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Sunday, August 22, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Tiger and the Ryder Cup
With most of the season of golf gone, the last major of the year passed, we now have a pretty obvious picture of the Ryder Cup teams. The Ryder Cup being, of course, the showdown for international golf supremacy. Tiger Woods is usually a mainstay on this team because he has always had the tendency of just winning 5 tournaments every year and finishing very high in all the majors.
This year, however, has been quite different for Tiger, this being about the understatement of the century in regards to Tiger's life. All the infidelity stuff thrown everywhere, taking a few months away from golf to do some rehab, coming back and struggling through the majors and other tournaments, seems to be hiring a new swing coach (a bit later than most people think he should have), and just not the Tiger that most people are used to seeing.
Yet, the US Ryder Cup captain, Corey Pavin has stated that Tiger Woods is high on his list for a Captain's pick for the team. Now, obviously, Tiger is Tiger, and you obviously assume that his presence would help to intimidate the other team and stabilize your team. Except for this, Tiger right now, is not the Tiger that most people would want on their team. He's erratic and inconsistent at best, his putting is off, his "Buddhism" practices don't keep him from throwing hissy fits and swearing on the course even after he pledged to be a better person at the birthplace of the game of golf.
So what does all this mean? In my opinion, this means that Tiger shouldn't be selected for the Ryder Cup team. True, he's still the world's number 1, only because Phil Mickelson keeps dropping the ball any time he has an opportunity to over take him. Still, he hasn't played that way, and would probably not help out the team. So it would be better for the US Ryder Team to not have Tiger, (this Tiger, not the Tiger that everybody seems to think will magically come back) and it will probably be better for Tiger to not be part of this team so that he can work on his game, and work on his personal life. Though I do seem to be in the minority on this.
Leave Tiger off, Tiger, stay home.
This year, however, has been quite different for Tiger, this being about the understatement of the century in regards to Tiger's life. All the infidelity stuff thrown everywhere, taking a few months away from golf to do some rehab, coming back and struggling through the majors and other tournaments, seems to be hiring a new swing coach (a bit later than most people think he should have), and just not the Tiger that most people are used to seeing.
Yet, the US Ryder Cup captain, Corey Pavin has stated that Tiger Woods is high on his list for a Captain's pick for the team. Now, obviously, Tiger is Tiger, and you obviously assume that his presence would help to intimidate the other team and stabilize your team. Except for this, Tiger right now, is not the Tiger that most people would want on their team. He's erratic and inconsistent at best, his putting is off, his "Buddhism" practices don't keep him from throwing hissy fits and swearing on the course even after he pledged to be a better person at the birthplace of the game of golf.
So what does all this mean? In my opinion, this means that Tiger shouldn't be selected for the Ryder Cup team. True, he's still the world's number 1, only because Phil Mickelson keeps dropping the ball any time he has an opportunity to over take him. Still, he hasn't played that way, and would probably not help out the team. So it would be better for the US Ryder Team to not have Tiger, (this Tiger, not the Tiger that everybody seems to think will magically come back) and it will probably be better for Tiger to not be part of this team so that he can work on his game, and work on his personal life. Though I do seem to be in the minority on this.
Leave Tiger off, Tiger, stay home.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Conference Final Craziness
This is something that has been bugging me for years. This is a thing that seems to happen yearly in the NHL. The playoffs are long, and rough, and we all love to see who is going to play in the Stanley Cup Finals. The weird thing being that now, teams seem to not want to touch the trophy of their conference championship. The announcers love to play up "the curses" and after this year's playoffs, I reached my boiling point. I didn't write about this at the time because I was in the process of moving and just didn't have the time to, but now I am.
Who the hell came up with this? People talk about it like it has been around forever! The only problem is that this is something that seems to have just randomly shown up! I'm not certain from where, but somebody mentioned Eric Lindros in regards to this, but again, I'm not sure. At any rate, I am ready to debunk the incredibly stupid statement, yes, stupid statement, that Pittsburgh managed to break this supposed curse. I mean, you see in that clip that Toews didn't even touch that thing. So, here we go.
1995: New Jersey Devils. Scott Stevens lifts the trophy, Devils win the cup in 4 games. (7:03 in the clip)
1996: Colorado Avalanche Joe Sakic lifts trophy, Colorado wins the cup in 4 games. (1:04 in the clip)
1997: Detroit Red Wings Steve Yzerman lifts trophy, sweep the Stanley Cup.
1998: Detroit Red Wings Steve Yzerman lifts trophy again, and again, the Wings Sweep the finals.
1999: Dallas Stars. Derian Hatcher does not lift the bowl, but he does touch it. This is the first time I've ever seen a player not lift it.
2000: New Jersey Devils. Once again, Stevens lifts trophy, Devils win the Stanley Cup.
I couldn't find any other clips earlier than 1995 on You Tube, but something tells me that not too many other people went along with this beforehand. So, my plea to other teams is to let this particular "superstition" go. We've all seen, now, that for years, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the team that raised their conference championship trophy. They often won the cup in rather convincing fashion. So please, shut up Mike Milbury, Pittsburgh did not break the curse because there never was one.
Who the hell came up with this? People talk about it like it has been around forever! The only problem is that this is something that seems to have just randomly shown up! I'm not certain from where, but somebody mentioned Eric Lindros in regards to this, but again, I'm not sure. At any rate, I am ready to debunk the incredibly stupid statement, yes, stupid statement, that Pittsburgh managed to break this supposed curse. I mean, you see in that clip that Toews didn't even touch that thing. So, here we go.
1995: New Jersey Devils. Scott Stevens lifts the trophy, Devils win the cup in 4 games. (7:03 in the clip)
1996: Colorado Avalanche Joe Sakic lifts trophy, Colorado wins the cup in 4 games. (1:04 in the clip)
1997: Detroit Red Wings Steve Yzerman lifts trophy, sweep the Stanley Cup.
1998: Detroit Red Wings Steve Yzerman lifts trophy again, and again, the Wings Sweep the finals.
1999: Dallas Stars. Derian Hatcher does not lift the bowl, but he does touch it. This is the first time I've ever seen a player not lift it.
2000: New Jersey Devils. Once again, Stevens lifts trophy, Devils win the Stanley Cup.
I couldn't find any other clips earlier than 1995 on You Tube, but something tells me that not too many other people went along with this beforehand. So, my plea to other teams is to let this particular "superstition" go. We've all seen, now, that for years, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the team that raised their conference championship trophy. They often won the cup in rather convincing fashion. So please, shut up Mike Milbury, Pittsburgh did not break the curse because there never was one.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Preseason Football
We got a look into what the NFL is going to be like this coming year with the first preseason games of the year. Yes, I know the Hall of Fame game was last week and all of that, but, as we know, preseason doesn't mean too much. I'm going to focus on my home team, the Denver Broncos, with my discussion of this.
While we know that the preseason is meaningless, but you always like to get a glimpse of your team, even if it is just for about a quarter, at the very start of the season. Now, I will admit that I am not expecting a lot out of the Broncos this year, as they were so inconsistent last year, especially looking at the first half of the schedule this year. Playing Indy, at what will be a tough Tennessee team, at Baltimore, and what will be a very difficult Jets defense. Second half is a bit less difficult, but the stretch run for the Broncos, over the last few years, has been what has killed them. They had to beat a really bad Chiefs team last year to give themselves a chance at the playoffs, and didn't even bother to show up to that game, getting run out of their home building. So, we will see if mental toughness has been instilled in this team this year.
Watching the first team offense play, you had to like what you saw. Orton didn't throw deep a hole of a lot last year, and in the first quarter he threw deep 3 times. Didn't complete any of them, but he did look pretty good all in all. We didn't really see any of the running game. Defense was ok, but there were a couple of times where the run defense was just not very good. Bailey made an awesome tackle to keep TO from getting a first down, but you never have to worry about Champ Bailey being ready for the season to start. The second and third string defense was very porous with the run, but that isn't a huge concern, as how often are they all going to be on the field at the same time. I definitely have a lot of doubts about the Broncos D.
As for the other QBs, Quinn looked very mediocre, and Tebow threw the ball pretty well. His first series saw a great deep pass that was right on the money, and just plain dropped by the receiver. Good start for Tebow, we'll hope that he can continue to progress. Orton definitely is the clear number one, but if the things keep going like this, Tebow very well could supplant Quinn as the number 2. But we will see. We will have more NFL over the next week or two, and get a nice season preview. Yay for football!
While we know that the preseason is meaningless, but you always like to get a glimpse of your team, even if it is just for about a quarter, at the very start of the season. Now, I will admit that I am not expecting a lot out of the Broncos this year, as they were so inconsistent last year, especially looking at the first half of the schedule this year. Playing Indy, at what will be a tough Tennessee team, at Baltimore, and what will be a very difficult Jets defense. Second half is a bit less difficult, but the stretch run for the Broncos, over the last few years, has been what has killed them. They had to beat a really bad Chiefs team last year to give themselves a chance at the playoffs, and didn't even bother to show up to that game, getting run out of their home building. So, we will see if mental toughness has been instilled in this team this year.
Watching the first team offense play, you had to like what you saw. Orton didn't throw deep a hole of a lot last year, and in the first quarter he threw deep 3 times. Didn't complete any of them, but he did look pretty good all in all. We didn't really see any of the running game. Defense was ok, but there were a couple of times where the run defense was just not very good. Bailey made an awesome tackle to keep TO from getting a first down, but you never have to worry about Champ Bailey being ready for the season to start. The second and third string defense was very porous with the run, but that isn't a huge concern, as how often are they all going to be on the field at the same time. I definitely have a lot of doubts about the Broncos D.
As for the other QBs, Quinn looked very mediocre, and Tebow threw the ball pretty well. His first series saw a great deep pass that was right on the money, and just plain dropped by the receiver. Good start for Tebow, we'll hope that he can continue to progress. Orton definitely is the clear number one, but if the things keep going like this, Tebow very well could supplant Quinn as the number 2. But we will see. We will have more NFL over the next week or two, and get a nice season preview. Yay for football!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Rejected!!
Couple of days late with this one, but school has been starting, you guys understand. Anywho, our favorite Russian diva has been back in the news after the arbitration hearing for Ilya Kovalchuk sided with the NHL on Monday. Now, I know that there are a lot of people upset about this whole thing, most of them are probably Devils fans, but I am personally dancing about this decision! I mean, come on, when the GM of the team says that he doesn't believe that contracts like this should even exist during a press conference to celebrate the contract like that, then you know that this thing shouldn't really be able to hold up to any kind of smell test.
Here is the main reason that I think that this is a good thing. As most hockey fans know, the current collective bargaining agreement will end after the 2011-2012 NHL season. Many people have already feared that there will be another lockout, something that players have not helped along with all the rumors of Donald Fehr being tapped by the players to lead the player's union into negotiations. Money is always the issue in these, not that anybody involved in the negotiations really need more money, and you know that these types of mega-long term, front loaded contracts were going to be a huge issue. The league now has a precedent on their side that these sorts of things won't fly. They can come to the bargaining table already knowing that they have won that argument. If the players try to push too hard for that, they will lose badly. If this had gone the other way around, the players could just argue that it was allowed in the last CBA, and they wanted to make sure that it stayed that way. Now, all that will really happen is some kind of clarification.
This will pave the way, in my opinion, for an NBA-like maximum contract. If you aren't sure of what those are, just look at Lebron James' current contract with the Heat, and you will see what I mean. It would be a fantastic thing for the NHL to put in a Max contract that says the most years that you can have on a contract is 7 years, (6 in the NBA). Then, a good compromise as far as the whole front loading of contracts, could that the league says a player may only front load their contract a certain amount, not how nutty the whole thing was with Kovy, so that there can be a slight manipulation of the salary cap, instead of the attempt to completely avoid it as it happened with Kovy. A possible restriction on salaries based off of a player's age could be a good idea as well, also something that happens in the NBA. Bettman SHOULD know about all that, as he did come from the NBA, but of course, he remains absolutely incompetent.
All in all, a big win for the NHL and its fans. This is something that may help to prevent a work stoppage in a couple of years. One last word to Mr. Kovy. I know you really, really wanted to be the highest paid player in the NHL after this. Well, then the last thing that you would really need to do before being the highest paid player is to actually be better than the current highest paid players, which you are not.
Here is the main reason that I think that this is a good thing. As most hockey fans know, the current collective bargaining agreement will end after the 2011-2012 NHL season. Many people have already feared that there will be another lockout, something that players have not helped along with all the rumors of Donald Fehr being tapped by the players to lead the player's union into negotiations. Money is always the issue in these, not that anybody involved in the negotiations really need more money, and you know that these types of mega-long term, front loaded contracts were going to be a huge issue. The league now has a precedent on their side that these sorts of things won't fly. They can come to the bargaining table already knowing that they have won that argument. If the players try to push too hard for that, they will lose badly. If this had gone the other way around, the players could just argue that it was allowed in the last CBA, and they wanted to make sure that it stayed that way. Now, all that will really happen is some kind of clarification.
This will pave the way, in my opinion, for an NBA-like maximum contract. If you aren't sure of what those are, just look at Lebron James' current contract with the Heat, and you will see what I mean. It would be a fantastic thing for the NHL to put in a Max contract that says the most years that you can have on a contract is 7 years, (6 in the NBA). Then, a good compromise as far as the whole front loading of contracts, could that the league says a player may only front load their contract a certain amount, not how nutty the whole thing was with Kovy, so that there can be a slight manipulation of the salary cap, instead of the attempt to completely avoid it as it happened with Kovy. A possible restriction on salaries based off of a player's age could be a good idea as well, also something that happens in the NBA. Bettman SHOULD know about all that, as he did come from the NBA, but of course, he remains absolutely incompetent.
All in all, a big win for the NHL and its fans. This is something that may help to prevent a work stoppage in a couple of years. One last word to Mr. Kovy. I know you really, really wanted to be the highest paid player in the NHL after this. Well, then the last thing that you would really need to do before being the highest paid player is to actually be better than the current highest paid players, which you are not.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Ilya Kovalchuk, Again....
Well, we are now into August with what has been a pretty stinking ridiculous summer in regards to Ilya Kovalchuk. I have written a number of posts regarding Ilya and his quest to be the highest paid player in the league. The latest being his filing a grievance after the NHL denied his insane contract. All of it starting because he wouldn't back down from the number that he absolutely positively knew that he was worth. I'll say again, I didn't think that there was a guy that could come off looking worse in free agency than LeBron did, but Kovy has definitely done it.
Well, the grievance hearing has been heard by an arbitrator, and we have learned that it looks like everything is going to be said and done on Monday. Apparently, most experts seem to think that this is pretty much an unwinnable case for the NHL, since there really isn't anything in the CBA that says this type of contract is illegal. The only thing that the CBA says is that a team cannot build a salary that circumvents the salary cap, which is hard to prove. But come on!! Look at Kovy's contract! You cannot honestly look at this, especially knowing little space the Devils have in their salary cap, and not conclude that they did this so his absurd number don't fully bite them in the rear end. I mean, I still don't understand how it works, which is why I don't work for capgeek, that a player can be being paid 11.5 million dollars in a season, yet his cap hit is still only 6 million. That just doesn't make sense to me. I, personally, can't even begin to think of it in any other terms than circumventing the salary cap, and can't really see how any impartial, logical person could either.
Kovy seems so dead set on this 17 year thing, and the KHL has even offered him a 17 year deal WITH THE TEAM OF HIS CHOICE, for crying out loud! This sort of thing is kind of why I figured Kovy would end up in Russia for the next few seasons, but I guess it will all hinge on this decision. I would not be surprised at all, if Kovy loses this arbitration hearing, to see him go to Russia because he knows that they will kiss his rear end until the borscht comes home. And at this point, I'm happy to see him go. A loss in this arbitration for the NHL basically sets up the fighting point for the next CBA. In my eyes, it almost assures a lockout, and that would be absolutely deadly to the NHL. So, once again, Kovy, just go to Russia. They'll be more than happy to tell you whatever it is you want to hear. We would miss your talent in the NHL, but not your attitude.
Well, the grievance hearing has been heard by an arbitrator, and we have learned that it looks like everything is going to be said and done on Monday. Apparently, most experts seem to think that this is pretty much an unwinnable case for the NHL, since there really isn't anything in the CBA that says this type of contract is illegal. The only thing that the CBA says is that a team cannot build a salary that circumvents the salary cap, which is hard to prove. But come on!! Look at Kovy's contract! You cannot honestly look at this, especially knowing little space the Devils have in their salary cap, and not conclude that they did this so his absurd number don't fully bite them in the rear end. I mean, I still don't understand how it works, which is why I don't work for capgeek, that a player can be being paid 11.5 million dollars in a season, yet his cap hit is still only 6 million. That just doesn't make sense to me. I, personally, can't even begin to think of it in any other terms than circumventing the salary cap, and can't really see how any impartial, logical person could either.
Kovy seems so dead set on this 17 year thing, and the KHL has even offered him a 17 year deal WITH THE TEAM OF HIS CHOICE, for crying out loud! This sort of thing is kind of why I figured Kovy would end up in Russia for the next few seasons, but I guess it will all hinge on this decision. I would not be surprised at all, if Kovy loses this arbitration hearing, to see him go to Russia because he knows that they will kiss his rear end until the borscht comes home. And at this point, I'm happy to see him go. A loss in this arbitration for the NHL basically sets up the fighting point for the next CBA. In my eyes, it almost assures a lockout, and that would be absolutely deadly to the NHL. So, once again, Kovy, just go to Russia. They'll be more than happy to tell you whatever it is you want to hear. We would miss your talent in the NHL, but not your attitude.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
100th Post for The Sin Bin!
Hey folks!
This is actually a really cool milestone for me! This post, right here, that you are reading, is the 100th post for The Sin Bin. I love that I've been able to keep this up, and that I've actually had people stopping by and spending their time listening to my thoughts. It's been such a great experience that I want to continue to do to the best of my ability! So, for this post, I'm going to show you the best of the first the first three videos posted to YouTube on our new Vlog! Check it out!
Check all of them out at our YouTube Page, and subscribe to both the blog and the vlog. Leave comments, and send any type of suggestion, praise, or less than praise to the new Sin Bin e-mail, which is TheSinBin1@gmail.com! Thanks again guys! This has been awesome! Let the ride continue!
This is actually a really cool milestone for me! This post, right here, that you are reading, is the 100th post for The Sin Bin. I love that I've been able to keep this up, and that I've actually had people stopping by and spending their time listening to my thoughts. It's been such a great experience that I want to continue to do to the best of my ability! So, for this post, I'm going to show you the best of the first the first three videos posted to YouTube on our new Vlog! Check it out!
Check all of them out at our YouTube Page, and subscribe to both the blog and the vlog. Leave comments, and send any type of suggestion, praise, or less than praise to the new Sin Bin e-mail, which is TheSinBin1@gmail.com! Thanks again guys! This has been awesome! Let the ride continue!
Bad Luck Broncos
Well, things are going pretty darn poorly for the Broncos right now. On the first day of training camp, both running backs hurt their legs. This forced the Broncs to go out and sign Lendale White, which was probably a pretty good pick up anyways, especially considering our dismal red zone performance last season. It will be pretty good to have a guy with the size and power of White, hoping that he has stayed in shape over the offseason, unlike some players.
If that wasn't bad enough, we now have about the worst possible news that could happen! Dumervil, yeah, that guy that we just signed to a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract extension just hurt himself during practice! And not just an, "oh, gee, give me a week or 2 and I'll be back running, it is being reported that Dumervil could miss 5 months, which is pretty much the whole of the season. Just horrible, horrible luck for the Broncos.
I don't even want to think of what else could happen to the Broncs before the season begins. Hopefully if I don't, it won't happen, but who knows! Things aren't looking all that good for the Broncos and a defense that already had some pretty big holes.
If that wasn't bad enough, we now have about the worst possible news that could happen! Dumervil, yeah, that guy that we just signed to a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract extension just hurt himself during practice! And not just an, "oh, gee, give me a week or 2 and I'll be back running, it is being reported that Dumervil could miss 5 months, which is pretty much the whole of the season. Just horrible, horrible luck for the Broncos.
I don't even want to think of what else could happen to the Broncs before the season begins. Hopefully if I don't, it won't happen, but who knows! Things aren't looking all that good for the Broncos and a defense that already had some pretty big holes.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
August
Ahh, where has the summer gone? Seems like just yesterday the school years had just ended, and the hockey season and basketball season just finished up their respective championships and we were all ready to head out for the summer and spend our days on the golf course and evenings drinking a cold one.
Well, with all that has gone on in the last couple of months, time certainly did go fast. From Lebron choosing to ditch his old home town for a chance at a title, to the NHL free agent frenzy that saw everybody wondering where Ilya Kovalchuk was going to go, seeing him get a contract just to have it rejected and now into a whole messy thing that is pretty much going to set the tone for the next CBA agreement, which might include Donald Fehr, the scary guy from the MLB strike years back. A lot has definitely gone on.
But now we're into August which may very well be the most boring time of the year for sports. Now I know that there are plenty of people who enjoy watching baseball, and you certainly get a lot of it during this time of year, but that is really the only thing that you have. I mean, what else is there for the rest of the sporting world? There is golf, and I like golf, but I don't want to spend every Thursday through Sunday watching a watered down field of golfers. I mean, the Greenbriar was pretty nuts this week with TONS of guys shooting in the super low 60s, only to have a guy shoot 59 on the final day to win it all. That was pretty awesome. But that's it, and don't even pretend that there is anything exciting about watching NASCAR, because there just isn't. He's making a left turn!!! Who saw that one coming?!?! Give me a break.
Really, this month is all about looking forward to the new seasons. NFL camps are going, so we're all looking forward to preseason and seeing who is going to surprise and who is going to disappoint. The NHL and NBA are still working on deciding where a lot of free agents are going to end up. And the MLB is starting the run towards the post season. Really, to me none of that is really all that satisfying. So we all get to sit back and wait for the excitement that will happen in September. Here's hoping that there will be something worth writing about in the coming weeks. If not, at least I'll be back to teaching in school.
Let me know what you guys like about sports in August, and don't forget to check us out on youtube! And I am still looking for suggestions of things you would like to either see on the vlog or things that you guys would like to see discussed in general. I have created an e-mail for The Sin Bin which is, TheSinBin1@gmail.com. Please send me some feedback! I want to hear from you.
Well, with all that has gone on in the last couple of months, time certainly did go fast. From Lebron choosing to ditch his old home town for a chance at a title, to the NHL free agent frenzy that saw everybody wondering where Ilya Kovalchuk was going to go, seeing him get a contract just to have it rejected and now into a whole messy thing that is pretty much going to set the tone for the next CBA agreement, which might include Donald Fehr, the scary guy from the MLB strike years back. A lot has definitely gone on.
But now we're into August which may very well be the most boring time of the year for sports. Now I know that there are plenty of people who enjoy watching baseball, and you certainly get a lot of it during this time of year, but that is really the only thing that you have. I mean, what else is there for the rest of the sporting world? There is golf, and I like golf, but I don't want to spend every Thursday through Sunday watching a watered down field of golfers. I mean, the Greenbriar was pretty nuts this week with TONS of guys shooting in the super low 60s, only to have a guy shoot 59 on the final day to win it all. That was pretty awesome. But that's it, and don't even pretend that there is anything exciting about watching NASCAR, because there just isn't. He's making a left turn!!! Who saw that one coming?!?! Give me a break.
Really, this month is all about looking forward to the new seasons. NFL camps are going, so we're all looking forward to preseason and seeing who is going to surprise and who is going to disappoint. The NHL and NBA are still working on deciding where a lot of free agents are going to end up. And the MLB is starting the run towards the post season. Really, to me none of that is really all that satisfying. So we all get to sit back and wait for the excitement that will happen in September. Here's hoping that there will be something worth writing about in the coming weeks. If not, at least I'll be back to teaching in school.
Let me know what you guys like about sports in August, and don't forget to check us out on youtube! And I am still looking for suggestions of things you would like to either see on the vlog or things that you guys would like to see discussed in general. I have created an e-mail for The Sin Bin which is, TheSinBin1@gmail.com. Please send me some feedback! I want to hear from you.
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