Been a week but I haven't forgot about you my loyal followers.
Obviously the story of the weekend was the atrocity that took place in Kansas City with Chiefs LB Javon Belcher. I don't want to go into a lot of here as it is one of those things where really no matter what you say could be misconstrued and taken as something it was never intended to be. I will say this, Javon Belcher was obviously troubled somewhere. You don't shoot the mother of your child nine times and then go thank your bosses for all they did for you just to turn around and take your own life. A terrible series of events, the worst of which, that must never be forgotten is that the death of Belcher and his girlfriend made an instant orphan of a three month old baby girl.
If you watched Football Night in America Sunday, Bob Costas paraphrased an article from a reporter in Kansas City who more or less said that American gun regulations are partially responsible for this. While guns may provide you with a greater sense of security, they also lead to unnecessary acts of violence such as this one. Sad, unfortunate, unfathomable yet entirely real.
On to a more positive note regarding the NFL, I hadn't really had much of an opportunity to watch a lot of football this year but was lucky enough to catch the Redskins in Prime Time the last two weeks. RGIII is a stud! The kid has a lightning quick release, has the same acceleration as Adrian Peterson and is just an all around talent. He, along with Alfred Morris have helped pull the once might Redskins from the shallows of mediocrity to a relevance and a force to be reckoned with in the NFC. We all knew they were on the right track but they may even sneak into the dance this year. Good for Washington, that city has been craving a quality football team since the mid 90's.
If you want my personal take on the NFL; anyone can win the Superbowl. I see no clear cut favorite in either the NFC or AFC. Before you point the finger to the fact that both the Texans and Falcons are 11 - 1, I say the Falcons have stumbled in the play -off's the last three years despite good records and the Texans, for what it is worth have played a whooping two play - off games...EVER.
The greatest time of the year to be a hockey fan is nearly upon us. There is nothing better than to couple the Xmas season with a frosty brew and the WJHC. While we have to listen to Gord Miller (who personally annoys me by the three minute mark of the 1st period) the hockey is tremendous. I never think twice to be up at 5:00 to watch the Canadians lives. There is just something to be said about watching it while it happens. Sure one could watch the replay but by then the social media has inundated you with the score, stats and the number of gallons of water used by the zamboni.
So the invites are out, and as always I look at the list and to steal a line from the cinematic phenomenon that was Major League; the construction workers are reading the roster of the Indians and one say's "Who the F%#k are these guys?" Well that's me for most players outside of the WHL, and even then there are some questions. Regardless here is what you need to know no matter who makes the final cut. We will by physical, very physical. We will get called for penalties that should not be; just because a rugged D-man who spends the summer flipping cows and chucking bales catches little Mikko from Finland with his head down does not mean a two minute charging call is necessary. Inevitbaly one line will gel and absolutely scare the bejeezus out of opponents (See Tavares and Eberle; Heatley and Cammalleri; Lindros and Mike Craig, etc) and we will be there in the end. We will finish 1st or 2nd in our pool, play in a Semi - Final and walk away with a medal. That my friends is one of the perks of being a Canadian hockey fan; we seem to be the only nation who never struggles.
In my twenty plus years of watching this tournament, only once, 1995 did we struggle. That year we finished eighth, including a loss to Kazakhstan. That was terrible but had nothing to do with the talent on the ice, rather the chemistry that existed.
Oh and talks continue with the NHL in regards to their lockout; is there still even hope for a season? Walk away...scrap the season...teach them all a lesson. I said this months ago, Donald Fehr will ruin hockey as he nearly did baseball. Good hire by the PA...a guy who has no problems holding a season and a league hostage to make himself look good. For Christmas I hope he gets a big ol'.....waith this is PG 14. Use your imagination but he won't be recieving the family photo complete with Christmas card and letter from the Morin clan.
Later, must go prepare. Tonight is step #1 in my journey to the Brier. Regular Curling at the Norquay Curling Rink...Team Rostotski on the ice at 730. The arrival of Vic Rauter is still up in the air.
How long until this blog picks up about that Rostotski rink with the stellar Morin at 3rd??? I hear those guys are 2-0 and absolutely tearing up the Norquay league.
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