The Writer's Shack

But has Burtnyk ever had lunch at Manny's with a bunch of Bucketeers? I think not!

A lost weekend for the Mighties, as they give up two very late on Saturday (including the game-winner with 2 seconds left) to lose to the Flyers, then blow a 3-0 lead in the third period, and lose to the Caps in OT. Instead of 4 points, they get 1.

No time to panic, but they have not played in the last month with the same consistent defensive intensity as they did earlier in the year.

The Smokies' lost season came to a merciful end last month, as Our Boys bowed out in the first round of the BCHL playdowns by falling to the hated Westside Warriors 4 games to 1. A brief spark of hope arose, as the Smokies took the first game of the series on the road, but they soon fell prey to the Warriors' cheating ways.

For the season, Trail finished 20-32-1-7, for a woeful 48 points and sixth place in the Interior Conference. In an attempt to right the ship, the Smokies are currently looking for an assistant coach (salary negotiable). Rumor has it that the ideal candidate is someone who has worked in casino security, sports officiating, and is known as both a major shnorrer and a sloppy eater.

The NHL playdowns start in earnest tonight, as the Mighties face off against the hated Predators. I predict a close, hard-fought series, with Chicago winning in 6 games.

Last night, Anasol and I wasted several hours that we will never get back watching the despised, whining, cheating Canucks skate to an overtime win against the sainted Kings of Los Angeles.

Young Jonathan Quick (he should go with "Johnny" - Johnny Quick) was stellar for the Kings. CBC is showing Luongo's dive-and-scoop-the-puck-from-the-goal-line save all morning, and that was a great save. But it was a recovery from a screwup. Johnny Quick's dive across the crease sprawiling glove save a few minutes earlier was the more spectacular play.

Stupid Canucks did outplay my beloved Kings, though.

I've been doing some hard travelling, Lord, and I've missed most of the hockey games this week, including last night's (apparently) stellar performance by the Blackhawks. Hard to believe that the hotels of Our Great Nation don't carry Versus and the NHL Network, but it's true. And since those slimeballs at ESPN don't carry hockey, they really bury the highlights (particularly if it's not of an American team from the Northeast).

Received an ad in my morning mail from the Co-op, offering a Saskatchewan Roughriders Centennial Edition lawn tractor.

Go Hawks go!

While not ready to simply crown the Mighties as the next Stanley Cup champion without the formality of a series against the Eastern Conference champ (as are many people in the Chicago area), I am pretty excited about how they've been playing. Of course, none of what's gone on before means anything once the puck drops in Game 1, but it has been a lot of fun to date.

The Stanley Cup. The Stanley Freakin' Cup.

Unreal ....

I didn't make it downtown for the parade and rally today (stoopid job), but they estimated the crowd at over two million.