I got the conference semis all right (Kevin can’t say the same), even if I missed the number of games. Time to put my good streak on the line with the conference finals.
Flyers vs. Penguins: This is a tough series to call, because brawn usually beats finesse in the playoffs, but I think Pittsburgh (the finesse team) is a much better team than Philadelphia. So I’m going with Penguins in 7
Stars vs. Red Wings: It’s always hard to pick these, especially when I despise both teams involved. 
The Red Wings are looking like the team to beat this year, and with two quality netminders, I don’t think the Stars have quite enough to take them, even though Turco’s playing about as well as he ever has in net for Dallas. Red Wings in 6
P.S. Sorry, Ang. Being a Sharks fan has to be a tough life!
May 8th, 2008
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Sports, NHL |
3 comments
UPDATED 27 April 2008: Add Kansas City Royals.
UPDATED 20 May 2007: Add Philadelphia Phillies.
I’m a sports fan, and I “collect” stadiums (stadia?). Especially major league baseball, NFL football, and NHL hockey. My goal, before I die, is to see a baseball game in the home stadium of every MLB team. It would be an added bonus if I could do the NHL and NFL venues, but right now, I’m focusing primarily on baseball.
Problem is, I keep forgetting where I’ve been, and losing count. Therefore, mostly for my own reference (and because I expect few others to be interested), I’m posting a list of venues attended below the fold. I’ve ordered them in roughly the order in which I first visited them, to the best of my ability to recall.
However, if you have comments concerning favorite (or least favorite) venues, feel free to leave them.
April 27th, 2008
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Sports, I do too have a life, NFL, MLB, NHL |
10 comments
Yes, I know two games are in the books, but I’m not modifying my predictions based on those results, and I didn’t see any of the games.
EAST:
Flyers vs. Canadiens: The Flyers are a physical, ugly team, while the Canadiens are more of a finesse team. In the playoffs, as much as Kevin hates it, brawn wins. Flyers in 7
Rangers vs. Penguins: The Penguins look for all the world like the team to beat in the East. And even though New York has good goaltending, so does Pittsburgh. Penguins in 6
WEST:
Avalanche vs. Red Wings: The Avs are a tempting upset pick, but I don’t think this is the round where Detroit falls. Goaltending will be the difference here. Red Wings in 7
Sharks vs. Stars: I’m sticking with my prediction that the Sharks will repeat their perennial playoff choke in the second round. They should have destroyed Calgary, and barely escaped in seven games. Plus, Turco’s playing as well for the Stars as he’s ever played. Couple that with the fact that a Wings-Stars conference final makes me want to vomit, and it seems pretty much inevitable. Stars in 6
April 25th, 2008
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Sports, NHL |
one comment
I know, the games have started, but I haven’t looked at the scores.
Eastern Conference Semi-Finals
- Flyers vs. Canadians Montreal did not look particularly good against the Bruins, but the Flyers almost gave upa 3-1 series lead, and probably would have if Ovechkin had chosen to take that shot. The Flyers don’t score particularly well and while thier defense is good it is not great. Montreal’s young goalie will probably give away a game, but the Habs offensive will eventually overpower the Flyers. Habs in Six
- Rangers vs. Penguins The Penguins just might be the best tam in the East right now. The big question is how much the long layoff has hurt them, though that is ususally overrated. The Penguins have a lot of firepower, but they also play solid defense and have, at least, above average goal-tending. They wont be pushed around by the Rangers and they will have to many offensive weapons for the Rangers to cope with. The Rangers might have the goalie playing better right now, but even if they do, the difference wont be enough. Penguins in Six
Western Conference Semi-Finals
- Avalanche Vs. Red Wings This should be a great series. These are both tough, veteran teams with a decent amount of firepower. They are both solid on the blue lines and have forwards who will score regardless of how much abuse they have to take to do it. There is a lot of bad blood between the franchises and so the games should be tight and exciting, filled with big hits and big plays. Much has been made of how old the Avs best players are, but I think Foresberg in particular is rounding into mid-season shape. In the end, I think that this comes down to goal-tending. Osgood had a nice last couple f games agaisnt the Predatos, but they played a good chunk of that time without there best offensive weapon. Considering that Osgood is a not-quite great goaltender and that Theodore is playing like a great goalie, and I think the edge has to go to the Avs. Avs in Seven
- Stars vs. Sharks Earlier I said that the Sharks were playing the best hockey in the league. Either the Flames were playing the second-best hockey in the league or the Sharks were exposed a bit. I think the Sharks were exposed a bit, but I also think they found their form in the last couple of games. Dallas is a little bit under rated, I think. The addition of Richardson (who should have been a Blackhawk, damn it) has made their offense more effective and they are a solid defensive team with solid goal-tending. But they are just a solid team; when the Sharsk starting clicking, though, they are just this side of unstoppable. Sharks in Six
April 24th, 2008
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General, Sports, NHL |
2 comments
Yes, I know that the games have started, but I swear I have no idea what their scores are. Hockey predictions with a dash of analyses:
EAST
- Bruins vs. Habs It is tempting, very tempting, to pick Boston. They just seem to have the kind of defense that can pull off this upset. And, frankly, the Habs haven’t impressed me when I have seen them play. Add in the rivalry and this seems lie a good upset special pick. Having said that, the Canadians are the top seed in the East, they have the best offense in the legue and they did demolish the Bruins this year, taking all eight games. Habs in 6
- Penguins vs. Senators Not much to say here: The Penguins can score almost t will and Ottawa has looked terrible the last couple of months. Which, of course, probably means that the Senators will win in four. The Senators did take four from the Penguins this season, but the Penguins are truly dangerous well rounded team. I am sticking with the odds here. Penguins in 6
- Capitals vs. Flyers This will be Ovechkin’s coming out party. He is on fire and the Flyers will try and skate up and down with the Capitals. They wont be able to. Capitals in 5
- Devils vs. RangersThis should be a good series. The rivalry is intense and the talent is pretty evenly matched. In fact, in head to head matches, the Rangers have dominated. The Devils just don’t seem to be able to score and they came into the playoffs reeling. Brodeur could get super hot and carry them, but I don’t think even he is enough to overcome the obvious offenses deficiencies of the Devils.Rangers in 7
WEST
- Red Wings vs. Predators I know the Predators have been an amazing story, and I personally hope they do well and so justify keeping the team in Nashville. And I know that the red Wings are banged up. But the red Wings are still more talented and deep than the Predators. I just don’t see Detroit going out here. Red Wings in 6
- Sharks vs. Flames I want the Flames to win — I have a soft spot for Canadian underdogs in the NHL — but it just won’t happen. The Sharks are probably the best team in the league right now and the Flames, well, let’s just say they aren’t. Sharks in 4
- Wild vs. Avalanche These are two pretty evenly matched teams, with the Wild’s division title the reason for the gap in seeding. However, the Avalanche now have Forsberg and Forsberg in the playoffs will probably be enough to get the Avalanche past a rather average Wild team.Avalanche in 6
- Ducks vs. Stars The Ducks play a style that its fans call gritty and everyone else calls loathsome. The Stars have not finished well, but they got Richardson for the express purpose of being the difference in the playoffs. I think he will be. I think that the Stars will have just enough offense, Turco will be slightly better than the Giguere, and the Stars will be able to contain the secondary players and that means the Ducks wont have enough offense to pull out the series.Stars in 7
There you have it. If you bet based on these predictions you will lose all of your money and I will laugh at you.
UPDATE: I have no idea why I wrote Canucks instead of Flames. See, I told you the analysis would be wrong.
April 9th, 2008
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General, Sports, NHL |
5 comments
What can I say, it’s been busy, and I don’t have a horse in this race:
EAST:
- Canadiens over Bruins in 4
- Penguins over Senators in 5
- Flyers over Capitals in 7
- Devils over Rangers in 6
WEST:
- Red Wings over Predators in 6
- Sharks over Flames in 5 (The Sharks won’t do their perennial choke until round two)
- Avalanche over Wild in 7
- Ducks over Stars in 6
April 9th, 2008
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Sports, NHL |
one comment
That’s right, the NHL regular season has ended, and our loyal readers know what that means: it’s time for me (and probably Kevin) to bitch about the OTL point again. For prior OTL hatred, see here; here; and especially here and here and here.
As I’ve mentioned in those above posts, the NHL should act like a real sports league and have winning percentage be the primary determinant of a team’s record.
Let’s have a look at the before and after, shall we? (Below the fold)
April 8th, 2008
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Sports, NHL |
3 comments
Because our teams suck, that’s why. Kevin’s Blackhawks have just 42 points in 43 games played, putting them 13th out of 15 teams in the West. My Maple Leafs have just 40 points in 43 games played, putting them 14th out of 15 teams in the East. The only thing they’re competing for at this point are draft picks.
I can’t speak to the Blackhawks, but the Leafs are bad in pretty much every aspect of the game. Mats Sundin remains the lone true bright spot, averaging over a point a game (and +11, if you care about that sort of thing), and they’re finally getting some production out of Nik Antropov (35 pts, +6), but their defense and special teams suck. (Note to John Ferguson: It doesn’t matter how many goalies you try; if the team in front of him hangs him out to dry, he’s going to look like a sieve.) Toronto’s power play is 28th in the league, and their penalty kill is 24th. Not a recipe for success.
There’s talk (as there always seems to be) of trading Sundin, but for what? Is anyone really going to give up a couple of quality blue-liners — which the Leafs desperately need — to rent an aging-but-still-pretty-good veteran? I doubt it. And in any case, Sundin has a no-trade clause and has made it clear that he wants to stay in Toronto, even if the team isn’t playoff-bound. Ideal scenario: Rent Sundin out to the Canucks for the rest of the season for some prospects, let him get some playoff time and maybe a cup, then re-sign him as a Leaf next year, Doug Weight style (H/T).
January 10th, 2008
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Sports, NHL |
25 comments
Kevin and I always like to talk about what we would do if we were Emperor of the NHL. Since the season is now over, I thought I’d make a list, in no particular order (below the fold):
June 11th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
7 comments
For this. Now it’s Disney’s The Stanley Cuptm, dammit.
In other news, though, I called it, even if I was off by a game.
Why Kevin’s fault? Because before the playoffs even started, he was saying that the Ducks were going to win the cup. And then, to double-dog curse things, he changed his vote (in the comments of the above post) to Ottawa.
Anaheim shouldn’t even have a stinking team, much less a Cup. Bettman’s destruction of the league is nearly complete. Once every goalie starts wearing pads 2.5 times wider than the goalie himself, like J.S. Giguerre does, the destruction will be complete. (Seriously, have you looked at that guy? He makes Patrick-friggin’-Roy’s padding look sparse.)
The only silver lining is that I forgot the game was on tonight, so I didn’t have to suffer through it.
June 6th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
6 comments
Well, in my Conference Finals predictions, I had the teams right, but the number of games swapped. I called Sens in 6, Ducks in 5, and the actual results were Ducks in 6 and Sens in 5.
At this point, I’m hoping I pick the wrong team in my finals prediction:
Ducks in 6.
The Senators have looked unstoppable of late, but I’m just wondering when they’ll choke, as it seems they always do. As much as I’d love to see the Cup go back to Canada for once, there are too many stars and planets aligned against it — what I want to happen and what does happen are usually quite the opposite. I hate the Ducks, so they’ll win the cup.
Bet against your heart, and your wallet will always be happy.
May 22nd, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
6 comments
Didn’t have time to get these in before the games started, but wanted to at least post predictions I mentally made on Wednesday:
East: Sens in 6
West: Ducks in 5
So far, the first prediction looks good. The second one, not so much.
As for my round two predictions?
1Sabres vs. 6Rangers: I had Sabres in six, and that was exactly right!
2Devils vs. 4Senators: I had the Senators in seven, but they only needed five.
1Red Wings vs 4Sharks: The only one I got wrong. I had the Sharks in six, but the Wings took it in six. (Those who watched the series know that it easily could have been Sharks in four or five, if not for the world-famous San Jose choke factor…)
2Mighty Ducks vs 3Canucks: Another one exactly right! I correctly called Ducks in five.
May 13th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
4 comments
I’m going to the Sharks game tonight. Just got my tickets, and didn’t even have to pay a lot for them.
Sometimes, it’s good to be in the right place at the right time…
UPDATE: I suspect Angie will be more upset that the Sharks lost the game 2-0 (and the series 4-2) than she will be at the fact that I was there to see it.
UPDATE 2: Speaking of being in the right place at the right time, as fate would have it, not only was Angie also at the game, she was in the seat right next to me, although neither one of us realized it at the time. What are the chances of that?!? (I suspect that if she got her seat from a broker, the chances are better than you might think… but I’d still like some math nerd to figure that out.)
May 7th, 2007
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Sports, I do too have a life, NHL |
12 comments
ROUND 1 RECAP:
EAST:
1Sabres 4, 8Islanders 1: (My pick: Sabres in 5, exactly correct!) Nobody really expected the Islanders to be much of a match for the Sabres, and that proves correct. I can only sit and suck on my sour grapes, knowing that my Maple Leafs (or even the evil Canadiens) almost certainly would have given the Sabres a better fight than that. And I’m surprised the Hockey Gods allowed the Isles even one win, what with their fans’ propensity for throwing shit out on the ice all the time. (As a side note, the “no-goal” near the end of Game 5 was a bad whistle, but since the whistle had blown, it was the right call.)
April 25th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
14 comments
Let’s have a final look at the 1-10 standings in each conference, shall we? Below the fold.
April 11th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
2 comments
For the NBA fans, I’m not talking about those playoffs. Run along. The adults have things they need to discuss.
More below the fold.
April 11th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
6 comments
Since Kevin’s Chicago Blackhawks have been eliminated from contending for anything (except perhaps a better shot at the top draft pick), he’s taken to following my Maple Leafs. Who aren’t technically eliminated, but who need to win their last two games (the final one in regulation) or get help to make the playoffs (from which they will be promptly ejected if they make it).
Tonight, they needed overtime to get a home win over the last place Flyers. And I don’t mean last in their division — last in the league.
I appreciate the moral support, but I hope there’s no history of cardiac problems in your family…
April 3rd, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
one comment
With only five or six games left (depending on your team) in the regular season, it’s time again to re-visit my previous screed on the NHL standings.
As of last night’s games, here are the East standings:
March 28th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
6 comments
tgirsch, I and our wives went to see the Predators play the Maple Leafs (tgirsch’s team) last Thursday. We had a great time. As I said before, the fans are generally knowledgeable and the organization puts on a good show (though, Preds: there are no cheerleaders in hockey.) Our seats were fantastic and the stadium itself is a good place to see a game. And watching Kariya play is just about worth the price of admission by itself.
The game itself was much better than the one we attended last year; the Preds won but the game was in doubt to the very end and it was a fast flowing game, filled with solid hits and end to end action. Watching the game, you can understand why the Preds are arguably the best team in hockey. They can all skate, no one made a single dumb play, and they do all of the little things as close to perfect as you can. their passes are crisp and accurate, their defenders know when to pinch and when to backpedal, their fore check is excellent, and they almost never leave their goaltender in a bad position. Toronto, on the other hand, has a lot fo talent, but they don’t do everything well. The difference in the game was one horrible Leaf turnover and one terribly stupid penalty on Matts Sundin, the Leaf’s capitain that lead to a two minute 5-3 for the Predators.
Though, please, Nashville fans, take a bit of advice: I realize that Vokoun is a fantastic goalie, and I realize that you are just trying to cheer him on, but that cheer you do after he makes a great play has to stop. There is something terribly wrong about a group made up almost entirely of southern white people yelling “coooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooon” at the tops of their lungs, even today.
The city itself was fun, too. The area around the stadium is pretty touristy, and much too country, but there were a couple of interesting places (including one with the world’s worst folk singer) and we did find a good place down by Vanderbilt before the night was over.
February 12th, 2007
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Sports, I do too have a life, NHL |
12 comments
It really bugs me how the NHL lists its standings. Setting aside our well-documented objection to the evil OTL point, the fact that the NHL lists standings in terms of points only is just silly. As of Tuesday night, here’s how the Eastern Conference Standings look according to the NHL:
January 30th, 2007
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Sports, NHL |
16 comments
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