Ovechkin and Crosby to Battle, in Case you didn’t Know

By  Jeremy Visser… OVECHKIN VS CROSBY. GAME 7. TONIGHT! –  In case you live in Toronto and missed it, despite it being plastered all over the front of every sports section in town…

Actually, I don’t know if it was on every cover, but it took up about 82% of The National Post’s entire sports section and subsequently ruined my morning. I woke up hoping to read about the Jays’ (who now have the best record in the majors, I might add) thrashing of A.J. Burnett, but was forced to flip to the very last page. If it was playoff hero Garry Valk (see, I do know something about hockey) and the Leafs set to do battle with Crosby or Ovechkin in a Game 7, I’d understand, but Washington-Pittsburgh?

So, to my friend Jeff Soobramanie (google him), who criticizes me for not writing about hockey, I hope this satisfied your appetite.

Check out Jermey’s blog That’s what I’m saying, guy…

Tough Act to Follow

By Louis “King of Roncesvalles” Pisano…

The anticipation of last night’s game brought a lot of hype with the pitching matchup between Master (Halladay) and Student (Burnett) along with the return of A-Rod, hopefully after the win the Jays can get up again for tonight’s game.

The Blue Jays are facing the hated NY Yanks tonight again in the second game of this three game series at  the Rogers Centre, with the 4-1 April AL Rookie of the Month Scott Richmond  taking to the mound to face the veteran Andy Pettitte (2-1).

The Blue Jays continued their dominance at the plate last night and hope to keep it rolling tonight while extending their lead over the surging Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays and of course the Yanks. These divisional games are the ones that truly count when September rolls around.

Aaron Hill who leads the team with 9 dingers and young gun Adam Lind are on a tear, along with the steady bats of Scott Rolen, Rod Barajas, and Jose Bautista, who are all batting over .300, should keep the pressure on the Yanks pitching staff tonight and hopefully get another W in the win column for rookie Scott Richmond. Go Jays go!

Will Balsillie Get Blackballed By Bettman Again?

By Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter…

Amidst all the hoop-la of Research In Motion co-CEO Jim Balsillie’s latest move to bring the Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton comes another group hoping to bring the financially troubled Atlanta Thrashers to Hamilton. There has been no confirmation, but it is rumored that in response to the latest news Balsillie said, “What ‘cha talk’in ‘bout Willis”????

The Hamilton Spectator is reporting that Hamilton mayor Fred Eisenberger will meet with a Vancouver based group next week to discuss a proposed lease for Copps Coliseum. The intentions of this unnamed group is to bring the Atlanta Thrashers to Hamilton by 2010.

Many view this Group as competition for Jim Balsillie, but the reality is we are talking about two very different situations, each with it’s own set of issues that may hamper the chances of bringing either the Thrashers or Coyotes to Hamilton. The biggest set back may very well be the NHL’s apprehension to re-locate a club when they and the NHL’s 29 other owners could see considerable profit from expansion fees. It has been suggested that an expansion franchise may net the NHL and it’s owners as much as $400-$500 Million dollars, netting each team as much as $12-$15 million a piece.

This latest move proves yet again just how desirable a second franchise in Southern Ontario is to perspective investors. With rumors swirling that there are numerous teams in trouble financially throughout the NHL ,it would seem it is no longer “IF” Southern Ontario will get a team, it’s just a question of “When”. One way or another, either through re-location or expansion, Southern Ontario (most likely Hamilton) will get it’s precious franchise, you can take that to the bank.

The Phoenix situation is no closer to being settled and likely will not be for a few weeks. The skinny is that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman may win his battle over the Phoenix Coyotes with Jim Balsillie, but that will not kill the discussion of bringing a second franchise to Southern Ontario. The reality is, Bettman will have to give a tremendous amount of consideration to re-locating one or more of at least three NHL franchises that are struggling and there are a limited amount of markets that can support an NHL franchise; sure there may be a number of offers to come through the NHL offices, but the NHL can ill-afford to take chances on non-hockey markets, Southern Ontario is a slam-dunk and is starting to get a tremendous amount of support form the Board of Governors. The three franchises in question are thought to be the Phoenix Coyotes, Florida Panthers and Atlanta Thrashers, each franchise is rumored to be in financial trouble, opening the door for a move to Southern Ontario.

One thing is for sure, this latest development will add pressure to an already heated topic. The NHL must take the Southern Ontario opportunity seriously, failure to do so would be an act of stupidity and I am not so sure how long the NHL Board of Directors are going to stand by and watch Bettman and co. push aside a potential booming market like Southern Ontario while Florida, Atlanta and Phoenix continue to hurt the League.

It’s a shame all this is happening now, the whole situation is proving to be an eyesore amidst an otherwise great playoff. Stay tuned, it’s going to be a long, tedious, ugly ride, but I foresee the end result being worth it. As sure as God made little apples, there will be another hockey team in Southern Ontario, it’s just a matter of time really. In the meantime, be sure to tune into the playoffs, it’s probably the best hockey being played in more than a decade.

Until next time,

Peace!

When the dust cleared, Burnett was left lying on the ground

By Murray Crawford… Much like the scene at the OK Corral Roy ‘Doc’ Halladay stood victorious. He allowed only a single run over nine innings and defeated his one time protégée A.J. Burnett 5 – 1 at the Rogers Centre.

It was the Jays’ first true test of the season, after going up against the likes of the Cleveland Indians and the Baltimore Orioles they had yet to meet a team of any importance, specifically the Yanks or the Sox.

“When you win it always feels good,” Gaston said. “I hope we can continue to have crowds like that, it feels like old times.”

The crowd was hot, all 43,737, A.J., A-Rod, even Melky Cabrera wasn’t spared from the taunts, jeers, boos and catcalls.

Burnett was just not up to the challenge, in the fourth, after allowing Rios to double; he walked two straight batters and then gave up a two run double to Scott Rolen. Rod Barajas then hit a sacrifice fly to shallow right and Lind was allowed to go. He didn’t beat the throw, but catcher Kevin Cash couldn’t handle the throw and the third run crossed the plate.

When he Rolen stepped up to the plate he wasn’t exactly in the best of statistical situations. With the bases loaded some fans were a little nervous about an 0 for 18 hitter representing the Jays first chance at a run.

“I was?” Rolen said in joking reference to his slump. “I’m not a numbers guy I hate the numbers, I’m about the competition.”

“In order for us to win Scott’s got to do what he did tonight and he stepped up, he knows that,” Gaston said.

Burnett’s return to Toronto was highlighted in the bottom of the eighth when, on a 2 – 2 count he threw a fastball. A Fastball that Aaron Hill caught all of and sent to left-centre field for his ninth homer run of the year.

Tonight may have been all about the pitching matchup but the fans were all about having fun, several fights, a couple of ejections and one of the loudest ‘Yankees Suck,’ chants the Rogers Centre has heard in years.
A fan even threw a foul ball back onto the field. It was an A-Rod foul ball and this action received a rousing chorus of cheers, and no ejection.

A-Rod’s night was full of listening to the fans give him the business, but he didn’t make it easy on himself, going 1 for 3 and an error that cost his team an easy double play.

Another ex-Jay was in the lineup tonight for the Yankees, former farmhand Kevin Cash was starting in place of Jorge Posado.