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

Nothing like a serving of extra offense, served on a thick defensive crust, topped with grit, hits, and special teams. Serve this puppy hot, and enjoy. Mmmmm.....! Pizza Pizza hasn't been too busy after a Senators home game lately, but they'll be serving some free pie for the next couple of days for those fortunate fans who were at Scotiabank Place tonight.

Didn't this outcome remind you of last season? There were so many that involved the Senators dominating the opposition and winning by margins of 5 or 6 goals last year. This was the sort of game that reminded you why they were considered an elite NHL team for the last few years. We'll wait until Christmas to see where they are before they're considered a force again, but anytime your team can outscore and outplay the opposition like they did tonight, it's nothing but a good sign.

It might be unusual for me to say it was was nice to hear the fans cheer after Daniel Alfredsson got a couple of minors for slashing & roughing at different parts of the game, but it was well earned. I'm not one of those fans who feels Alfredsson doesn't care or isn't passionate about playing for Ottawa, and I definitely don't won't him traded. But, when you're the captain and the team isn't performing to par, it's easy to be picked out as the scapegoat. The fans saw Alfie take some swings back at Panther forward Stephen Weiss after Weiss took some cheap shots at him, something the former Lady Byng nominee doesn't usually do. Seeing your team captain fight back like that gives the team a boost and generates excitement for the fans. Sure, the game was pretty much already a write-off, but it carries on during the season. Remember when Alexei Kovalev's did a version of Tito Santana's "Flying Jalapeno" to Toronto's Darcy Tucker after taking a shot in the chops from him just a few moments earlier? For the first time ever, I actually thought Kovalev had a bit of passion in him. (That feeling has since subsided). Regardless, I hope this is further proof to Sens fans that Alfie DOES care, and he is a key component of this hockey club, a player that any team (with the cap space) would gladly put on their roster.

Emery was solid in net again getting the shutout and I imagine he'll get the call for Saturday's game versus Tampa Bay. Ottawa has back-to-back games Tuesday & Wednesday against the Islanders and Capitals; expect Gerber to get one of those starts.

Ok, it was nice to see Martin Gerber pick up the win last night with a solid effort against his former team. Although, you had to admit, that first goal Carolina scored reminded fans why we haven't seen Gerber play in two weeks. Soft, soft, soft. But, to his credit, he shook it off and started to play his game about 1/2 way through the first period. He was in good position, made key saves when needed and pretty much looked like the goalie we hoped for when he signed on this past summer. However, I don't think this should mean he automatically gets back the starting job, as the one of the main reasons Ottawa finds itself battling for a playoff spot now was his shoddy play. When Ray Emery got the call, he played extremely well and gave the teams two things it needed: wins and confidence.

The Ottawa Senators' website confirmed Ray Emery will get the start tomorrow against the Panthers. Gerber made the first step to come back from his slump last night, but he'll have to do a lot more to take the #1 job away from Emery.

Ok, I admit, maybe I went too far when I pressed the panic button and declared the Senators weren't going to make the playoffs after their 6-3 loss to the Canadiens a few weeks ago (it even cost me a Subway sandwich, thanks a lot guys!)but everyone has their breaking point. I mean, EVERYTHING that has plagued the Sens slow start was displayed in that matchup: lousy goaltending, lousy powerplay, short-handed goals...nothing was going right. Even my friends and co-workers who usually don't pull punches when bashing the Sens were a little disappointed that I made that prediction. Hey, I figured, you gotta call a spade a spade.

Certainly, the boys read my post and declared: "We can't let SBP down!" So they make me look like a jack*ss and beat the top team in the NHL, the Buffalo Sabres, twice in the span of four days. A four-game winning streak to follow? Unheard of. Sure, they lost to Tampa on Sunday, but that game could have just as easily been theirs. It was the first time this season where, after the loss, predictions of trading players, firing mangement or not making the playoffs did not come. Instead, the couple of weeks of hockey they played prior gave confidence to the fans that the season is not a disaster. The boys are winning games and they can make it to the post-season.

So tonight, Gerber is getting the start after Emery played 7 straight games. If Gerber can't get up for playing against his former team at their home rink, what else can? If the Sens are going to go far this year, they need both goaltenders playing well; last season's Stanley Cup finalists required both their starters and backups in net. Emery is still resting his sore wrist but even without that nuisance, Gerber was due to get some game time in. Murray is making the right move by playing this out as Emery as being the #1 and Gerber second, and not being affected by the salaries they are paid.

A few of you may not know, but every Monday I've committed myself to playing Indoor Ultimate in Gatineau to sort of force me off the couch and get the blood flowing. Our team hasn't won a game yet. And actually, the 2nd game of the season was a real confidence buster: We lost 29-6 (and I have a feeling some of us just decided to stop scoring, so it was probably even worse than that). However, I feel that game was probably just a blip on the radar. For the other three we played, we lost by one point the first game, three points or so for the next, and tonight we tied. Ultimate gets a bit of a bum rap for being a more sportsmanship-oriented sport as to others, but I can honestly say as long as the games are close and the competition even, it doesn't bother me that we lose. It's not much fun when you're getting blown out of the water 29-6 as I mentioned, but as long as the games are close, I'll continue to enjoy it.

Other thoughts...I got spanked playing heads-up against Kerri and Alex last night. Three losses, zero wins! What do you want me to do...these jerks catch Ace-King, Jacks, suck outs on the turn...ah, you gotta roll with the punches sometimes!

Most of you know I am a big fan of Michael Moore. He was one of the first people to speak out against the war in Iraq at a time when about 80-90% of the American population supported it. Many years later, Americans are coming around and wanting their troops sent back home. I thought I should share this email from his newsletter he periodically sends to subscribers, and it pretty much sums up what the U.S.A. needs to do and needs to do now:

Cut and Run, the Only Brave Thing to Do

Sunday, November 26th, 2006

Friends,

Tomorrow marks the day that we will have been in Iraq longer than we were in all of World War II.

That's right. We were able to defeat all of Nazi Germany, Mussolini, and the entire Japanese empire in LESS time than it's taken the world's only superpower to secure the road from the airport to downtown Baghdad.

And we haven't even done THAT. After 1,347 days, in the same time it took us to took us to sweep across North Africa, storm the beaches of Italy, conquer the South Pacific, and liberate all of Western Europe, we cannot, after over 3 and 1/2 years, even take over a single highway and protect ourselves from a homemade device of two tin cans placed in a pothole. No wonder the cab fare from the airport into Baghdad is now running around $35,000 for the 25-minute ride. And that doesn't even include a friggin' helmet.

Is this utter failure the fault of our troops? Hardly. That's because no amount of troops or choppers or democracy shot out of the barrel of a gun is ever going to "win" the war in Iraq. It is a lost war, lost because it never had a right to be won, lost because it was started by men who have never been to war, men who hide behind others sent to fight and die.

Let's listen to what the Iraqi people are saying, according to a recent poll conducted by the University of Maryland:

** 71% of all Iraqis now want the U.S. out of Iraq.

** 61% of all Iraqis SUPPORT insurgent attacks on U.S. troops.

Yes, the vast majority of Iraqi citizens believe that our soldiers should be killed and maimed! So what the hell are we still doing there? Talk about not getting the hint.

There are many ways to liberate a country. Usually the residents of that country rise up and liberate themselves. That's how we did it. You can also do it through nonviolent, mass civil disobedience. That's how India did it. You can get the world to boycott a regime until they are so ostracized they capitulate. That's how South Africa did it. Or you can just wait them out and, sooner or later, the king's legions simply leave (sometimes just because they're too cold). That's how Canada did it.

The one way that DOESN'T work is to invade a country and tell the people, "We are here to liberate you!" -- when they have done NOTHING to liberate themselves. Where were all the suicide bombers when Saddam was oppressing them? Where were the insurgents planting bombs along the roadside as the evildoer Saddam's convoy passed them by? I guess ol' Saddam was a cruel despot -- but not cruel enough for thousands to risk their necks. "Oh no, Mike, they couldn't do that! Saddam would have had them killed!" Really? You don't think King George had any of the colonial insurgents killed? You don't think Patrick Henry or Tom Paine were afraid? That didn't stop them. When tens of thousands aren't willing to shed their own blood to remove a dictator, that should be the first clue that they aren't going to be willing participants when you decide you're going to do the liberating for them.

A country can HELP another people overthrow a tyrant (that's what the French did for us in our revolution), but after you help them, you leave. Immediately. The French didn't stay and tell us how to set up our government. They didn't say, "we're not leaving because we want your natural resources." They left us to our own devices and it took us six years before we had an election. And then we had a bloody civil war. That's what happens, and history is full of these examples. The French didn't say, "Oh, we better stay in America, otherwise they're going to kill each other over that slavery issue!"

The only way a war of liberation has a chance of succeeding is if the oppressed people being liberated have their own citizens behind them -- and a group of Washingtons, Jeffersons, Franklins, Ghandis and Mandellas leading them. Where are these beacons of liberty in Iraq? This is a joke and it's been a joke since the beginning. Yes, the joke's been on us, but with 655,000 Iraqis now dead as a result of our invasion (source: Johns Hopkins University), I guess the cruel joke is on them. At least they've been liberated, permanently.

So I don't want to hear another word about sending more troops (wake up, America, John McCain is bonkers), or "redeploying" them, or waiting four months to begin the "phase-out." There is only one solution and it is this: Leave. Now. Start tonight. Get out of there as fast as we can. As much as people of good heart and conscience don't want to believe this, as much as it kills us to accept defeat, there is nothing we can do to undo the damage we have done. What's happened has happened. If you were to drive drunk down the road and you killed a child, there would be nothing you could do to bring that child back to life. If you invade and destroy a country, plunging it into a civil war, there isn't much you can do 'til the smoke settles and blood is mopped up. Then maybe you can atone for the atrocity you have committed and help the living come back to a better life.

The Soviet Union got out of Afghanistan in 36 weeks. They did so and suffered hardly any losses as they left. They realized the mistake they had made and removed their troops. A civil war ensued. The bad guys won. Later, we overthrew the bad guys and everybody lived happily ever after. See! It all works out in the end!

The responsibility to end this war now falls upon the Democrats. Congress controls the purse strings and the Constitution says only Congress can declare war. Mr. Reid and Ms. Pelosi now hold the power to put an end to this madness. Failure to do so will bring the wrath of the voters. We aren't kidding around, Democrats, and if you don't believe us, just go ahead and continue this war another month. We will fight you harder than we did the Republicans. The opening page of my website has a photo of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, each made up by a collage of photos of the American soldiers who have died in Bush's War. But it is now about to become the Bush/Democratic Party War unless swift action is taken.

This is what we demand:

1. Bring the troops home now. Not six months from now. NOW. Quit looking for a way to win. We can't win. We've lost. Sometimes you lose. This is one of those times. Be brave and admit it.

2. Apologize to our soldiers and make amends. Tell them we are sorry they were used to fight a war that had NOTHING to do with our national security. We must commit to taking care of them so that they suffer as little as possible. The mentally and physically maimed must get the best care and significant financial compensation. The families of the deceased deserve the biggest apology and they must be taken care of for the rest of their lives.

3. We must atone for the atrocity we have perpetuated on the people of Iraq. There are few evils worse than waging a war based on a lie, invading another country because you want what they have buried under the ground. Now many more will die. Their blood is on our hands, regardless for whom we voted. If you pay taxes, you have contributed to the three billion dollars a week now being spent to drive Iraq into the hellhole it's become. When the civil war is over, we will have to help rebuild Iraq. We can receive no redemption until we have atoned.

In closing, there is one final thing I know. We Americans are better than what has been done in our name. A majority of us were upset and angry after 9/11 and we lost our minds. We didn't think straight and we never looked at a map. Because we are kept stupid through our pathetic education system and our lazy media, we knew nothing of history. We didn't know that WE were the ones funding and arming Saddam for many years, including those when he massacred the Kurds. He was our guy. We didn't know what a Sunni or a Shiite was, never even heard the words. Eighty percent of our young adults (according to National Geographic) were not able to find Iraq on the map. Our leaders played off our stupidity, manipulated us with lies, and scared us to death.

But at our core we are a good people. We may be slow learners, but that "Mission Accomplished" banner struck us as odd, and soon we began to ask some questions. Then we began to get smart. By this past November 7th, we got mad and tried to right our wrongs. The majority now know the truth. The majority now feel a deep sadness and guilt and a hope that somehow we can make make it all right again.

Unfortunately, we can't. So we will accept the consequences of our actions and do our best to be there should the Iraqi people ever dare to seek our help in the future. We ask for their forgiveness.

We demand the Democrats listen to us and get out of Iraq now.

Yours,

Michael Moore
www.michaelmoore.com
mmflint@aol.com

Eight years ago (how time flies), while travelling Australia & New Zealand, I discovered a soft drink that would become a staple during my stay. Made by the good people at Coca-Cola, "Lift" is a very lemon-y fizzy soda that's sweet to drink, but has a nice tart punch to it at the end. Ahhh...refreshing! While working at the Greater Union movie theatres, you were free to drink whatever you'd like during your shift, so I'd frequently have Lift as I knew you couldn't buy it Canada and that's where my addiction probably started.

Anyway, most of you know my mom came back from Australia just this past Monday, and yesterday while Kylie and myself celebrated her birthday at her place, mom came through for SBP and brought me back three bottles of Lift. She had to stuff them pretty good in her suitcase, but mission accomplished. Funny how fond memories of my trip can be brought back by a simple swig of pop!

Thanks mom!

When I picked up the latest Killers CD, "Sam's Town", about 1/2 the people I mentioned it to asked why I paid for it when I could download it for free. Good question. It's come to the point now where people are actually wondering why you would fork over dough for copyrighted material.

So yeah, forget it. Why pay for something that I can get for free? Why shell out the cash for movies or music when more times than not it's usually disappointing and a complete rip-off? Time to stick it to the man.

I now have bittorent on my PC and I'm trying to download some World Series of Poker stuff that aired on ESPN. Even if I wanted to buy it, it's not available, and TSN does not have a regular schedule for me to tune into it. So there's my justification.

Anyway, it's going very SLOOOOOOW. Not sure if it's my connection (hi-speed lite), but even thought it's rated very highly according to the website in terms of its connections and speed, it's going to take about 6 1/2 hours for a 700mb file. Then sometimes it slows down and tells me it'll take 13 hours. Then it tells me 30 minutes then it goes to 20 hours. We'll see how this works out.

I shouldn't shill a credit card, but this deal is too good to pass up. See, ever since that big TV idea entered into my head, I've looked at different lines of credit to apply for since I was planning to do monthly payments. The frustrating thing is that, even though I have an impeccable credit rating and carry my mortage, car payments and otherwise all my banking with TD, their line of credit rate they offered was prime + 5%. Hey, thanks for nothing. When my mortage runs out I'll be going elsewhere.

Anyway, that whole "hands in my pocket" song stuck in my head, so today I decided to check out what they offered. And it's pretty sweet: a credit card with a rate prime + 1% and it isn't an introductory rate. And no annual fee, either. So why would I mess around with a TD line of credit?

There is only one more $250 payment left to make on my current Mastercard and that will officially bring my both my credit cards to a zero balance. I will then cut them up and start using Capital One.

Bluetooth cellular headsets:




Do these people think they're a Navy S.E.A.L. or something?

The last time I enjoyed a Bond film was probably Goldeneye. Pierce Brosnan came across as a solid 007 agent, good story, great action with the classic villains we all come to enjoy, and of course it was also the best Nintendo 64 game released. Yeah. But the series became so cookie-cutter afterwards. With titles like Tomorrow Never Dies, Die Another Day and The World is not Enough, I stopped caring. I couldn't tell you the difference between one and the other...which one is the film where Denise Richards is the nuclear physicist (yeah, like I'm buying that)? This franchise desperately needed a fresh makeover.

Despite the fact decades of Bond films have been made and the producers are trying to sell this as a prequel, it decides to use present day technology and gizmos. I never understood the reasoning. Wouldn't you set a prequel in the 60s or 70s or something? I guess they sort of want the audience to buy into the fact the other Bond films didn't really happen so they can continue churning out movies for as long as they can.

Anyway, I digress. Daniel Craig is the new 007 and he's fantastic. Cool, edgy, assured...the sort of agent we'd expect someone who holds a licence to kill to be. But of course, he has a soft side, if the right woman can reach it. But that would lead to a spoiler, so we'll stop there.

The chief villain, Le Chiffre, sort of made me smile each time his name was mentioned as I couldn't help but think of Top Secret's character Latrine every time it was spoken. It was an unintentional laugh maybe, but sort of a wink wink homage to the cartoony villains of past Bond films. But the intensity of the action scenes and the tension of the story give Casino Royale a serious look that it needed. The Brosnan films got quite silly for me after Goldeneye, so hopefully they'll continue with the style of the 21st Bond feature.

Of course, my enjoyment was augmented by having Texas hold 'em as the game of choice for the movie. As a poker purist, I sort of didn't like the way the players would push their chips all-in (Don't splash the pot!) and some of the defining hands were a bit ridiculous...c'mon, a nut flush, a full house, a larger full house, and a straight flush all in the same hand (you might think that's a spoiler, but I saw it coming a mile away)? Not likely. But seeing them check their hole cards and play with their chips was enjoyable for a poker fan like myself.

Bond is definitely back, a movie that is tons of fun with great action & chase sequences. And poker. Watch it in theatres. 8 on 10.

The dream of every poker player is to win a World Series of Poker bracelet.

I'm actually very fortunate that my dream is so easy to actually take part in. Because some dreams we have are simply unattainable, no matter how hard we try. As a kid, I've dreamt of hoisting the Stanley Cup over my head. And maybe even as a kid (yes, I said kid), I may have dreamt of headlining Wrestlemania XXX. Yeah, that would have been a sight to see.

But my relatively new passion for a card game, no-limit Texas hold 'em, has given me something else to look forward to. I've talked about this with a few of you, but not too many really see it as anything except a waste of $1,000. But not me.

My plan is that next summer, some time during the months of June & July, is to head down and play a $1,000US buy-in World Series of Poker tournament. Judging by the number of entrants last year, there will be several hundred players entering, potentially closing in on 1,000 participants. Many are amateurs like myself, but there will also be pros I might be lucky enough to rub elbows with.

This tournament is a step-down from the Main Event of the WSOP, which has a $10,000US buy-in and is considered the flagship tournament, and this past year had over 8,000 entrants. I simply cannot afford that entry fee, and that's why I'm taking a step down. But at the same time, with fewer entrants and less playing time (two days as opposed to over a week), your chances of coming out ahead are greater. And quite frankly, ANY bracelet would be quite amazing to say the least.

I'm realistic. The chances of winning the whole thing are slim to none. There are some respected poker pros out there still waiting for their first bracelet after entering these tourneys for years. But hey...about 10% of the field still get in the money, meaning they get back their $1,000 and a little extra. And of course, if you finish top of the ladder or close to it, that little extra can mean a few hundred thousand dollars.

So for $1,000, I'm going to live out my dream. And I'm also selling out parts of it. That means if you would like to put up 10% or more of my entry fee, you get that percentage of any winnings I make (of course, if I don't win anything....thaaat's poker!). Just talk to me in person if you'd like to take part.

Anyway, most of you know the old stuff I'm selling on Ebay is going towards the entry fee. So in some ways it's not really costing me anything. In any case, I can't wait to go, and who knows, maybe Lady Luck will be on my side, and there won't be any SBP screwjobs!

Last night at the Keg, I consumed:

One Coors light

One caesar

Two Pepsis

6 slices of garlic cheese bread

2 slices of regular bread

Garlic mashed potatoes

1/2 rack BBQ ribs

2 chicken breasts

Chocolate mousse

What was I trying to prove? I called it a night and headed home before it got worse. Bleah! Disgusted with myself.

Yesterday's release of Sony's Playstation 3 console is another example of what happens when a combination of greed & want mixed with cash leaves a bloody trail behind.

Sony released 400,000 PS3 consoles for North America, where a launch of about 1,000,000 units would have probably met demand and leave a lot of satisfied customers. Instead, citing "manufacturing" issues, Sony cut back on the number to be sold on the launch date. This created an extremely high demand for the product, and a lot of people who got their hands on one didn't get it to use for themselves, but to sell on Ebay and make a huge profit. I've tracked some units that sold for $2,500-$3,000US before the official release date. With a price of about $660, that's a huge profit margin. (Just one day later, prices have dropped to about $1200-$1500 per unit on Ebay).

Knowing such a demand existed, and that people interested in buying it would be willing to wait in line hours or even days before the official sale date with money in their pockets, thieves went to work. In Hartford, two armed thugs tried to rob a line of people waiting for the new system and shot a man who refused to give up his money. Two people were arrested in Fresno after a crowd trampled people in a parking lot. Another shopper was beaten and robbed of his PlayStation 3 just minutes after he bought it at a store in Manchester.

I admit, I was checking the Bestbuy website who released 10 consoles every hour to see if I could exploit people's want and make a quick buck off it. The site would always crash though and I could never get through. But it sort of dawned on me perhaps I'm sort of contributing to the behaviour of the previous paragraph by participating in the "secondary market" of PlayStation 3 selling.

Don't think for a second Sony executives feel bad about this. They love the hype this situation has caused, injuries and robberies be damned. To them, it justifies charging the most ever for a mainstream console, and demand will not be curtailed while parents feel they are not doing a good job raising little Jimmy if they don't give him the present he wants when Christmas rolls around.

I guess it just sort of saddens me reading up on stories like this. Is it something we really need? Is it something worth getting shot over? How about those poor teenagers who saved up their money and waited in line for hours eagerly waiting to get their PS3, only to be mugged a short time later? I hope some new manner of distribution will occur in the future when something of this hype is released. It's definitely not worth the agony people are suffering for the way it is done now, all for the sake of an overpriced black box.

If you can't lay down a winner, you'll never be a good poker player.

A big difference between an experienced player and a beginner is that a beginner can very rarely lay down a hand. No doubt, if someone bets into you strongly and you feel you are beat, there's a chance if you fold that you laid down the best hand. But, if you play often, you are probably correct more times than not in doing so. On the other hand, if a beginner holds a pocket pair or flops one, they will likely keep on calling your bets all the way down to the river thinking they have you beat. On occasion, they might still beat you even if they are calling with garbage, but if you're playing smart, you can exploit it.

There's absolutely no sense in trying to bluff a beginner because they tend to keep you honest. That's one advantage they have: Beginners can be so unpredictable as they tend to call with any two cards and they also are too curious for you to try to steal a pot by making large bets.

I remember playing a six-handed game against this middle-aged woman who was relentless. She called me down several times with only ace high and would take pots down each time as I tried to bluff my way out. I was right in knowing that, since she played every pot, she can't have it every time, but it didn't matter: She was willing to call it down to the river whenever she got involved in a hand.

Although you have to be a little patient, the next game we played I decided I'd take her to the bank whenever I had a made hand. So when I flopped the nut flush while playing her heads up, there was an Ace on board. It didn't matter if she had a weak kicker or not, she would always call pre-flop whenever she held an ace. Instead of messing around, I went all-in. She thought about it for about five seconds before calling. I was right: She paired her Aces and couldn't get away from it. It didn't matter that there was straight possibilities or of course a flush possibility. She paired her Ace and couldn't fold. So I took all her chips as a result.

It might be frustrating when you don't seem to hit anything and the rookie is scooping pots, but your patience will pay off. Don't bother slow playing or setting up traps when you've made your hand, and for heaven's sake never, ever, bluff a beginner. When you hit your hand, let the betting begin.

Of course, after my rant about thinking the Sens are done for the year, they did what everybody thought they wouldn't do and beat the best team in the NHL, the Buffalo Sabres, by a 4-2 margin. We'll have to wait and see how they do tomorrow against New Jersey and Saturday against the Sabres again, because the victory will be quickly forgotten if they continue their losing ways.

Anyway, in the end, Ottawa doesn't really have a right to complain about falling short in the post-season when you consider the franchise is only 14 years old. The Chicago Cubs are still waiting for a World Series win after doing so in 1908. That's right, nearly 100 years of failure. But, falling more in line with what the Senators are going through, here's an email I got from my friend Paul, a Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Astros fan:

Son, let me tell you about the Houston Astros.

The 'Stros have always been a good team. Competitive at least. But in their 40 plus year history, they have zero titles. They were so close in '86 losing to the eventual World Series champion Mets in 6 games in the National League Championship Series. Throughout the 90s they were very competitive but 5 playoff appearances in 7 years meant little when they bowed out in their first series. In fact, it was 2004 when the Astros won their first ever playoff series. But why do I bring that up?

The 2004 Astros were supposed to be a playoff team. In the off season they signed Superhuman Roger Clemens and his NY Yankee sidekick Andy Pettitte. Two big pitchers with playoff experience and success. So....how scary was it, in August of that year, to be so far out of a playoff spot that it took a 36-10 record down the stretch to clinch the wild card spot by 1 measly game? Far too scary. A loaded team that just never seemed to get on track until it was too late.

But 2005 was better, right? Right?!?!? Not even close. The Astros went with some younger players, deciding not to sign 2004 playoff hero Carlos Beltran to $18 million contract. But hey, they still had Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte and the knowledge they had finally won a playoff series. But the Astros stumbled out of the gate. They couldn't score runs and were shut out 8 times in their first 50 games. In late May, the Astros sat at 15-30,well back of first and 15 games under .500. No team had ever made the playoffs having been 15 games under at ANY time during a season. Things were so grim that the Houston Chronicle Sports staff included a cartoon on June 2, depicting a tombstone and declaring the Stros dead for 2005. So after a 42-17 stretch, the Astros raced back into things and managed to make it to the World Series. Granted they lost but....

This year? There were no remarkable turnaround this year. But the Astros sat some 8 games under .500 and about 10 games back of first place in their division most of September. In fact, with two weeks to go, and I believe 13 games left, they were 7 games back. They managed to tie the St. Louis Cardinals with three games to go but couldn't manage another miracle comeback.

The point? Always be wary of counting out a quality team. Regardless of how things seem, this team is just as capable of rolling out 7 wins in 8 games too.

Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A B A START.

The most infamous "cheat" code when first released, every 7th grader I knew had that code memorized to allow for you to have 30 lives when you started the game. With the 3 available continues, that meant you had a total of 90 chances to finish the game. So a lot of people did.

But even though that code made it an easy game to finish, players kept on coming back to it, simply because it was a fun shoot 'em up to play. Add to the fact you could play co-operatively with a friend just made it that much more enjoyable.

The story is simple enough...an alien invasion force called "Red Falcon" wants to take over the world, and you have to stop them. You start the game with a semi-automatic rifle (which basically shoots white dots against the enemy) but you can quickly upgrade your weapon by finding power-ups along the way. You could get a machine gun, force field gun or laser rifle, but the creme de la creme of the weapons was the spread gun, which shot five bullets at a time and cleared the screen of most enemies. You did everything in your power to make sure you got it, and you tried everything in your power to avoid getting a different gun so you wouldn't lose it.

The graphics, bright colour and catchy music (especially the end music after you defeated a boss) made it a hit, and sequels are still made to this day. Super C and Contra III were the last two installments of the game that really kept the feel of the original Contra game, and hopefully with the Xbox 360 and the upcoming Playstation 3, we might get a nice update that just might revitalize the series.

I completely admit it.

I was fooled. Duped. Too optimistic for my own good.

I actually thought the Ottawa Senators had it in them to turn the slump around. I believed all the talk from the players that they'd start winning some games. Good teams do that. But with only 1 win in their last 8 games, 13th in the 15 team Eastern Conference, I've been waiting & waiting and nothing is going right.

It amazes me how many different ways they find to lose. Back-to-back games they chased the starting goalie out of the net, only to have the other team return from being down and out to picking up the win.

How many short-handed goals have they allowed? Worst in the league in that department. And with all that offensive talent, they are in the bottom five in powerplay goals and can never seem to score when they are down by just a goal, and if they do, they blow that momentum by allowing untimely goals to quickly follow.

That's another thing...much like the playoffs, they can't surmount a comeback when trailing, even if the difference is just one goal. Last night, they were down 4-1, but managed to rally to make it 4-3. Much like the rest of the season, I actually thought they might pull it off and tie it up. But whenever they come so close, they always manage to screw it up and give the other team the victory.

Martin Gerber has been absolutely brutal. He gives up weak goals and Emery, on the sidelines, can't do much while he heals. And things aren't getting any easier, with two games against the best team in the NHL, the Buffalo Sabres, tomorrow and Saturday.

I have no idea if it's the players to blame, if Coach Murray can't get through to the club, if Muckler created this mess or what. But I am going to say it right now: I no longer think the Ottawa Senators are making the playoffs this year. It was a given for the last decade they'd make it, but not this time. They haven't given me any reason to believe anything is going to change at the rate they're going.

This doesn't mean they're no longer my team, or that I'll stop watching or talking about them. I'll always be a fan. But it just means my expectations have gotten so low, any accomplishment they make this year is just a bonus.

Sens for life.

- The ol' SBP

p.s. For fun, I wanted to see how their farm team, the Binghamton Senators, have been doing over in the AHL. Let's see: Oh...dead last in the East. Perfect. There's sunshine on the horizon.

In almost every sports' team run to their eventual championship, along the way they got their breaks. They either created it themselves, or the other team got it for them. Not too many journalists talk about it as they solely look at the end result and nothing else, but you don't have to look any further than last season's Stanley Cup finals to know what I'm talking about.

Carolina had no choice but to go to backup Cam Ward for goaltending after Martin Gerber was battling the flu and lost 15-20 pounds, and not to mention the first two games against Montreal. Ward not only brought them a Stanley Cup, but also took playoff MVP. What if Gerber was healthy...what would have been Carolina's fate?

The Buffalo Sabres were on a roll heading to the Conference final, but game 7 the injuries piled up. Buffalo had only 2 or 3 of their regular defencemen suited up, and they went on to lose the game 7 Conference final.

The Edmonton Oilers had a surprising run to the Cup final that found them tied with Carolina with three wins apiece before losing a tough game 7. But there was a good chance they weren't going past the 2nd round facing the San Jose Sharks. Down two games to zero, game three headed to overtime, and the Sharks managed to hit the post not once, but TWICE during OT. I believe both shots were delivered by Hart Trophy winner Joe Thornton. If somehow one of those pucks found the net, I think it's safe to say Edmonton wouldn't been able to pull off being down three game to none, and a new Western team would have played in the final.

The Oilers, though, were terribly unlucky when Dwayne Roloson went down with an injury in game 1 of the finals and had to go to Jussi Markkanen for goaltending duties. He got lit up 5-0 in game 2, and although he was solid for the rest of the series, that game pretty much sealed the Oilers fate as it was too great a task to overcome the odds of being down two games to none and three games to one.

This isn't to say Carolina didn't deserve to win the Stanley Cup. But it just shows a contrast on how some teams' bad luck can end up being the best thing to happen to them, and how a bounce here or a bounce there can change the fate of the end result. No matter how much skill, determination, sweat & tears your team has, it certainly doesn't hurt if the other team you're playing against keeps on hitting the post.

Not much to post Sunday...went to the Pump for brunch...trips to Bayshore, Future Shop, Best Buy, Loeb, Costco and Canadian tire followed, about 5 1/2 hours of poker at Kim's (won both games, thank you very much!) and tomorrow get to enjoy a government holiday. There! I'll write something slightly more interesting for Monday's post, right now it's time to go to bed.

When Martin Gerber got his Stanley Cup ring last week (not playing for the Ottawa Senators), I found out some particulars about the Hurricanes' ring that I thought was really neat.

The ring itself is probably worth about $25,000US or so. The band is made out of 14K white gold. The logo is made from black sapphires and red rubies. The rest of the ring is adorned with about 100+ diamonds. Nice bling bling!

Carolina is holding a contest this season where they are raffling off a ring that has the inscription "#1 Fan" instead of a player name & number. All proceeds are going to the charity Carolina Hurricanes Kids ‘N Community Foundation with the winner drawn at the last home game of the season.

No, I'm not going to Carolina anytime soon or trying to win this ring. But just having a chance for a fan to sorta kinda feel like a part of the winning team without having to put on skates? I can only dream Ottawa might have something like this for its fans one day, sigh, but right now just making the playoffs is an issue this season.

Dan & Holly welcomed Lauren Danielle to their family on November 3, 2006. Holly was actually dealing cards for John & myself when we were playing heads-up poker just fours before she gave birth! Anyway, all these babies lately, coming out non-stop...is all this happening because I'm getting old?

I actually feel sorry for GM John Muckler right now. At first, the Senators problems seemed to be a lack of offence. The goals against were respectable, they just had problems burying their chances.

Now that Ottawa regained a bit of their scoring touch, I have now witnessed some of the worst defense the Senators have played in the approximate decade I have been a fan. Last night definitely took the cake: My favourite was the first powerplay of the game, where Wade Redden managed to tackle Joe Corvo at the blueline which led to an Atlanta breakaway and a short-handed goal.

But there were other doozies. How about Andrej Meszaros' careless puck clearing over the boards during an Atlanta powerplay, which then led to a 5-on-3 goal?

Or how about Anton Volchenkov's decision to carry the puck (when have you ever seen this guy stickhandle?) that led to a turnover in the neutral zone and the game-winning goal for the Thrashers?

So now what? If you're Muckler do you go after a new defenceman and give up a forward who seem already too pressed? Or do you go after a Craig Conroy-type player and give up someone like a Volchenkov, depleting the D even more?

Is it a coaching thing? Has Bryan Murray, with only one season with the Senators, already lost the players that play for him?

Or do you open the office door and give a Vince McMahon "YOU'RE FIRRRRREEDDDDD!!!!" to John Muckler? Remember, doing that doesn't change the roster that has them in 13th place in the Eastern Conference. It just seems every so-called solution brings a new problem.

Anyway, maybe the boys can turn things around (and they are boys, they are the 2nd youngest team in the league). Or maybe this is just what failed playoff after failed playoff will bring after being touted a favourite for the last few years.

Like an idiot, I'm going to tune in to tomorrow's Penguins again and see Sydney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin light up Gerber like a Christmas tree (Ray Emery is apparently still injured). I have to give the Senators credit for this: None of their games have been boring. They lose with style, and nearly all of their games have only been lost by one goal. But they're still losses. Sigh. Oh well. Man, why do I care about this so much???

My loyal SBP blog readers may recall an email I sent to the Ontario Film Review Board regarding the sale of DVDs such as Ghetto Fights & Wildest Street Brawls and how I felt they should classify it equally as an Adult film, if not outright ban it.

Turns out the major retail chains such as HMV and Music World are voluntarily sending back the videos to the suppliers. A Music World rep commented, "We don't usually play censors, but it was pretty tasteless stuff, so we're not taking them back into our stores."

It's a fine line to cross, as for the most part, I don't feel anybody has a right to tell me what I can & cannot watch. But these videos, depicting real violence and crime against unconsenting individuals, isn't art. There are a few clips that I watched over at Youtube (as I felt like I should have at least watched some of it after sending my email) that are just so depressing. Making money from these acts is just wrong (perhaps once the victims get a cut of the DVD profits we can talk deal). Anyway, the OFRB may reconsider their initial classification as a result of this action and the outcries from politicians and other social activists.

When major retail chains come out against something, everyone seems to pay attention and take the necessary action. When a small, non-partisan non-violence group tries to stir the pot over something controversial...seems a lot of people are much slower to react. Corporations are the 21st century high-priests.

Forget the fact that Borat is a jab at the Americana culture. This movie is just plain funny. There aren't too many films that make me laugh out loud, but Borat has multiple scenes that leave you howling and wanting more. No doubt about it, this is one of the best movies of 2006.

The best thing about it, is that the more you think about it, the funnier it gets. Sometimes there's just not a lot of time to digest what you just saw, but if you review some of the scenes with those who have also seen it, the enjoyment level increases and will no doubt demand repeat viewing. Although many might be offended by his character's no-holds-barred view of Jews, women and "retards", but as he tours America and encounters rodeo folk, gun shop owners and car salesman, he scaringly blends right into their way of thinking. The average American, it seems, turns a blind eye to his character's homophobic, racist and anti-Semitic tendencies.

To give you an idea of what you are getting yourself into, one of the opening scenes involves Borat reporting on the "Running of the Jew", where huge float-sized "Jew" caricatures chase the local Kazakhstan townspeople. The scene is hilarious as it's so outrageous: it really makes a point of how out of control people's hatred for another race or religion can get out of hand.

The plot is simple enough: As Kazakhstan's #6 most famous journalist (at least I think it's #6) Borat is assigned with his friend Azamat to make a documentary on the "U. S. and A". While in New York City, he discovers Baywatch and falls in love with Pamela Anderson. He decides to travel across the country to California in a beat up old ice cream truck to pursue Pamela has his next wife. Sounds like it's a stupid road trip movie, but it's so much more.

The crudeness of Borat reminded me a little of Jackass, except Jackass didn't really have anything substantive behind it; it was sick solely for the sake of being sick. Borat does have it's moments of outright vulgarity, yes, but at the same time there is a comedic genius to be found here. Don't watch this movie with your tightly-wound in-laws, but laugh knowing that in doing so, you're supporting a movie that is very, very smart.

Because a few of you jerks have decided to acquire big televisions (Rob, Dan & Holly, Kim amongst others) it's made me think I need a big television. Sweet sweet big television! Now the model I'm considering is a 52" DLP HDTV made my LG. It's on sale for $1799, ($200 off) and it also comes with a free tv stand valued at $299.

I want your sincere opinion as to whether or not you think I should acquire it. Some things to consider:

a) I'm aware a TV of this size will overtake my condo's living room, but at the same time I don't plan on living in my condo forever
b) I will do one of those 36 month, no financing deals where I make equal monthly payments (I don't have the money to pay for it all at once)
c) This particular model does not have any reviews of it on the web which makes me think it might be a discontinued model
d) I don't plan on getting an extended warrantly, simply because it varies between 20-25% of the purchase price which is quite high
e) It is EnergyStar compliant..tax rebate?

Click on the "Big TV!!!" link to check it out at the Futureshop website, and then click comments to add to me your 2 cents!

There was really only one move you had to master: punch + jump. Translated to the video screen, your character would perform an elbow punch, easily knocking down any enemy, big or small, with weapon or without. There were plenty of other moves you could do: punches, uppercuts, high kicks, jump kicks, knee thrusts and shoulder throws, but mastering the elbow was how you won. Your character could also pick up an assorted array of weapons as they became available. Enemy characters would have knives, bats, whips, dynamite and the main boss character at the end of the game welded a machine gun. Tough odds for sure, but playing in two-player mode sure helped things out.

This is the first game I recall where female characters attacked and also took punishment. It was also quite shocking when I first saw the game when I was 11 or 12 years old, seeing a baseball bat being used as a weapon. Of course, there is no blood, no real nasty sound effects to portray the kind of damage your doing to a person's insides and such. But for a game made in the 1980s, it was something to see.

The game begins when a group of thugs take your girlfriend hostage. There is really no explanation as to why they do this, but you have to go rescue her. The game is one of the first where if you accidentally hit your friend while playing in two-player mode, you could do damage to them. There were a few times where I was so frustrated by my partner's ineptness, I would concentrate on pummeling him instead of the enemies on-screen. If the two of you are left at the end of the game, you fight to the death for the hand of the fair maiden. Yes, apparently she was sleeping with both of you and you didn't find out until she was captured.

This game suffers from slow-down when there are several characters on the screen, but aside from that it's a fun fighting game. It doesn't take a lot of time to finish if you keep continuing, but for a two-player co-operative action game, this game holds up and is lots of fun.

Other thoughts: This upcoming Senators four game road trip will determine if changes are coming. If they manage to blow all four games, trades or firings will happen. If they can come out with 3 or 4 wins, they'll probably stay the course. Either way, it's time for them to put up or shut up.

With his one goal and five assists in 11 games, Senators fans are wanting answers as to why Daniel Alfredsson isn't performing as he's capable of. It seems so many are eager to trade him away and forget everything he's done, because he cares for the team and cares for the city he lives in.

Back in 1995-96, Alfredsson played his first NHL season with Ottawa after being picked in the 6th round in the 1994 entry draft. Tallying 26 goals and 61 points, he won the NHL Calder trophy for top rookie. (I should point out this is the only player trophy the Senators have won since being brought back in the league in 1992).

He had one year remaining on a contract that paid him the league minimum, but unlike many pro-athletes who would sit on the sidelines demanding a pay hike, Alfredsson played out his contract, noting he was grateful for getting the opportunity to play for the Senators, and realized another solid year would earn him a bigger pay day for his next contract.

The contrast to the team's other star of the day, Alexei Yashin, was quite evident. Alfie was given the "C" after Yashin refused to play the 1999-2000 season for $3 million despite the one year remaining on his contract and demanded a trade if it wasn't re-negotiated. Yashin returned the following year but Alfie kept the "C", and soon Yashin left Ottawa for good.

When Alfredsson's contract expired at the end of the 2004 season, he could have opted to explore free agency and say goodbye to the Senators (see: Havlat, Martin and Chara, Zdeno). Instead of a bigger payday he could have received signing with a team like the New York Rangers, Alfredsson opted to go for a lesser payday but a more secure 5-year contract with Ottawa, essentially make him a Senator for life. He likes the fact Ottawa is a hockey city, and recognizes that Ottawa is one of the best NHL cities to raise a family and wants to bring its citizens a Stanley Cup. No contract could persuade him to live in a gated community somewhere in St Louis.

It is so rare that a player like Daniel Alfredsson actually has a little something called loyalty that few players possess. Maybe he should look at the Ottawa franchise as little more than a way to pays the bills. But he hasn't, and wants to retire here. Players like Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman played for one franchise their entire careers which is a rarity in itself. Alfredsson could be one of those players, and I want to see the day where that #11 is raised to the rafters at Scotiabank Place (right beside a Stanley Cup banner would be nice, of course!).

Fans may not like his interviews, because he does talk in a very boring, monotone way. People say as a result he doesn't care, but this city should look no further down the road than fellow Swede Mats Sundin, who both work just as hard and have an interview that is not terribly exciting. If Alfie were to be shipped to Toronto or Sundin to Ottawa, both would be welcome with open arms.

I guess it just puzzles me that so many people are calling in the radio stations to have him traded or his captaincy removed. Why aren't people calling in asking maybe Ottawa should be looking for a decent forward for Alfredsson to play with? Chris Kelly and Dean McAmmond are 3rd/4th line players at best. Maybe John Muckler shouldn't have counted on an unproven Alexei Kaigorodov to be the 2nd line centreman, who was demoted to Binghamton this week.

Anyway, Alfredsson is struggling right now, so fans are hitting the panic button and want him out. Every player struggles. Every player hits a cold streak once in a while. Maybe it's a good thing it happened in October, for it could pay big dividends in the Spring. I have full confidence Ottawa can turns things around and so can Alfie.

Trading the team captain, in my opinion, would be a huge mistake.

Other thoughts: I'm going to my first game of the season tonight, getting a sweet discount on 100 level seats. With Martin Gerber facing his old team, I expect Ottawa to play hard for him and come out with a win. October is done, and the Senators will be playing lots of hockey in November that will hopefully erase the tough start they've had.

It's not too early to make one! Have you noticed a few advertisements regarding the upcoming Holiday Season? I certainly have. Christmas is definitely one of my favourite times of the year. So if anyone reading this is feeling extremely generous, please consider for the ol' SBP:

Canon SD30 (red - yeah I know, still haven't bought it)
Hysteria 2 disc deluxe CD (can't find it anywhere in stores)
Halo 2 and Lego Star Wars 2 for X-box
Senators tickets
Golf bag
Suit
Exercise bike
80G Ipod
Surround Sound
World Series of Poker buy-in
Big TV!

There! That's not too much...is it? :)

Just this past Monday, Jason and Gen introduced to their friends and family their newborns Neve Angelica and Jake Mason. Two sets of twins now, wow! I hope to see you guys again...sometime... :)

Go ahead, click "comments", and ask SBP your inner-most questions...