Come on, raise your hand if you have ever heard of Luca Caputi. As word circlated through the ACC tonight that Burke had apparently dealt Alexei Ponikarovsky for Luca Caputi the biggest response was WHO. Apparently Martin Skoula was thrown in the deal as well, however the MSMers out there seem to think that Burke will try to deal him as well. After watching the game tonight, I would like to think Burke is going to deal about 6-8 guys tomorrow for ANYTHING in return. The Leafs were playing the Carolina Hurricanes, the Maple Leafs made the Canes look like Team Canada 2010. My favorite Ponikarovsky Maple Leafs memory was about 2-3 years ago I was at a local Toronto restaurant on a Saturday night around 10:30pm near the ACC. As I was leaving Poni showed up and asked for a table, without batting an eye he was turned away. He tried to tell him that he was a Maple Leaf player and was laughed out the door.

Here’s a video of Caputi :

Here are the stats on the New Boys:

No other way to say it. The big winner today was not only Canada, not only Sidney Crosby or any member of team Canada but hockey fans around the world. It’s not just that Canada won, it was the game. It is going to be very very hard to watch NHL hockey this week. The play during this tournament was incredible. I am not sure how relevant this is, but to me it’s like watching the NCAA tournament and then having to go back to watching NBA action. The difference is that this is hockey. This isn’t basketball. The play by all teams was at such a high level. The sport of hockey, those of us who love the game were the real winners today.

Personally, I looked at my son on my side and my dad on the other and said to the youngest of the three of us, remember this goal, you may NEVER see a bigger goal. The Henderson goal was before I was born. I’ve never seen a goal bigger than that. I am not sure Sidney Crosby will EVER score a goal bigger than that. He may win lots of cups, he may score lots of goals, but to score the winner in OT in the gold medal game of the Olympics?????? It reminded me of the late Tom Cheek’s call on Joe Carter’s home run. Touch em all Sid, you will never score a bigger goal.

I’ve not been a fan of most of the coverage on TV this year. Chris Cuthbert was very good today. The hockey team as a whole were very good too. Once again, (I know the horse is dead) following the game on Twitter was the most fun. Finally, to those in the arena, what class they showed at the end of the game, cheering the American players, especially Ryan Miller and Zach Parise. The line of the night has to go to Sidney Crosby who when asked to explain the winning goal said that he had no idea, he just shot it.

More later..

Here’s your bikini of the day from getabikini.com

On Fan 590 Tonight-

- Grapeline with Don Cherry & Brian Williams at 4:45
- Bob McCown’s co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is Bruce Arthur
4:10 Jeff Blair, Globe & Mail
5:25 Mike Dee Miami Dolphins CEO
5:45 Keith Law, ESPN
6:06 Eddie Olczyk, NBC & Versus
6:30 Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo Sports
6:45 Dr. Peter Jensen, Mental Training Coach for Team Canada in studio

On 640 with Brady and Watters thanks to Mike S.:

- Tony Dungy of NBC on the NFL playoffs

- Rob Higgins, fantasy hockey expert

- hockey insider Scott Morrison at 6:10

Evening from Berlin. Sad to say, despite my best efforts, I failed to find Berezin. In fact, it was impossible to find the existence of hockey in these parts at all. I can assure it wasn’t for lack of looking.

I just read a really good article by Jim Kelley. Yes you read that correctly. His take on the Berger affair is good. It is fair and balanced. Kelley sees Berger’s point in asking the question he asked and also accepts that Berger didn’t mean to question Wilson’s integrity in so asking the question. I don’t buy that at all, but so be it. I think Berger knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to elicit a response from the coach and I have to believe he is happier then a pig in shit to be getting this type of attention. Kelley also sees Wilson’s point. He concludes that both guys were just doing their jobs. I think that is true too. Both have reputations and both have egos. Both also have jobs to do. Good work on the part of Kelley.

I need a microscope to read his blog, but Brady has a good take on the Berger episode too. I like this part the best, check it out for yourself though :

“Anyway, Berger likes to poke and prod and if injected with the truth serum, has wanted a public blow-up such as what happened last night for some time. It’s a wonder it took nearly 70 games.”

Leafs vs the bolts tonight…A game for the ages. Not staying up to watch that tonight. Too tired and I have to get up too early. Is my man LT playing the point for the Buds yet? One more injury and he may get the call.

Does anyone else find it funny how reporters from one outlet refuse to name a reporter from another? I am sure someone is going to tell me why they do it, or the reasons why they do it, however, it sounds funny as hell. Case in point:

“Leafs coach Ron Wilson got into it with a radio reporter following the game, suggesting that the radio guy had questioned his integrity. The radio guy didn’t see it that way. ”

That from Steve Buffery’s article in today’s Sun. Now, everyone reading that knows he is talking about Berger. There is no mystery here. Why, not just say the name? By the way, Berger gets a lot more attention on Hanky’s site then he does from the radio gig, shouldn’t he be referred to as a blogger as opposed to the radio guy? The National Post handled it differently, referring to Berger by name but also stating that he contributes (if you can call his work a contribution) to the paper. The Post does a nice job of transcribing the whole episode and even placing a link to a video from youtube. You can read it here

Interesting that both Mike Toth and Jeff Blair absolutely roasted Ernie Whitt for his managing of team Canada in the WBC, saying that he actually did a worse job of managing then Buck Martinez. Fan post game guy Mike Wilner however didn’t see it that way…”Ernie Whitt is going to take a lot of heat for this, and may not even be back as the manager of Team Canada in the future, but don’t put this on him.” Whose opinion you going to go with??? I thought so. Is it true that the game only drew 12,000 fans Monday night to the TED??? If so, paint me stunned. I wonder if game 2 of the regular season of the TBJ will see a similar drop in attendance. One last thing on Wilner, I may not be a big fan, but I give him credit, he responds to most comments on his blog. That shows class and professionalism. People take time to comment and does the same by responding. Good on you Mike.

Ummmm, not that anyone appears to care, but the Raptors are currently the 4th worst team in the league. You read that right. 4th from the bottom! They have lost 6 in a row and are a very respectable 2-8 in their last 10. Raptor fan, whomever and wherever you are, I feel for you. A bad team, with what looks like no reason for hope… Someone smarter then me tell me if the current coach gets extended. With the team this bad, are they going to sell any season tickets next year? The Detroit Pistons announced a 10 % reduction on tickets for next year…hint hint….. No back to your regularly scheduled programming.

More tomorrow when I land back in Toronto.

Man, I thought it was quiet over the holidays, there is nothing but crickets tonight. Everyone must be gassing up their snow-blowers (look out mr. Sakic). It is dead tonight. Not one interesting thing in one paper, in one media outlet anywhere(it is 12:20 am right now)

So here are some random thoughts:

Leafs were lousy last night vs. the Panthers. I have no problem with the losing. This is the first time in a long time where they didn’t even bother to show up. I sense another long skate in practice coming up.

To boo or not to boo. I am pretty tired of this argument. With very little exception every player who returns to their old team should expect to get razzed a little. Is it right? Who knows. It sports. As Seinfeld said, we don’t root for a player we root for a jersey. When the player changes teams he who we used to cheer for we now boo. McCabe made a lot of dough here, and really made his career here. Others have been treated way worse.

One of the reasons he was a thorn in the public’s side is that he just wasn’t that bright. He would have done much better with a no -comment, ummmm whenever he was asked a question. For him to call out Leaf Fans who may boo Sundin is just another example of the lack of brains in his melon. To say it’s ok to me just not Mats is just dumb. Who do you think you are? You don’t need to take one for him anymore. Fans are going to do what they want to do, so mind your own business. I give him credit for this, he said that he waived his NTC clause because he didn’t want to hijack the team. He is the only player who last year said, if there is a deal there to be made bring it to me. The reality is no one wanted him.

Is it just me, or is anyone else out there really hoping the Buds honor not only Team Canada but also Pat Quinn. I know there is no Saturday home game for a bit. I hope, the next chance they get they really whoop it up for old Pat.

I loved the Winter Classic. The all star games excites me about as much as going to the dentist. Really, if you are doing one, why the other? I know, it’s a big sponsor event for the league… The debate about who should be on the team or not is about as interesting as the never ending debate about fighting in hockey. Someone a hell of a lot smarter then me (and that is a BIG group) has to be able to come up with a better format then the current all star bore.

The fact that the NHL Poster boy isn’t Alexander Ovechkin is just a crock. There is no better player in the game right now then AO. The race isn’t close. As good as some of the other younger guys are, AO is the man. I find it hard to watch non-leaf games, but I do to try to keep an eye on the younger talent and other on-goings in the game (sorry Howie). I really try to watch as many Caps games as I can to catch a glimpse of AO on the ice.

Anyone else been listening to Roscoe Toth on the fan this week? He is miffed at all the attention the WJC’s get. He goes to a ton of junior games all season long (good for him) and feels that the folks who rave about junior hockey for these 2 weeks aren’t real junior hockey fans. Guess what? He is right. Compare if you will the NCAA basketball tournament. Those of you reading this from work, turn left, now turn right, how many people around you enter some sort of NCAA basketball tourney pool? Of those, how many are die hard fans all season long??? Fans get caught up in the hype, and we Canadians have such an inferiority complex that we will really pay attention in those areas where we may actually excel. I think it’s great Roscoe goes to a couple of junior games a week. If the local GTA area teams want to drum up support, look at this little gem. My son is in 3 different hockey programs right now. We get all kinds of stuff in the mail as a result. We have never, ever seen or heard a thing from any of the teams in our area. If those teams want to increase their fan base there is a huge hockey market they don’t tap into right in front of them.

Former Detroit Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli had his son in-law on his coaching staff for the past 0-16 campaign. After a loss on Dec 21, Rob Parker an eight year vet with the Detroit News, asked Marinelli in the post game press conference if Marinelli “wished his daughter had married a better defensive coordinator?” As a result of that question, Parker was demoted from from columnist to general assignment reporter. Parker, as a result of that demotion resigned. I, as you may recall lived in the burbs of Detroit for several years. Mrs. TSM was born and raised there and both little TSM’s were born there as well. I have never been a Parker fan (surprised? I love sooooo many columnists…)I will say this, Parker has written and said a hell of a lot worse things then this. To lose his job, in this economy, in that market for this comment is so thin skinned it is hard to believe. Parker has said that he will remain in Detroit. That whittles his writing options down to 1 (the Free Press is owned by the same company as the News), The Oakland Press at least as far as local papers go. He does do some work on ESPN. Here is hoping that he finds work really soon….

Since I started this blog I have had the good fortune to chat with some folks who cover the NHL. I asked one today to assess for those of us up here the seasons of Mr. Tucker and Mr. Raycroft in Colorado thus far. His response:

“Tucker has looked slow and taken lots of bad penalties. Raycroft is
6-1, maybe the most deceptive won-lost record of all time so far, but
wins are wins.”

Hope you all have an easy commute tomorrow. Sounds like the roads in the GTA are going to be hell

Canada won gold at the WJC…yadda yadda yadda. Congrats to all the kids and to good guy Pat Quinn. I really hope this lands you back in the NHL to a team of your choosing. Personally, I would love to see you in Pittsburgh Pat, a box of Cohibas if you go there and not Ottawa (but that is illegal jerry!)

Our old friend Bryan McCabe returns to the scene of the crime tomorrow night. Amazing how quickly the guy turned south. Acquired for Alexander Karpotsev and a 4th rounder, McCabe quickly became a fan favorite. Then 3 things happened. One the league rules changed, one change banned his favorite move, the can opener and two the guy got a BIG contract. The rest as they say is history. Someone out there will remind me of another player who fell from grace so quickly, but I can’t name one. To me, McCabe lost my respect when during the lockout he stated that he would rather retire then accept a salary cap, and that the PA would never, ever accept one (that is not a direct quote by the way). Of course, Caber didn’t have to waive his no trade clause that JFJ gave him but his unwillingness to do ensured his place in TML fans hearts forever.

It’s nice to see that Mccabe still has the brains “”The only thing that kind of stinks [in South Florida] is there aren’t too many people in the building,” said McCabe, who mostly has been paired with the shot-blocking Skrastins. “You miss the buzz, the sold-out, loud building for every game. But I don’t miss 30 people in the media scrum every day.” I am sure the 2 people who read Florida papers are gonna love that (even though it is true). No offense to Panthers Fan, but, ummm, when $17 buys you a ticket, parking, food and a gas card and you can’t fill a building the writing is clearly on the wall. At 80.6% of capacity on average, the Panthers are above only the Trashers and Bluejackets as the worst drawing teams (based on % of capacity).

So, there I was watching the NBC pregame for the big NFL tilt over the weekend and whom do I see in the studio??? Matt 0-16 Millen. Come on folks. This has to be a joke. Did he offer to do the gig for free??? How does a guy who’s record as GM was 31-97, the worst 8 year tally since World War II, get a gig on national TV. This isn’t the WFL, or the Arena league, this is the NFL. How does he have any credibility? Shame on NBC for putting him in the box and my sincere apologies to those who had to work with him. That crew’s credibility just nosedived.

Then on my drive home from cottage country I got to listen to one Jonas Siegel in studio hosting a show. The guy certainly is trying hard, I will give him that. Man is he green. He needs to be a little bit more confident and start to use his own shtick. His referring to Ottawa in the same tone as Wilbur is beyond lame. He does this all the time and it really needs to stop. Be original, come up with a catch phrase, a name or two of your own… Here is the reality, he has a job that many of us would kill to have. He follows the buds on a daily basis. His competition is Howie. He travels with the team. No one cares that he was a closet JFJ lover. Either spend a lot more time in front of the mirror or ask some of the folks at your station for some lessons. I can’t imagine that the flagship station of the Leafs is going to be much more patient with the guy. Having said that, based on his A&F wardrobe maybe he is an intern!

640 Toronto's Jonas Siegel

Speaking of creating names for folks, we have a new co-host with Jack Armstrong on the after lunch show on the Fan. The show is now hosted by Jack Armstrong and Richie Rich. Seriously, this show would be FANTASTIC, as in really, really good if Richie could, for one segment STOP talking about all the money he has. Has anyone else noticed that besides the phrase “back when I was a GM” his references to his money is his favorite moniker??? Instead of Hey Now Hank, it’s I’m loaded Doug “Richie Rich” MacLean.

Anyways, I can’t wait to hear what Archie Bunker has to say tomorrow night on 640!

Bill Watters

Happy Turkey Sunday to all you fellow Canucks. Interesting read by Simmons this am. He suggests that Brian Burke has confirmed that Ron Wilson is on the short list to coach team USA at the next winter Olympics in Vancouver, Burke is the GM of that team.

Of course Simmons is hinting that by the time Burke makes the announcement next summer he could be the GM of the Leafs. Therefore, it is possible that at the Vancouver Olympics, that the Maple Leafs GM and head coach could be the top two guys on team USA…certainly a tad ironic.

Question is, I guess, are you bothered or conflicted by that? From my perspective it just makes the Canada v USA matchup that more intriguing. I think that we all already want a North American gold medal matchup, with the Leafs brass at the helm of team USA we would want it even more especially with the games in Canada for the first time that NHL players are involved.