years has become more about catering to the fans in the city in which the game is played then attracting new fans or appeasing those from other cities. And it certainly doesn't help the mass appeal of the game when a couple of superstars are missing - particularly when one of them is thumbing his nose at the fans.
Over the course of 12 months, Phil Kessel has gone from All-Star Game laughingstock to the best right winger of the 2011-12 NHL season - and a player good enough not be picked last in the All-Star Fantasy Draft (I can hear Cliff Fletcher now saying "Fantasy Draft Schmaft"). This is quite the accomplishment for a player who been dubbed lazy, selfish, and defensively deficient throughout this brief NHL career.
Well, good for Kessel. And good for his linemate Joffrey Lupul, who has been the best and most consistent left winger in the game this season. Together they have scored 46 goals and 93 points and are a big reason why the Maple Leafs are clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. It may not sound like a huge accomplishment, but a franchise that hasn't made the playoffs in eight years will take what it can get.
For their efforts, Lupul and Kessel have earned spots on Top Shelf's all-star team for the first half-and-a-bit of the season. One player is realizing his immense potential this season; the other has made a remarkable return from a career-threatening injury.
Kessel, now in his sixth NHL season, has blossomed into a player who at least shows a defensive conscience. He is much more interested in back-checking this season, playing much deeper in the defensive zone, and winning battles for pucks that not long ago would have seemed like a chore for him.
The 24-year-old has also shown off his passing ability with 25 assists in 49 games. Who knew? And while he'll never be mistaken for Adam Oates, he has developed fantastic chemistry with Lupul, and isn't afraid to feather a pass to his linemate. Just last year, he was extremely predictable in the way in which he'd hang on to the puck, reluctant to involve his linemates.
Lupul, meanwhile, appears to be fully recovered from multiple back surgeries that nearly ended his career. Last season, his contract was seen as part of the price GM Brian Burke had to pay in order to acquire defenceman Jake Gardiner from the Anaheim Ducks. Lupul has been much more than a salary dump, or a throw-in, he has resurrected his career with Toronto. He's natural goal-scorer and first-rate leader who should serve as an inspiration to other players whose careers are threatened by injury.
Rounding out our all-star team is centre Evgeni Malkin, defencemen Shea Weber and Erik Karlsson, along with goalie Henrik Lundqvist.
Malkin has been the NHL's most electrifying player this season, leading the league with 58 points in just 42 games. It's a comeback year for Malkin as well. Following two sub-par years, there were questions surrounding his durability, and whether he had the drive to become a truly elite player once again. Well, he's back. And truthfully, he's never looked better.
Nashville's Shea Weber was a finalist for the Norris Trophy last season and is a leading contender to win it this year. He has 10 goals and 34 points in 46 games, is a plus-16, and plays more than 26 minutes a game. Weber has one of the most feared point shots in the game and is the big reason why the Predators have the second-best powerplay in the NHL.
Erik Karlsson of Ottawa has earned the right to be included as a first-team all-star. With 47 points, he has 12 more than any other blueliner, and his 40 assists place him second among all players. Although his defensive game is improving, Karlsson is still a bit of a wild party on the ice. He likes to gamble and sometimes gets burned. The Sens, however, love the offence he brings from the back end. If he remains healthy, Karlsson will be an elite defencemen for years to come.
Between the pipes, Henrik Lundqvist of the Rangers is our guy. He's third in goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts, and is tied for fifth in wins. Lundqvist continues to be the backbone of the Rangers, a team that sits atop the Eastern Conference.
Now here's a glance at the players who made our second all-star team:
Centre
Claude Giroux, Philadelphia - A concussion cost him a handful of games. Otherwise he would be your scoring leader heading into the break.
Left Wing
James Neal, Pittsburgh - Among the league leaders in goals with 27, Neal has a power element to his game.
Right Wing
Marian Hossa, Chicago - We'll admit he's a better two-way player than Kessel, but he has five fewer goals, which relegates Hossa to our second team.
Defencemen
Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit
One of a handful of defencemen with double digits in goals. Lidstrom is still very efficient and durable at the age of 40.
Zdeno Chara, Boston
The leader of the Boston 'D' party, Chara is enjoying another strong season. His plus-25 rating is among the league leaders.
Goaltender
Jimmy Howard, Detroit - For the first time in a long time, the Red Wings are winning because of their goaltending, and not in spite of it. Howard leads the league in wins and is fifth in G.A.A.
Tim Thomas exercised his democratic rights to freedom of expression and speech today. Nobody was injured in the process; nobody was even put in harm's way. But because we live in a digital age, and because everyone feels an entitlement to be outraged, it didn't take long for the hate to spew.
The Boston Bruins made a visit to the White House today where they were honoured in a special ceremony by President Barack Obama. Every member of the team made the trip to D.C., except for Thomas, who later wrote on his Facebook page that he skipped the event as a way to voice his displeasure about what he feels is the out-of-control size of the U.S. Federal Government. In his statement, he said he believed both the Republicans and Democrats are responsible for the current situation he finds so distasteful.
Thomas is a known Republican, and the fact the sitting president is a Democratic leads one to believe the target of today's snub was the Prez himself. That's a logical conclusion. What isn't acceptable, however, is the mocking of Thomas by those who are comparing him to the far right, fear-mongering, anti-immigrant wing of the Republican Party. He's never gone on the record condemning immigrants, illegal or otherwise, for taking jobs from Americans, yet that sentiment is a popular punchline on Twitter today. If through his words or actions Thomas leads us to believe he might be a racist, then let's have the discussion. Until then, perhaps we can have a civilized conversation free from name-calling and personal attacks.
I don't agree at all with Thomas' assessment that the U.S. government has spiralled out of control and is threatening its citizens, but part of me admires him for the courage he showed today. He exposed himself to hate and ridicule in order to express an opinion, as misguided as it might be.
The other big NHL news of the day was the three-game suspension handed to Alex Ovechkin for his hit on Pittsburgh's Zbynek Michalek. Ovechkin took a healthy run at Michalek, left his feet, and drove his shoulder into Michalek's head. It was a dirty play by a player who has a history of questionable hits. Yet, there's very little outrage at the length of the suspension, or the fact that these cheap hits continue in the NHL on a weekly basis.
Lesson learned: it's OK to drive an opponent's head into the glass; it's not OK to have a political opinion if you're an NHL player.
