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

Many poker players dream of winning just one WSOP bracelet, myself included.  Some of the best professional players have yet to earn their first piece of jewellery; Phil Gordon immediately comes to mind with that statement.  It's very tough to do.

I was racking my brain, trying reaaaaaal hard to figure out something to blog about.  But I came out with zilch.  Nothing.  

A co-worker of mine in his early twenties referred to the act of renting movies as "something from the 90s". Cute. So stuck in my old school ways, I rented the blu ray of Watchmen and sort of regret it, mostly because it made me feel two things: Old and stupid.

Old because this was one of the few films I've seen where I thought to myself, "Yeesh, this is pretty violent." There seems to be some sort of dramatic licence to be extra graphic when the source material is, well, a graphic novel. Sin City was like this, as to was 300 (directed by Zach Snyder, who was also responsible for Watchmen). One scene involved one of the "heroes" take a cleaver and repeatedly split open the head of some scumbag who murdered a child. Another scene involved an inmate getting his arms decapitated via chainsaw. These scenes were much too gratuitous and didn't add anything much to the point of the story. I guess the fact the camera would zoom in and let the camera linger somewhat during these scenes was what made it worse than other violent movies. In any case, I didn't have much of an appetite for it.

The amusing, or sad, part about this trailer, is that some theater patrons actually gave up some of their money to the ushers who went up and down the aisles! In any case, I can't wait to see what the Academy award and Palme D'or winner has in store for us this October.

Ottawa is probably the Rodney Dangerfield of Canada, the city that "Don't Get No Respect!"  A sleepy government town, where everything seems to close at 6pm, and where most of downtown is empty and seeming to beg for some way to bring some life to it.   Government officials make decisions that don't seem to take into account something called "fun".  And even the residents can drive you mad.  A coalition was formed to protest Lansdowne Live, made up of residents who live right beside a football stadium that's been falling apart the last few years.  They don't want their sleep disturbed, you see.

There are some films out there that might be too artsy, too independent, or sometimes just plain crappy that you enjoy that other people you know simply detest.

- How's this for an SBP screwjob: Thursday marked the last payment of my car loan and with less than 100,000 kms on my Jeep, figured I would enjoy a few more years payment-free.  Well the car gods had another plan in store for me, as I had a $1300 repair bill that I had to pay for that same Thursday.  Don't count those extra dineros just yet...

Sometimes it's easy to forget that, as much as a fan we might be of a certain team or sport and our emotions can attain the highest of highs or lowest of lows on any given night, the bottom line is that in the end, it's just entertainment. Players on any team come and go; we get the rare occurrence of a Daniel Alfredsson declaring Ottawa his home and plans to stay in the same city he plays hockey for, but that's the exception more than the rule. So as I pull my hair out wondering if the Ottawa Senators are attempting to become the most dysfunctional team in the NHL by having a player that wants to leave (Heatley) and signing a player that probably couldn't care less he was here (Kovalev), I remind myself it's just an escape for a few hours when the play, and I should try to leave it at that. It's the pessimist in me that's trying to turn optimist.

So with all these sideshows going on, when the NHL released the 2009-10 schedule, it was nice to imagine hockey starting up and what my Sens have to look forward to when the season starts. They play the Rangers and Leafs on the road before they come home to play the New York Islanders. As one of the worst teams in the league, this would normally be a bad choice, but with the #1 pick John Tavares in town, this makes it a must see. My only complaint is that the entire Central division is visiting Ottawa EXCEPT the Detroit Red Wings. This doesn't make any sense and would be a guaranteed sellout, but I don't work for the NHL so it's probably in our best interests. I also enjoy looking up what team the Sens will be matched up against on my birthday, but this year is a little different, as the NHL will be shut down for the Olympics. Hopefully, we'll have a meaningful Team Canada victory around that time.

Anyway...good times to look forward to starting in about 2 1/2 months!

The criticisms of Brock Lesnar's post-fight antics are taking away from what a successful night, both in entertainment and revenues, the UFC should be celebrating. If anything, Lesnar should now be promoted as the main attraction of UFC. Not Randy Couture, not Anderson Silva, not even my fellow Canadian Georges St-Pierre (just to show you how unbiased I am). Brock Lesnar is a star, and with all doubts set aside of his abilities after beating Frank Mir Saturday night, the UFC should not put a leash on him. Rather, the Monster from Minnesota should be let loose to wreck havoc on every opponent he faces for the rest of his career.

Frank Mir is an excellent fighter, and he spoke a lot of trash against Lesnar before their fight Saturday night. Lesnar could have taken the boring "I respect my opponent" speech before the fight but he hates Mir and made no bones about it. And when I say that, I mean he legitimately HATES him. And why not? Mir went on about how Lesnar cried like a girl when he beat him last year in Lesnar's debut and that he was going to do it again. And on top of that, hardcore MMA fans wanted to see whom they thought was an outsider go down in flames when faced against a skilled technician like Mir. I recall at a meet and greet with Georges St Pierre in Ottawa last year, when I discussed Lesnar's chances in his first UFC bout, there wasn't one person I spoke to who wanted Lesnar to succeed. They saw him as an unskilled meat head who should stick to pro wrestling. It was unbelievable to me how they didn't see the potential in Lesnar, and how he can further UFC's attempts to become more mainstream if he was successful.

And to become more mainstream, it's as simple as dollars and cents. You put on a show where people are willing to put money down to see two fighters against each other, preferably with a championship on the line. The press cannot ignore an event where $50 million in gross pay per view revenues (the estimated figure for UFC 100) is expected to be made.

For a promoter to entice the public to pay top dollar for these PPVs, whether it's UFC, boxing or the world of WWE, the public are more willing to give their money up when 1) Both combatants are considered to be the best in their division, 2) It is their first, or a rare, encounter and 3) The fans believe there is actual hate between the two fighters. Many fights have just one or a combination of these factors, but if you have all three, like they did in Lesnar vs Mir 2, it's money in the bank. And the fact Brock Lesnar is a celebrity from his WWE days, that's a bonus that puts additional dollars in your pocket if you're promoting this event.

I have seen too many UFC fights where, before throwing their opponent under the bus leading up to the fight itself, the fight ends, they tap gloves, then they give each other a hug like they were just kidding the entire time leading up to the fight. Finally, we get a guy like Lesnar who had no problems telling Mir he's the man now, who decided if the fans don't like him they can stick it and told them so by flipping them the bird during the sound of boos after his win, and go on to infer he was going to, ahem, "enjoy" his former Playboy model wife that night. The only problem I had with his after-fight speech, if I was UFC owner Dana White, is that he threw one of their sponsors under the bus (Bud Light, "because they don't pay me", and he went on to say he's going to enjoy a Coors Light). Indirectly, they actually do, and Lesnar tried to make up for it by drinking a Bud Light at the post-fight press conference. But aside from that flub, Lesnar just marketed himself for a few more PPVs and has guaranteed himself some huge paydays.

The point is the UFC is trying to distance themselves from Lesnar's actions, but to me, this isn't a way to make money. Millions of viewers now want to see Lesnar get his ass kicked, so the question now is who will that person be? Lesnar is a celebrity and a villain rolled into one, and the dollar signs for Dana White should be lighting up in his eyes. When Lesnar gets into the octagon again, people are going to pay to to see it, and if Lesnar was a nice guy, I don't think those tickets would be moving as fast.

Lesnar is the future of UFC. And Dana White should embrace this fact and let Brock Lesnar be himself.

This video is slightly over-produced but check out at around the 50 second mark where Alexei Kovalev shoots a puck from centre ice, on his knees, to the top of the goal net. Unbelievable skill. If he brought it every night he might be the league's MVP.

After the first round of the main event Brock Lesnar - Frank Mir fight at last night's UFC 100, I commented that Mir's face "looked like it just got off the set of The Exorcist".   It was swollen, scarred and bloody.  Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar had a simple but effective game plan: keep him on the mat, and punch him in the face.  No longer able to defend himself, the fight was called in the 2nd round after Mir could not contain a flurry of Lesnar punches to the jaw.  Lesnar remained the champ.

Sens fans, myself included, are more than annoyed that this Heatley debacle is dragging on and on with no end in sight. So an Ottawa resident decided to have a little fun with the situation and put together this video (you might recall the same clip was used about the OC Transpo strike a few months ago) with hilarious results! It seems to infer one of Bryan Murray is Hitler himself, but, I guess I'll leave that opinion to you!

And no regard for your life or for others?

Well, if it's adventure yee seek, it's adventure yee have found!

The Running Man was an enjoyable action picture (for a 12 year old, which was my age at the time) with a perverse idea: a game show where humans hunted other humans for glory and cash prizes.

The Ottawa Senators add more drama for a team that probably needs a little less of it.

When the press describes 36 year old Alexei Kovalev, they like to use the word "enigmatic" before his name. It isn't really a compliment.

On one hand, you have one of the most talented pro hockey players on the planet.

But on the other, you have a guy where you have no idea if he'll show up to play. Will he take the night off, coast from shift to shift like he's just waiting for the game to be over?

Or will the game-breaker turn up, potting goal after goal and being the go to guy?

Yesterday, some Habs faithful showed up at the Bell Centre, almost like a demonstration, to persuade GM Bob Gainey to re-sign Kovalev to a new contract. Gainey went on the radio today to say they will not re-sign him. So, trying to find some positives in all this, if some fans would turn out asking he be kept a Habitant, he must have something going for him, right?

He could have very easily gone to a non-hockey market and play out his last years off the radar, a complete 180 from the constant scrutiny of the Montreal media.

But, he decided to play in a city where hockey matters. I'm not going to say it's as bad as the Montreal media circus, but the fans care here. And he knows he'll be put under the microscope in both victory and defeat.

And in more positive ways of thinking, he's not getting any younger and he knows his career is coming to a close. I would like to think he wants to play for a contender, and maybe he likes what he sees with the Senators. And despite the tough-on-the-players reputation that coach Cory Clouston seems to have earned with the whole Heatley debacle, he doesn't seem to be concerned to have to play for someone like that.

Kovalev was Montreal's #1 scorer. In Ottawa, that's not really expected of him. Spezza and Alfredsson are probably the ones expected to be the top producers, so maybe not having that pressure will help.

As you can tell, I'm trying to be optimistic about this signing. He might turn out great, or he might turn out to be a phenomenal bust. But whether or not it works out, I'll tell you this much: Never in a million years would I have ever thought I'd say these words again:

"Go, Alexei, go!"

It's old news by now, but my incense at one Dany Heatley simply cannot be contained.

You know, you would think that after the Dan Snyder incident, Heatley would just be grateful to still be alive much less be a multi-millionaire superstar hockey player.

When he came to Ottawa, the Senators made the transition as comfortable for him as possible. The fans embraced him with open arms.

He was rewarded with a 7 year, $7.5 million per year deal and was also granted a no trade clause. At the time, no one thought anything of it. Why would you want to trade a sniper like Dany Heatley? And he hasn't even hit his prime yet.

His request for a trade because of a riff with a coach doesn't make sense. If anything, it was a chance to turn the team's fortunes around and to lead by example.

A true leader would look at the overall goals of the team and not be concerned with personal stats.

A true leader would show by example the personal sacrifices needed to get their team out of their hump. Maybe this would mean less minutes. Maybe it would mean playing on the 2nd powerplay unit.

Maybe it would involve putting in an extra effort to earn that extra playing time.

For the life of me I would have never have guessed Dany Heatley would be this sort of selfish player. Never would I have imagined in a million years that Sens fans would want to run him out of town.

Only Heatley could demand a trade, the Senators doing their best to get the best deal possible for the team, find a deal (that really I don't think was all that great anyway) and then say he isn't going anywhere and to find another team to trade with.

This team had the coach, GM, and team captain contact Heatley to discuss the strengths of playing with the Edmonton Oilers.

And he still turned them down.

I wonder if his agents really thought it through when Heatley stated he wanted a trade. I wonder if the implications of making Team Canada in 2010, or being a future Hall of Famer down the road, were ever considered when he made this decision. Or if he even thought of the backlash of the fans.

I have a 11 X 14 framed Heatley photo in my bedroom right now.

What am I going to do with it?

I'm sure most of you don't look at the flurry of NHL wheelings and dealings to be of utmost priority July 1st. But I think that Canada's favourite sport, having a day where NHL players are moving from one team to another, it's kind of appropriate perhaps it falls on July 1st while we celebrate being Canadian.

Anyway, it was nice to see a good crowd gathering around Parliament Hill decked out in red and white. If Americans are too patriotic, it can be said Canadians probably aren't patriotic enough. But at least for one day we can dispel that myth.

As for my opinion on the NHL free agent frenzy, well, I was just hoping primarily the Sens would get Heatley shipped out of here so they can make some moves, but man he has really handcuffed the team with his no-trade clause trade-me act. Without knowing if he can be moved and if so, what the return is, how can a GM know who should they go after? As a result, all the big impact players were gobbled up leaving little for the Sens to try to make a deal with.

Next year might be a long season.