Alaska Darin

Or: He actually thinks YOU'RE the retard. Which is pretty much the definition of irony.

Vera's just being smart. His marketability may never be higher than it is right now.

They're running out of stories and ways to tell them. I guess that's to be expected when the show started off at such lofty heights.

You should check and see if they offer a course in "Knowing When to STFU".

Telling quote by the TSN Commentator: "In a rare example of taking matters into his own hands..."

And Lee Fogolin. And Kevin McClellan. And Mark Messier.

Gretzky was a wuss. He had one major penalty in his career, getting the crap kicked out of him by Neil Broten of the North Stars. Fights ensued whenever anyone touched the guy. No player was hit less in the history of hockey. Dude, no offense but no one has taken a 3 minute shift in 25 years. The game is way too intense for that. You see a guy out there past a minute and a half and he's standing still praying for a whistle. These guys are world class athletes and that's the biggest change in the game. The problem with the "let them play" mentality is it gave us the "Left Wing Lock" and "Neutral Zone Trap", which all but killed the game. The officials do let them play now more than ever, as witnessed by guys like Briere and St Louis being allowed to work their magic without getting tackled, hooked, face washed, etc. You know, things Wayne Gretzky took for granted while he was winning Lady Bing trophies for not getting his skirt wrinkled. BTW, you might want to try and find a copy of Hockey Digest from February of 1990, it's the one where Gretzky all but begs for fighting to be abolished.

Is this an example of "furthering the discussion"?

Is there going to be a point when you realize you're not helping yourself?

Rumor has it they're actually kicking around an additional 3-on-3 format for the next five minutes. That'd end about 99% of games before the shootout, methinks.

While Wayne is certainly as money grubbing and two-faced as anyone I can think of, he's still not wrong about where he'd fit today. He'd still possess his vision and game acumen but he'd get hit a hell of a lot more than he ever did when he was playing and his talent margin from his era wouldn't extend to today. I don't know what games you're watching but there's still plenty of physical play in the NHL (though the stuff in front of the net has cut down). It's funny that you think it's ice follies with sticks but point at Wayne Gretzky, a player who never got hit in his NHL career. Ever. If you had said Mario Lemieux, you'd have somewhat of an argument. Though Mario never complained about being hit, only the clutching, grabbing and hooking that ruined the game for over a decade. The game is better today than ever. Now that they've loosened up on the instigator rule (a clear admission that the rule should never have been imposed in the first place, but like all bureaucracies can't go all out and just get rid of their mistake), we're already seeing an increase in fighting. Now if they'd just encourage the occasional line brawl while getting rid of clowns like Boogard...

Welcome to the real "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

Which is just about right, as evidenced by the EIGHTH seed representing in the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup Finals last season.

Bull. Sidney Crosby takes 10 times the abuse Gretzky EVER did and until last week had NO BACKUP. Gretzky always had Semenko, McSorely, etc. That says nothing of the significant increase in skill of the average NHL player (especially goalies) or the schemes they play vs the pond hockey of Wayne's heyday. Gretzky would be roadkill in today's NHL. He's admitted nearly as much.

I prefer going without a net. As far as the "act", it's anything but. 'Tis who I am, much like the crochetty angry bastard you come off as probably is. That's cool with me. I've discussed it plenty in the past. I don't care if you remember. The fact that you need to ask when there's a search button is somewhat telling. The reason I don't waste the time now, is because it's just that. It's not an online "persona". It's who I am. There are plenty of people here who've met me, they'd likely tell you without any prompting. I don't see any reason to change because you're not in my livingroom. But I'd be humiliated if a bunch of people I don't know/care about didn't like me or could prove me wrong about something. Or not. I guess I could continue with "Ralph is cheap", "Marv is old", "We should have kept Polian/Wade", etc. I just don't see the point in regurgitating the same crap over and over again. Much the way I don't see the point of annointing our defense the worst in the NFL when there SIX FUGGIN' MONTHS before the first snap in anger.

That's how we roll. I wait to see what he's going to say, then parrot it. Everyone knows it - thanks for pointing it out. I'm just trying to fit in. Another thing I'm pretty well known for. I do have a couple of questions: Is it as old as bitching about the team when the season is half a year away? Or is it as old as trying to continue to fit the "Marv is too old and was never any good anyway" sh(i)t that you've been trying to fill everyone's hat with for the last year and a half? Insight? On TBD? Toss down another glass of self importance, padre.

I disagree. The reason Janssen is suspended is because he's a plumber and Thomas Kaberle plays for the Leafs. Compare it to the Briere vs Ovechkin hit, which was even worse than what happened to Kaberle because Briere had no idea Oven Chicken was behind him and was leaving the ice for a line change. He's lucky he's not paralyzed or dead. Kaberle was simply lazy and not paying attention and got cleaned for his trouble. I'm not saying it wasn't a dirty hit or wasn't late, it was. But it pales desperately in comparison to what happened to Briere. I'd love to see what would happen if Crosby hit one of the Leafs dirty. Someone at the league would probably commit suicide.

That's it. I'm renouncing my fandom. We're the worst defense in the NFL, the other experts here have already proven that the OLine guys we signed are gonna suck hind tit, and we all know Marv and Dicky J are gonna blow the draft like a nickle whore the day the rent was due. Oh the humanity. Pats' wagon, here I come. No way Adelphia (sic) Thomas and Teddy Bruschi aren't going to rule the world. Is it March 4th yet? That was my personal designated panic date.

Let me just say the short term gain won't have the long term effect that sticking up for your teammate would have. Of course, without Belak being dressed, it's not like Team Euro had anyone they could send out there to do anything. Somehow the Sabres managed to beat the crap out of Ottawa AND get the two points (plus win 2 of the next 3 games while scoring 19 goals). Perhaps that's why we have the most points in the entire NHL. I don't see an elbow on the hit, just the typical follow through of a violent collision. Once again, the NHL officials should be embarassed for not calling a penalty on that play. I hope Kaberle is OK, though I suspect he'll be out for a while.

Congrats. Your car is still gay.

It was late. They should have responded. The officials should have called a penalty.

It wasn't a tad late. It was late. Period. Kaberle was in a deep bend with no momentum, so it ended up being worse but at least he saw it coming. Of course, team Euro didn't physically respond but they somehow managed to steal two points from the most boring team in pro hockey history.

I'm not sure I'd blame 20 quality scoring chances on my goalie. He didn't play great but he saw more odd man rushes than a flag football game at BF's house.

Ralph thanks you for your stupidity.

Mostly because the taxes won't have the desired affect, nor will the money collected go anywhere near the cause it was designed for. I don't know why these things are so hard to understand, given the facts. I also never said all taxes are bad and I'm getting pretty tired of you constantly stating it. Some taxes are necessary to provide societal infrastructure. There is simply a delicate balance that's been smashed all to hell since 1913. But thanks again for showing your colors. It never gets old watching you be a hypocrite. Feel free to complain about the same things you regularly do. It's at least quasi-entertaining.