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| CARVIEW |
Just like Razor says that it’s preseason for the broadcasts, too, it’s also preseason for us fans.
As a newbie season-ticket-holder, I have some decisions to make and some ideas to try out before I settle in for the season. Last night’s game against the Avs was my first chance to do some tests.
I have a permanent place to sit. A couple of season ago, I had a ten-game package with Myra and company, so I kind of know what it’s like, but this is FORTY-ONE games. Not ten. So I was anxious to see what I was going like and dislike about the location.
First of all, what kind of purse should I carry, if any? I don’t want to carry a purse at all, but I have too much stuff for my pockets. My car key fob, credit card, driver’s license, phone. And when I do carry them in my pockets, I tend to drop stuff when I try to take other stuff out of my pocket. Also, I panic repeatedly when I forget I didn’t bring my purse. But my regular purse is a mess. It has a bunch of stuff I don’t need and it just gets in the way. Last night I tried a new cross-body purse that’s pretty small and hands-free as a kind of compromise. It will take some getting used to, wearing my purse like that. Not sure if it’s much better than just pockets — I somehow dropped my debit card and lost it. Dumb purse. I’ll have to keep working on that one.
The view from my seat is great. It’s right in the corner, on the first row of an upper section. The glass on the balcony doesn’t bother me at all. There seem to be some characters in the vicinity, but nothing I can’t handle yet. It was just the first preseason game, so I’m only guessing that these are other STHs like me.
Since I’m the front row, though, it’s not that conducive to people-watching. More so for being watched, really, now that I think about it. Hopefully everybody’s cool, because we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other.
I will need a blanket. And gloves. And possibly a ski mask. I am right under a vent. It actually blows my hair into my face.
The ladies room is very handy. And I’m not on the opposite side of the building from where I come in. So those items pass. Also, I’m not in a direct line to a bank of speakers. There are a few spots in the arena where my right ear hurts when the music is loud. No problem here.
There are a couple of funny quirks about my angle as related to the lines on the ice. I’m in a position where the near goal line, on the far side of the net, lines up exactly with the glass around the rink. This makes it disappear and several times I kind of mini-freaked out about how there was no goal line! And have you ever noticed that the trapezoid lines go up the yellow baseboard? Well, I never had, until last night when I thought for a second that one of them was drawn from the ice, up through the air, to the top of the baseboard. I know! It’s the craziest optical illusion. My view is straight on the line at the far net. I’m going to try to get a picture of it someday.
I didn’t check the concession stands this time, but I will test those out on Saturday. Which direction should I go for the best popcorn and the fizziest Diet Coke? Are there corny dogs nearby? What about sugared pecans? These are all very important tests that will be performed over the next few preseason games, so that opening night will free of bugs.
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Awwww.
Our beloved Mike Modano finally jumped on the Twitter bandwagon. If it weren’t for the fact that his wife, Willa Ford, was the one that told us, I’d be skeptical. Apparently it’s legit, though. Unless she’s pranking us all.
You really should follow him, for obvious reasons — he’s Mike Modano, for Pete’s sake. But the real fun comes when you follow Willa Ford, too. They like to trash-talk each other and it’s funny.
She gave him a hard time when somebody corrected his using “there” instead of “they’re” (it wasn’t me!).
Cute couple!
I guess it’s time to update my category list and move a bunch of players around. And coaches, too! Don’t forget coaches.
First of all, I’d like to say that I was shocked and saddened by the news of the plane crash carrying the KHL team Lokomotiv. I was already going to miss Karlis Skrastins and now I get all teary whenever he’s mentioned. It’s very sad. I really liked him while he was playing with the Stars. He was underappreciated, I thought. I’m a big fan of responsible, dedicated, unsung but important defensemen. They’re getting fewer and fewer these days. The defensemen that really should be forwards get all the press these days, but those like Skrastins are the ones that get the job done. From all accounts he was the nicest guy in the world and we’re going to miss him. We were going to miss him anyway.
On to less serious topics.
We had some defections and some firings and some non-rehirings.
The big defection, of course was Brad Richards. I’ve been on record as being on board with Brad and really not on board with him, so I can’t really say a full-on I told you so, either way. At this moment, though, I’m not that sorry he’s gone. I think we’ll do fine without him. I was happy that Joe Nieuwendyk didn’t trade him at the deadline, but I’m also happy he didn’t shackle the team to him for the rest of his career. Let’s be clear. Brad Richards was not going to sign with Dallas. And it’s not because we didn’t have stable ownership. He was just saying that to be polite. The reason is because we’re not the New York Rangers. Any pretense that he was going to sign anywhere else was just that. Pretense. He wanted the money and the fame. He’s got his Cup, so he wants the rest. I don’t think anybody thinks that the Rangers have any better a chance at winning the Stanley Cup than anybody else, including Richards. And if anybody thinks that Richards is the missing piece to anybody’s Cup dreams, I’m not sure why. He didn’t really do us much good. He got points, but he didn’t help the team over any humps. They tanked after the All-Star Break three years in a row. Nobody led them out of that, including Brad Richards. I hope he and the Rangers are happy together. They’re going to be together for a looooong time.
Brandon Segal and Brian Sutherby have been let go. I liked them both. I thought they brought a little spunk and toughness, but I guess it’s time to move on. I especially hope Sutherby finds a place to go. He got kind of the short end of the stick for some reason. He did fine when he was in, but Crawford didn’t put him in enough.
As we all know, James Neal and Matt Niskanen were shipped off to Pittsburgh back at the trade deadline in exchange for Alex Gologoski. I wasn’t happy about it at the time, but I’ve gotten over it. I think they’re both going to be good players for years to come but these things happen. I think Niskanen needed a change of scenery and I hope it brings him back to where he was. He was getting a lot of undeserved flak here, so I hope he can get a fresh start in Pittsburgh. James Neal is probably chomping at the bit to play with Sid Crosby. So I think he’ll be fine. He has a lot of potential and I’ll hate seeing him meet it somewhere else. I think we got a good return for them, but I’ll be keeping track to make sure.
I have nothing against Jeff Woywitka — I’m sure he’s a nice guy — but I never understood why he got all of Mark Fistric’s ice time. I didn’t really see what Crawford saw in him. Hopefully Mark will get some of that time back and the new coach will see what we all see and give him a chance.
And Jamie Langenbrunner. Now, with him, I could say a HUGE I told you so. Loved him in ’99, but folks, that was thirteen years ago. That’s a long time in hockey player years. And it proved to be true. He pretty much brought nothing with him, because he had nothing with him in New Jersey. It was obvious. I’m glad Nieuwy didn’t keep him any longer and we can still remember the good times.
The big news, and another huge I told you so from me (and pretty much everybody else) to Joe Nieuwendyk, was the firing of Marc Crawford. I cannot tell you how relieved I was about that. I’m sure I’d make a terrible coach, but I think I would have done a better job than Crawford. Especially if it only required me to pick the right players to ice. (If it requires hard work and attention to detail, sure, he’d probably be slightly better.)
There are lots of changes and it’s been a long summer, but I think the thing I’m looking forward to the most is the new coaching staff. I hope they put an exclamation point on the fact that Crawford was a bad pick from the very start. Still, I have to give Nieuwy credit for cutting his losses there. He could have pouted and kept him because he picked him against all advice (I assume), but he sees the bigger picture. I like that about him.
]]>Also, coincidentally, the season is about to start up. I’m finally starting to get really excited about it. I’ll be picking up the pace here pretty soon.
In the meantime, check out Top Shelf Cookies and The Willful Caboose to see what Heather B. and Katebits got to do. I can’t even comprehend the excitement and fear they must have been feeling. It must have been unbelievable.
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Brad Richards entertains offers on UFA Day.
Burish was injured on February 3rd against Boston and was out for eight games. In those eight games, the Stars went 1-6-1.
He came back on February 24th against Detroit for eight games and in those the Stars went 6-0-2.
Now that he’s out again, in the two games since he was hurt, the Stars are 0-2-0.
There is something that he brings that I can’t pin down from my remote perch, but it’s definitely something. And the Stars miss it when it’s gone.
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Earlier, I wrote a huge post that started out talking about how much fun hockey seems to be again and why.
Then it devolved into a rambling screed about what killjoys certain bloggers and tweeters can be. I sounded just like them.
So I chucked that one and I’m going to stick to my main point, which is that I am enjoying hockey. I’m learning to avoid stuff online that makes me mad, instead of trying to argue it down.
My friend, Katebits, over at The Willfull Caboose had a great post about that topic so I’ll let you read that instead.
I think the main reason I’m enjoying hockey again is that there is a race on. For the last couple of years, missing the playoffs was something we knew way before the end of the season. And this year I assumed it would happen again.
Then, the dumb ol’ Stars did some winning, laid on the charm, and just generally drew me back in. The Western Conference is so tight right now that every game counts, and it has for a while. One night you’re in, the next you’re out. Sometimes while you just sit there.
I’m happy they didn’t trade Brad Richards. I’m entertained by his and Krys Barch’s trash talking on Twitter (as long as you keep it light, boys).
And while I’m worried about poor Brad’s symptoms, I’m happy that the Stars are trundling along without him. I hope he comes back soon, but I think they’re handling it well.
Don’t even get me started on Jamie Benn. He seems totally oblivious to his own greatness. I know he’s only 21, and you can’t say what will happen over a decade or two, but man. That guy has it all. I wonder if we’ll ever hear commentators marvel over how whoever drafted him in the 5th round is a genius. Since we’re not Detroit, probably not.
Now that he’s back, and Adam Burish is back, the Stars seem to have that fun aura that kind of faded during their losing streak. The rest of the season is going to be something to watch.
For a change.
]]>This isn’t just anecdotal any more, though. Kari Lehtonen has had too many “Ryan Miller Shutouts” (as my Buffalo Sabres fan friends call it), and it’s because every time it gets down to 5 minutes left in a game where the opposition hasn’t scored, Razor will not leave it alone.
Sometimes he just flat out says the word, “shutout.” Blatantly. And then as he’s discussing how dumb ol’ superstitious people hate it when he does that, Kari lets one in. Every time.
Other times, like last night, he calls it a “clean sheet.” I was on Twitter and, at about the 5-minute mark, many of us expressed our fear by tweeting things like, “DON’T SAY IT RAZOR!” and, “Don’t JINX US RAZOR!”
Then he started talking about how Kari can’t seem to keep a clean sheet these days.
We all said, “NOOOOOOOOOO!” And then the Coyotes scored.
There is no way that goal wasn’t caused by Razor’s blatant disregard for established rules in hockey broadcasting.
In the post-game show when it was pointed out that it was his fault, he asked, innocently, “What am I supposed to call it?!”
How about you don’t mention it at all, Razor? We can all see what’s happening. You don’t have to point it out!
We are happy to wait five more minutes for your scintillating analysis of Kari’s shutout stats. The end of the game, when he actually has a shutout, is perfectly fine! WHY CAN’T YOU WAIT UNTIL THEN?!?
This is why Kari doesn’t have one yet. He knows, just as we all do, that Razor mentions it at exactly the same point in every game.
If not for the knight on a white horse that rode in to save the day (Jamie Benn, with 4 seconds left), Razor might have had to go into seclusion until the whole thing blew over. I’m telling you, Twitter was PISSED.
Razor, next time, just TRY to not mention it for FIVE MORE MINUTES, okay? You can time yourself. It’s not going to hurt your career! You’ll still win Emmys and be the toast of the hockey broadcasting world.
And maybe Kari can get a shutout, for Pete’s sake.
]]>I’m so happy that Brad Richards wasn’t traded today. I still, probably naively, have hope that he re-signs with the Stars. Trading him would have taken away what little chance we had.
This team can do something if they stick to it and when Richards comes back from his injury, I think they’ll be able to start pulling ahead. The last two games have been so encouraging. I would have hated to see Joe Nieuwendyk bail on the season.
If he had traded Brad just to trade him, it would have been a mistake. The possibility of losing him for nothing isn’t any more gloomy than losing him for somebody else’s mediocre prospects.
Nobody that needed Brad as a final piece would have been willing to give up their best young players, and that’s what Nieuwy was reportedly demanding. Good for him!
Everybody whined that Nieuwendyk was asking way too much and he’d never be able to trade him at those prices. I always thought he was thinking, “Exactly.” The point was that he didn’t want to trade him!
It’s like, my house is not for sale, but if somebody asked me what my price is, I might say, “500 grand.” They’d say, “You’re crazy! Nobody would buy that crappy house for that!” And I’d say, “I know.” BUT, if they said okay, I’d be outta here so fast, I wouldn’t even pack.
So now we can relax a little and start concentrating on the playoff stretch in earnest. Now that it’s getting closer, and they seem to have come out of their funk, and I watched a game RIGHT ON THE GLASS, I’m really getting excited about the Stars.
I’m all in now.
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