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Home / Archive: 26. February 2009
By Mark Ritter…
And so it begins. The Anaheim Ducks and the Pittsburgh Penguins have pulled the trigger on a deal that will see Ducks land 26 year old defenseman Ryan Whitney from the Penguins in exchange for 29 year old Left Winger Chris Kunitz and 20 year old Junior prospect Eric Tangradi (Currently playing for the Belleville Bulls of the OHL). In Whitney, the Ducks get a great puck-moving D-Man who can fill the void left by the departure of Veteran Defenseman Scott Niedermayer, if and when that happens. In Kunitz, the Penguins get that much needed scoring winger who can fill the offensive void the Pens are feeling this season.
This deal sets the tone for what should be an exciting trade deadline. Both Pittsburgh and Anaheim are struggling to keep their playoff hopes alive, Pittsburgh currently sits in the 16th and final playoff spot, while Anaheim is sitting on the outside looking in, stuck in 20th spot. It should be noted that the difference between 10th and 20th in the standings is all of 5 points, with four teams within one point of 16th place Pittsburgh.
The deal should work out well for both teams, Pittsburgh needed scoring and Whitney had fallen out of favor at the Igloo. Kunitz has been a serviceable player for the Ducks, I don’t see him being a 70+ points player, but he could see the 60 point mark if he gets a chance to play with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. The Ducks needed another puck moving D-Man, and with all the speculation that the Ducks are entertaining moving Chris Pronger or Scott Niedermayer at the deadline they had to be prepared for the loss. Good foresight by the Ducks, good immediate fix for the Penguino’s. I see this as being a good deal for both clubs, but I am left wondering if the Penguins gave up on Ryan Whitney too soon?
With so many teams fighting it out for the final playoff positions every move one of those ten teams makes must be analyzed and countered by many teams if they intend on keeping up with the jones’. Look for teams like the New York Rangers, Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers to make a decision in the next day or two as to weather or not they will be buyers or sellers, the standings are so close that it might come down to the wire, in reality it’s a complete coin-flip, anything can happen in the standings. When all is said and done, it should make a very interesting deadline day!!!
Until next time
Peace!
by Martin Fitzpatrick… As the old adage goes, anything becomes normal if it happens often enough, which is exactly what happened with our appreciation of Tiger Woods.
Throughout the past 12 years of his career, we have become accustomed to seeing Tiger Woods completely dominate the PGA Tour, and have therefore taken it for granted.
As Woods gets set to make the most anticipated return to the PGA Tour since Ben Hogan returned a year after a near fatal care accident, golf fans are beginning to come to grips with a humbling notion – Tiger Woods is not as young as he used to be and he won’t be around forever.
This past December, Tiger Woods turned 33 years old, which is hard to believe.
At 33 years old and having undergone four knee surgeries including a complete reconstruction of his ACL, we are beginning to realize just how fragile Woods’ incredible career is, and that it will inevitably not last forever.
When Tiger Woods shut it down for the year following his now legendary win at the 2008 US Open, many golf fans went running for the hills, television ratings plummeted and sponsors became edgy.
If Woods’ absence has taught us nothing else it has shown us just how central he is to the PGA Tour financial success and just how lucky we, as a generation, are to be witnessing Woods’ career.
We read books and see footage of past greats such as Bobby Jones, Babe Ruth or Johnny Unitas and say to ourselves “wow, I wonder what it would have been like to see them play”.
Well, it is time for us to wake up and smell the roses.
Right now, we should all be considering ourselves lucky to have been given the opportunity to watch a golfer who is virtually assured to go down as the greatest to ever pick up a club.
We are watching a player who is a step above and beyond legends such as Babe Ruth, Bobby Jones and Johnny Unitas.
You see, players such as Ruth, Jones and Unitas could be considered ‘arguably’ the greatest players of all-time, whereas Tiger Woods is easily on pace to become the undisputed greatest golfer of all-time, which is extremely rare in any sport in any era.
How many people alive right now can sit there and say that they saw the undisputed greatest player of all time in any sport?
Not many.
Tiger Woods’ absence, though clearly detrimental to the PGA Tour, could have actually created the perfect atmosphere for the tour to thrive even more upon his return.
As Woods gets a little older and golf fans have gotten a small glimpse at what the PGA Tour would be like without him, something interesting has begun to happen.
Despite 14 majors and 65 PGA Tour wins, it has taken a glimpse into life without Tiger Woods as if we have been visited by the ghost of PGA Tour future to make us actually start appreciating the magnitude of what we are watching every time Woods tees up a golf ball.
If you are a young man like me, one day your children and grandchildren will be hounding you for stories about the legendary Tiger Woods.
Folks, we have been given an opportunity that very rarely comes along in the history of any sport; we have been given the opportunity to witness with our own eyes a player who will wind up being the most legendary player the game of golf has ever seen.
We have seen what life would, of course, one day will be like without Tiger Woods playing on the PGA Tour.
Now, it is time to sit back and enjoy the next ten years of Woods’ career, as you will almost surely never get another opportunity to witness what you are about to see.
by Martin Avery… The New York Rangers lost their first game under their new coach John Tortorella in Toronto, against the Maple Leafs.
The game was tied 1-1 at the end of three periods. Nikolia Kulemin scored for the Leafs in the shoot-out.
The Rangers took a 1-0 lead on a power play goal by Wade Redden halfway through the second period. Redden snapped a 57-game goal-scoring slump. The Maple Leafs came back to tie the game half way through the third period on a goal by Niklas Hagman.
While the Rangers were playing the Leafs in Toronto, the
Globe and Mail announced Sean Avery would soon be joining the team. The same paper revealed that coaching Avery was a condition of employment for Tortorella.
Toronto was the winner the last time these two teams met and New York fired their coach the next morning. Tortorella replaced Tom Renney. The Rangers got off to a great start this year, going 10-2, but they had won only twice in their last 12 matches (2-7-3).
Mark Bell, the 28-year-old forward who had been playing for the Toronto Marlies in the AHL, was claimed off re-entry waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs by the New York Rangers before the game today.
Sean Avery scored his first goal for the Hartford Wolf Pack in an AHL game tonight, leading his team to a 4-1 victory of the ‘Baby’ Penguins (Pittsburgh Penguins AHL affiliate team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins).
It was the Wolf Pack’s fourth win in a row—their longest win streak this year.
Avery was named the Second Star of the Game.
by Dorothy Willis… 
Some people may assume that my title refers to the upcoming match between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir for the Heavyweight championship.
Readers who know me well can guess that it isn’t about that fight at all.
The February issue of FIGHT! magazine was left in our bathroom and I have frequently seen the picture of Brock Lesnar and the question on the front page “Is Brock Lesnar For Real?”
Underneath the title “The World Will Soon Find Out.”
While the rest of the world is wondering if Brock Lesnar has come far enough along in his MMA skills to defend his title and overwhelm Frank Mir who was also once the title holder, that, of course, is not what I sit pondering.
Brock Lesnar has been the type of athlete with the potential to be great in more than one sport and I think most people will agree with this statement.
My rumination dwells on the question, “Will Brock Lesnar finally find his niche in a sport and truly settle in for the long run?”
It is hard to excel in any sport. To be a super athlete takes untold hours of work, proper conditioning, a fixed training regimen and determined dedication beyond the imagination of the majority of sports fans.
It is gruelling, repetitious, and boring to be tied to the extensive training necessary to be a true sports star.
Shortcuts, the use of steroids or slacking off will take a toll sooner or later that will knock the athlete that makes use of them flat on his ass.
Only the truly dedicated and souls with hearts as big as their biceps will survive in the world of MMA.
Many MMA stars are also very interesting characters and fun to watch; unless they can continue to compete at the top of their class, they will be dropped and quickly forgotten like yesterdays news.
Brock came into the UFC through the back door by the very individual who has argued that the fighters who come up through his organization must start at the bottom of the ladder working for pennies and work there way up, to be successful.
Dana White saw dollar signs when he decided to pay Brock Lesnar $250,000 to become a part of the UFC family and fight at Heavyweight.
Dana justified this break with his own “start ‘em small and at the bottom rung” principle to bring Lesnar in by emphasizing that “not everyone can do what Brock Lesnar can do” excuse to quiet his critics.
Well, since he refuses to allow Bobby Lashley into the UFC to even attempt to do what Lesnar has done, I guess he holds all the cards in this argument.
My consternation comes from the fact that Brock has been quite the chameleon.
He reached the top in the WWE, only to tire of its requirements, and then quit and went outside that organization traveling from country to country instead of town to town, which he claimed kept him away from home and family too much.
At one point he tried to parlay his skills into a football career with the Minnesota Vikings, only to quit abruptly when he did not reach his goal as quickly as he expected.
Now, if his career in the UFC doesn’t meet his expectation and becomes as unattractive to him as his past endeavors have, will he stick with the sport or become Dana White’s biggest, most expensive disappointment?
MMA is not the answer for an athlete with low frustration tolerance who expects immediate and unending success, regardless of their assumed abilities.
It takes really hard work.
by Adam Greuel… Spring Training is now under way, and I think it is a good time to reveal my predictions for the entire infield for the upcoming 2009 season.
Lyle Overbay
Lyle Overbay is looking to re-gain his 2006 form, when he hit .290, over 20 home runs and 90 RBI while leading the team in doubles. He is already out for a week with some injury problems, but this one should not affect his performance for the upcoming season.
Although I don’t expect him to be as good as he once was, look for him to have a much better 2009 then 2008 season. He has a tendency to ground into a lot of double plays, but also walked more then anyone else on the team
2008 Stats: .270 AVG, .358 OBP, 15 HR, 69 RBI, 74 R, 1 SB in 158 games
2009 Projections: .284 AVG, .364 OBP, 18 HR, 78 RBI, 83 R, 2 SB in 155 games
Aaron Hill
Aaron Hill had a very disappointing season last year. First, he started off really slow, then just as he was starting to heat up, he collided with David Eckstein and got himself a concussion, ultimately ending his season.
Fortunately, Hill is back with a clean slate this year and it looks like he will be back to his normal self, something the Jays desperately need.
2008 Stats: .263 AVG, .324 OBP, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 19 R, 4 SB in 55 games
2009 Projections: .290 AVG, .339 OBP, 14 HR, 72 RBI, 90 R, 8 SB in 150 games
Marco Scutaro
A trade that went under the radar last year was when JP Ricciardi acquired Scutaro from the Oakland Athletics. Thought to be nothing more then a bench player, Scutaro managed to place third on the team in at-bats and had himself a good season.
Scutaro is expected to be the starting shortstop for the Jays in 2009.
2008 Stats: .267 AVG, .341 OBP, 7 HR, 60 RBI, 76 R, 7 SB in 145 games
2009 Projections: .258 AVG, .335 OBP, 5 HR, 42 RBI, 51 R, 3 SB in 121 games
Scott Rolen
Traded for Troy Glaus during the off-season before 2008, Rolen battled shoulder problems all year, which was to be expected. It did not help that Troy Glaus put together a healthy, all-star worthy season, hitting for almost 30 home runs and falling just one RBI short of 100.
Do not expect much from him this season, although the modified swing he is working on may help a little.
2008 Stats: .262 AVG, .349 OBP, 11 HR, 50 RBI, 58 R, 5 SB in 115 games
2009 Projections: .272 AVG, .350 OBP, 14 HR, 64 RBI, 71 R, 5 SB in 130 games
Rod Barajas
Expected to be nothing more then a backup to Gregg Zaun, Barajas took the number one job when Zaun struggled early on and then got seriously injured. Barajas had an average season by his standards, but the Jays will need to upgrade at catcher sometime in the future to be a true contender.
2008 Stats: .249 AVG, .294 OBP, 11 HR, 49 RBI, 44 R, 0 SB in 104 games
2009 Projections: .244 AVG, .295 OBP, 9 HR, 49 RBI, 55 R, 0 SB in 114 games
Keep in mind that the bench players will have their own article for predictions, so do not think that I just forgot about Joe Inglett, John McDonald, Michael Barrett, and the others.
by David Aaron Lindsay… 
With the hope and/or changes that the trade deadline provided now basically gone, I think it’s time to think about what those changes mean to the franchise going forward and what would be in their best interest for the rest of the year.
I would argue that a horrible start to this season would be a terrible thing to waste. As Raptors fans, we’ve already been through the disappointment and letdown that was the first half of this season. This also has absolutely nothing to do with the evaluation of the success or failure of the Marion/O’Neal deal going forward.
When you examine the current state of the Raptors a couple of things jump out at you. First off, honestly, what is the best case scenario for this year? We would probably have to win over two-thirds of our remaining games to get even a sniff of the playoffs.
And then, once we were there, what could we honestly expect when, as the seventh or eighth seed, we would draw a powerhouse such as Boston or Cleveland? (Against whom we would stand absolutely no chance.) Would a first round beatdown against a far superior team really help in the development of our so-called young players?
I just don’t see the benefit of getting in and then getting trounced. I’m sorry, but I don’t.
That means this year is basically a washout whether we get into the playoffs or not. And what is one of the only possible positives that could come from a lost season? A really good draft pick, that’s what.
Let me ask you this: Would you rather make the playoffs (barely), get beat down quickly, and end up with the 16th, 17th, or 18th overall pick? Or would you rather just throw it in cruise control and shoot for a top fourth, fifth, or sixth pick that could be legitimately critical to our future success? (Things such as getting Bosh that little extra rest and making sure guys are completely healthy could go a long way.)
If nothing else (and don’t mistake this for me hating on Bosh, because I am still in his corner, and we need him going forward), haven’t we learned that Bosh isn’t going to get us over the top without an elite level wing player to help?
Marion, even if we re-sign him, can hardly be considered that player. His body of work proves that while he is a nice player, he isn’t that third-spoke-in-the-wheel kind of guy.
He couldn’t help the Suns get over the top with Nash winning MVPs and Amar’e playing the role of Bosh, so we cannot reasonably expect him to do it with this cast of characters.
I wouldn’t mind retaining Marion going forward for something in the $6 to $7 million range (which is likely unrealistic), but anything more than that and I’m taking a pass.
There were high hopes for this year, and I think you would be hard-pressed to find anyone that would analyze this Raptors season as anything other than purely underachieving. So we’re likely going to be better next year almost by default.
Take this rare opportunity and nab one more really high draft pick to add to this core. If we could get to the four to six range we could realistically end up with a Brandon Roy or Danny Granger type.
In my opinion, it’s really our only shot at taking the next big “step.” The Wades, LeBrons, Carmelos, and Roys of the world almost never end up in free agency, and we all know what happens when they are scheduled to: Big cities and teams start clearing the decks for them.
What would be our legitimate chances at luring one of those guys here? One percent? Less than that? Probably.
This draft does seem to contain some promising wing players. That Harden kid out of ASU would be a great fit, I think. Although most mocks have him in the top three, some people think he could fall to four or five depending on which three teams are in the top three just based on their needs.
Aminu out of Wake also looks like a good athletic wing with an NBA body, although he is not as offensively polished. Even DeRozen out of USC, who is more of a project, seems to have loads of potential.
But I’m not here to anoint the “guy” we should take—that’s what Colangelo gets the big bucks for. I am just here to say that I have come to terms with the Raptors’ 2008-09 season and that I am okay with being bad the rest of the year if it means that I have legitimate hope for the future.
So, there it is. While I cannot bring myself to openly cheer for losses as I much prefer to watch them win games, I am finding solace in each loss from here on out.
by Brandon Warnes… 
Alright, so Survivor isn’t coming to Toronto anytime soon. Nor will a player win money for being the only not being moved at the trade deadline on March 4. However the only player who appears to be untouchable is rookie Luke Schenn.
Burke is keeping his cards close to his chest at the moment but admits talks have heated up over the course of the week. He has said a few times now that everyone won’t like the moves he makes but they are moves that he views are helpful to this club.
So who goes and who stays exactly? Well if this rebuilding process is really underway, surely Burke isn’t considering trading some of the better young players they have right now like Grabovski and Kulemin.
What about some of the veterans who weren’t moved last year? Well it turns out that those players are the best assests Toronto has at the moment if any deal is to be made.
Both Tomas Kaberle and Pavel Kubina have said time and again that they have no plans of leaving this team but would be open to the idea. Kaberle has given his agent 10 teams he’d be willing to get moved to if deal was to happen, all are believed to be from the east.
Kubina now has said he has no intention of waiving his no trade clause but both players can get traded no matter what once summer rolls around if they miss the playoffs this year.
Likelihood:
Kaberle - 50/50, Burke has said that Kaberle is a good player he’d love to keep around. He would have to find a defender that plays his style anyways if he does get moved and Burke has to be blown away by any offers in order for it to be considered. Ideally a young player in the NHL, prospect and high draft pick.
Kubina - Not moving at the deadline, may get traded this summer. Little to no interest for Kubina and he appears to be willing to ride this season out with Toronto.
