I've been slacking off again in my writing. First I let the weekend go by and didn't even bother to predict that Arizona would have their hinds handed to them by Carolina. Turns out it was better that I keep my mouth shut. I didn't offer any commentary on the BCS Championship Game last week either because really, it just would have been a rant about my belief that Utah deserved a shot at the title but can never get it in the current system. And no matter how flawed and archaic the college football championship system is, I've learned enough about it to know that it isn't going to change any time soon, so I might as well just start wishing that Michigan could hang on to their recruits and field a team that doesn't suck next year. Perhaps one that can sustain the competitive level that saw them take that undefeated Utah team down to the wire in the first game of the season.
What I'm finally back on here to talk about today though, is the Wings game last night. Detroit has been playing pretty well lately with that six game winning streak riding into last night. I was pleased to see that TSN2 picked up the Versus broadcast from Dallas and allowed me to watch on what would have been an otherwise eventless evening. So tune in I did, only to see that the Wings also decided that they would just watch for the evening, as the Stars threw almost 50 shots at Osgood! Despite Ozzy playing fantastic and Datsyuk trying to win the game all by himself (check out the three links below), the rest of the boys had about the worst defensive game I've seen them play this year (and that's saying something because there's been a few bad ones). When Steve Ott potted the tieing goal, I had a pretty strong sense that the Wings were not going to leave with that win streak intact. Sure enough, another defensive breakdown in OT and the puck was in the back of the net before you could blink.
Datsyuk setting up Holmstrom's goal
Datsyuk burning Niskanen and roofing it on Turco
And for good measure ... Datsyuk beating Nashville's Vokoun in a shootout a while back
What I find most curious coming out of the loss last night is Detroit's struggles in four-on-four situations this year. The commentators (who were absolutely terrible, btw ... no wonder nobody watches Versus) postulated that the Wings' talent is struggling with too much ice, because it negates some of the advantage they typically have using their skills in tight spaces. I suppose that's a possibility, but what I'm seeing is a lack of discipline and effort in those 4-on-4 situations. The defense are moving the puck up ice just a little bit slower, probably thinking they have more time, and it's taking away the speed advantage that the Wings have over a lot of opponents. Since Detroit is a puck possesion team, the slow exit from their own zone is causing their rythym to break down as they enter the offensive zone and the counterattacks are leaving one or two guys caught up ice. Last night in OT, the situation was compounded by Brad Stuart losing his stick and then having to use Dan Cleary's, which is about six inches shorter than his own. When Stuart failed on a clearing attempt with the short stick, the counterattack took about five seconds to wind up in the Detroit net and the game was over.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Interesting Thought
I'm going to go light on the celebration of yet another World Junior Championship for Canada this morning. It was a fun game to watch against Sweden yesterday, but there's no question that the games of the tournament were the wins over the US and Russia last Wednesday and Saturday. Those two will go down as a couple of the most exciting hockey games I've ever watched. But congrats to the boys and I hope that had fun celebrating last night!
Now for the interesting thought of the day ...
I read a statistic this morning that the Detroit Lions only had 14 passes defensed this season. That means, that less than once per game, the Lions' defensive players did something proactive to break up a passing play (as opposed to the QB just missing with the throw or the receiver just dropping the ball). And that got me wondering, if the whole group of defensive backs didn't even manage to do what they get paid for once per game collectively, would the Lions have been better off without them? I can think back to a few of the games (against Atlanta, Carolina, Tennessee, etc) where Detroit gave up well over 200 yards rushing and truly got beaten by the run. Since those corners and safeties weren't doing anything to break up passes, would the Lions' defense perhaps have given up fewer points by just putting 8 or 9 or 10 guys in the box and focusing on stopping the run? It's just a thought, but I think with some better coaching, this team could have at least squeaked out one win.
Now for the interesting thought of the day ...
I read a statistic this morning that the Detroit Lions only had 14 passes defensed this season. That means, that less than once per game, the Lions' defensive players did something proactive to break up a passing play (as opposed to the QB just missing with the throw or the receiver just dropping the ball). And that got me wondering, if the whole group of defensive backs didn't even manage to do what they get paid for once per game collectively, would the Lions have been better off without them? I can think back to a few of the games (against Atlanta, Carolina, Tennessee, etc) where Detroit gave up well over 200 yards rushing and truly got beaten by the run. Since those corners and safeties weren't doing anything to break up passes, would the Lions' defense perhaps have given up fewer points by just putting 8 or 9 or 10 guys in the box and focusing on stopping the run? It's just a thought, but I think with some better coaching, this team could have at least squeaked out one win.
Monday, January 5, 2009
What went wrong?
Why do they let fans have so much control over who starts at the All Star Games of the various pro sports? As the leagues have moved towards more and more internet voting, there has been a dramatic rise in head-scratcher decisions about the starting lineups. Case in point, this year's NHL All Star starters were announced a few days ago. It seems that Anaheim, Chicago, and Montreal managed to mount successful campaigns to get their fans out voting, because aside from Crosby and Malkin who absolutely belong in the starting lineup, Ducks, Hawks, and Habs make up the entire dozen.
Some will argue that the starting lineup is pretty meaningless, and they would be right (more right than ever it would seem). They say that every other team had just as much chance to convince their own fans to go home and vote online over and over again. But it's ridiculous that some loser with too much time to spend on the internet and a man-crush on J.S. Giguere can get a goalie ranked 21st in wins, 47th in goals against, and 31st in save percentage into the starting lineup! The guy doesn't belong on the team at all and he's taking a spot away from someone more deserving.
Additional slights include the fact that five of the top seven points scorers didn't get enough votes. None of the top 20 goal scorers received enough votes. No player on the top three teams in either conference's standings got enough votes. It's simply ridiculous. And it's unfortunate to those who truly deserved the honour to be shut out because of some tech nerd who happens to like the Habs or the Hawks.
Some will argue that the starting lineup is pretty meaningless, and they would be right (more right than ever it would seem). They say that every other team had just as much chance to convince their own fans to go home and vote online over and over again. But it's ridiculous that some loser with too much time to spend on the internet and a man-crush on J.S. Giguere can get a goalie ranked 21st in wins, 47th in goals against, and 31st in save percentage into the starting lineup! The guy doesn't belong on the team at all and he's taking a spot away from someone more deserving.
Additional slights include the fact that five of the top seven points scorers didn't get enough votes. None of the top 20 goal scorers received enough votes. No player on the top three teams in either conference's standings got enough votes. It's simply ridiculous. And it's unfortunate to those who truly deserved the honour to be shut out because of some tech nerd who happens to like the Habs or the Hawks.
Friday, January 2, 2009
So Much Sports!
I've been MIA this week mostly because I've been avoiding spending time at a computer, but also because there's just so much going on! From the Winter Classic, to an endless stream of bowl games, to the upcoming NFL playoffs, to the World Junior Hockey tournament, it's been fun and exciting to stay in and watch sports!
Where to begin? How about with the World Junior game between Canada and the USA on new years eve? I managed to turn the game on with the US ahead 1-0 and just about to double their lead. A short time later they made it 3-0 and I thought the Canadians were cooked. But instead of tighten up their defense and move on to the semis, the American kids skated by the Canadian bench taunting them, giving Pat Quinn a rallying cry for the troops. What followed was the most exciting 20 minutes of hockey I recall seeing in a long time as Canada popped three quick ones to tie it, then took the lead with another just 37 seconds into the second period. After the US tied it up again, Canada managed a fifth goal before the middle of the second to lead 5-4. That lead would hold up the rest of the way until Tavares and Ennis added empty net goals in the final minute. The win sends Canada to the semifinals where they await the winner of tonight's Russia-Czech Republic game. Meanwhile, the US have just lost to the Slovaks in the other quarterfinal match. I was interested in watching the US goalie this week since he's property of the Red Wings. While you can't put too much weight on just a couple of games, he didn't look overly impressive against Canada and he gave up three goals on the first seven shots against the Slovaks. That certainly wasn't enough to help his team win or to get me excited about the prospect of seeing him in a Detroit jersey anytime soon.
In bowl game news, I haven't actually watched much, but was disappointed in watching another USC blowout in the Rose Bowl yesterday. It's hard to believe that was the same team that blew its season by losing to Oregon State back in October (the same OSU who beat Pitt 3-0 in a boring Sun Bowl). If USC hadn't had a remarkably terrible first half in Corvallis, they would have gotten through the season undefeated and looked like odds on favourites to win the championship. Instead, because of 30 bad minutes of play three months ago, they have no opportunity to be the national champs. I can certainly understand why Pete Carroll is becoming an advocate for a playoff. His teams seem to be the best every January, but blow one early each year. After that performance yesterday, I think they could beat Florida or Oklahoma who will face each other next Thursday.
The Winter Classic in Chicago yesterday morning was definitely a game worth getting up early for, despite the previous evening of too much wine. It was fun to watch Wrigley Field transformed into a hockey environment and to watch an up and coming Blackhawks team try to face down the Red Wings. After getting out to a quick 3-1 start though, the Hawks looked terribly overmatched as Detroit piled on with five straight goals, one of which was a beautiful rush between the defense by Datsyuk. In the few games I've gotten to watch this year, it was the first time Datsyuk looked to me like the unstoppable force he was through the playoffs last year. While I'm a little concerned about how laid back Detroit's play has been at times this year, when they've had to play big like in divisional games with Chicago, or the game against San Jose two weeks ago, they've stepped it up and been the better team on the ice each time. I just hope they continue to find that next level as the season winds down and they head into the playoffs in April.
Finally, the NFL playoffs begin this weekend with four games the will put the "wild" into Wild Card weekend. I don't think there has ever been a time when none of the home teams were favoured in this round of the playoffs, yet as I look through the matchups, I see all four home teams going down. Saturday will kick off with Atlanta going into Arizona where they should have no trouble beating a Cardinals team that just doesn't belong in the playoffs. The late game Saturday will be Peyton Manning and Co. trying to win in San Diego for the second time this year and I believe that he'll be successful. Sunday will begin with the Baltimore Ravens travelling to Miami and beating an overachieving Dolphins team. And Sunday will wrap up with the Eagles knocking off a Minnesota team who haven't even managed to sell enough tickets to avoid a local TV blackout. It seems that they're fans don't have a lot of hope of victory either!
Welcome to 2009! It's a fun time to be a sports fan.
Where to begin? How about with the World Junior game between Canada and the USA on new years eve? I managed to turn the game on with the US ahead 1-0 and just about to double their lead. A short time later they made it 3-0 and I thought the Canadians were cooked. But instead of tighten up their defense and move on to the semis, the American kids skated by the Canadian bench taunting them, giving Pat Quinn a rallying cry for the troops. What followed was the most exciting 20 minutes of hockey I recall seeing in a long time as Canada popped three quick ones to tie it, then took the lead with another just 37 seconds into the second period. After the US tied it up again, Canada managed a fifth goal before the middle of the second to lead 5-4. That lead would hold up the rest of the way until Tavares and Ennis added empty net goals in the final minute. The win sends Canada to the semifinals where they await the winner of tonight's Russia-Czech Republic game. Meanwhile, the US have just lost to the Slovaks in the other quarterfinal match. I was interested in watching the US goalie this week since he's property of the Red Wings. While you can't put too much weight on just a couple of games, he didn't look overly impressive against Canada and he gave up three goals on the first seven shots against the Slovaks. That certainly wasn't enough to help his team win or to get me excited about the prospect of seeing him in a Detroit jersey anytime soon.
In bowl game news, I haven't actually watched much, but was disappointed in watching another USC blowout in the Rose Bowl yesterday. It's hard to believe that was the same team that blew its season by losing to Oregon State back in October (the same OSU who beat Pitt 3-0 in a boring Sun Bowl). If USC hadn't had a remarkably terrible first half in Corvallis, they would have gotten through the season undefeated and looked like odds on favourites to win the championship. Instead, because of 30 bad minutes of play three months ago, they have no opportunity to be the national champs. I can certainly understand why Pete Carroll is becoming an advocate for a playoff. His teams seem to be the best every January, but blow one early each year. After that performance yesterday, I think they could beat Florida or Oklahoma who will face each other next Thursday.
The Winter Classic in Chicago yesterday morning was definitely a game worth getting up early for, despite the previous evening of too much wine. It was fun to watch Wrigley Field transformed into a hockey environment and to watch an up and coming Blackhawks team try to face down the Red Wings. After getting out to a quick 3-1 start though, the Hawks looked terribly overmatched as Detroit piled on with five straight goals, one of which was a beautiful rush between the defense by Datsyuk. In the few games I've gotten to watch this year, it was the first time Datsyuk looked to me like the unstoppable force he was through the playoffs last year. While I'm a little concerned about how laid back Detroit's play has been at times this year, when they've had to play big like in divisional games with Chicago, or the game against San Jose two weeks ago, they've stepped it up and been the better team on the ice each time. I just hope they continue to find that next level as the season winds down and they head into the playoffs in April.
Finally, the NFL playoffs begin this weekend with four games the will put the "wild" into Wild Card weekend. I don't think there has ever been a time when none of the home teams were favoured in this round of the playoffs, yet as I look through the matchups, I see all four home teams going down. Saturday will kick off with Atlanta going into Arizona where they should have no trouble beating a Cardinals team that just doesn't belong in the playoffs. The late game Saturday will be Peyton Manning and Co. trying to win in San Diego for the second time this year and I believe that he'll be successful. Sunday will begin with the Baltimore Ravens travelling to Miami and beating an overachieving Dolphins team. And Sunday will wrap up with the Eagles knocking off a Minnesota team who haven't even managed to sell enough tickets to avoid a local TV blackout. It seems that they're fans don't have a lot of hope of victory either!
Welcome to 2009! It's a fun time to be a sports fan.
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