Alright, I'm deathly ill. My throat is killing me and I can barely talk. I'm not even going to try and write anything long or witty, just write some topics on which I owe to some people of the recent past...

1st - I've heard some rumblings that the United Cycle employees have been reading our blog, so I thought it was only fair that I give them a shout out. Anyone who goes into United Cycle for hockey gear NEEDS to go see Barry Kostanuick, he is the nicest guy and has hockey knowledge beyond his own understanding. Also, that one young guy he introduced me to is hilarious. SO, basically to sum up... United Cycle for life.

2nd - This is for Ash. The 96-97 Edmonton Oilers. Now, if I write a blog about my favorite team (the Stars) losing a huge series to the up-start Oilers, you know I really owe this section in my blog to Ash. I know all she really wants is to rekindle her love affair with Jason Arnott, so I thought I would give some eye candy for her...

3rd - The Hockey News is infamous for getting my boy, Sporer, all revved up with it's annual pre-season predictions. They picked the Oil to finish 6th and they are actually 8th, that's not too too shabby. In fact, if the playoffs were to start right now, they have 6/8 playoff teams in the East correctly predicted to make the playoffs and 7/8 out of the West.

4th a - I think the Ohlund for Vermette talks are more then just rumors. Ottawa hasn't been shy in saying they need a puck-moving Dman and Ohlund is experienced and a UFA at years end. Vermette is one of those crafty Europeans, whose agitating style of play is actually fun to watch since he can also put the puck in the net. Could you imagine Burrows, Kesler and Vermette on one line?! Frick.

4th b - Luongo is a UFA after next season. I know it's early to speculate, but what are the chances that he is really back in Vancouver colors? I'd also like to do some Luongo bashing as well. Can you really consider this guy one of the best ever if he hasn't won anything of substance (World Championships don't count, unless we all want to anoint Sean Burke as one of the best ever with all his international wins). He has zero Memorial Cups, zero Olympic Golds, zero individual awards and, most importantly, zero Stanley Cups. Wow, what a winner or should i say, wiener...

5th - This is for Oilers FTW. We all make mistakes and I made one in my last blog. Oilers FTW did not make that horrendous trade (Jokinen for Zetterberg) in my fantasy pool and I apologize for the harsh words; however, Renegades, you are a SOB. I hope you rot in Winnipeg hell.

6th - This topic is for every Edmonton Oiler fan who also loves Will Smith...



















How does it feel? Feels like a Million bucks to me...

7th - This is for Drew. Buddy, I'm beginning to agree with your take on comparing players from different eras. Too much has changed in the game: equipment, expansion, dollars, the trap, butterfly style. Can you argue Sawchuk was better then Roy or Brodeur? Or that Howe was better then Orr or Gretzky? Maybe, but you certainly couldn't do it convincingly...

8th - This is for Lawrence at BP's. He is a huge NBA fan, Kobe Bryant in fact. I was watching the Heat-Raptors highlights and heard the commentator go absolute crazy when Dwayne Wade made a slam dunk. As i recall, the commentator said 'OH MY GOODNESS! HAVE YOU EVER SEEN A WICKED FACIAL LIKE THAT IN YOUR LIFE?!' Ok, are you serious? If you dunk, all you have to do is get the ball around someones hand, while you both leap in the air. Someone's hand can't be bigger then 10 inches. So, a 'wicked facial' is when a guy moves a ball 10 inches out of the way? Wow. Sounds difficult...

9th - These are just some ridiculously hilarious ways to get kicked in the nuts...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-4JMHo6WUM&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKZYhcU81Js&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9EmuKX14Sk&feature=related

10th - This final one if for the newly appointed captain of the Maroons, Brett. Does anyone else see a loser wearing a pink bandanna with the stupidest grin on his face?! Yep, juuuuust checkin'...
Cheers.
-Smith

The almost quarter -way Oilers grading.

So its just about quarter way through the season and just after tonights game against the blue jackets i have decided to grade each Oiler on their performance so far, given their stats and what ive seen/heard. The Oilers record after tonights game stands at 9-8-2, which is pretty good considering most of the Oilers games have been on the road so far. After tonights trouncing of the Blue Jackets 7-2 its hard not to feel a little better. So here we go with the grades. (in order by number)


#5 Ladislav Smid-Grade: C Smid hasnt done a whole ton, but thats because he has been hurt and has only played 8 games, 2 assists isnt bad and a +1 rating doesnt hurt, yet still we have not seen the Smid that we were supposed to get in the Pronger trade.

#10 Shawn Horcoff-Grade: C- Horcoff came into this season with a lot of high expectations, before his injury last year he was a point per game player. So far this year he has only mustered 5 goals and 6 assists for 11 points in 19 games, he needs to be better. He also needs to solify his number one center spot.

#12 Robert Nilsson-Grade: B- Nilsson has been great at times, and at times you dont even notice he was there. His effort is there most nights and he can be a great weapon, he just needs to keep it consistent every night. He also needs to improve his -4 rating, and 3 goals 3 assists isnt a very big contribution, still it seems he can be explosive and create lots of chances.

#13 Andrew Cogliano-Grade: B Cogliano has been pretty consistent for the Oilers, giving a good effort almost every night. He may not always be scoring but he uses his speed well and creates tons of chances, he does put a lot of pressure on the opposing defense when he slams on the jets. 4 goals and 4 assists isnt too bad either.

#18 Ethan Moreau-Grade: A- Moreau has been a little bit of a surprise offensively for the Oilers with 5 goals already. At times he can turn a game with one powerful shift, which is what a captain needs to do. However there is the flipside where at times he takes needless penalties which hurt the team. He can also agt times try to do a little bit to much with the puck. Overall though, Moreau has been great for the Oil.

#24 Steve Staios-Grade: B+ Its hard to grade a guy you hardly notice, however sometimes with defensmen going unoticed can be a good thing. Staios has been completely solid for the Oil, with a goal and an assist and a +1 rating, he is just doing his job, no questions asked.

#26 Eric Cole-Grade: D Cole has been almost invisible at times. At times he can be a force, but we have yet to see that every night. Cole has been probably the biggest dissapointment for the Oilers, with only 3 goals and 3 assists, he isnt contributing nearly enough offensivly. Cole needs to get his act together quick, especially if he wants to earn a good contract at the end of the year.

#27 Dustin Penner-Grade: D Penner being scratched for 2 games in a row speaks alot for his play. He put in an amazing effort in columbus tonight, however consistency is the biggest problem so we will see what happens the next few games. Penner has the potential to be a huge contributor for the Oilers, he can easily improve upon his 24 goal total from last year, he just needs to come to work every night.

#33 Steve Macintyre-Grade: A Macintyre isn injured now. but when he was in the lineup he did his job to perfection. He came in here to be the policeman and thats exactly what he was, couldnt ask for much more from the guy.

#34 Fernando Pisani-Grade: C- Pisani needs to contribute more offensivly, his injury hurts both him and the Oilers. Still he wasnt contributing enough offensivly. End of story.

#37 Denis Grebeshkov-Grade: B- Greb's has been fairly solid for the Oilers. He started off really well but has slowed, especially in his point production. He needs to improve on his -3 rating. Otherwise not bad for Grebs thus far. He will continue to be fairly solid.

#43 Jason Strudwick-Grade: B+ Hasnt been a huge force for the Oilers, but he did play his way onto the team and hasnt proven otherwise thus far. He is the definition of solid. He and Staios have been a great shutdown pairing for the Oilers. He isnt a - player so he isnt hurting the team either.

#44 Sheldon Souray-Grade: A+ Souray has been every bit the defensemen the Oilers paid 5 million dollars for a season ago. He leads the team in goals! He is a huge force on the powerplay, and contributes a ton defensivly as well. Couldnt ask for any more from Souray at this point, he has been everything we need.

#46 Zach Stortini-Grade: D Zach just hasnt been the same player he was last year, on most nights i would wayyy rather have Macintyre in the lineup. Stortini doesnt bring much if anything to the ice. When he fights, he doesnt, he just grabs and holds on. So that doesnt even help the team emotionally. He might as well play the rest of the season in the minors.

#51 Kyle Brodziak-Grade: C Kyle shows flashes of brilliance at times, and for a third or fourth line center you cant expect a ton out of him. Yet he just doesnt really contribute much, and it even lead to his healthy scratch a few nights ago. He needs to put a 100% effort in everynight to be effective, and so far he hasnt.

#71 Lubomir Visnovsky-Grade: B "Lubo" hasnt been the defenseman the Oilers traded for. Coming into the season he was expected to contribute a lot offensivly, so far he has been a little bit of a liability. He gives the puck away alot on his own end, and can make some really dum decsions at times. However he is a +3 and has 10 points, so he hasnt been too bad.

#77 Tom Gilbert-Grade: B+ Gilbert has been great for the Oilers so far, the only reason i give him a B+ and not an A, is because he is a -3. His offense has been exactly where it needs to be.

#78 Marc Pouliot-Grade: D Pouliot is lucky he scored tonight otherwise he might have been my only F graded player. He brings absolutley nothing. I dont know how he earns a spot over many other minor league players.

#83 Ales Hemsky-Grade: A++ I actually couldnt wait to grade "Hemmer", he has been everything plus for the Oilers. He has 20 points in 19 games, and brings it every night. Oh and did i mention, he is shooting! He has 48 shots which is only 3rd on the team. He has looked deadly on almost every night. Hemsky may have finally found his game. This is something to be very excited about.

#89 Sam Gagner-Grade: C- Gagner hasnt done a whole lot for the Oilers, which hurts the team alot considering he is heavily relied upon for offense. Recently scoring his 1st goal has helped and he has been putting in a wayyy more visible effort. He can at times be careless with the puck, and makes some pretty bad giveaways. He needs to turn up his play alot.

#38 Jeff Deslauriers-Grade: A Deslauriers has been a succes story for the Oilers, and has proved he is ready for the NHL. The 3 goalie system does hurt him however. He would be alot better off if he was just the backup, and was getting a good 17, 18 games. He is a great goaltender with lots of size. He could potentially gain the number one job in the near future.

#35 Dwayne Roloson-Grade: A Roloson as of late has been possibly one of the best Oilers. If the team is showcasing him, then the Oilers are going to get something great in return. However at this point it looks like Garon is the odd man out, as Roloson has been practicaly a brick wall at times.

#32 Mathieu Garon-Grade: C- Garon has been a major dissapointment for the Oilers. His play has not garnered his number one job which he has lost at this point. He is even starting to look like the odd man out of the 3 goalie monster the Oilers have.

Monday Morning Recap

How can USC still only be #6 in the new BCS? They might not even win the Pac-10. What's next? The Apocalypse? Anyways, here is just another reason to be a USC fan...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO9daN5fH8M

Now, here are my NHL thoughts for the week...

1 a - Ales Hemsky has 1G in the last 5 games (0 in his last 4 games).

1 b - Dustin Penner has been a healthy scratch the past 2 games. Only one thing I can say in this situation, I told you so.

2 - The Sydor-Boucher deal is good for both sides. Boucher will provide PP help until Gonchar and Whitney are healthy, while Sydor is making his 3rd stop in Big D and will provide some veteran leadership for a struggling team. Both are UFAs too.

3 - Zetterberg for Jokinen would never happen in real life, but apparently Fantasy Hockey Pools don't care about real life... Oilers FTW, you're a dumbass...



4 - Devin Setoguchi scored a PP goal last night. Why do we care? It came on a Jordin Tootoo charging call. Get this guy out of the game! Immediately! He makes Sean Avery look like classy Joe Sakic (I thought about putting in a Tootoo photo here, but common. F-that. Burnaby Joe is just more nice to look at). Disgusting.

5 - Mike Ribeiro's SO goal against LA was ridiculous. A between-the-legs to a Forsberg. Now that's something I haven't seen yet. Wow. Here it is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcvha_TLsEU&feature=related

Here are my non-NHL thoughts for the week...

1 - Brock Lesnar is a monster of a man. If you caught the UFC fight w/ Randy 'The Natural' Couture, then you know what I'm talking about. How many punches to the head did he get in on Randy while he was down... 25? 30?

2 - Saskatchewan has 3 Grey Cup wins in 98 years... What is this Rider Pride bullshit? More like Sucker Pride...

3 - The Patriots are 6-4. The Colts are 6-4. The Pats have lost 2 of 3. The Colts have won 4 straight. I'll say it again... Suck it, Sporer.

4 - Is The Love Guru just a Middle-Eastern version of Austin Powers? I didn't even know Mike Myers was still making movies. You know the saying 'quit while your ahead'? Yea, it should have applied to him...

5 - The NCAA basketball season has begun and I couldn't care less. Then March roles around. Lets be honest, nothing beats the NHL playoffs, but March Madness is the next best option. Hands down. The ultimate bracket predictor. Love it.

Cheers.
-Smith

p.s.