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

I'm not terribly greedy. I don't need the thrill of an overtime goal by the Sens to feel like I got my money's worth. A 2-0 lead throughout the entire game is just fine.

But, at the end of the day, it might have turned out to be one of the most exciting games I've seen live and since it was also the result I wanted, made it that much better. It couldn't get quite more dramatic than those last two minutes of play: the goalie had been pulled, a player in the penalty box, one of the defending Senators playing without his stick thus effectively making it a 6 on 3 1/2. I'll give credit to the Lightning, when it sunk in their season was coming to an end, they poured it on and had no quit. But the Sens' resolve came through, and although many will say beating an 8th seed isn't much of an accomplishment, well, I think the Red Wings might disagree with you if they escape from the first round. The parity of the league is quite good (Devils vs Rangers notwithstanding). The fact that the Lightning are the defending Stanley Cup Champions cannot be ignored. To win the Cup, I think it's only just to have to take it away from the team that has it. Ottawa did so, now they have to go through three more teams to have the right to keep it.

Other thoughts:

Two rows behind the players' bench is pretty sweet, although for financial purposes not something I will do anytime soon (well, maybe in the fourth round)...Everytime Vincent Lecavalier went back to the bench, he looked defeated or like he was about to cry...Tampa Bay's Sean Burke played what could have been his last NHL game and turned in a great performance...Martin Havlat and Wade Redden were the two best players in the series...Ray Emery answered his critics with a series save percentage of .924...Alfie didn't score last night but logged the most minutes out of all Sens' forwards with 25+ minutes...I noticed Havlat and Jason Spezza chirping at each other after Havlat's goal, not sure what they were disagreeing about...Nice to see Meszaros score last night. He looked pumped after that and did wonders for his confidence...Antoine Vermette's shot block in the last minute of the third while playing without his stick was second best only to Edmonton's Shawn Horcoff's blocked shot that left him with an injured wrist...Tim Taylor returned the puck to Ray Emery from game 1 that he said he threw in the garbage. Emery ended up giving said puck to a young Ottawa fan as he left the ice. While I'm all for giving out stuff to the kids, I think Emery will regret doing that later...Wade Redden hoisting a Stanley Cup over his head could be the story of the playoffs if it happens. I was wondering who he was pointing to after being named the game's first star, turns out it was his brother who flew in with Wade and the rest of the family just one day after burying their mother...Peter Schaefer is overshadowed by his linemate Martin Havlat but had a helluva series...We can say now it was a good thing to rest Chris Philips' injured knee...Instead of those annoying thundersticks, they handed out red "Sens Army" wristbands. Apparently a portion does go to the Ottawa Senators Foundation charity...I hope Ottawa draws Montreal next round, just like I hope Calgary and Edmonton advance so that Canadian fans will be treated to two Conference semi-final all-Canadian matchups, thus also guaranteeing two Canadian teams will finish in the final four...Twelve to go.

When you get an unexpected roommate paying you some rent money for the month of May, you get ideas about going to Sens games four rows behind the players' bench. Some people have alcohol problems. Some have cocaine problems. Some are addicted to cigarettes. I guess I have a problem keeping away from SBP place!

The Senators did what they weren't supposed to do. They forgot to come at them at the opening whistle and as a result found themselves down 2-1 heading into the second period. Throughout these playoffs, the Sens are going to have be consistent from the start if they are to have long term success.

Luckily, the Senators regrouped and took over. Instead of letting Tampa dictate the play, the took it upon themselves to take control and it didn't hurt that goalie John Grahame isn't standing on his head. Scoring four goals on sixteen shots, the worst thing that could happen to kill any chance of a comeback would be Chris Neil scoring on the newly inserted Sean Burke on the first shot he faced. Sure enough, it happened. It was indeed not Tampa's night, and everything was going right for Ottawa from the second period to the end of the game.

To me, because the Lightning can really only produce with two lines and are playing more minutes, they simply run out of gas as the game wears on. No one can really criticize the play of Martin St Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Brad Richards. After that, the team doesn't have much to turn to to score. The Senators played a regular season style game, where they let their skill take over the overwhelmed Tampa players.

The only way Ottawa can lose is if they cause the gaffes themselves. Game 2 saw them do things they don't usually do: multiple turnovers, bad passes, missed shots, lackadaisical forechecking. They should realize game 5 is now their most important game of the season. They have Tampa on the ground, their foot pressed tightly on their collective necks. Time to break it.

Other thoughts:

Daniel Alfredsson deserves better than to be playing alongside underachieving Bryan Smolinski. He is carrying the load...Not sure what Christoph Schubert did to deserve being scratched so that invisible Brian Pothier could get re-inserted in the lineup. They dominated game 3, why make lineup changes when you know it works?...Ray Emery turned in another solid game and made several key saves to prevent Tampa from getting back in it...Andrej Meszaros is having trouble adjusting to the post-season after a stellar regular season campaign. Hopefully this series will better his play for upcoming series (there, I jinxed them)...I predict Alfredsson scoring a big goal tomorrow. Not sure if it will be a game-tier, an overtime winner or an insurance goal, but he'll have a big night.

It's now in Ottawa's hands. Thirteen to go.

Playing online and playing in person has enough difference that both may be considered two completely different things. It is so much easier to run a bluff in the privacy of your own home, while trying to push a big stack of chips in the middle of a pot while many sets of eyes are staring at you can be intimidating to say the least.

You should practice observing the players' actions and try to figure out what they mean. Remember, each action means something. It could mean "I have nothing" it could mean "Should I bet?" and it could mean "Please oh please fold!" Here are some different "tells", actions other players make that reveal the strength of their hand, that can help you understand their meaning:

- A player who glances at her chips after looking at her cards usually means she likes her cards and is getting ready to bet

- A player who looks at your chips usually means she envisions her chips being on your side of the table (a.k.a. weak)

- A player who quickly and forcefully throws their chips in the middle usually means weakness

- A player who bets their chips close to them usually means strength

- A player who uses low value chips to bet when it's practical to use the high denomination chips usually means weakness (they are trying to intimidate others by placing a big stack in front of them)

- A player who leans back, with or without their hands behind their head, usually means strength.

- A player who leans into the table usually is weak

- A player who is talking to you while you're deciding whether or not to call is usually strong

- A player whose hands are shaking is usually strong

The basic denominator in most of these tells is "strong means weak, weak means strong". People subconsciously try to hide their intentions by doing the opposite.

I'll discuss other tells in my next poker entry.

The Senators were challenged by their coach and GM to play a full sixty minutes of hockey, and it turned out they only needed to play about 40 minutes to turn out a victory.

Ottawa went all out from the opening face-off and scored three goals with only eleven shots. Pressing hard, finishing their checks, battling for the puck...they were eager to show what it's like to play at their best. Martin Havlat, who so far is turning into Ottawa's most consistent forward, scored the first goal and there was no turning back. To give you some indication on how some of Ottawa's big guns are turning things around, in the 2004 playoffs Havlat recorded no goals in their 7 game series loss to the Leafs. Three games in against the Lightning he's already potted four.

Good players bounce back from mediocre performances and Alfredsson, Spezza and Heatley played perhaps their best game of the series so far. And in the background is Wade Redden, who's performace last night was sorely missed in game 2. Scoring a goal and adding two assists, he showed why he is such an important part of the Senators defence. Ottawa had trouble getting the puck out their end in game 2, but his tape to tape outlet passes solved that problem in spades last night.

A player who didn't get on the scoresheet but was nonetheless effective was Chris Neil. His chippy play got under the skin of the Tampa players and distracted them from getting back into the game. Chris Dingman landed seven minutes in penalties trying to fight Neil and effectively killed any chances of a comeback with Ottawa scoring two goals on the resulting powerplay. If Neil is a marked man in Tampa, so be it. They can try to get back at him while Heatley rips slap shots past John Grahame.

Other thoughts:

Two words came across my mind when Zdeno Chara tangled with star forward Vincent Lecavalier: "broken" and "hand". Luckily nothing happened, but he had a hilarious quote when asked about protecting his previously injured right hand: "I have no problems fighting with lefty"...Martin St Louis talked about "hating" Ottawa a little more in game 2, and after all the hits, fights and physical play, Ottawa has that "hate" they need to motivate themselves to beat the Lightning...CBC, we ain't in Tampa. I wasn't terribly interested in that Martin St Louis "tribute" before the game started...Ottawa needs to keep tough but still be smart. They allowed eleven powerplays and three of Tampa's four goals were powerplay markers, including one from a 5-on-3. Tampa is no match for Ottawa 5-on-5, and they need to keep it that way as much as possible...I was extremely pleased with Ray Emery's play and was solid in the first two periods stopping 29 of 30 shots. Hard to guage his third period, it got up to 7-2 at one point and turned into pond hockey. What would your mindset be to play under those conditions?...We shall see if Ottawa truly has a killer instinct tomorrow and be able to bury Tampa with another strong performance.

Fourteen to go.

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Film is becoming more and more a medium where people learn about the past. When watching highlight reels of Maurice “The Rocket” Richard or hearing his name mentioned on Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts, I didn't realize there was so much more to his career. Just exactly how much his career meant to the people of Montreal and the province of Quebec, I never fully understood until having seen The Rocket.

This movie was obviously intended for CBC television, as a lot of the dialogue is toned down to accommodate a family audience. The worst thing you hear when the anglophone players try to get under Richard’s skin is “pea soup”, and of course different words were chosen at the time, but this isn’t much of a distraction. This film has a high budget feel to it, and the attention to detail is uncanny. You can tell the director made every effort to replicate the old highlight reels to ensure the accuracy of the pivotal moments of Maurice Richard’s hockey career.

The film puts forward the theory that the NHL was not happy that its best player was a francophone playing for Montreal. Perhaps it wasn't a theory, and was already well known and if that's the case, I had no idea. They tried to pad the stats of the other teams' stars; a journalist in The Rocket mentioning the opposing teams record assists to players who are not even on the ice when a goal is scored. The officials do nothing to protect Richard when he was getting attacked by fists and high sticks. It was much more than meets the eye when talking about the infamous Montreal riot where then NHL commissioner Clarence Campbell suspended Richard for his participation in a brawl against the Boston Bruins where he also punched out a referee. I was always under the impression Richard was just a player who lost his cool despite his talents. But I didn’t know Richard was attacking Campbell through the press because of the way the French Canadian-born players were being treated by the league. Was this a convenient way to get Richard out of the NHL? Perhaps it was.

The film is about a 50/50 split between English and French which just added to the authenticity of the film. Hockey fans will be treated to cameos by Mike Ricci, Vincent Lecavalier and a tongue-in-cheek performance by Sean Avery, playing the role of an enforcer hired by the New York Rangers to hurt Richard. The star of the show, Roy Dupuis, who also played Richard in the Heritage Canada commercials, is excellent. I found myself wishing to know more about Richard's life before & after hockey. They show him briefly working his job as a machinist and meeting his wife when he was 17 years old, but that's about it.

Most Canadian productions carry a stigma of being cheap and second rate, but this is clearly not the case. The Rocket is definitely worth a view, and you might even find yourself rooting for the Montreal Canadiens afterwards if you’re not too careful.

The series is now tied 1-1, and judging by each team's performances, it's a good reflection of how this matchup has gone so far.

It can be argued Tampa played the better hockey for periods 1 & 2 of game 1, and the Sens rebounded and dominated period 3 to take the game.

The Senators did the exact opposite last night. They went full throttle from the opening face-off, which is exactly the intensity needed to play these games and they were rewarded with a goal scored in the first five minutes. It looked like perhaps Ottawa could take their first 2-0 lead in a series in their team history.

But, as the cliche goes, you need to play a full 60 minutes. They managed to put only 2 pucks towards Tampa's goalie John Grahame in the entire third period. And the Lightning made Ottawa pay for simple gaffes in their end zone. Anton Volchenkov was a huge liability, coughing up a puck to the stick of Vaclav Prospal that led to Tampa's first goal, while letting Martin St-Louis blow right by him when they scored the game winning goal in the final period.

That third period was tough to watch. After Peter Schaefer scored to make it 3-2, they pretty much let Tampa dictate the play and didn't look alive until the final flurry in the last minute of the game, which came too little too late. Another startling statistic is captain Daniel Alfredsson's stat of no shots for the entire game. Give the Lightning credit, they did a good job of shutting him down and making him ineffective.

Wade Redden will return to the lineup tomorrow and will be welcomed back with open arms. It was sad to read his mom wanted him to play game 1 despite Wade wanting to be by her side during her final hours. People deal with loss in different ways, and hopefully Wade will be strong enough to overcome this. Hockey is definitely not the most important thing on this planet.

Other thoughts:

Listening to Sens fans last night, you could have sworn they got swept and are out of contention. Do you think fans of the Detroit Red Wings and Calgary Flames are sweating a 1-1 tie in a best of 7? Absolutely not. Keep your pants on, I said Sens in five anyway, so they're going to win their next three in a row...If Chris Kelly can't play after leaving the game early with an injury last night, Tyler Arnason will get a crack to showing what he can do in a playoff environment. Worth a shot I suppose, but he'll probably only get about 10 minutes of ice time max. They also mentioned Antoine Vermette may start on a line with Spezza and Heatley. Vermette has more offensive upside than Kelly anyway, this is probably a move they should have done earlier...People were criticizing Dominik Hasek for being near the players' bench for game 1. Maybe he is a distraction and shouldn't be there, but to me, it at least shows he cares.

The first 40 minutes of the game were a little too interesting, but in the end, they got the result they wanted.

First, I just want to say the fans were absolutely electric from the start. The buzz was definitely noticeable, from the live band playing outside to the "Sons of Scotland" marching band on the inside, everyone was donning red and I couldn't see one Tampa Bay fan (although I did see one idiot wearing a Leafs jersey). Although I'm not a big fan of the "thundersticks" they handed out to each fan before the game, it's a minor complaint and even when Tampa got the 1-0 lead, the fans still tried to get behind their team to get them back on track.

BTW, I'm getting sick of Ottawa Sun columnist Don Brennan. He complained the opening pre-game choice of music was lame and the bit of Spartacat coming down from the rafters is getting tired. The only thing I remember was how loud SBP place was and how pumped the fans were getting for the start of the game. And he also complained about the fans cheering when the out-of-town scoreboard showed the Oilers up 1-0 and 2-1 at various points, questioning if they hate Steve Yzerman. Uh, no, they're a Canadian team and we want to see the Canadian teams do well (that aren't the Leafs, of course). Brennan, you suck.

Anyway, when the puck dropped you can tell the players were being way too cautious, and as the cliche goes "were holding on to their sticks too tightly". Unsettled nerves no question, but as the game wore on they were hitting their stride more and more. Tampa did get the first goal, but hey, stuff happens with 5 on 3's.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wasn't kidding when he said penalties were to be called, as every goal save for the empty-netter at the end were all special teams. I think this is the way to go, the referees have been calling the infractions all season long and they should continue to do so.

I couldn't get over how well both goalies John Grahame and Ray Emery played. Although Grahame would probably like another crack at the 2nd goal Jason Spezza scored, both looked confident and made key saves to keep their teams in it.

The crowd was all over Spezza until the third period, pointing out every mistake and turnover he made. Many were yelling out to bench him. Guess what? That's exactly the mentality ex-coach Jacques Martin had and Spezza was a healthy scratch for most of the series against the Leafs in the 2004 playoffs. That worked out didn't it? Spezza's creativity isn't without risk, and it will happen, but when his plays work, goals are scored. I applaud coach Bryan Murray for having the confidence in him to press forward and play the strong offensive game instead of worrying about his defensive game. Ottawa's D is the best in the league, they can afford the risks.

Strong outings also by Mike Fisher and Chris Phillips. Phillips had a team high 8 blocked shot during the contest, paying the price to keep the puck out of the net. He always has elevated his game during the playoffs, and if you also consider he's been out for three weeks, he had a fantastic first game back.

One down. Fifteen to go!

As the NHL regular season has ended and the playoffs have begun, I thought I'd review some of my predictions I made before the season began and, well, show you how once in a while SBP can be mistaken:

1. Pittsburgh Penguins - The additions of Sydney Crosby, Mark Recchi, John Leclair, Sergei Gonchar, Jocelyn Thibault and Mario Lemieux made me think this team was going to do a complete 180 from their previous dead last finish and become a contender. Turns out adding old veterans to a new, speedy game wasn't a good idea, and Super Mario had to call it a career part-way through the season. They started winning as the season wound down, though, and Crosby definitely found his stride. All is not lost.

2. Carolina Hurricanes - I didn't think they'd make the playoffs. But the great play of Martin Gerber in net, combined with the leadership of young Eric Staal, transforming from a 60 point guy to a 100 point guy in just one season, was a formula that made them winners.

3. Buffalo Sabres - They missed the playoffs five years in a row, and with unproven goaltenders and an inexperienced lineup made me think things weren't going to change. But give coach Lindy Ruff credit for grooming their young guys and taking advantage of their speed to be a super-hot team. If Ryan Miller can continue to keep the pucks out of the net, they'll go far. And if Daniel Briere can stay healthy, he could be a Hart Trophy candidate one day.

4. New York Rangers - I thought GM Glen Sather did a horrible job pre-season to get the team prepared for a new-style NHL. But who'd of thunk Jaromir Jagr would regain his passion for the game? Surrounding him with teammates from his homeland of the Czech Republic, Martin Straka and Martin Rucinsky, made all the difference. And Sather struck gold with rookie Henrik Lundqvist in net putting on a clinic all season long, backstopping a gold medal for Sweden along the way.

5. Chicago Blackhawks - Signing a #1 goalie in Nikolai Khabibulin and a #1 D in Adrian Aucoin made me think this Original 6 franchise was going to turn things around. The 'Bulin Wall ended up being a perennial bust and Aucoin was sidelined for almost the entire season. Things don't look like they'll be getting much better.

6. Vancouver Canucks - Returning from his suspension, I figured Todd Bertuzzi would be playing high octane hockey that made him an all-star. That didn't happen, and the once best line in hockey with Markus Naslund and Brendan Morrison didn't carry the load as expected. Multiple injuries to Ed Jovanovski, Sami Salo and goalie Dan Cloutier pretty much sealed their fate, and these once Stanley Cup hopefuls finished in 9th place.

No SBP screwjobs for my work's 2005/06 regular season hockey pool. After a back and forth battle with friend Dan P., yours truly took first place by ONE point! What put me over the top was Martin Havlat, who was a liability for me the entire season but picked up two assists in the last game of the regular season to help me win. Too sweet! But, let it be known, Dan and I agreed to cut the 1st and 2nd place winnings 55-45 so financially, not as rewarding as it could be, but bragging rights are now mine!

For my two draft playoff pools I entered, I primarily picked Sens, Devils, Stars, Red Wings and some Flames. Although I figure Calgary will make the finals, it's hard to choose any of their players because they simply don't score that much. Jarome Iginla leads the team with only 65 or so points. Every game is probably going to be 2-1 affairs.

Let's go through who I think will take each playoff round. Everyone already knows I picked my Sens so let's move on to the other matchups.

Eastern Conference:

Carolina vs Montreal: I think Montreal is just happy to be there, but this could be the series where upset strikes. But, if I could bet money on that, I wouldn't.
Prediction: Carolina in 6

New Jersey vs NY Rangers: New Jersey has won their last 11 in a row and Martin Brodeur just plain scares the crap out of me.
Prediction: New Jersey in 6

Buffalo vs Philadelphia: This is a tough call, the age old speed vs strength battle take place here. But to quote Patch Adams, "Speed Wins".
Prediction: Buffalo in 7

Western Conference:

Detroit vs Edmonton: Edmonton has had some success against the Wings this season, but their goaltending won't take them anywhere.
Prediction: Detroit in 6

Dallas vs Colorado: I don't think Jose Theodore will come back to the form that won him a Hart Trophy a few years back.
Prediction: Dallas in 6

Calgary vs Anaheim: A low-scoring battle with the Flames coming out on top with the best goalie in the league.
Prediction: Calgary in 7

Nashville vs San Jose: Backup Chris Mason won't be able to stop the firepower of Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo.
Prediction: San Jose in 6

CAN'T WAIT FOR THE PLAYOFFS TOMORROW! BRING IT!!!!!!!

With Ottawa drawing Tampa Bay in the first round, they couldn't ask for a better opponent.

Sure, they are the defending Stanley Cup Champions. But if you consider their production has dropped considerably in the two years since they won Lord Stanley, and that the Senators have dominated Tampa in regular season play (in their last 20 meetings Ottawa has won 17 times) it's looking more and more in Ottawa's favour.

Forwards: Tampa has a lot of firepower up front. Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards, Martin St-Louis and Vaclav Prospal all are offensive threats and can spread their scoring making it difficult for the opposition to check them. Likewise, Ottawa has just as much if not more firepower in Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza and the returning Martin Havlat. What I think gives Ottawa the edge here is the scoring depth that no team in the NHL can match. They have guys like Patrick Eaves and Antoine Vermette who average just 12 minutes of playing time per game scoring 20+ goals. Ottawa's fourth line of Vermette, Vaclav Varada and Chris Neil just might be the best in the East. Hart trophy winner Martin St Louis has also been a shadow of his former self and hasn't stepped up to the plate he should.

Edge: Ottawa

Defense: With all of Ottawa's D now healthy and ready to go, they should be considered the best in the league. Chara will be on the ice each time Lecavalier steps off the bench. If he gets caught on a shift change, Redden will carry the load. Tampa's Dan Boyle anchors their defence but a rather revealing statistic is that with the exceptions of Nolan Pratt and Paul Ranger, every other defenceman on the team has a MINUS rating. With playoff hockey more slanted to five-on-five action that powerplays (although it could change, after all it is the NEW NHL), this doesn't bode well for Tampa's defensive game.

Edge: Ottawa

Goaltending: Who would I rather have in net? I can't pick Hasek, so it's a choice between Ray Emery, Sean Burke or John Grahame. Quite frankly, none of these guys have proven to me they can be a true #1 keeper. Maybe Burke did at one time but that was a long time ago. Tampa no longer has a Nikolai Khabibulin who was unbelievable in the 2003/04 playoffs, while Ottawa is leaning on a raw rookie. It's a wash.

Edge: Even

Intangibles: Tampa is pretty much the underdog; all the pressure is on Ottawa. The Sens have been told all season they have what it takes to win the Stanley Cup and now they have to prove it. Tampa has underachived all year but anything can happen in a seven game series. And the fact that a lot of their players have been through four rounds of playoff action and become champions cannot be ignored. Ottawa has a lot of pressure on them to win the Cup, especially when you consider they've only gotten to a CONFERENCE final just once.

Edge: Tampa Bay

Conclusion: Ottawa has the stats that, on paper, shows they should win. They are facing a team with goaltending problems which helps a team that has the most goals-for in the NHL. As long as Emery does his job, there's no reason for me to think Ottawa can't pull this off.

Ottawa in five.

If there's any consolation to Ray Emery getting the call to backstop the Ottawa Senators after Hasek told reporters he's not ready to go, every other goaltender in the East, with the exception of Martin Brodeur, have little or no experience heading in the playoffs which start this Friday.

Martin Gerber. Henrik Lundquist. Ryan Miller. Antero Nittymaki. John Grahame. Cristobal Huet. When you read those names, they don't exactly strike fear in your heart. Although many times during the regular season these goalies have shown us they have the potential to take over as the goalies of the future with guys like Ed Belfour, Curtis Joseph and Dominik Hasek winding down the careers, it's pretty much a clean slate from here on in and it's time to prove themselves. No team can go far with weak goaltending. The joke is the post-season shouldn't be called "playoffs" but rather "goalie" as it's usually the best goaltender that gives his team Lord Stanley.

Back home in Ottawa, almost every Sens fans is hitting the panic button and await nervously as Ray Emery gets the call Friday. Who's going to show up? Will it be the guy who picked up the NHL defensive player of the month award for March with a .925 save percentage? Or is it going to be the guy, outside of tonight's Rangers game, who lost five in a row and let in 20+ goals in the process?

I think the Senators' organization has done a disservice by having the whole Hasek situation distract the team. Once that was cleared up and they told Emery he is going to start for the team this Friday, Emery responded with a solid effort tonight making 27 out of 28 saves in Ottawa's 5-1 win. Hopefully, this will be the start of something special.

Other thoughts:

Andrej Meszaros gets his 10th goal, Patrick Eaves gets his 20th and Dany Heatley notched his 50th of the year in the same game. They get a great team effort, win the Eastern Conference title and show the fans Emery can get the job done. The stars are now perhaps aligning in Ottawa's favour.

I should warn everyone the blog is going to be pretty hockey-heavy for the next little while. The regular season is over, and this time of year is what hockey fans look forward to the most.

You might recall sometime ago I was trying in vain to get the ever elusive purple Canon SD30 camera. I have been monitoring the price weekly, waiting for it to go on sale and try to get the most buying power from the gift cards my friends got for me for my birthday. Well, I was happy to see that the retail price dropped to $299.99 as it has been hovering around the $399.99 mark for some time now. And during this time, I also figured the red over the violet camera was the way to go. Anyway, I went to both the east and west end locations to try to buy it, both stores were sold out but that's not the story.

The story is that aside from the suggested retail price dropping, the store clerk informed me that one of the cameras was on sale. "One?" "Yes, you asked for the red one, but at this time, ONLY THE VIOLET ONE IS ON SALE."

If you are a regular reader of the blog, you'd understand why that's funny.

Anyway, none of the colours were in stock so it doesn't really matter. The wait continues...

Have a fantastic holiday!

Yours,

The ol' SBP

You couldn't help but shake your head at last night's abysmal performance against the hated Toronto Maple Leafs. Since the start of April, you could have given the Sens an excuse for managing to string together only three wins from their last 12: injuries. No Chara, Redden or Phillips. We even had to put in our third string goalie for a couple of games while Emery rested his sore hip.

But with the complete apathetic performance last night, I can only hope they are playing possum. Here's the Senators' chance to do the next best thing from beating them in a playoff series: be the team responsible for ensuring they have no chance of advancing to the post-season. Not to mention the fact they are still battling for the #1 spot in the Eastern Conference. So really, how much more motivation do you need?

I was also wondering what coach Bryan Murray was thinking when he was assembling his roster. Why did he scratch Brian McGrattan? This is the guy they signed for the specific reason of playing against teams like the Leafs. Look, it's not like the 3rd and 4th liners have been playing poorly or anything, BUT YOU HAVE TO ADJUST TO YOUR OPPONENT. Chris Neil looked completely out of his element trying not once but twice to scrap with Tie Domi. In actual fact, when he first tried to scrap with Domi and he refused, Neil wound up with an unsportsmanlike penalty and the Leafs scored on the ensuing powerplay which was the goal that buried the Sens chances of a comeback. The Leafs struggle at even strength but CAN score with the man advantage, as 3 of their 5 goals were scored that way. And you might have noticed Darcy Tucker decided to take a few liberties with our team captain by pelting Alfredsson with a few punches towards the end of the third. Everyone knows by views on fighting in the NHL, but if it's status quo you MUST dress guys like McGrattan when facing a team with Tucker, Domi and Wade Belak.

And why did Murray think it was a good idea to break up the Schaefer-Fisher-Neil line? Yes, Havlat is back, but don't break up what works. Havlat should have played with Smolinski and Eaves to keep the other WORKING three lines intact. BTW, did you notice that Havlat didn't get any powerplay time until the third period? And did you also notice the tried and true strategy of having Chara in front of the new during the powerplay wasn't even tried all game? Truly mind-boggling stuff to say the least, and I can only hope they are trying to get all the losing out of their system before playoffs start.

My friend Steve forwarded this "Island Game" to me for movie collections. Basically, you pick your five favourite flicks for each category. The only restriction is that you cannot pick more than one flick from a sequel, so if you take Raiders of the Lost Ark as a fave, you cannot also take Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom (as tempting as that would be). Here are the categories along with my picks:

1. Drama: JFK, Schindler's List, Raging Bull, Leaving Las Vegas, Amadeus
2. Gangster: Goodfellas, Casino, Donnie Brasco, Scarface, Untouchables
3. Sci-Fi: Revenge of the Sith, Return of the King, Matrix, Terminator 2, Aliens
4. Comedy: Planes, Trains & Automobiles, South Park: The Movie, Swingers, Man on the Moon, Chasing Amy
5. Action: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Die Hard, Face/Off, Crouching Tiger-Hidden Dragon, The Rock
6. Thriller/Horror: Exorcist, Memento, Silence of the Lambs, From Dusk Till Dawn, Se7en
7. Crime: Heat, Traffic, L.A. Confidential, Natural Born Killers, Fargo
8. Westerns: Unforgiven, High Noon, Open Range, Dances With Wolves, Tombstone
9. War: Saving Private Ryan, Platoon, Thin Red Line, Born on the 4th of July, Braveheart
10. Indies/Other: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Bowling for Columbine, Beyond the Mat, Bad Lieutenant, Pulp Fiction.

I'd love to read your picks if you care to post!

When you enter a pot, whether you're up against one person or many, the best position to act on each betting round is last.

Why?

Simply put, when you act last, you have the most information to base your decision on. When you have a good but not great hand and you are first to act, you have no idea where you stand with everyone else in the pot. What happens often is that you may decide to check which causes a player to bet at you, and you don't know if he's betting a legitimate hand or if he's trying a bluff. If you bet out first, you might find yourself getting raised in which case you wasted money trying to figure out if you have the best hand.

Suppose you are in late position and you raise with pocket Queens. Both the small and big blinds call you. The flop comes:

A-8-3

If both players check to you, there is a good chance they don't hold an ace and you can bet out to take the pot. If, on the other hand, the first person bets, and then the next person raises, you can probably assume your Queens are no good. After witnessing these bets before you acted (a bet followed by a raise means 99.9% of the time at least ONE if not BOTH players have a strong hand) you can safely fold and not risk any more chips.

Both scenarios give something very important when deciding to continue on with the pot: information. Acting first is very difficult when you do not have a strong hand to carry on with. This is why a lot of players like to raise from the dealer button because they can play marginal hands more aggressively since their strong position negates any shortcomings in their starting hands. Hands like Q-J suited and Ace-Ten, hands that you (strategically) cannot raise from when acting first at a full table of 9 or 10 players become more playable as it gets closer to the button. This is why when you're at a table with players who know what they are doing, if you are last to act and someone in early position raises, you should give them credit for holding a strong starting hand. When the first person raises and there are still eight persons to act, in most cases they are not bluffing but have a hand they don't mind having to act first with.

Of course, it can all be simple reverse psychology and an early position raiser is simply trying to steal, but unless you have reason to think otherwise, a bet or raise is usually what it means. Based on your position at the table and the number of raises, bets, and checks made, you can make better, more profitable choices by acting last.

Last night I attended my final live regular season game for the Ottawa Senators. If you recall, I predicted that SBP would not attend any more than two games for the entire year. The biggest reason being that, since becoming a homeowner, there is simply not as much wiggle room in the budget to spend on frivolous activities like hockey games.

Well, I went to a total of ten. But it can be just justified:

1. No less than two games were free
2. Most games were viewed from the 300 section. The 100 level game I went to was free, the two 200 level games were 50% and 25% off, respectively.
3. I never paid full price for any game.

I plan on going to, on average, one game per round in the playoffs. Although I will probably sell off my Round 1 tickets to fund the later rounds.

Anyway, it was a good game to go to last night, when Zdeno Chara touched the puck for the first time in what seemed like forever, a big roar from the crowd erupted no doubt glad the best defenceman in the NHL or at least in the Eastern Conference is finally logging some minutes. It makes a huge difference when your top three D are out, and it looks like all would be good to go come April 21 when the playoffs start.

Ottawa just needs one point to lock up 2nd place in the East and will need to win the rest of the way to get 1st overall while Carolina breathes down their necks. With Florida, the Leafs and Rangers next on their agenda, there's no reason to think they can't get all six points if they play their game. Marty Havlat will hopefully be back tomorrow, although Saturday seems to be the most likely scenario.

If everyone is healthy going into game 1 of the playoffs, the person who should get the moniker of "healthy scratch" is Tyler Arnason. While there were some flashes of brilliance in the 15 or so games he's played so far, he has yet to score a goal and seems rather unmotivated on the ice. His reluctance to play physical and get the "dirty" goals that are common in the post-season are too evident. I just hope John Muckler doesn't put his ego ahead of what has turned out to be an awful trade and demand Bryan Murray suit him up for the games. Here's what I think the forward lines will look like:

Alfredsson-Spezza-Heatley
Eaves-Smolinski-Havlat
Schaefer-Fisher-Neil
Varada-Kelly-Vermette

And I'd rather bring in Christoph Schubert, the alternate defenceman/forward than Arnason should someone go down. In any case, Murray will have some tough decisions to make when picking his final roster. A good problem to have, to say the least.

This time, I went to the Black Sheep in Wakefield with a small group to take in Josh Ritter and two other acts. I've never heard of the guy that much, just a few times when Kim would have his CD playing in her car. The show got started at 8:30 (although we got there two hours early to get a good seat) and the show ended at midnight. I'm not so sure these 3.5+ hours of showtime agrees with me, when I go see concerts they usually last only 2 hours. Anyway, Mr. Ritter has a good stage presence and is quite charismatic, and his folksy-bluesy style is alright. We'll see if I go again.

Microwaved Scrambled Eggs!

You need:

4 eggs
Salt & Pepper
Three teaspoons of milk

Directions:

1. Beat eggs well.
2. Add milk, salt and pepper.
3. Place in microwave-safe dish and cook on high for 2 minutes.
4. Stop and stir.
5. Cook 1 1/2-2 minutes longer on high.
6. Enjoy!

Not too many hockey fans are aware of the Bill Masterton trophy, but when I read today's news to discover the Ottawa chapter of the Professional Hockey Writer's Association selected Dany Heatley to be the nominee for the Ottawa Senators, I couldn't help but smile.

The Bill Masterton trophy is awarded to the player: "who best exemplifies the qualities of perserverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey." In most cases, it's given to a player who's suffered a serious physical injury or illness and, despite the odds, come back to the NHL still playing at an elite level. A player who exemplifies what the NHL should mean and should be an inspiration for the fans and aspiring players who hope one day to don an NHL uniform.

With Dany Heatley though, this nomination is a little different.

Past winners of the Masterton trophy include Bryan Berard, who almost lost complete vision in one eye due to an accidental high stick but returned despite the media predicting his career was finished, and Saku Koivu & Mario Lemieux, two players who battled cancer and won, and came back to continue their NHL careers. All worthy winners. But what if the "ailment" isn't physical, but mental...emotional?

When Dany Heatley drove his new sports car at high speeds with his teammate Dan Snyder as his passenger back in 2003, he had no idea this ride would change his life forever. Heatley crashed his vehicle and suffered multiple injuries, but was still able to walk away from the accident alive. Dan Snyder was not as lucky, and died some time later. Dany Heatley was brought in front of the courts to answer for his actions. Some people say he got off lightly: three years probation and 150 hours of community service to warn others about the dangers of speeding. Perhaps he was. But with the decision of the courts having been rendered, Heatley had to continue living, with the guilt of killing his friend forever on his mind.

If Dany Heatley would have never been able to return to the NHL to play one more game, I couldn't have blamed him. The media pressure, the hostile reactions of fans, what could he have expected? How can he cope getting to the Atlanta rink going by the scene of the accident for every practice and every home game he had to suit up for? He decided that a move out of the city where the accident occurred and the team he played for was the best thing for himself and his teammates. The Atlanta Thrashers' GM, Don Waddell, under no obligation to act on Heatley's request, traded him to the Ottawa Senators for Marian Hossa and Greg De Vries. Dany was given another chance. His career was given a clean slate; it was up to him if he had the mental toughness to continue.

He did that and more.

Dany Heatley will never be the same person he was the night before the tragic accident that happened in 2003. Now, he is more humble, more mature, more appreciative of what he has and the gifts he has been given. He has talents that his friend Dan Snyder can no longer showcase to the world. I think Dany feels he can't take what he has for granted, and despite any hostile reactions the fans might show him, feels he MUST play not only for himself but for Dan Snyder. I have been extremely disappointed with the reactions Heatley has gotten when he returns to play in Atlanta. Despite writing a farewell letter to the fans when he was traded stating, "My teammates, the fans and community will always hold a special place in my heart," he gets booed. I'm sure Dany knows that what's more important is that his friend Dan Snyder would want him to continue playing. Heatley has probably wished he could see Dan one more time so he could ask him for his forgiveness for the terrible tragedy he caused. And the best way I think Dany can show him he's sorry, is to play for him each and every night. Throughout this season, he has shown he is still one of the best players in the world, leading the Senators in scoring and shattering some records in the process. He plays hard, gets physical, demonstrates his heart that rubs off on his teammates. That mental toughness coming through in spades.

Although Heatley is gracious for the nomination, his personality is that he would prefer that he didn't win. He doesn't like being the main centre of attention. He would rather talk about his team and the new friends he's made, how he enjoys playing on a line with Jason Spezza & Daniel Alfredsson and how they want to win a Stanley Cup together.

Dany Heatley has come a long way. The shadow of Dan Snyder will be cast on him every day he wakes up to take on the day's challenges that lie ahead. But through his strength & perserverance, and the power of forgiveness bestowed on him by friends and family, Dany Heatley is a model for all of us that we can continue on, and continue on at our best no matter what we have had to endure in our past.

Took in "Leahay" (I have no idea if I spelled that right) at the Casino Lac-Leamy last night (preceded by ribs at the Biftheque, mmmm!). The concert ended up running over three hours as they were producing a DVD and live CD so they pull out all the stops and songs last night. I didn't know anything about them until last night, but it was ok. Lot of fiddling. Lot of tap dancing. Lather, rinse, repeat! :)

An item I do admit having a weakness for, aside from a Subway submarine sandwich itself, are those soft, chewy, chocolate chip (or chunk) cookies. Mmmmmm! At one point, I'd visit Subway everyday, and each time I would include a trio of cookies to accompany my meal. These days, I've tried to limit the visits to once a week, but you know, I cheat a little here and there.

Anyway, a magazine caught my eye that had an article on calorie counting at fast food restaurants. It gave advice on what you should order to limit the high-fat, high-calorie foods that plague the menu at most of these places. I pretty much just looked at it so I could reaffirm my notion that Subway is the healthiest choice of the lot.

Sort of.

See, what I didn't know, is that each one of those delicious, warm, chewy chocolately cookies, contain 220 calories! Just one! So what you say? Ok, I would eat THREE at a time, so now we're up to 660 calories. In contrast, you can purchase a TWELVE-inch steak and cheese sub with a total calorie count of 720. Instead of getting three cookies, I can pretty much have the same calorie count by eating not one but TWO, TWO twelve-inch long subs. Man oh man, that's terrible! Three cookies equals a footlong sub! So I no longer pick up the biscuits.

This doesn't mean I'm not human. Instead, to crave my sweet tooth, I pick up one of those low-fat brownies with only 145 calories. See? I cut over 500 calories by making the switch! One brownie, as opposed to three cookies. Be like me, do yourself a favour, and make that brownie switch!

Some fans why there are so many injured players. Why there are so many cheap shots. And instances like the one that occurred between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres further the notion of the need for "enforcers", causing the circle of violence to continue without end.

Darcy Tucker had a problem with a Mike Grier CLEAN hit last night. You see, hockey is a contact sport. And when you are carrying the puck, it is perfectly legal to bodycheck your opponent to take the puck away from said carrier. You can't use your elbow, your stick or your fist to hit someone, but a clean check from the shoulder is perfectly acceptable and well within the rules.

Now, after Grier gave Tucker this legal hit, Tucker didn't take it to well. Now, do you think he went after Grier in retaliation for the legal maneuver? Of course not. Grier is bigger and stronger than Tucker. But he had to save face, I suppose. So he decided to go after someone a little more his weight class, with a little more skill, and the likelihood he won't get hit back by this chosen player.

Tucker decided to take a run at Jochen Hecht, one of Buffalo's more skilled forwards with 40+ points in 60 or so games. Tucker didn't use his shoulder, he used his elbow. And he went after his head, which is already a demonstrating an intent to injure; he also struck Hecht's knee. The Sabre forward is out for a minimum of two weeks. The coach of the Sabres, Lindy Ruff, demanded the NHL look at a possible suspension and fine. And what came of it?

Nothing.

Darcy Tucker already has a reputation of being a diver and a dirty player. He's the kind of character that undermines the integrity of the NHL and the game itself. By turning a blind eye towards the incident, where a player was not performing a "hockey" hit but rather just skating around taking an unsuspecting opponent off-guard by deliberately trying to hurt him, it is the epitome of what is wrong with hockey. It sends a message that this behaviour is condoned. And it further sends a message to the players that they have to look after each other through vigilante means, aka dropping the gloves and risking further injury to players. You can ask Zdeno Chara right now how that turned out for him.

Clean up your act NHL. It's in your power to do so.

I went to the theatre to check out Inside Man with Denzel Washington, Clive Owen and Jodie Foster, directed by Spike Lee. First, I'm quite aware most people are sick of Spike Lee; audiences are tired of his "message" movies (which unfortunately caused a lot of people to miss his underrated 25th hour). But by making a straightforward thriller with just subtle jabs at Americana, he has moved back to the mainstream and his next work will probably gain more attention. Anyway, Inside Man is an intelligent film, strong if unchallenging performances by the leads, with good pacing and nice camera work. (I didn't mind some of the MTV style shots Lee threw in for good measure).

Aside from all this, one thing that took me right away was the opening song of Inside Man, an Indian tune called "Chaiya Chaiya". I have no idea what Chaiya Chaiya means...but I know what I like when I hear it. Forget those headache-inducing Indian musicals you might have witnessed on OMNI2 while channel surfing: it is a catchy song with a modern dance feel to it. It was released back in 1998 and was a big hit in its home country & the U.K. and is just now finding its way to North America. Here is a link to a free MP3 download of it. Give it a listen:

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/images/column/31906/chaiya.mp3

After about 6-7 hours of poker playing, your SBP came out on top as the Inaugral Stanford Poker Invitational Champion. With a St Hubert's meal as fuel, I bested out 14 others to take the crown. $180+ was my prize: I'll take it! Thanks again Alex for putting it together. Now it's bed time...with that hour tacked on ahead, that throws me off my zzzs to say the least. I'll be dreaming of pocket Kings and all-in bets!

As for Wrestlemania....maybe I'll order the replay. :)

SBP is going to attempt to win the biggest home game of his short poker career. Alex is hosting a tourney with about 20 or so players with a $20 + $5 add-on buy in, so the pot will be nice and big. That game is tomorrow...the worst thing that could happen is that I bust out early, then head over to Famous Player's to watch Wrestlemania XXII. So you can imagine what I'm hoping for: The first time I'll miss Wrestlemania in 7 years.