Podcast!

This week, we break down whats wrong an whats right about NHL All Star Weekend, discuss big names still on the market as pitchers and catchers get ready to report, and also give our thoughts on this thing called the Super Bowl. Go Cards! Link below to listen! AroundSports360 Podcast, Episode 7/Volume 3: January 30, 2009

Everybody Loves Raymond...Except Russians

Former Ottawa Senator Ray Emery was shown getting into fistacuffs with his trainer and again has probably out welcomed his tenure with a second straight team. Here was a chance for a player to escape the NHL and minds of North American hockey fans in order to work on his game and more importantly his attitude. He'll soon have nowhere to play except for the BHL (Belarusian Hockey League). Looking on the brightside maybe he won't be pulled over as much in Belarus by the cops. Have a look for yourself...

Giants fan needs a waaaah-mbulance

My girlfriend thinks I had a meltdown after the Pats lost the Super Bowl last year. True, to a point, but I didn't shed a single tear. Same can't be said for poor ol' Rob here. Thank God for the guy who comes in at the end to put an end to the sadness. Link below, NSFW.

This just in: Serbians and Bosnians don't like eachother

Well we all know that soccer fans are crazy, but now tennis supporters want a piece of the hooligan pie. A brawl broke out between (shock alert) Serbs and Bosnians yesterday at the Australian Open after a match between Serbian Novak Djokovic and Bosnian-born American Amer Delic. Water bottles and plastic chairs were thrown, as you'll see in the videos below. Each side blamed the other, and the Bosnians werebreaking out some more lethal weapons, by one Serb's account... "One angry Serb, who did not want to be identified and wrapped his flag around his head to avoid the television cameras, accused the Bosnians of bringing "weapons" into the grounds, pointing to his friend's wrist, which was bleeding from three puncture wounds." Its the second time the two sides have clashed at the Australian Open. More than 150 fans were ejected after a skirmish two years ago. This is a wake up call to all golf fans. You gotta be more vicious. At the next Ryder Cup, I want to see a united European fan base square off against a cavalry from the U.S. That would be epic. Video and links below... Another, longer video: YouTube

Jeff Kent: Son of a bitch, Hall of Famer

Baseball lost one of its best mustaches today. I mean, come on...that thing is magical. Something Jason Giambi could only dream about having. In all seriousness though, the Dodgers Jeff Kent called it a career today, and before you shrug it off as just some over-the-hill infielder retiring, take a look at his numbers. Kent retires as the all time homerun leader among second basemen with 377, 74 more than Cub legend Ryne Sandberg. He also drove in 1,518 runs, had a career batting average of .290, and a slugging percentage of .500. So what does this all mean? Hall of Famer. No doubt about it. The numbers are comparable to those of recently inducted Jim Rice, but more imporantly, they are arguably the best ever for any second baseman in the history of the game. However, if recent Hall of Fame voting has taught us anything, its that voters hold grudges and if you weren't nice to certain members of the media, your train to Cooperstown may be delayed. And lets face it... Kent was on ornery son of a bitch. He was a meat and potatoes kind of guy who clashed with a lot of teammates, and was vocal against athletes who used steroids. Not surprisingly he had infamous battles with Barry Bonds and Milton Bradley, leading to dugout dustups and pretty entertaining TV. You can't really fault him for hating Barry Bonds can you? Even the holier-than-thou Hall voters might give him some credit for feuding with Barry. But if Kent doesn't get in on credentials alone, its ridiculous. Prick or no prick, he was a five time All-Star, four time Silver Slugger award, and won the N.L. MVP in 2000 with the San Francisco Giants. Not to mention, he is the only second baseman to have 100 or more RBIs in six consectuve seasons (1997-2002). In a way, Kent helped redefine his position. Second baggers have historically been known more for their defensive prowess rather than plate presence. And lets not forget, he broke into the Majors with the Toronto Blue Jays, way back when. Way back when being 1992. He should be thought of in a fond light amongst Jays fans, because it was Kent who was traded in a package to the New York Mets in the summer of 1992 in exchange for David Cone, an integral piece in the Jays World Series win that October. Kent's closest encounter with a World Series ring was 2002 with the Giants. They lost to the Angels in 7 games. Everybody should now point their hatred at White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who with both Bonds and Kent seemingly gone from the game, takes over the reign as biggest A-hole in baseball. What do you think? Is Kent a sure bet Hall of Famer?

Time to hang 'em up Pete

Peter Forsberg is on the verge of attempting yet another comeback. Although to his credit, he has never "officially" retired from hockey. He has however, taken the past two half-seasons off, trying to find some kind of magical skate to support his damaged-beyond-repair right foot.

The Swede hasn't been in the NHL for a full season since 2006-2007, and even then he only played a combined 57 games for Philadelphia and Nashville (yep, remember that?).

Last season, Forsberg signed with the Avalanche, but only managed to get in nine regular season games and seven playoff contests.

If it isn't his foot, its his groin. If it isn't his groin, its his foot. The bottom line is, at this point of his career, Forsberg is on his last leg. Not that that should be particularly suprising or shocking to anybody.

Forsberg played the game rugged and always exerted full effort everytime he stepped onto the ice. No doubt that his style of play is the main reason for his career to be cut short.

There was a time when Forsberg won scoring titles, MVP's, and most importantly, Stanley Cups. Those days are long gone though. Is another team willing to make a financial investment in this guy, even if it is for a quarter of a season? Let the speculation begin. Chances are, if any team were to do so, it would be the Avs, and granted, they could use all the scoring help they could get.

But in this case, the risk outweighs the reward. It simply is not worth putting any kind of money into a guy who is going to play 20 games for you, especially one that breaks down as often as Forsberg does.

So stop tarnishing your legacy. You scored one of the most memorable goals in Olympic hockey history. You've done it all. Its not like you are chasing the dream of finally winning a Stanley Cup. You've done that twice. You may even be a Hall of Famer. Know when to call it a career.

Podcast!

The holidays are over, and its back to business. Will Vincent Lecavalier be traded? Who's going to the Super Bowl (something tells me its Arizona and Pittsburgh)? All these questions answered, as well as insight into the World Junior Hockey Championships, and the struggling NHL markets south of the border. AS360.com Podcast - Volume 3, Episode 6

Somebody had the balls to fire John Gruden

And that somebody was Tampa Bay Buccaneer's co-chairman Joel Glazer. Gruden was let go today as head coach of the Bucs, after the team missed the playoffs for the fourth time in six years since winning the Super Bowl in 2002. After a 9-3 start this season, the Bucs tanked, especially in Decemeber, losing their last four games to miss out on post-season play. I don't imagine that John Gruden is an easy guy to fire. If I were the Bucs, I would have sacrificed a puny intern to deliver the news to him. That way, nobody important gets hurt. I also don't imagine that Gruden will be without work for long. He's well liked, and I'm sure there a number of teams that would love to bring him on. Theres a pretty good job open in Indy right now.

But there are no islands in Kansas City!

Reports indicate that the New York Islanders have signed on to play an exhibition game against the Kings next year... in Kansas City.

The long suffering Isles fan base could be put out of its misery, if you were one to read into reports such as this.

Isles owner Charles Wang has been pushing for a new arena in Nassau County since he took over the team in 2000, and has spearheaded "The Lighthouse Project", which would be a large scale sports and entertainment venue in the area, apparently at no cost to taxpayers (isn't that the way it always starts?).

We talked about it on the podcast last night. Kansas City has the brand spankin' new Sprint Center just waiting for a tenant. It is very appealing to teams in peril, especially given the fact that any team moving there would be offered free rent, just as the Pittsburgh Penguins were in 2007.

An interesting story to keep your eyes on.

Links:

How Do the Kansas City Islanders sound?

Lighthouse Project Official Website

Hey, you know who you look like?

Seperated at birth?...Maybe Introducing Scott Hamilton, Emanual Sandu's idol Darren Pang, all 5'4" of him.

Hey, you know who you look like?

I thought of this when I was watching my Titans lose to Baltimore in their divisional playoff round...Football's done for me. Pineapple Express' Gary Cole Titans QB Kerry Collins You see the resemblance?

We Win!

Again!

Canada completes another dominating World Junior Hockey Championship with a 5-1 drubbing of Sweden. I know, I know, Takarski stood on his head throughout the game, and it was much closer than the score would indicate (2 empty netters), but really, was there ever any doubt?

A couple things I noticed while watching the tournament...

1) Pat Quinn is still alive. And he wants to coach in the NHL again. Have fun in Ottawa or Pittsburgh, Pat!

2) Canada seems to have a punk on the roster every single year. There has been no bigger punk than Steve Downie, but this year we had a close second in Stefan Della-Rovere. The guy was an idiot out there, Canadian or not. He took some dumb penalties, and could have caused some major grief for the team, had the special teams not been so dynamic. He is a Caps draft pick, leads the Ontario Hockey League in penalty minutes so far this season, and I can't believe he doesn't belong to either Philly or the Leafs.

3) One of the penalties Della-Rovere took was in the Gold Medal game when he hit Swedish goalie Jacob Markstrom on the latter's way to the bench on a delayed penalty call. It was one of the few times during the night that Markstrom didn't dive like a Swedish soccer player tonight. His act of flopping around the ice trying blatantly to draw penalties was disgusting. Can't respect guys like that (or the coaches who preach the diving).

4) John Tavares and Angelo Esposito have made believers out of me. They were both just outstanding throughout the entire tournament. Tavares statistcally, and Esposito in every other aspect of the game. He proved he belonged (finally), and as a Pens fan, I'm wondering what it could take to get him back from Atlanta. Please take Staal, Don Waddel.

That is all. Congrats again to Canada and the fans in Ottawa who came out in droves for support. At least they have something to cheer about in the Nation's Capital this season!