Who To Cheer For

Very easy job this weekend in the category of who to cheer for this weekend. There is only one choice - Canada.

Whether you want to cheer for the men's hockey team tonight and then on the weekend as they play for a medal or whether you want to cheer for the curling teams, both men's and women's curling are going for gold.

The other reason to cheer is for the closing ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 games. The closing ceremonies at the Olympics are always the biggest party. Athletes can finally let loose all at the same time and the closing ceremonies gives a chance for the hosts to close the show in a big way and pass the torch (literally) to the next host country, in this case Russia. So we'll probably see some some Russian elements in the closing ceremonies also.

There are rumours that Nickelback is performing during the closing ceremonies, which is big, but all I have to say about that is I am glad it isn't Celine Dion.

Over/Under and Other Gambling Notes

As much as I like to make random "bar bets" with friends and the wife on things like the over/under on how much we spent in groceries or how long will it take to drive to a destination, I am not big on putting my money where my mouth is. I'm just of the opinion that no matter how much I think I know about sports, music, food, etc...there is always going to be someone who knows more and I am going to lose my shirt.

This is especially true with Vegas. I know for a fact that they put in every ounce of research into the game so that I lose...but just for the fun of it, here are the MLB over/under on wins for the season courtesy of Bookmaker and Vegas Watch.
Arizona- 82
Atlanta- 86.5
Baltimore- 72.5
Boston- 94
Chicago C- 83
Chicago W- 82
Cincinnati- 78
Cleveland- 73
Colorado- 83
Detroit- 81
Florida- 81
Houston- 77
Kansas City- 71
LA Angels- 84
LA Dodgers- 84
Milwaukee- 80.5
Minnesota- 82
NY Mets- 81
NY Yankees- 94.5
Oakland- 78
Philadelphia- 92
Pittsburgh- 71
St. Louis- 88
San Diego- 71
San Francisco- 83
Seattle- 83
Tampa Bay- 89.5
Texas- 83
Toronto- 71
Washington- 72

Quickly looking at this, Toronto at 71 wins is a good under pick. With a young pitching staff, tough division and both Baltimore and Tampa Bay getting better, the Jays could touch 100 loses this year.

Seattle has made lots of positive changes and 83 is probably really close to what they will attain, but winning the AL West is likely for them and they will do that with more than 83 wins.

Oakland with the under, Washington with the over and Detroit with the over.


Also available are the odds to win the divisions in baseball.



Again, looking at these quickly, I would lay some money on the Tigers, good odds and the AL Central is very unpredictable. Also, the AL West, both the Rangers and Mariners would be worth spending some money on because of how much they have improved the last couple of years and the Angels losing some of their star power (Vlad and Figgins). The one other team that might be worth some dollars is the SF Giants. Great pitching staff (Lincecum and Zito) and with the big competition having Manny Ramirez, the Giants could take the NL West in the end.

Owning The Podium

Yesterday the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC)came out with a statement that they would not Own The Podium at this Olympics. The dream of the last five years to win the medal count at our home games in Vancouver was lost. In fact, the plan that was implemented, bragged about in the media and carried out by sport federations, had not worked as planned conceded the COC in a statement and most Canadian sports fans have been in agreement.

With less than a week to go before the closing ceremonies, Canada is not close to the medal count of the Turin games and we currently sit fifth in the medal standings, really not acceptable for a country that has the nickname "great white north". Although Canada is not going to win the medal race, did we improve at these games like the Own the Podium program wanted us to?

By the looks of it, Canada will set a record for the most golds ever won for itself. This is a big accomplishment for a country that went into the games never having won a gold on home soil. Winning this many gold medals (currently only one behind the US-with among other sports both hockey and curling to go), is huge and in my opinion exactly what Own The Podium was supposed to do. COC funded athletes so they could concentrate on preparing for the games. They wanted all Olympic athletes to be in top form in Vancouver and that is what we have received.

Where the Own The Podium breaks down is when the medal favourites don't live up to expectations. There were certain Olympians that were being counted on for medals because of their past history. Athletes like Pierre Leuders, Patrick Chan or some of the speed skaters who have past world championship wins or Olympic gold medals. As Canadians, we believed that with the extra funding they could repeat their wins. Unfortunately, in most cases our past successes were not repeated in Vancouver. What we have received are the athletes that were top 10 in the world come to the forefront and win medals in Vancouver. Our first medalist - Alexandre Bilodeau was not the favourite coming into the games, but perhaps because of the Own The Podium program he was able to put in the extra time and become the best in the world.

If the program helped our fringe medal athletes become medalists, I believe the program worked and it should continue through to London 2012 and Sochi 2014. Now, if we can just figure out how to prepare our medal favourites so that they can put the pressure behind them and perform in crunch time...

First Day of Spring...Training

Well it is the first day of spring...training and it definitely feels like it in Toronto with 10 cm of snow on the ground.

So with the Blue Jays first official workout in the books here is a superficial look at what you can expect from the Jays this season. A more in-depth review of the AL East and the rest of the majors will be coming closer to the season, but the hardcore fan needs to know these important tidbits...

The Jays were named one of the least recognizable teams in baseball in a survey down by ESPN. They came third behind the Pirates and Washington Nationals. Good company.

It looks like the most recognizable Jay, Dirk Hayhurst, also known by his twitter name @TheGarfoose was placed on the 60 Day disabled list the other day. Hayhurst has penned a new book about life in the bullpen and has been making the media rounds to promote it. Unfortunately, the reliever who only had an outside chance to make the club, but would have been a fan favourite, will be sidelined for most of the season after having his shoulder operated on.

The Jays had one, if not the best pitcher in baseball in Roy Halladay. He was dealt in the offseason to the Philadelphia Phillies which brought back prospects, but left a Grand Canyon size hole at the top of the rotation. According to the reports filed by MLB Blue Jays scribe Jordan Bastian, Manager Cito Gaston has an idea of who he projects in the rotation. It's a young rotation to say the least - Marcum, Romero, Tallet, Morrow, Rzepczynski. Jays fans shouldn't expect much this year from these young arms, but hopefully one of them turns into the next Dave Steib, Jimmy Key or Halladay.

Well if the pitching isn't all-star caliber yet, they must have the hitting to keep them in ball games. Well, Jays fans don't get your hopes up. Here is the projected opening day line-up from the same conversation that Bastian had with Cito today;
1. Bautista 2. Hill 3. Lind 4. Wells 5. Overbay 6. Encarnacion 7. Snider 8. Buck 9. Gonzalez. Not exactly murderers row and really, there is no way that Wells should bat fourth and Overbay fifth. This isn't 2003 if Cito hasn't noticed.

If the opening day of spring training is any indication, it could be a long season for the Jays and those 87 losses last year might not seem so bad.

Snack of the Day

With the Olympics on right now there are lots of food choices. No matter what country you cheer for, you could come up with a home town dish. With my decision making skills what they are, I decided to choose a snack of the day that is international - the SNO-KONE.



The Sno-Kone is always a good choice, you don't get the brain freeze like a Slurpee, you don't feel fat like you do after ice cream and you feel creative because you have mashed all these colours together to get the perfect flavour.


To go along with the Snack of the Day, today you get a bonus;

WHO TO CHEER FOR THIS WEEKEND
This weekend you should cheer for Josh Howard and Tracy McGrady. You should cheer for Josh Howard because he will be trying to impress his new teammates and fans in Washington after being traded from Dallas on Thursday. If he does well, watch out downtown D.C., Howard apparently likes your clubs. According to reports that our coming out of Dallas, Howard missed a game earlier this year in Washington because he was too hung over. Keep in mind the game was at 7pm and on a Tuesday. Good for him. So cheer for Howard, so that everyone can party hard!

You should also save some claps and woohoo for the newest NY Knick - Tracy McGrady. Although, not normally a fan favorite in Toronto, please cheer for McGrady who is still trying to prove that he is a quality NBA player and not just a guy who was traded to clear cap space next year.

NBA Trade Deadline

The NBA trade deadline has come and gone without a peep from the Toronto front office.

Matt Devlin, the Raptors broadcaster twittered early in the day that the Raps were looking to acquire Sasha Vujavic from the LA Lakers in exchange for Marcus Banks. This is similar to a trade that was floated earlier in the season, but had Jose Calderon going the other direction. Ultimately, GM Bryan Colangelo decided to stand pat after deadline moves the last couple of seasons didn't product the desired results.

Not making a move (ie. trading Chris Bosh) was probably the best decision Colangelo could have made this season. He made a big splash in the off-season and the players are just now starting to come together and play well. Breaking up a team that is beginning to gel, might have affected any chance they have of doing well in the post-season. Never mind the fact that Colangelo probably couldn't find any takers for some of the huge contracts the Raps are holding.

On the other end of the spectrum this trade deadline were the NY Knicks. The Knicks unloaded enough contracts and took less back to allow them enough space to sign two max players during the off-season. This is important because the 3 of the top free agents of all-time will be available this summer. Of course I am speaking of the trio of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh.

As per Fanhouse

The Knicks and Heat can offer two players max contracts, and the Nets, Clippers, Bulls, Kings, Wizards and Wolves can go after one player each. Of course, the Cavaliers can keep LeBron James at max salary, the Raptors can keep Chris Bosh, and so on. But if there's movement, these teams are in the best fiscal position to make a bid.

So there you have it...the teams that could land the elite of the league. Where would you go?

Knicks - mecca of basketball, but can you win with only two players?
Bulls - you will always be compared to Jordan. Get to play with a great young point guard in Derrick Rose
Kings - the Maloofs will do anything to make you happy, but ugly uniforms and no prime time love
Wizards - only if they trade Gilbert Arenas, you don't need any guns pulled on you
Wolves - too cold and no winning history, not even KG could turn the franchise around
Nets - not unless they move to Brooklyn and I get to hang with Jay-Z
Heat - good climate, good nightlife, fans are passionate when you win, definitely a front runner
Clippers - good climate, good nightlife, sponsorship dollars, plus you would have an instant rivalry with Kobe which I would enjoy

At The Half...

It is the mid-way point in the NBA season (the second half of the season starts tonight) and the Toronto Raptors are right where most pundits had put them in the season previews – competitive in the Eastern conference, but in the end will probably not be a challenge to the big three (Cleveland, Boston and Orlando).

The big three have since been joined by the Atlanta Hawks who have graduated to a top echelon team. The Hawks took the experience from last year’s playoff loss to Boston and have exploded this season with the star performances of Josh Smith, Al Horford and sixth man of the year contender Jamal Crawford. Unfortunately, Toronto hasn’t stepped up the same way Atlanta did when they lost to Orlando in the playoffs last season. Although, the Raptors have gotten great performances from Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani and there sixth man Jarret Jack, it is still much easier for fans in Toronto to focus on the negative of their teams (haven’t really had a lot to cheer about lately, see Maple Leafs, Blue Jays and Argonauts).

After playing for most of the last decade under defensive minded coaches Kevin O’Neil and Sam Mitchell, Jay Triano’s squad would rather score buckets than protect their own this season. The Raptors are starting to look like the Denver Nuggets teams circa mid-‘90’s who decided they could score more than you and defense be damned! The Raptors are surrendering a mind-boggling 104 points per game. For the Raptors to make a deep run in the playoffs this season, they are going to need to find a defensive stopper somewhere on the roster or in a trade before the deadline of Thursday.

Maybe a shut down defender, someone like Bruce Bowen or Ron Artest isn’t on the roster at the moment, but the Raptors should be able to improve in one defensive category in the second half of the season with some good old-fashioned hard work, and that would be in rebounding the basketball. The Raptors boast a big, athletic front line with Bosh, Bargnani, and HedoTurkoglu but are constantly being out-rebounded on both the offensive and defensive glass. By cutting down on those second chance points and getting a few more themselves, they should be able to cut down that points per game number and increase their own.

Rebounding is a statistic that has the ability to win games, especially on the road. By limiting opportunities and not allowing the home crowd to get involved in the game after a big follow up dunk or second chance three. Since the Raptors have not been winning the battle on the boards, they have been predictably poor on the road this season with a current record of 9-17. Although this isn’t as bad as Milwaukee or the NJ Nets, it still is not very good. They have lost some games they should have won against weaker teams or teams that were devastated by injury. Playing well on the road is a mental aspect of the game that Coach Triano must work on with the team if they want to avoid a tough first round playoff match up.

Although the Raptors could be in for a tough first round playoff matchup against Atlanta, Orlando or Boston, this could be the best situation for the prized free agent acquisition from last summer Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu had a fantastic playoff run last year for Orlando. He propelled his team to the finals by hitting big shots and making the most of his dominating center Dwight Howard. He then signed a big contract with the Raptors in the offseason and fans expected the same things they saw in June. Unfortunately, Turkoglu has lost some of his big shot mojo somewhere between Orlando and Toronto – maybe it got stuck at the customs, but other than hitting his two free throws at the end of the game vs. the Lakers a few Sunday’s ago, Hedo has come up short too many times this season. Turkoglu needs to become the dominating late game threat, hitting his patented step back jump shot, that he was Orlando. If he can do that, the Raptors might get enough accomplished in the second half of the season to get an easier first round playoff opponent and the chance to get on a run and challenge for the East crown.

Although, the Raptors have had some struggles with defense, rebounding and Turkoglu’s shooting, there have also been lots of positives from the first half. These are the things that the Raptors need to continue to rely on for a potentially successful playoff run and maybe a chance to keep Chris Bosh in free agency this summer.

Speaking of Chris Bosh – Toronto’s All-Star has had an outstanding first half of the season. Bosh knew coming into the season that this was a make or break campaign in terms of a new contract and he has delivered. Currently second in the league (behind Dwight Howard) in double-doubles, Bosh has controlled games with his energy, been more aggressive on the offensive end (driving to the basket) and played a bigger role on defense (bailing out Bargnani and Calderon consistently).

Even though he lacks some defensive chops, the former first overall pick Andrea Bargnani has developed his offensive game this season, so much so that his work in his own end doesn’t matter any more. Bargnani causes match-up problems because of his size and athleticism for opposing centers and power forwards.

Other standouts this season for the Raptors have been Jarret Jack. Outstanding leadership and contribution coming off the bench behind starting point guard Jose Calderon and for a number of games during Calderon’s injury, the starting point guard. Calderon plays better when his is being pushed and Jack has certainly pushed the envelope this year.

Amir Johnson has provided energy off the bench and some solid defense and unfortunately for him, he could see his minutes reduced with the return of Reggie Evans. Evans had missed the entire season and will hopefully be a Charles Oakley type when he returns shortly. The rotation that Coach Triano has been using in the last month or so has been very effective. The Raptors aren’t going nearly as deep into their bench as they have in the past and this has worked nicely. With the addition of Evans to the line-up Coach Triano will have to adjust that rotation and hopefully everyone can fall into place quickly so the good play can continue. The one guy who has accepted his role well in the rotation is first round draft pick from this year, DeMar DeRozan. Drafted ninth overall (one spot ahead of Brandon Jennings – oops), DeRozan had started the first 45 games for the Raptors until a sprained ankle injury sidelined him. Although he doesn’t play many crunch time minutes, and only averages 8 pts per game, he has been playing better lately (averaged 13.6 points on 52 percent shooting in three games this week) and had a nice performance in the All-Star dunk contest which will hopefully boost his confidence in the second half of the season.

The Raptors have played well in spots this year – an opening night win versus the Cleveland Cavaliers and then recently a home win against the LA Lakers, not to mention the six game win streak to close out 2009, and also winning 9 of 10 including games against the Spurs and Magic. For the Raptors to have a successful second half (lets say .550 ball or better) they have to continue to win multiple games in a row, beat the teams in their own conference (Pistons, Knicks, Pacers) and win some more games on the road. If they can accomplish this, it may mean a happier June for Raps fans and a tougher decision for Chris Bosh come July.

GOLD JERRY, GOLD!

I have been ranting to whoever would listen for the past week that I am not the biggest fan of the Olympics. This has to do with amateur athletics, which is a whole other topic for another day...BUT, last night was special for Canadians because one of our own decided to be the best - finally.

It took two Olympic games and three days into the third for a Canadian to win a gold on home soil. The victory in men's moguls for Alexandre Bilodeau will go down in Canadian sporting lore. He will take his place among the great Canadian athlete's of all time because of his amazing run down the slope at Cypress Mountain.

Alexandre almost wasn't the man. The night before, gold medal favorite in the women's moguls, Jenn Heil did all she could to hold the honour of being the first Canadian athlete to win on home soil, but she was foiled by the last skier of the night. So, the stage was set for Bilodeau and he came through for Canadians from Newfoundland to Vancouver and everywhere in between.

When we now think of athlete's to represent Canada, we can put Bilodeau up with the likes of Gretzky, Steve Nash, Barbara-Ann Scott, Rick Hansen and Terry Fox.

What other athlete's will we think of the next time Canada hosts the Olympics and we need to pick a famous person to light the cauldron (assuming that we can get the cauldron to work)? Besides the names listed above, we could think of Paul Henderson or maybe Russ Jackson?

Who would you put on a list of greatest Canucks of all time?

Olympic Drinking Game

Well, the winter Olympic games live from Vancouver are set to begin tomorrow night. While we prepare for two weeks of tales of hard work and perseverance, underdog stories and sponsors relentless advertising, it is good to have something to distract you. This is where the Olympic Drinking game comes in...

To make the Olympic games and of course the Opening and Closing ceremonies more fun for the general public I have developed a drinking game. This is currently designed to work while viewing the games on Canadian TV. Although, it would be very easy to substitute the American, Polish or Ukrainian versions of some items on the list.

To start, gather a group of friends (unless you are an alcoholic and like to drink alone) in a room with a big TV or two. Put your favorite beverage on ice and make sure to have enough of it handy, I have a feeling you could be drinking a lot.

There are 3 categories, take a sip, take a gulp and finish your drink.

So print out the following list and keep it handy, it's going to be a long two weeks...

TAKE A SIP
There is a reference to the Olympics being “The Party coming to Canada”
They show special interest story about an athlete
A commentator tells you what the athlete is thinking
They run that moving CTV song/commercial “I Believe”
Each time an athlete screws up, they say “He/She was perfect in practice”
A former Olympian/Commentator let’s us know what they would have done differently or reminisces on the old days
Every time the commentators mention the total number of delegates a country has brought to the Olympics.
They mention that no Canadian has ever won gold on Canadian soil
They show us Sidney Crosby, Martin Brodeur or Scott Niedermeyer

TAKE A GULP
They talk about the lack of snow/how warm it is in Vancouver
Each time Canada wins a Medal – any medal. It will only happen about 25 times so take advantage.
Commentators says an athlete is bringing their “A Game”, is going to “give 110%” or “is a contender for a medal”
A country is mentioned that is participating in the winter Olympics, even though they have no snow
The commentators talk about the “social impact” of the games and/or show protesters
A "special guest" appears in studio
They have a reporter wander around Whistler
Each time there is a highlight reel, mixed with a Canadian recording artists song (ex. Bryan Adams, Shania Twain or the Barenaked Ladies)

FINISH YOUR DRINK
If your home town is mentioned.
You learn of a country's existence for the first time as they cross the field at Opening Ceremonies.
The wrong country is named during their opening procession

***Just so you know, the photo is of American snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler, for a list of the 25 hottest athletes at the Olympics click here.

Tecmo Bowl - Super Bowl 44

The defining moment of Super Bowl 44 from Sunday night was Tracey Porter intercepting Peyton Manning. It is now immortalized in Tecmo Bowl form. Enjoy.

Bud Selig Looking Good In Bronze

It was announced yesterday that the Brewers will erect and unveil a statue of Bud Selig outside of Miller Park.

Bud Selig is being honoured for his "vision and dedicated effort" and I'll finish the sentence - "vision and dedicated effort" in ruining baseball. To have a statue of yourself raise 7 feet off the ground, you should have contributed something to the community where you live.

Selig did do one good thing for Milwaukee, he brought baseball there in 1970 when he bought the Seattle Pilots and moved them to Wisconsin, after that it has been pretty down hill. During Selig's tenure as club president, the Brewers participated in postseason play in 1981, when the team finished first in the American League East during the second half of the season, and in 1982, when the team made it to the World Series, under the leadership of future Hall of Famers Robin Yount and Paul Molitor. Selig was part of the owners' collusion in 1985–1987, resulting in the owners paying $280 million in damages to the players.

Then in 1992 Selig was named Commissioner of Baseball. More follies ensued...
-> Institutes Wild Card and Divisional Playoffs
-> Suspends Marge Schott for repeated prejudicial remarks and actions
-> Reinstates George Steinbrenner from a lifelong suspension
-> Has not reinstated Pete Rose
-> Represented MLB during the 1994 strike that almost killed baseball
-> Canceled the World Series, making it the first time it had not been staged since 1904
-> Implemented interleague play
-> Selig held a vote on contracting two teams, reportedly the Minnesota Twins and Montreal Expos. This action led to Selig (along with former Expos owner Jeffrey Loria) being sued for racketeering and conspiring with Loria to deliberately defraud the Expos minority owners.
-> Decided to end the 2002 All-Star Game (which was being held in Milwaukee) in a tie
-> Decided to award the winner of the All-Star Game home field advantage in the World Series. The American League thanks you
-> Commissioner during the PED era and did nothing about it
-> Was going to retire in 2009, he then pulled a Brett Favre and decided to extend his tenure to 2012

That is quite the resume....so with all that Bud Selig has accomplished and now that the bar is set quite low for getting your own statue, I think these are the next few people who should be immortalized;
-> Barry Bonds outside PNC Park in San Francisco
-> Roger Clemens outside Fenway in Boston
-> Vince Carter outside the ACC in Toronto
-> Conan O'Brien outside the NBC studios
-> Brett Favre outside Lambeau Field in Green Bay

What random and bad choices for statues do you think are out there?

(Thanks to Wikipedia for information on Bud)

Names To Know...Kris Joseph

If you have been watching any college basketball this year, you know that staying at the top of the polls has been tough. Kentucky, Kansas, Texas and Villanova have all either been at the top or close only to lose. The one team that has managed to stay in the top 10 is the Syracuse Orange. They started the year at number 6 and have moved to number 2 this week after beating Cincinnati this past weekend.

One reason they are near the top of the NCAA basketball world is the play of 6'7", 210 lbs sophomore from Montreal, Kris Joseph. Although Joseph didn't make much of a splash as a freshman, but now he is widely considered to be one of the best 6th men in college basketball.

Averaging just over 25 minutes a game, Joseph has been averaging 11pts and 5 rebounds a game. These are the type of stats that will get him noticed by NBA scouts and by Canadian national basketball coach Leo Rautins (who, no doubt watches plenty of the 'Cuse anyways because of his son Andy Rautins).

Joseph has been a great boost of energy off the bench for Syracuse and is making a push to be a starter. Although, with coach Jim Boeheim giving seven players just about equal playing time, coming off the bench isn't that big of a deal.

His best performances of the season has been put up this month. February 2nd vs. Providence he put up a season best 23pts and complimented that with 7 rebounds, a block and 4 steals. Then, this past Saturday vs. Cincy he hit two big three pointers to help the Orange pull away in the second half as part of a 17pt performance.

The Orange are looking to make their deepest run in the NCAA tournament since Carmelo Anthony led them to the title in 2003 and Kris Joseph hopes to be a big part of it.