The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

Raise your hand if you were looking forward to an NHL team (in this case, Calgary) signing D Bryan Marchment. I don't see any hands raised, either. This guy is a slow, underskilled thug whose sole purpose of playing is to hurt people. This dufus has injured players we pay to see like Steve Yzerman and Mike Modano throughout his career. Hopefully (but not likely) when Robyn Regehr returns from injury, Marchment will be the one sent out of town and not rookie Dion Phaneuf...Flames' fans shouldn't worry so much about their slow start. It's the beginning of the season, wait until they've played more than a few games before you think about hanging yourself...LA Kings' Sean Avery just can't shut up, can he? Another guy the NHL can do without. Since there were no witnesses or proof that he called Oiler Georges Laraque a "monkey" during the last Oilers-Kings game he cannot be disciplined, but Mr. Laraque definitely has no reason to lie about something like that. Watch out Avery, Karma is heading straight towards you...Leafs' fans should get used to getting asked this question: "Is Marius Czerkawski a healthy scratch tonight?"...Before everyone starts handing out Art Ross trophies to players like Eric Staal and Marc Savard, remember those guys earned half their points playing the worst team in the league, the Washington Capitals. It's like saying I should be given the gold medal in the 100 M run because I beat Donovan Bailey while he was in a wheelchair...But to the Caps' credit, Alexander Ovechkin is playing extremely well and so far has met all expecations of being the first overall pick in the 2004 draft...Rick Nash can't come back fast enough for the Columbus Blue Jackets. A day-to-day injury has now become 6 weeks when he's finally cleared to return...Those who thought Nashville weren't the real deal can look at their 5-0 record and re-evaulate their position...Meanwhile, the Pittburgh Penguins have all that star-power and have yet to record a win, and the NY Rangers are on top of their division. Truly the universe is not in balance...I'm not sure why Steve Moore is so desperate to have his case against Todd Bertuzzi heard in the Unites States than Canada. Do lawsuits pay out more down south or something?... Congrats to former 67s Matt Foy for scoring his first two goals for the Wild against the Canucks. That's 2 more than Peter Forsberg...That 9-1 spanking of the Thrashers by the Leafs on Friday ended with hits, fights and the usual craziness. Both teams were crying foul at the way the other team acted, but c'mon, they're ALL hypocrites. It's standard procedure, althought it's not really written anywhere, that if your opponent is annhilating you on the scoresheet, you must start a brawl with that team to "send a message." I've still yet to figure out what that message is (we suck?) but listening to coaches Pat Quinn and Bob Hartley yammer back and forth is pointless because everyone knows that's how every team conducts themselves when they get their a** kicked. Anyway, Thrashers' D Andy Sutton got a well-deserved suspension for levelling Darcy Tucker; that hit was just criminal...Curses to Brett Hull for retiring, I picked that guy for 2 out of 4 of my hockey pools! What else to expect from a 41 year-old hockey player...Looks like the players are going to vote not to make visors mandatory. I think the owners should in turn invoke a clause in every player's contract that if they choose not to wear a visor, they will not be compensated in any way should they suffer an eye injury, accidental or otherwise. After the rollback and escrow amounts players have to pay, maybe then they won't think wearing visors is such a bad idea.