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

The last six weeks or so, I've been in a bit of a poker slump. On average, when I get together with my poker buddies, I've won about 1 in 3 games, which is great. The last six weeks I've had a couple of 2nd place finishes but not much else. And perhaps the reason is the players around me are just getting better, but I've also recognized a horrible habit I've been getting myself into.

One of the things I like to do is play some online freeroll Pokerstars tournaments. Although if you win enough pots you might qualify for round 2 which actually pays out some cash even though it's 100% free to enter, these tourneys are usually examples of what NOT to do when playing.

I noticed a lot of people limping in with awful hands like Ace-rag (Ace with a weak kicker), they get raised with someone holding a legitimate hand like pocket Kings, they catch their Ace and win a big pot. They should have never been in the pot to begin with, but they took their chances and won chips. So when I see that happen, what do I start doing? The other night I'm one off from the dealer button, no one raised, I call with Ace-rag, I hit my Ace and bet, get called, and sure enough I get beat with someone holding Ace-Ten. I should have never been in the pot to begin with, but since I saw someone bring pocket Kings crumbling down, I figure I'm due as well. In essence, I'm mimicking other players' bad habits.

The other night, with chip stacks starting at 800, I look down at Queen-Ten. This is a weak hand that looks ok to a beginner, but an experienced player knows this is nothing but a trap hand that can get you into all sorts of trouble. So this is what happens: The blinds are 20-40, I'm down to 600 chips, and like an absolute idiot call 40 with my Queen-Ten. Another person calls, the big blind raises another 60. Now that there's all those chips in the middle, what's another 60? So I call that. The flop completely misses me, so I check, the original raiser bets out and I have to fold. That one hand cost me 16.6% of my chips and I'm shortstacked. And I shouldn't have played it in the first place!

Let's go over those two hands and explain why they are so horrible:

If you play Ace-rag, there's too great a chance you are outkicked. Ace-King, Ace-Queen and Ace-Jack are all starting hands players enter pots with that have you beat. Unless you're really lucky and catch two pair, you have little chance of winning, and if your Ace hits you will likely bet and lose even more chips.

If someone raised with a hand like pocket Kings and you call with your Ace-rag, your "rag" is useless if it pairs up and chances are you'll bet out with it and lose money. Or you'll see two overcards on the flop and fold to a bet and lose the money you put in at the start. A big pocket pair against Ace-rag is a 67% favourite pre-flop, so you're clearly not putting your money in with the best of it. If you play Ace-rag against a larger Ace like Ace-King, the odds are 70% you'll lose.

Queen-Ten is just a nightmare from start to finish. If someone is playing Aces, Kings, Queens, Ace-Queen, King-Queen or Queen-Jack you're already a dog, and if you pair your Queen or your Ten (in which case you can add the Ace-Ten, pocket jacks and pocket tens having you beat) you can kiss your chips goodbye. While it might be ok sometimes to limp in with Queen-Ten and hope for straight possibilities or hitting two pair, you also have to worry about getting raised like I was in my example and waste more chips playing hands that should have been folded to begin with.

While others might get lucky calling with mediocre hands, remember, in the long run, they will come out short. Don't fall into the trap of "monkey see, monkey do" when someone gets lucky playing lousy starting hands. Avoid those trap hands, play solid values, and although you can't win everytime, you will win more consistently and frequently.

I'm a bit late in talking about it but better late than never. One of the best things about sports is that everyone can predict, everyone can have an opinion, everyone can put all their money down on the favourites and swear to it, but the beauty of it all is that the games still have to be played, and upsets can and will happen.

Edmonton showed so much hustle, heart, determination, grit, and add to the fact the players themselves have peaked at the right time have just made them that more dangerous. Although the series ended 4 games to 1 against Anaheim, I have to give the Ducks credit, they showed no quit whatsoever and very easily could have been a game 6. But the Oilers were resilient and they will move on.

It's really too bad the fans have been a disgrace. I don't mean inside Rexall Place, where they can brag about being the loudest fans in the entire NHL. Post game celebrations have been atrocious. Smashed store windows, upturned phone booths, fights, fires, broken beer bottles...George Laraque commented it's depressing to hear about it and tries to ignore the media reports. Hopefully, the citizens of Edmonton will make amends if the Oilers do manage to win Lord Stanley.

Moving on, I cannot recall the last time an 8th placed team managed to reach the Stanley Cup finals. And what a time to do it: for Canadian fans, disappointments in Calgary and Ottawa in the post-season; Toronto and Vancouver not even making it to the dance while the only consolation was that Montreal seemed to be on the right track towards building a contender for the future.

Now, we have the supposed underdog to cheer for.

Now, Edmonton fans are a bit greedy. The taste of post-season success is just too sweet. Nothing less than the Cup will make the fans and the team itself satisfied. And an entire country will be there to enjoy the ride. Let's hope they pull it off.

Working together for so many years will have its ups and downs, and for Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel, this was definitely a down day. Click the link:

Siskel calls Ebert an a**hole

Maybe it's just another slow day for Sens news at the Ottawa Sun, but reporter Bruce Garrioch mentioned in today's paper that the Senators are considering resigning Dominik Hasek. At the last press conference, coach Bryan Murray said it was "time to move on" and consider other options. Hasek appeared on TSN's Off The Record last week and said he wants to come back to Ottawa, and wouldn't play for any other NHL team.

The reason why he wouldn't play for any other team is that no one will sign him. Well, at least I don't think anyone will. Hey, when GM John Muckler signed Hasek everyone said he was too old and his groin could explode at any minute. I personally applauded the signing when it happened as it was a bold and risky move. If you want to go a long way, sometimes you have to roll the dice. Sort of like in poker when you're holding Ace-King and your opponent is holding a small pair. It's a coin flip, but you need to be aggressive when you're trying to build a contender.

Of course, it didn't work out, the proverbial Ace-King never pairing up. That's ok, I mean, what's done is done and you can't go back. But you can't consider revisiting this option. Hasek is a flake and is unwilling to play just slightly injured. Every analyst pointed out his injury does not take months to heal, more like weeks at the most. He probably had some discomfort, but he was mentally convinced he could not perform. Or didn't want to perform. And the Senators suffered for it, on and off the ice.

I do think Ottawa needs to go after a veteran goalie. Emery should not be given a full-time slot automatically. If possible, I'd call up Florida and see what they want for Luongo. Package one of Redden or Chara, thrown in Havlat and maybe one of their goalie prospects or perhaps Emery himself. The point is, the Hasek experiement failed, and as Murray said, it's time to move on.

So last night I went to see The Da Vinci Code. The theatre wasn't too full, maybe because everyone who wanted to see it has already seen it or maybe because the final American Idol episode was on.

It has been quite fashionable to bash The Da Vinci Code whether it's in book or film format. The Cannes film festival critics hated it with a passion, and reading the buzz on how bad it was made me think we might have another Waterworld on our hands. But really, it isn't that bad.

What we have is an average thriller, with predictable twists and turns and the normal car chases and races on foot, that has piqued more interest because it questions what really went on with Jesus Christ and Mary Magdelene. This isn't really groundbreaking stuff, because I think we've all heard at one time or another the "rumour" Jesus married Mary Magdelene, had a child, etc. The film is interesting when it describes the history of Pagans, the Knights Templar and the power stuggles in the Vatican. What is true and what isn't, well, I'm no student of history and it's been repeated many times that this book/movie is entirely a work of fiction. But still interesting nonetheless. More so than the central plot of the film of a male and female lead running of time, being chased at every corner, needing to find the clues to locate the treasure they're looking for.

I didn't read the book, and I could still tell they were trying to cram as much as they could from it in the near 2 1/2 hour screen time. This might be a more enjoyable film if you have read it before.

Anyway, you don't really need to see this in the theatre, and I think the critics were a little bit grumpy when the majority gave it a thumbs down. Remember, this is the same group of people that though David Cronenberg's Crash was art, so I'm always a bit suspicious. This is one of those movies that's worth a Friday night rental, you probably don't need to own it in your DVD collection, but you will discuss it with others that have seen it, too.

Mildly recommended.

A good time was had by all but especially me, taking home a prize touching $180! And that sweet sweet trophy proudly displayed in my home. Thanks again to Alex and Kerri for putting it together...no Stanfords, no tourney!

I think any NHL team would love to have a Brad Richards on their team. But at the price tag the Tampa Bay Lightning agreed to, $7.8M a year for five years, it makes you wonder if anyone learned anything from the NHL lockout.

Richards is now the 2nd highest paid player in the league, second only to Jaromir Jagr. And really the only reason why Jagr is making more is that his contract was signed prior to the rules regarding team spending. Maybe, because Jagr signed his contract in the pre-cap era, you can now consider Richards the highest paid player in the NHL. It doesn't make any sense to me.

Each team's salary cap was $39M for this year. Richards' contract combined with teammates Martin St Louis and Vincent Lecavalier will now eat up a total of $20M of cap room. FOR THREE PLAYERS! How on earth can they make any room to sign any other quality talent? And what if Richards doesn't perform to standards? What team would agree to acquire him in a trade, or maybe just claim off waivers, with that huge price tag attached to him?

I can only think that the Lightning might be considering dumping Martin St. Louis when they made this deal with Richards. Sure, these guys brought you a Stanley Cup in 2004, but this year they were bounced from the first round of the playoffs and Richards didn't even crack the top 10 in scoring. If you're paid like you are the top forward in the league, that's a minimum requirement in my books.

Well, I should end by saying congratulations to Brad Richards. Hey, no one pointed a gun to the collectived head of Tampa Bay to offer the contract they did. I would have signed it, too.

I was simply enjoying a Costco dessert. Really, that's all! And unfortunately, while savouring an apple-caramel crisp concoction, there was something that when my teeth tried to chew, it just didn't want to break down into more manageable pieces. Turns out it was a broken screw of some kind that found its way into the pie. Yeesh. Next time I'll have to break out the metal detector if I try eat something else from Costco!

I have to admit that a lot of my thinking has changed in the last week. In business, I take a very clinical approach to decisions. But this last week has been clouded with raw emotion over our devastating early loss in the playoffs.

My first draft of this column was started two hours after losing last Saturday night around midnight. By 2 a.m., I realized that this was not the time to write a letter to our fans and supporters. It was titled "Crushed" and I was writing it only from the perspective of a passionate fan and not as a fan AND an owner.

I set aside the column and came back to it mid-week to review it again. The pain and disappointment of getting knocked out so early -- let alone not winning the Cup -- was evident in that first draft. And I think it reflected what most fans were thinking last weekend.

A friend sent me the five stages of grief this week, and -- while clearly a little dramatic -- it effectively summarized my thinking over the last seven days.

- Denial -- This did not just happen to us. Not again. Not after waiting for the lockout, the trades, a great regular season -- and then this.

- Anger -- Somebody has to pay for this. Someone must be blamed. Vengeance should be swift and immediate.

- Bargaining -- I'll do anything to win the Cup. Change the players, change the coach, change the management ... change anything if it will just bring the Cup to Ottawa.

- Depression -- We'll never win. We always seem to choke. Why did I ever start loving a game that can be so painful?

- Acceptance -- Okay, we're done for the year. Time to stop feeling sorry for ourselves (including me). We have to focus on what needs to be done. Let's get on with it and do it.

It's very possible that I've advanced through this process quicker than many of you who are reading this, but the only way this is going to work next year is to pull ourselves up right now and start thinking and acting in ways that will affect what we see on the ice this fall.

We need to stop fearing the playoffs. We need to stop thinking that history is against us. We need to re-energize this team and ignite the spark that's going to keep our edge in close third periods and win those overtime games. We need to make some changes, but remind ourselves that at one point, we were THE elite team this season. We need to think how we are going to win and win right through to the end.

First and foremost, Roy Mlakar, Bryan Murray and John Muckler have my complete confidence and support. I am going to be working with them over the coming weeks and determine what needs to be done. No anger, no denial, no bargaining, no depression. Just focusing on what needs to be done and doing it. We start Monday.

There are a lot of books on management that you can buy that deal with change in organizations. My suggestion is to save your money and take my advice. The only corporate culture that matters in an organization is one that demands flawless execution and success. The only people that deserve accolades are those who deliver.

But the other secret of good management is recognizing your strengths -- especially when you're still coming through the fog after a tough battle. And we have incredible strength in this franchise.

We (and please, anyone outside of Hockey Country, don't argue with me) have the greatest fans that an owner can ask for. Community support for the team has never been higher. As a fan attending games, I have felt your passion and enthusiasm for our great team. As an owner looking at the attendance stats, I wouldn't want to own any other team in the league.

Our coaching staff is excellent and their leadership will be a cornerstone for this team when we hit the ice again in the fall. Our management is excellent and there is nobody in the league I would rather have managing this team.

We clearly have incredible talent on the ice -- and we need to figure out what needs changing and how to do it. Above all else, we're going to preserve and invest in the on-ice talent that will be essential to winning the Stanley Cup.

In writing this column, I went back and re-read my comments in this newspaper from 2003 when I bought the team and encouraged fans to keep the faith. I read my comments after the 2004 loss where I guaranteed fans that we will do whatever it takes to win.

To a fan, hockey is a great but sometimes brutal game -- and only one of 30 cities is going to be feeling great by this time next month. But while you're barbecuing this summer and speculating on next season, I want you to think about this:

I firmly believe the Ottawa Senators will not only win the Stanley Cup, but we will build a team with the talent and drive to hoard that Cup year after year in the playoffs. I guarantee that you have never seen the level of determination that is about to go into putting together our 2006-2007 season. And I guarantee that I will not rest until Ottawa becomes the hockey Mecca of the NHL.

I've been accused in the past of harbouring unbridled optimism, but I'll tell you this -- I always deliver.

Note: Blatantly copied word for word from the ottawasenators.com website

DVD has been in existence roughly since 1997, and with the 10th anniversary of the format approaching, it is already the beginning of the end for this format. While I personally don't think DVD really took off as the true "must have" format until five-six years ago, the industry is telling up there are new, higher quality formats consumers will have to choose from. Quite frankly, I think this is too early, and the wave of the future isn't on discs but what can be put onto the hard drive of your PC. But I'll get to that in a second.

Toshiba has actually already released a format called HD-DVD, which is a good name considering the word DVD is familar to consumers and doesn't seem to be too much of a stretch to move on to this system. The main difference is the storage capacity of the disc, where it can hold 15GB of storage space whereas a standard DVD holds about 4.4GB. And because the materials and production methods are similar to typical DVD, it is said there won't be too much variance in the price. There was little fanfare with the release of HD-DVD so it's curious as to just exactly how they planned to generate sales when the players first became available.

Blu-Ray technology is led by Sony, and thus we are probably headed to having a Beta vs VHS type war developing as the big players in the electronics industry did not come to an agreement on just one format to support to ease confusion in the marketplace. Blu-Ray had the advantage of holding a whopping 25GB of data one one disc. Because the manufacturing process is completely new, its drawback with consumers is that the discs and players are going to cost more. The players are starting off at $999.99USD at the Sonystyle.com site, while HD-DVD players are coming in at around $499.99USD. Sony is launching it's Playstation 3 later this year, and will be Blu-Ray compatible which should no doubt help the format along. Similarly, Microsoft is backing HD-DVD and will have an external HD-DVD drive available for those who own an X-Box 360. Having the formats avaiable on gaming systems in some ways makes it cheaper for customers to acquire, if you divy the cost of buying one gaming system AND a new player as opposed to the cost of acquiring one system that can both play games and play the new formats.

The good news for DVD owners is that both formats have backwards capability meaning that your existing DVDs will be able to play on both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD players. However, I am not thrilled at the idea of another format war, especially when the future of watching video is downloading to your PC or some form of hard drive. With the latest craze in TV being the use of the PVR (Personal Video Recorder), users can point and click what they want to watch, when they want to watch it and enjoy at their own leisure. High definition transfers are already possible. Why not make a format where a consumer can legally download video to their PVRs, and store them for viewing at their pleasure? Why have the consumer buy an HD-DVD player only to be told a year later that it is no longer a supported format and they have to shell out more cash for a Blu-Ray player?

I think the industry isn't ready for a format war right now. I think consumers are getting comforable with their DVDs and haven't really demanded an upgrade from it yet. When I put in my DVD for Star Wars, I don't look at it and think, "Wow, the picture sucks". What consumers are exploring are new avenues of acquiring media, as tangible discs and tapes seem to be fading, something the industry overall seems to ignore.

We'll see what happens.

The Edmonton Oilers shouldn't be where they are. In fact, they were pretty lucky to make it into the post-season in the first place, qualifying for the playoffs only after the Vancouver Canucks lost game #81 of the season. When the NHL season started, the word "small market" wasn't used when the Oilers boldly went after former Selke and Norris trophy winners Michael Peca and Chris Pronger, showing the fans the organization meant business and were willing to spend to put together a winner.

They were treated like rock stars when they were brought to Edmonton, however they soon fizzled once the season started. They looked rather ordinary, and the goaltending woes they had prior to the NHL lockout resurfaced. They addressed the problem by going after veteran keeper Dwayne Roloson from the Minnesota Wild. Rolly the Goalie didn't exactly set the world ablaze when he became Edmonton's #1 starter, and missing the playoffs seemed very probable.

However, all that regular season mediocrity has been erased. Peca, Pronger, Roloson as well as #1 centre Shawn Horcoff stepped up to the plate when it mattered most, and now Canada has a team to get behind after knocking out the San Jose Sharks in 6 games. Edmonton reaching the final four has now made it four consecutive playoff seasons where a Canadian team has made it at least as far as the Conference Finals. Can Edmonton pull it off and bring Lord Stanley back to Canada? Well, considering that every team remaining didn't even make the playoffs last time there was hockey, anything is possible. And currently having the loudest fans to cheer them on won't hurt them, either. But don't get too crazy...the riot police had to be brought in after the post-game 6 celebrations.

Broken promises...blind faith...40 years of failure. A Toronto Maple Leafs fan has seen it all and can't take it anymore. So, for the starting bid of 67 cents (very symbolic), you can buy his loyalty and have him devote himself to another team. Ebay has had interesting items up for bids, but this is the first time to my knowledge that loyalty is one of them. One less Leafs fan makes the world a better place in my view!

http://cgi.ebay.com/Free-Agent-Fan-Toronto-Maple-Leafs-Senators-Canadiens_W0QQitemZ952 1189870QQcategoryZ1469QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
#ebayphotohosting

Continuing from my poker post dated, wow, April 27 (time flies when you see your Sens choke!)I'd like to share with you some more tells that may help you in future cards session if you're trying to decide if your opponent is strong or weak:

- A player who organizes their chips in neat stacks is usually the sign of someone who's not a big gambler and is tight. Someone who has their chips in a big mess in front of them is usually a loose player and will play any two cards.

- If someone is busy playing with their MP3 player, talking on a cell phone or in a conversation with someone, then they peak at their cards and reach for chips, give them credit for a strong hand. Hardly anyone will play a junk hand if they have something else to pass their time

- A player who bets quickly is usually weak. A player who bets slowly is usually strong, as they are trying to demonstrate they are uncertain about betting.

- Players who call their hand quickly are usually on some sort of draw. If they've made a modest hand, they usually think a little bit before making a decision. If they've made a monster hand, like flopping three of a kind, they will contemplate raising or flat calling and not rush their decision.

- If you're thinking about making a bet and the player next to act is reaching for chips, that's usually a sign they're weak and they're trying to intimidate you by implying they will raise or call your bet.

If you're playing against a savvy player, you might encounter the "reverse" tell. For example, I played a hand where there were four callers including myself, and I held pocket 7s. The flop came:

2-3-5

Not a bad flop for 7s. I was first to act and bet 1/2 the pot. The person next to me raised and the last two players folded. I made a mistake already by not raising my hand pre-flop, so he could have had anything. While I was thinking about it, he leant back against his chair and had his hands behind his head...a sign of strength. I quickly folded.

"What did you have?"
"Not much" and showed me one of his hole cards, a five. I was well ahead in the hand with my 7s better than his smaller pair.
"I thought you had a monster hand!" I said later on in the evening.
"That's what I wanted you to think!" was the response.

Always be careful with tells!

(Use the voice from that old "Deep Woods" commercial everytime you read NEGATIVE EQUITY)

You might recall sometime ago I was contemplating giving up my Jeep to drive something a little cheaper in an effort to save a bit of dough. They appraised the vehicle and unfortunately, I have NEGATIVE EQUITY.

I test drove the Chevy Cobalt and liked it, but it didn't matter. NEGATIVE EQUITY made my decision easy to hold onto the Jeep. Oh sure, they were willing to take care of my NEGATIVE EQUITY by having me finance it over the term of my new lease agreement, but I decided against it.

C'est la vie. That's ok though, I like my TJ.

To all the good mothers of the world, hope your sons and daughters were good to you and hope you had a terrific mother's day!

It happened once again tonight.

One miscue, and it's all over. With Ottawa dominating the majority of game 5, it seemed to be a game destined for a Sens victory with Buffalo off for a hooking call in OT. Special teams have been the difference maker in a lot of these playoffs, and you had to think luck was shining in Ottawa's favour.

Unfortunately, the special teams of Buffalo was the difference when they scored their third short-handed goal of the series against Ottawa. And what a time to do it...in an elimination game in overtime.

The Senators had me fooled. When Alfredsson finally got a big monkey off his back by finally scoring in the first period, it was like a ray of hope was shining in SBP. The big guns were coming through. Maybe this is the start of something special.

Nope.

Ottawa outplayed them for the most part. Had them beat, again, on the shot clock. But no one will remember that. They'll remember another choke job and the past reputation of the Sens merely repeating itself. The Sabres did a good job of keeping Heatley, Alfredsson and Havlat off the scoresheet throughout the series. Spezza lead the team in goal-scoring which shows you how backwards the playoffs can be to the regular season. He tallied 19 goals in 70 or so regular season games. He managed 5 in just 10 post-season ones. This also tells you that Heatley, Alfie and Havlat needed to pot a goal once in a while.

Although no one can blame Ray Emery for the loss, he didn't exactly set records ablaze with his performance against Buffalo. He was horrible in game 1, couldn't make a big stop in game 2, and while he played well in games 3 and 4, he let in a big softee 30 seconds into the match in game 5. But, he is only 23 years old and this experience will only make him better, and will probably be called upon to be the #1 keeper for the Sens next season.

The sting of losing wasn't as hard as I thought I'd be. Mostly because the real stinger was game 3 when the Sens put themselves in too deep a hole Tuesday night. That loss hurt the most. No one, not even me, thought they could pull it off. And that' s exactly what happened.

So now what? What changes are coming? Based on what transpired in the playoffs, it will be a much easier decision to hold onto Redden than Chara. This supposed dominate defenceman was pretty invisible for the most part, and Brian Pothier with less ice time played more of a role than Big Z. Maybe Chara will take a nominal raise to stay to try to make amends for his post-season, but that's unlikely to happen and I expect him donning a new uniform next season.

Havlat needs a new contract. Spezza needs a new deal. Redden, Chara, Schaefer, Pothier, and I think Philips...they all need to be re-signed.

Questions are going to mount about captain Daniel Alfredsson. It doesn't help his cause that he was the one Jason Pominville walked around to score the OT winner. Do you keep him, trade him or maybe give someone else the C?

It will be interesting to see what transpires in the off-season for Ottawa. Moves will be made, and a renewed sense of optimism will probably result. But this season, which was supposed to be different, which supposedly was fixed to correct what happened in the past and lead to a the prize of a Stanley Cup, didn't happen. Eugene Melnyk will still be dedicated to giving Ottawa a winner, and for that reason alone, Sens fans shouldn't abandon their team, and instead look forward to what the future brings. I intend to take part.

Will these be the last tickets I use for the 2005/06 season? I'll be heading to SBP tomorrow night to what will hopefully be an extension to a game 6 in this series. I don't know how much more I can take. My pulse rises to sky-high levels and my veins feel like they're going to pop out.

Anyway, the good people at youtube have this clip up from This Hour has 22 Minutes after a visit to the Sens locker room. Funny stuff...see if you can spot the two Sens who haven't played a playoff game!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziHfRsDlLr4

Looks like Ottawa won't go away quietly.

Ottawa did what they should have done at the start of game 3: press the attack from the opening face-off and get that very important first goal. Ottawa totally dominated the first period while Emery made a couple of key saves to keep the momentum going for the Senators. Buffalo's frustration was evident as they took a needless penalty while already trying to kill a power play giving Ottawa a 5 on 3. Ottawa couldn't capitalize on it, but turned out it didn't matter.

It was all Buffalo in the second period and what Ottawa needed: a goaltender to step up and make big stops, Emery supplied. Buffalo did manage to take charge of the second period outshooting Ottawa by a margin of 16-3, but could only manage one goal thanks to Emery. As the game progressed, it got very gritty and chippy. Lots of work along the boards and not much room to make plays. Every goal was a difference maker and the wide-open game 1 was nowhere to be found.

The third period Ottawa pressed first and were rewarded with an early tally in the third period. Like most of the game, it wasn't pretty. A shot by Redden from the point with traffic in front deflected slightly and was the difference. No tic-tac-toe play. No fancy drop-pass in the slot area. Both goals, in fact, from the point with traffic in front.

Ottawa didn't press too much after taking the lead and Buffalo had the puck in Ottawa's zone for most of the third but Ottawa did a good job keeping it to the outside. The few times they were able to sneak in, Emery came up with a big save and all of a sudden we have a game 5. Could this be the start of something historic? We'll see what happens Saturday first.

Other thoughts:

Volchenkov seems to have figured out the way to handle an odd man rush. He made a nice play blocking a pass/shot attempt in the third...Alfredsson picked up the third star in CBC's broadcast but Don Cherry was nice enough to point out he didn't deserve it...Annoying how every CBC analyst talk about how Ottawa"can't score", even though every game has been decided by just one goal including two in overtime...Nice to see Ray Emery flash his brilliant smile in the post-game interview. He looked at peace and confident, which it what Ottawa needs...Redden had a strong game last night, as did Fisher as usual...Chara threw his size around a little more, the best hit was when he checked both Briere & Dumont on the same play. He still seems to check his opponents soft though...When is Heatley going to score?...Cole & Neale still stink...It will be interesting to see how many people are back on the bandwagon tomorrow. The comments at the office ranged from "Sorry, SBP" to "We gotta ship Alfie outta here and pick up Bertuzzi" (that's just what we need, an underachieving basketcase). But surprisingly, most were sympathetic to my plight of seeing my Sens lose game 3...11 to go!

Puck luck.

I actually thought Ottawa was going to get a reversal of fortune the way Buffalo couldn't cash in on their chances at the start.

The game started full throttle for the Sabres. And Ottawa was getting quite lucky: goal posts, fanned shots, missed nets...it seemed that Buffalo was finally getting a taste of what it was like for the Sens in game 2. Maybe Ottawa's fortunes were going to change.

Nope. No siree. Justice, for the game anyway, prevailed and the better team won tonight. Ottawa did manage to outshoot their opposition again but barely, and Buffalo did a good job from giving Ottawa top quality chances and most shots came from outside the perimeter.

Ottawa's D was slightly more cautious but at the same time seemed more tentative and nervous. Once again, the supposed top defensive corps in the NHL were still too sloppy and the opportunistic Sabres applied all kinds of pressure and created turnovers from Ottawa's errors. When Ottawa tied it 1-1 and Varada was called for hooking, it was all Buffalo and Ray Emery made some terrific stops. But after the powerplay, well, it didn't seem to end. Buffalo was playing keep-away and then got the go ahead. Ottawa managed to tie perhaps showing some resiliency, but it was not to be. Maybe Emery should have stopped the overtime marker, maybe not. But really, Ottawa has no one to blame for the loss this time but themselves.

Other thoughts:

Wouldn't it have been nice to see Alfredsson score that shot that hit the post in the dying seconds of the third? That would have shut a lot of people up...Bob Cole can kiss my a**. Well, he can't because he's too busy kissing the collective a** of the Buffalo Sabres...Ottawa still doesn't know how to handle a 2 on 1...Ray made a lot of good stops but he made them all look too difficult...Chara did not play like a #1 defenseman, again...Dany Heatley had a glorious chance in overtime to end it but was tackled on the play. Why a penalty was not called, who knows...Mike Fisher was again the hardest-working Senator...I'll still cheer on my Sens and I'll still watch game 4, but they're done. Their were two teams that have battled back from 3-0 deficits: The 1942 Leafs and the 1975 Islanders. Working in Ottawa's favour is that the pattern seems to show that this happens every three decades, so maybe a comeback of comebacks is in the works...Hasek may play tomorrow, maybe not. The way I see it, it can't get any worse, so why not give it a go.

It sure seems like an old-school playoff series for the Sens, doesn't it?

By that, I mean, no matter what Ottawa tries to do, as the saying goes, they're getting no "puck luck". Kinda like the 2004 playoffs where they would outshoot the Leafs 2 to 1 and still come up short. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres have had EVERYTHING going in for them. Four shots in the second period...two goals. What else can Ottawa do...they outshot them 44-17. And they still lose. The entire third period was pretty much in Buffalo's end. Buffalo was quite content to sit back and just play defense. Miller made some great saves, and he was the difference.

What if Spezza scored on that breakway? What if Alfredsson managed to roof it instead of going over the wide-open net? What if that last second scramble found an Ottawa stick for a tap in? I think I heard a crossbar or two as well. No matter what Ottawa did, the hockey gods thought it appropriate not to reward them.

On the other hand, they didn't seem to catch fire until Buffalo made it 2-1, and although they controlled the play for most of the game, it didn't have a playoff "desperation" feel to it until the Sabres took the lead. They gotta come out full throttle from the opening faceoff and get that first goal.

This series could just as easily be 2-0 for Ottawa. If there was justice, it might be 1-1. But it's not. I said Ottawa in 6, so, they'll have to win four in a row. Carolina did it last series against Montreal, why can't Ottawa? All four series currently have 2-0 leads, someone has got to come back to take it. NHL.COM polls Ottawa as being the team capable of doing it.

Ottawa has lost every series they've played where they've gone down 2-0. If you were to pick a team from their history that could battle back to win, it would be this season's edition. They can win back-to-back in Buffalo. I think they can do it. Maybe some "puck luck" will come their way tomorrow and Thursday. Those chances they couldn't cash in on hopefully will go in in Buffalo.

If they lose Wednesday night though, it's over.

Other thoughts:

Alfredsson is dying on the third line. The pizza line needs to be reunited from the FIRST period onward, not when there's only 10 minutes left in the game. It worked all season, why stop now?...Ottawa's D have no idea how to play a 2 on 1. Take the shooter. Take the passer. Take SOMEONE! Chara did neither with his feeble attempt to thwart one last night...Hockey is truly a game of inches. One bad pinch, one bad pass, both are in the net...Can't exactly fault Emery for the two goals, but the Hecht breakaway he clearly dropped down too early and he paid for it...Meszaros followed up his worst game of the year with a good, solid effort...Spezza and Heatley were invisible for the first 2 1/2 periods...I'm sick of people bashing Alfredsson (particularly Ron Maclean and Don Cherry who seemed to imply Alfie had no role in Sweden's gold medal victory). He had a bad third period, sure, but his line with Smolinski and Eaves was the best one for the first 40 minutes, which says a lot...Peter Schaefer's levelling of Tim Connolly seemed to imply it would be Ottawa's night. But they never capitalized on it...By popular demand, I'll try to do my game recaps at night so you'll have a fresh Sens post the morning after the game.

The summer movie season officially kicked-off this past Friday with box office star Tom Cruise reprising his role as Ethan Hunt in Mission Impossible: III. Originally, I had no intentions of seeing this movie, I didn’t care much for I and II (think about it…can you recall more than five minutes from any of those two pictures?) but the reviews were mostly positive so I thought I’d give it a shot.

In the back of my mind, of course, were Cruise’s shenanigans with the press regarding his Scientology devotion and the seemingly possessive relationship he has with fellow actress Katie Holmes. For the record, I never had a problem with Cruise before and I think he is a talented actor and can be counted on more times than not to deliver the goods. I also think he is a nutbar. MI:3 ended up doing somewhat disappointing box office (less than $50 million opening weekend when forecasts predicted up to $80 million or thereabouts) which makes me think the public IS sick of Cruise’s latest escapades. But for me, as long as you make a good movie, I could care less either way.

So, all that aside, MI:3 is easily the best of the MI flicks. There are three different scenes/sequences that will stick with you after you leave the theatre, just for the sheer fun and tension of the scenes in question. I don’t want to spoil what they are for those who haven’t seen the movie yet, but I’ll drop these three words so you know what I’m talking about should you decide to see it (no pun intended): “Bridge”, “Rooftop” and “Electricity”.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is of course awesome as the villain, but didn’t get enough screen time. The story also developed the character of Ethan Hunt more and instead of Hunt being the loner who requires no help, MI instead focuses more on the team effort aspect inspired by the original TV series that I think was missing in the first two (or maybe just the first one, again, I don't remember the first two very well). This makes us believe in Hunt a little more, despite you having to suspend your disbelief in some areas.

Definitely worth seeing on the big screen. And some good previews too before it (including Superman, X-Men 3 and Nacho Libre!). This might be a summer where I'll re-visit the theatre more like I used to.

When George Lucas announced that the original Star Wars trilogy was coming to DVD, most fans let out a "finally" as DVD technology by this point was already seven-eight years old and it seemed to be some sort of ploy by Lucas to saturate demand as much as possible. Of course, some couldn't wait eight years and decided to buy or download pirated copies. Lucas didn't appreciate not getting paid for the work he did, but most didn't sympathize with him since he simply didn't provide the DVDs to purchase when the public WANTED to give him their money.

Regardless, when the DVDs were given a release date back in 2004, the first question everyone asked was if the original editions would be included on the discs. George Lucas stated only the special editions would be available, as those were his true "vision" as the older versions fans saw in theatres was not the intended final cut. Indeed, claiming "art" was his motive was a good defense but for true die-hard Star Wars fans, all this did was piss them off and continue to find bootleg copies of the originals they fondly remember in theatres. Everyone knows DVD has the capability of carrying multiple versions of films so both the original and special editions could have been put on one disc with ease. Most sensed that Mr. Lucas was doing this just so he could release a separate DVD release later, and cash in on that.

Sure enough, that's exactly what happened. September 12, 2006 will see the release of the original versions of the Star Wars trilogy released on DVD, and of course Lucas and company are simply catering to public demand when they do this. Fans love the originals so much, hey, they're only doing what they want.

But cynical fans like me know too well George is simply doing this as part of his pre-determined marketing strategy to maximize revenues for his movies. Yeah, it's his property and he can do whatever he wants to do with it. He'll cater to what the fanbase asks so long as he gets paid for it. With the 30th anniversary of Star Wars coming next year and a talked about six disc "super set" rumoured to be in development, I think fans are going to get screwed if they decided to fork over more dough for the original cuts. But hey, at least someone is making a profit.

By the way, that photo above....I can guaranteed you that ain't George writing out a cheque to someone.

Most fans probably saw last night's same as entertaining fare and are eager to see what the rest of the series holds.

For myself, I want tightening up, less goals allowed and more attention to defence.

Last night's loss is probably one of Ottawa worst losses in their playoff history. Worst, not in the sense that they just lost a game. Worst in a sense that they had the opportunity to seize control, win the game, and their carelessness blew it. That smug grin on Brian Smolinski after scoring Ottawa's 6th goal was simple arrogrance, and forgetting they had the lead multiple times during the game and always allowed Buffalo to come back...perhaps this will be a wakeup call they need to better prepare for the rest of the series.

Some Senators decided this was the time to turn in their worst performance in the NHL. Andrej Meszaros, I'm talking to you. Bad pinches, lousy dump-ins, horrible back-checking and a costly bad penalty after playing a fantastic game 5 against Tampa; what exactly happened out there Andrej?

I can't blame Emery for the loss, but as John Toroterella said previously, "We need an occasional goddamn save." Or in this case, all he had to do was smother the puck in the final seconds and he couldn't even do that. 7 goals on 23 shots. Awful.

After Volchenkov's turnover in overtime, only the second time I've seen him do something like that (although the last time was game 2 vs Tampa Bay) and the final marker afterward, to say it was shocking is an understatement. It was like a bad dream, but unfortunately this was real life.

I said Sens in six and I'm still sticking by that. You can look at the game as not so much what Buffalo did but what Ottawa did to themselves. They did so many things they don't normally do, you can look at it that despite all that carnage yesterday, the opposition still required overtime to finish them off.

Game 2 will show what Ottawa is made of. No team has gone 16-0 to win the Cup, and losses will come. How they handle this deflating loss will show us exactly what the Senators are made of.

Round 2 is set for tomorrow, and both teams are chomping at the bit to get it on. This should be a tremendous series. No defence first Calgary Flames. No slow, lumbering Philadelphia Flyers. Instead, we have two deep teams who pride themselves as being fast, hard-skating clubs. If you picked Sabres and Senators in your hockey pools, you will probably be rewarded with high-scoring affairs.

Ottawa has a 5-1-2 record against the Sabres over the course of the regular season, but it doesn't really tell the whole story. Earlier in the season, the Sens blew them out of the water with scores of 5-0, 10-4 & 6-1, but at the time Buffalo didn't really find their stride. Buffalo did pick up their wins more recently including a 6-2 victory early April, but that was during the time Ottawa was plagued with injuries to Chara, Redden, Phillips and Havlat. It's hard to gauge who is the better team based solely on regular season play.

Up front Ottawa has Heatley, Spezza, Havlat and Alfredsson to carry the offensive load. Buffalo will rely on guys like Daniel Briere, Tim Connolly, Chris Drury and J.P. Dumont. The Sabres are as deep as the Senators but I think Ottawa has the edge with offence. No one can score goals better than Heatley on either team. No one can set up plays as good as Spezza. There's a reason why Ottawa led the league in goal-scoring this year.

Ottawa is better defensively with Chara, Redden and Phillips leading the group. Brian Campbell, Teppo Numminen and Jay Mckee are capable but Ottawa is deeper and can be counted on more so five-on-five. Once again, over the course of the season Ottawa has been superior to nearly every team at full strength. Buffalo has no defensemen with a +/- higher than 14 while Ottawa's top 6 D all have ratings of +17 or greater.

Ray Emery and Ryan Miller are in similar circumstances haveing just played their first playoff series and have about the same level of experience. Both have answered the bell when counted upon. I think Miller at the start might be on nerves as Ottawa should be able to generate more scoring chances than Philadelphia was capable of, but he should be able to handle it fine. It's about even here.

The Sabres will relish the role of underdog, as they are a small skating team "with big hearts" as Vaclav Varada put it. A lot of people didn't even think they would make the playoffs. They will play with a lot of heart and determination, and Ottawa must match it if they are to succeed. In the end, if Ottawa plays their best, and Buffalo plays theirs, the Senators' edge in firepower and better defence should prevail.

Should.

Ottawa in 6.

An anonymous post suggested I give my 2 cents on the Tory budget just announced yesterday. Not a bad idea. In the end, I am not going to do sommersaults over it. There's nothing for the unmarried, no children, male in the 18-35 age bracket like me. Oh yeah, the GST goes down from 7% to 6%. But look at it this way: If I pay $5,000 over the course of the year in goods (not likely to happen), I will spend $300 instead of $350 in GST. Hardly the windfall the Conservatives made it sound like we'd be getting. On the other hand, if you decide this is the year to buy your new home or car, well, I'd wait to do so until July 1st.

Within the budget is an agenda to find $2 billion in government "savings". Yeah right. That's another word for "cuts", and which area exactly will be affected: health care, education or maybe jobs, isn't so clear.

Another metaphorical kick to the groin is that low-income earners will actual see an INCREASE in their income tax. The lowest income tax rate goes up half a point that will add another $180 to the average tax bill. But hey, poor people don't vote Conservative, so who cares?

All in all, my life isn't going to change a bit. I won't be contemplating another vacation or deciding to go to an extra Sens game because of that extra cash in my wallet.

Nope, for this 18 to 35 year-old male, life is exactly the same.

I have to admit, I almost gave up on the Edmonton Oilers pulling a game 6 victory after the first two dismal periods of hockey (two shots in the second period?). But hey, it ain't over 'till it's over, and scoring four goals in the final period quickly erased the memory of their bad play before. Dwayne Roloson, who I counted as a sieve before the series began, made some huge stops and clearly outplayed Manny Legace. Chris Pronger also rose to the occasion after having a quiet, unspectacular regular season.

Did we also witness Steve Yzerman's last game? I think we did. There was no real drama in having the Red Wings winning a Stanley Cup "one more time" for Stevie Y. He has three rings, and quite frankly my bias aside with my Sens, I am not interested in seeing them or the New Jersey Devils win again. Yzerman has accomplished everything there is to accomplish in his career, and there's nothing left for him to prove.

Savour it Oilers fans, it's your first series win since 1998.

I'm all about pleasing the fans of The SBP Archives.

Hockey...poker...lightsabers...what else does SBP write about?

Maybe you're sick and tired of my articles and want something else.

I'm asking all of you...what would YOU like SBP to blog about?