My Personal Blog

My Disappointment with the AHL (American Hockey League) February 20 2008 Tonight I was at the Hershey Bears/Wilkes-Barre Penguins game at the Wachovia Arena. The game I was to prior was also against the Hershey Bears. Over the past few games I've noticed a few things that the AHL really needs to improve on. Discipline - Last game, Hershey scored a goal that was ruled a goal at first and then overturned after the referee visited with the goal judge. This is a few problems in itself (that I'll mention later), but there was a much bigger problem. After the referee waived off the goal, Joe Motzko (#12) continually argued with the referee. I was fine with that as I could understand their frustrations. However, the referee failed to notice that as they were explaining the situation, Louis Robitaille (#24) came over to the Hershey goalie (near the end I was sitting) to have a "discussion." Before leaving the area, he clearly started yelling at the goal judge telling him he was an "ef'n idiot." To me, this is completely uncalled for. Too bad the AHL does not have the proper cameras in place to discipline players. Tonight, a similar event happened after a goal was waved off. This time, Scott Barney (#36) skated behind WBS goalie Marc Andre Fleury to yell at the goal judge. Again, this is uncalled for. These two incidents, and I don't want to isolate this to just Hershey as I've seen Wilkes-Barre/Scranton do this as well as other teams, are the reason I'm seriously considering not bringing my children to these games. To me, the AHL *should* be a family sport more so than the NHL. They're in smaller markets and generally the fans care more about the teams even when they're in the cellar of the league. Get the same rulebook - The NHL is so much better with instant replay, two referees and the same penalties. Tonight I saw Hershey shoot the puck over the glass by their goalie from between the two circles and nothing was called. Having two referees would definately help as the linesmen can't do anything in the AHL. Also, both WBS and Hershey, from what I could see, where robbed of goals this evening. Having instant replay and overturning those goals could have added to the momentum of one team or the other. I wish someone in the AHL offices could here me. If someone can, please sound off. [TOP]

Ohio State vs LSU Tonight! January 07 2008 It's been awhile since I've posted anywhere as I've been extremely busy. However, I'm going to try to ramp up my posts this year. Be sure to catch the Buckeyes tonight as they face the Tigers in New Orleans. [TOP]

Torre's Gone - Steinbrenner's to Blame October 18 2007 It's a sad day for Yankee fans as Joe Torre turned down a pathetic 1 year contract offer by the New York Yankees. Apparently the old boss and the "new blood" of Hank and Hal didn't see Torre's impact. However, the fans did. Torre turned the team around from a dismal early 90's team to be a power house in the AL East. With 12 straight postseason appearances, he led the team with pride and dignity. Now, because the players can't hit (or pitch) in October (except for the homegrown talent), he's at fault? How about the Steinbrenner's decision's to bring back Clemens (waste), bring in Carl Pavano (waste), bring in Giambi (started off ok, but he's been a waste), etc. In my opinion, he should have been offered a 3 or 4 year contract with incentives. Not a 1 year. What a slap in the face.   Although I'm a Yankees fan and Mattingly will likely be the coach next year, I wish the team would tank just to show the young boys their bad decision. It's great that Mattingly will get his chance (I'm probably the biggest Donnie Baseball fan), but it could of waited a few years. Now he's going to be under unneeded pressure.   Hank, Hal, and the rest of the Yankee front office, I hope you're happy. I hope you realize that you screwed up and instead of next year's focus on the All Star Game and it being the last year at Yankee Stadium, it's going to be about your completely, ridiculous decision. [TOP]

Yankees Are Down And Out October 09 2007 Well, last night the New York Yankees lost and are out of the playoffs early losing in the Divisional Series for the third year in a row. The big question now facing the Yankees is around Joe Torre's future. But is that fair? Let's evaluate a few things:   C.C. Sabathia gave up an average of 1.09 walks per game in the regular season. In Game 1, he gave up 6 walks. None of those players scored. What ever happended to walks hurting the pitcher? Joba Chamberlain gets attacked by bugs. The result? He throws a wild pitch, hit a man, and walked two. Yet, he is regarded as a control pitcher. Coincidence? Mr. October (Derek Jeter) goes 3 for 17 for a .176 average. The old cliche, when the Captain fails, the ship sinks. Batters 2 through 6 batted an average of .176 in the series. These same batters had a season average of .308 and include two MVP candidates (Rodriguez and Posada), a captain (Jeter), and two outfielders (Abreu and Matsui). The entire team struck out twice as many times as they hit a run in one. During the regular season, the ratio between strike outs to RBIs was 1.07:1. The two most productive hitters were on oposite sides of the line-up. Damon had a .278 average with 5 RBIs and batted first. Cano had a .333 average with 3 RBIs and batted seventh. So no, it is not fair. Joe Torre prepared the Yankees for the playoffs but ultimately it's the players that need to deliver. The reason they lost was because of the veteran players. With the exception of Damon and Pettite, the rest of the team failed. The young guys were the ones that delivered. Look at Cano -- he had 2 home runs and batted .333. Shelly Duncan, in limited play, went 2 for 4. Duncan had almost as many hits as Jeter and Matsui and had only 4 at bats. Joba Chamberlain pitched pretty well despite giving up 1 run in Game 3 and 1 in Game 2 while battling bugs. Phil Hughes came up in relief of Roger Clemens and pitched 3.2 scoreless innings keeping the Yankees in the game and allowing them to win that Game 3. Cashman and Torre both pushed these young guys. These guys were the ones jumping around, giving high fives, and providing clutch performances down the stretch. So, Torre and Cashman, your jobs would be safe if I had the money the Boss-man does. George, please do the right thing and resign Torre and keep Cashman. If you do, you will be rewarded. Remember back to the stretch of series victories you had. The young guys won it for you (Jeter, Pettite, Rivera, etc). [TOP]

MLB First Round Predictions October 01 2007 It's been awhile since I've posted to my blogs. I've been very busy lately with numerous projects and haven't had the time. Since last I've posted, the SWB Yankees made it to the postseason and lost. The NY Yankees made it to the postseason as the wildcard. And, the Miami Dolphins started out 0-4. But, putting that all aside, nothing matters in the next month+ but the MLB playoffs. Here are my first round predictions:   Yankees beat Indians in 4 Red Sox beat Angels in 5 Cubs beat Diamondbacks in 4 Phillies beat Rockies (or Padres) in 4 My early prediction for the World Series is that the winner will come from the American League and will most likely be the winner of the Yankees/Indians series. [TOP]

Setup my Xbox Elite 360 July 23 2007 Over the weekend I decided to exchange my Xbox 360 premium for the Elite edition. The biggest change I noticed that is unpublished is how quiet the thing now runs. I would definately recommend the update!  [TOP]

Phil Hughes Injures Himself May 02 2007 Well, the NY Yankees called up Phil Hughes early and what happens? He injures himself as he was in the middle of pitching a no-hitter in the seventh. What a joke! Who's getting called up next? [TOP]

WBS Penguins Begin Round 2 Tonight May 02 2007 The WBS Penguins begin round 2 agains the Hershey Bears tonight in Hershey. Good luck Pens! [TOP]

Early NHL Cup Predictions May 02 2007 My early predictions are as follows:   Ottawa will beat New Jersey in 7 Buffalo will beat New York in 7 Anaheim will beat Vancouver in 6 San Jose will beat Detroit in 7   Ottawa will beat Buffalo in 6 Anaheim will beat San Jose in 7   Ottawa wins the cup in 7 [TOP]

NHL Round 2 Predictions May 01 2007 I was 6 for 8 in Round 1. Here are my Round 2 predictions:   Buffalo vs. NYR Sabres (win in 6) New Jersey vs. Ottawa Devils (win in 7) Detroit vs. San Jose Red Wings (win in 6) Anaheim vs. Vancouver Ducks (win in 7) [TOP]