Patrick Roy's Son is a Goon

Can't believe I haven't jumped all over this. Chalk it up to my overall laziness, I suppose.

Much like a lot of the stories I write about, this one is nothing short of ridiculous.

“With the Remparts trailing 7-1 near the end of the second period of their playoff game on Saturday, players on both sides began to brawl. The younger Roy skated towards Chicoutimi netminder Bobby Nadeau, but was held back by two on-ice officials. According to reports, it was at that point that father Patrick told his son to go after Nadeau. Jonathan Roy skated towards the opposing netminder and landed a series of punches without any retaliation, then saluted the opposing fans before starting another fight with defenceman Sebastien Rioux.” (TSN.ca)

Hey, maybe Jonathan Roy is just pissed that he'll never come close to being as good as his father. Here's the video. (YouTube)

Madness: Look forward to Thursday action

It's been a pretty eventful couple of days, to say the least. Who would've thought all the underdogs would win in Tampa?! Add that to West Virginia telling Duke to take a hike and the Davidson win over Georgetown, and we've got a hell of a tourney on our hands. For the record, my brackets are in shambles. At least I'm not the only one feelin' the pain...

Here's how she stands after 2 rounds...

West Virginia/Xavier and UCLA/Western Kentucky are on tap for the West bracket, while the Washington State/UNC and Louisville/Tennessee doubleheader will give us some quality viewing in the East on Thursday.

Davidson will be trying to keep their Cinderella run alive when they meet Wisconsin on Friday in the Midwest, followed up by Villanova/Kansas. The South gives us Stanford/Texas and Memphis/Michigan State.

Needless to say, I know where I'll be Thursday night. Not sure about Friday though, as I'll likely be sipping fruity umbrella drinks by the pool in sunny Southern California. Shucks.

Rainy Roundup: Obama League Baseball?

Hey y'all. I'm back. Didn't go anywhere, just haven't posted. My boy Hambone has been on my case recently so I figured I talk about some of the random shit I've seen over the last couple days.

Figured I'd throw this funny one up there to kick things off. This dude decided to combine his love for Major League Baseball and U.S. politics. Cool shirts. Obama business strikes out

So apparently the story about Tiger Woods buying a ridiculous mansion in the Hamptons for $65 million yesterday is not true. Thank god. Because even though he could've bought that crib with a (big) duffle bag full of cash, he didn't, and kept a few less people from hating him. He's already got 2 'homes' in Florida and 1 in Dubai on his golf course. I'm anxiously awaiting the day he becomes the world's first athlete billionaire.

Yes, I missed a Monday morning post about how awesome Tiger is after winning at Bay Hill, but is he even human? Can't they test for something like that?

I'd stay outta his way. How many 66-year olds do you know who do mixed martial arts?

I'm in the wrong business: Visa IPO prices at record $17.9 billion

Like they don't make enough money already: Red Sox boycott Japan trip, then reconcile

Fred Couples posts a 65, John Daly cracks a beer

At the time of this posting, Fred Couples has the outright lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando. I understand it's still early in the afternoon, but to me, that's pretty impressive for ol' Freddy C. At least we know he still has the raw talent to go low, as long as his ailing body holds up. For a guy who has had chronic pain in his back for years, he can still pipe a golf ball. He averaged 301.5 yards on his drives in Thursday's round. There's a reason he's called 'Boom Boom'.

On a less than enthusiastic note, PGA Tour bad boy John Daly has hit yet another speed bump in his 'eventful' career. He was disqualified from Bay Hill when he missed his Tuesday Pro-Am tee-time. Daly claims there was a misunderstanding with his tee-time, but he was likely out late the night before, lighting it up at one of Orlando's hotspots...or, any questionable dive that serves the sauce. It also didn't help that his swing coach, legendary Butch Harmon, quit on him on Monday saying, "the most important thing in his life is getting drunk." Pretty heavy stuff. Did I mention that he was only playing at Bay Hill because Arnie invited him? Talk about disrespecting someone you shouldn't be.

Last week, he shot 77-80 to miss the cut by a mile at the PODS Championship in Tampa, and even had Tampa Bay Buccaneers' coach John Gruden on the bag for him (pictured above). But missing the cut wasn't a big deal to Big JD. He spent his Saturday drinking in the Hooters tent behind 17 at Innisbrook drinking beer and signing bodyparts.

There are many people who think he should be kicked off the Tour. I'm not one of them. If tournament sponsors are going to continue to provide exemptions for him to play, then he'll be on the Tour. When he shows up for his tee-times, he's a pleasure to watch. The question is, how far can John Daly go before he's cut off for good?

Goalie Wars: Darth Gerber rules with iron fist

So it's looking more and more likely that Martin "Darth" Gerber will be the #1 'tender for the Senators heading into the post-season. He's not only been the Sens' best player for the past 6 games, but it also helps that his name's not Ray Emery.

Management doesn't seem to be a fan of ol' Razor these days. For good reason. He pretty much got John Paddock fired a couple weeks ago. Then he finally broke his silence this week with a half-assed apology to the coach who moulded him in the AHL. Add in the fact that he can't stop a beach ball on the short side when he does play, and you've got a pretty 'easy' decision.

Enter Darth Gerber. Dah da da da, Dah da da da da da daaaahh.

Although they managed to lose 3-1, 3-2, and 2-0 before winning 4-2 on their recent Left Coast trip, the Sens have at least had the goaltending they've been so desperately looking for. The blame for those 3 losses lands squarely on the shoulders of every skater on the team, not Gerber. Technically, he only let in 1 in L.A. They potted an empty-netter late in the 3rd. Things turned around when they hit the desert last Saturday, though. Gerber played well, and the rest of them actually played defence. There's a concept. Backchecking, defensive coverage, physical play. Ya know, things that you should do every time you step on the ice if you intend to win the hockey game.

Last night's game against Beantown was no different. Gerber made some stellar saves which translated into offensive rushes and goals by Heatley. It was like watching Sens hockey of old. Quick transitions, bodychecks, great saves, and good ol' fashioned lamplighting. It's worth noting Heater's quality game. A nice 'trick to break out of his recent slump.

It's always nice to see a certain player step his game up when the rest of the team is struggling. Gerber has been to the Cup Finals 3 times. All 3 times he's had his rear-end planted firmly on the pine. If the last week is any indication, he'll be relegating that role to a player who needs to give his head a firm shake. Get used to sporting that beauty new cap, Razor. You could be sitting there for a while.

Yankees sign Billy Crystal: What?

Yes. It's true. Billy Crystal will be throwin' on the pinstripes of the Bronx Bombers for a spring training game this Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Look out for #60...which is also his age.

The question remains: what position will he play? Sit A-Rod and play'em besides Jeets on the left side? Perhaps scratch Jeets and let him and Cano turn a couple double plays...Or, maybe let him run around in the outfield chasing fly balls? Wait a second, they're playing Pittsburgh. We all know they can't get hit it out of the infield. Which begs another question: when will Jason Bay jump ship and ditch the Pirates?

Anyway, where will Billy bat? He may not be lead-off material, but if his high school stats (.348 as a senior in high school) are any indication, he should be tucked somewhere between 3rd and 5th in the order. Imagine he hit a long bomb? If that happened, I think Pitt should be kicked out of the league.

Next up: Jack Nicholson dishin' to Kobe with the Lakers? Jerry Seinfeld throwing a no-hitter with the Mets? Gotta love the MLB. Millionaires, steroids, and comedians. Insert joke here. I'm too lazy.

Obscure Jersey Thursdays: Kelly Hrudey

People in Canada get to see this schlub Saturday nights on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada. Luckily, he's on the late crew. Nobody seems to care much about the late game. East Coast biased much? Of course. I could care less about the western Canadian teams.

As for Kelly Hrudey, he was a decent 'tender. Was 3rd stringer on the 1987 Canada Cup team, played in the infamous 'Eastern Epic': a game that went in to 4th OT as he set a playoff record with 73 saves. Most importantly, he was part of the '93 L.A. Kings that took on Patrick Roy and the Montreal Canadiens in the Cup finals. Of course, '99' per cent of the credit deserves to go to Gretzky for getting them there. Although they didn't win, it was somewhat of a turning point in the NHL. It was the first southern U.S. team to make it that far into the post-season. And although they didn't win the Cup, Hrudey's ugly eastern-European-esque goalie mask will forever remain etched in the heads of hockey fans everywhere. Thanks Kelly.
(Photo courtesy: Straight Cash Homey.net)

Poolsider Report: Sens/Ducks from the Honda

Poolsider reporting from Honda Center...

When was the last time you saw a coached tossed? Or two unsportsmanlike penalties from refs who lost complete control of it by the second period? Alfredsson's out indefinitely with an upper-body injury thanks to a blatant crosscheck from Beauchemin directly in front of one of the zebras...with no call.

Add up one superb goaltending performance by Jiggy, and it resulted in a bitter, but spirited, 3-1 loss to Ducks. Never mind. I thought the Sens played a couple of good periods, showing some of the spunk they last displayed against Detroit in January....7 weeks ago!

Perhaps it was because 'Friends" star and Ottawa superfan Matthew Perry was in the barn? Nah, this game was lost in the early moments of the third when Giguere played like Gump Worsley stopping Spezza point-blank several times. The Gerber baby played well. So did the new acquisitions, Lapointe and Stillman. Sorry, but can't say the same about Redden, who might have to play in Germany next year...because no other team will want him.

Like they did last June, the big Duck D shut us down as well...prompting one SoCal hack from the cheap seats to remark, "look familiar...from last spring?" This from a guy who pronounced Jason's name as "SpEEza" and called Emery a "flake." (Well, he was half right...).

Whatever, Murray's tossing might be what this placid squad needs right now...as they attempt to discover whether they're the team of 2007 or the one that suffered four consecutive playoff losses to the Leafs.

Poolsider signing out...and heading back to the 80F weather in Palm Springs...

Live Blog: Sens not the team they once were

Well here it is. The game we've been waiting for.

Really?

It's common knowledge that the Anaheim Ducks were the dominant team in last year's Cup final. There's no question about it.

It seems as though they're still the dominant team. 2-1 Ducks lead after the 1st frame. Bertuzzi and Perry for Anaheim and Schubert for O-town.

A couple questionable hits on Volchenkov and Redden early, and Meszaros just got hurt on an awkward fall in his own zone.

Rollin' on Pinkies

Say hello to Manchester City's midfielder Stephen Ireland.

From FanIQ: "Ireland's already known as a bit of a space cadet, he once pretended his grandmother had died to get out of an international game, but this is taking it to a whole other level. Who's he trying to impress with this thing? 10-year-old girls? Richard Simmons? I'll just say this: I live in San Francisco and I've never seen a car this, uh, festive. And that's saying something."

Are you ready for this? Apparently it's worth $178,000.