MLB Realignment

During the MLB offseason, I always scour the baseball sections of ESPN, FoxSports, etc., and every year they seem to come up with a new radical idea for realignment that they feel would be beneficial. I found two such articles this winter that I want to quickly analyze.

First is David Schoenfield's thoughts, via ESPN, who proposes that the teams in the American League would be changed every year so teams like the Rays, O's and Jays wouldn't be in the same division as the RedSox and Yankees. Cmon now. 5 AL teams (NYY, BOS, LAA, SEA, and OAK) stay in the same division while all the others get to jump around every year. And the National League merely stays the same. Really? That's like saying that the pitcher will bat in one league but not the other (oops!)...its ridiculous!

Then there's Ken Rosenthal's idea from FoxSports.

He mainly focuses on the "necessity" of getting the RedSox and Yankees out of the same division. One scenerio is modest and has the Sox switching division with the Tigers and playing in the AL Central. Another completely jumbles all teams and creates divisions based on a team's location, like the NL Midwest with MIL, CHC, CHW, STL, and KC. But this messes with the historical integrity that baseball loves to base itself off it. I personally don't like the idea of the RedSox and Yankees separated either. Their rivalry is the greatest in sports right now and separating them could really hurt the game. Plus watching them go at it is great entertainment (See Pedro and Don Zimmer ↑)

That brings me to my idea. To warn you, there are some things that I don't know how they'd work, but that's the fun of it. It kind of looks like the NFL's system, but that's working isn't it? I believe that it isn't that far-fetched of an idea, but it would be a miracle if anything like this ever happened. Take a look:

AL East AL North AL South AL West

Baltimore Chi WhiteSox AZ/CO Portland*
Boston Cleveland Kansas City LA Angels
NY Yankees Detroit Las Vegas* Oakland
Toronto Minnesota Texas Seattle

NL East NL North NL South NL West
NY Mets Chi Cubs Atlanta AZ/CO
Philadelphia Cincinnati Florida LA Dodgers
Pittsburgh Milwaukee Houston San Diego
Washington St. Louis Tampa Bay San Francisco

*Denotes expansion team

A little explanation:

• There would be two expansion teams in cities such as Las Vegas, San Antonio, New Orleans, Portland, OK City, Charlotte, Orlando, etc. I picked Vegas and Portland only because I feel those markets would support the team fairly well. Since the AL has two less teams than the NL, they would both be AL teams.
• Tampa Bay would switch leagues with either Arizona or Colorado. This is mostly just for geographical reasons in regards to divisions. All three teams are new teams within the past twenty years, so their move would not mess with the so-called "historical integrity" that so many baseball purists argue. Tampa would probably welcome a move to get out of the NL East and their team seems more built around pitching and defense, a NL trait. Playing in the thin air, Colorado would greatly benefit from an extra hitter, while Arizona might also welcome a move to a weaker division (based off my divisions at least).
  
  
• Going off the historical integrity thing, most teams remain within the same division as they previously had been in. For example, the AL East and NL West would look very similar, only minus one team.
  
  
• The leagues and divisions would finally have the same number of teams. None of this 16 vs. 14 NL to AL ratio or 6 teams in the NL Central and only 4 in the AL West. That is so stupid.
  
  
• I would propose abolishing the DH, but probably wouldn't get enough support. Even though one of the greatest Brewers to ever play, Paul Molitor, was primarily a DH, it's still a no-brainer to get rid of it. If the Brewers were still in the AL, we'd never get to see Yovani Gallardo hit dingers! I HATE THE DH!!!
  
  
• What about the playoffs? There could be a few different scenerios:
  1. Getting rid of the wild card and just going by division winners
  2. Creating an NFL-style Wild Card Series with the top two teams getting byes and well needed rest, while two wild card winners play the other division winners
  3. There is one wild card team and they play the worst division winner in a 5 game series to see who will advance to the division series. The division series is then expanded to a 7-game series.
  4. Any other ideas?

I may think of more, but that's all for now. I'll post later if more ideas come up. Please feel free to comment, I'm very interested to see what everyone thinks!

GSP, Carwin shine in New Jersey

Welterweight Championship- Georges "Rush" St. Pierre v.s. Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy

While Dan Hardy talked the talk, it was apparent Saturday night that he would be unable to walk the walk with Georges St. Pierre in Newark, NJ.

GSP put on a dominating, yet uninspiring, performance against the young Brit to post his seventh victory in a row. Hardy has absolutely no answer for GSP's takedowns as St.Pierre took Hardy down nine times in the fight and passed his guard with ease. 

Hardy, a brilliant striker, was forced to work from his back and did not have much success from round 1 on. GSP rained down elbows and fists yielding Hardy utterly useless. Despite earning a unanimous decsion, GSP was disappointed in his performance, saying that it was not how he had hoped he would win. "I wanted to have a finish and have a clean win. For me, like this, it's not clean..." GSP said after the fight. And it's not like GSP wasn't looking to finish the fight. GSP caught Hardy in two of the most painful looking submissions I have seen to date. 

In the first round, GSP set up an armbar on Hardy and was looking to take that arm home with him. In a moment where many probably closed their eyes, Hardy's arm was hyper-extended and it looked like his arm was going to pop into two separate pieces. 

Although Hardy was in obvious pain, he refused to tap, and slipped out of the armbar, only to remain on the bottom. After the fight, Hardy was asked about the sumbissions, "The one thing that I do have above everything else … I might lack in technicality, I might lack in strength, but there's no quit in me," Hardy said. "I don't give up. I don't know the meaning of 'tap.'"

Interim Heavyweight Championship- Frank Mir v.s. Shane Carwin

And Shane Carwin has still not seen the second round of a UFC fight...

The now 12-0 Carwin knocked out Frank Mir 3 minutes and 48 seconds into the first round. The two danced around for a while before locking up in the clinch. Mir looked lazy and nonchalant, and Carwin made the former Champion pay, 3 uppercuts worth. Carwin landed a barrage of punches, starting with those 3 brutal uppercuts that brought Mir to his knees. Mir fought valiantly to defend himself, but Carwin was not to be denied. After being given every opportunity to regain composure, the referee stopped the fight, sealing the fate of Shane Carwin. He now has a date with the gargantuan Brock Lesnar for the unification of the two titles. Lesnar entered the ring after the fight to jaw with Carwin saying that Carwin is holding the make believe belt, and that it means nothing until the two fight in July. Lesnar has been battling a severe case of diverticulitis but is expected to make a full recovery.

So Long, Cinderella

Thursday and Friday's Sweet Sixteen action saw the demise of the four remaining Cinderella teams.

#9 Northern Iowa, #10 Saint Mary's, #11 Washington, and #12 Cornell all failed to reach the Elite Eight.

Northern Iowa put up the biggest fight, taking Michigan State to the wire, and eventually losing by 7.

Washington also fell honorably, giving West Virginia fits early in the game. The Mountaineers were eventually able to overcome and win by 13.

Saint Mary's and Cornell, however, were chewed up and spit out by Baylor and Kentucky, respectively.

Saint Mary's started the second half down 46-17 and only managed to make up 6 points on the way to a 72-49 loss.

Cornell was similarly pounded by Kentucky, losing 62-45.

In 2002 #12 Missouri became the lowest seeded team to ever enter the Elite Eight (in the modern 64 team tournament era).

#11 George Mason destroyed brackets nationwide in 2006 after entering the Elite Eight. #10 Davidson rode Stephen Curry there in 2008.

2010 seemed prime for another Cinderella run, what with the enormous amount of upset games occurring early in the tournament.

It looks like we'll have to wait till next year when underdogs all over the country once again try on the glass slipper.

The "Young and the Restless" Curse?

Almost three years have passed since 4 Milwaukee Brewers made guest appearances on the soap opera "The Young and the Restless" in 2007. Jeff Suppan, Chris Capuano, JJ Hardy, and Bill Hall were all considered "stars" at the time for the Brewers. Yet since that has aired, all four players have something in common, mediocrity. Here's an analysis of each player:

Suppan- He was supposed to be a great acquisition for the Brewers when he signed before the 2007 season. Yet 3 years and 30 million dollars later, he has a 4.93 ERA in that span and is danger of not even making the rotation this year despite his $12.5 million salary.

Capuano- After posting 18 wins in 2005 and 11 in 2006, Capuano only won 5 games before getting hurt in 2007 and undergoing a second Tommy John surgery. He hasn't pitched in the majors since, but is attempting a comeback after over two years of rehab.

Hardy- JJ played well in 2007 and 2008, hitting .277 and .283 respectively. He completely fell flat last year though, only hitting .229 and getting sent down to the minors in August. The combination of top prospect Alcides Escobar and Hardy's poor play sent him packing to Minnesota in a trade this winter.

Hall- In 2006, Hall hit 35 home runs and drove in 85 runs while playing everyday at SS while Hardy was out with injury. The Brewers rewarded him with a 4-year, $24 million contract before 2007. His production since?: .217 avg with only 21 HRs and 76 RBIs. Oh and a trade out of town last August for a no-name prospect.

After looking at these four players, it seems that all four of these players have regressed greatly (maybe with the exception of Hardy) since the shooting of the show. Did the extra stardom get to their heads? Or were they just really overrated? You tell me....

Masters Preview

The annual playing of the Masters marks one of the “finest traditions” in golf. As half of the country emerges out of hibernation, there is one thing on any golfer’s mind, the spring bloom of the azaleas in Augusta, Georgia. For many sports fans, it also means that Sunday, April 11^th will perhaps be the only day out of the year where golf will take over the TV screen. For those who have yet to be covered, E! news and Oprah will have a few things to say about Tiger’s dramatic return to the game. So why not make a few predictions?

The Cinderella

Personally, I am pulling for a few people, but one in particular. I’ll give you a few hints: he is a man who better characterizes a robot; during his reign as king of golf there were few who could compete with him; finally, never had anyone fallen from grace like he had. David Duval enters the 2010 Masters through his performance in last years US Open. The former best player in the world stunned audiences with his run at last years Open. Falling to 2^nd place, his efforts reminded us of the brilliance by which he played the game in the late 90’s. Like Tiger, Duval’s demise came down to his family life; but unlike Tiger, he has nothing to be ashamed of. After inheriting a few children in marriage and having a few of his own, he realized that there was more to life. Although there were several factors that may have led to his struggles with the game, a golf-digest article explains that the mechanic of a golfer is truly a family man at heart. What a story it would be if Duval could make another run!

He Who Will be in Contention

Madison native, Steve Stricker, is off to a hot 2010 season. After 6 tournaments, Steve has placed top-10 four times, 3^rd once, and won the other. He is currently leading the fed-ex cup point race; the yearlong battle for points based on finishes. Beyond that, Stricker finished at a tie for 6^th in last years Masters. With a solid ball-striking game and a deaf-touch around and on the greens, one would think that he of all people would play well at the torturous Augusta National, famous for greens unlike any other.

This Years Champion

Tiger Woods is my pick to win this years 1^st major, and his 15^th overall (3 shy of Jack’s record). If there were ever a scenario that would define the impossible, this would be it. A perfect image destroyed, the whole world rooting against him, a marriage on the brink, and an extended layoff from competition would all seem to point the other way – not to mention Augusta National. But if there were ever a person to do it, it would be Tiger Woods (he has done it before). A US Open on one leg, a British Open after his father’s death, and a Masters victory at the age of 21 are among a few. All I know is that right now, there is one constant in Tiger’s life – golf. In getting back to the tour, Tiger will return to what is familiar, only this time with more to prove. This will be a scary couple years for those on the PGA Tour.

There is no doubt that this years Masters will be one for the ages. If Tiger is to contend, it would indeed be quite the story. Everyone talks about the moments in sports where the result transcends the game. I think it’s safe to say that this is one of those moments.

The Sean Avery Show

Love him or hate him (I choose to hate him), New York Ranger
and left wing Sean Avery is a notoriously effective pest in the NHL.
Take a look at his latest antics.

Flashback to a screen that broke no rules... at the time.
Sean Avery's 'creative' screen of Martin Brodeur
prompted the NHL to make a rule change putting
into effect what is now known as "The Avery Rule."

Kurt has still got it?

Why retire when you could have an amazing touchdown dance with Larry Fitzgerald like this. This is what you learn in Arena Football!

Tim Tebow Told to Shut Up

I know that one of the most polarizing character in college football in years is Tim Tebow. I sniffed at the possibility of the Packers picking him and got shot down. Again, I don't want to pick him in the first few rounds I just think he could be a late round gamble that could pay off.

Anyway to satisfy the Tebow hate, I thought you would show you this article. Apparently Tim Tebow tried to lead a prayer before the Wonderlic and another player told him, "Shut the F#$@ up!" The whole room erupted in laughter.

Needless to say his in your face religious ways may not go over as smooth as Florida. I still think he is the most interesting pick of the draft to see where he is drafted will be a fun story to follow.

I Love Basketball

This guy is one of the best interviews I have ever seen. Maybe Bo Ryan should watch this kid for tips on how to improve his interview skills.

Bill Simmons Milwaukee Bucks Diary

Bill Simmons wrote his play-by-play of the Milwaukee Bucks game the other night. It was not only extremely entertaining to read but "The Sports Guy" gave the Milwaukee Bucks some big complements and sees them being trouble during the playoffs.

Song Made Entirely From Caddyshack Lines

I really like this song, it also gets me a golf article that isn't Tiger...

Enjoy...

Josh Smith Likes To Touch Mike Bibby

The Hawks couldn't handle the Bucks last night, but from this video it is obvious it is not because of lack of team chemistry.

Banged Up Spartans To Face Up-and-Coming Panthers

On Friday the Michigan State Spartans and the Northern Iowa Panthers square off in a sweet sixteen match-up that looks to be an exciting game.

Both teams are coming off wins sealed by huge shots with just seconds remaining in the game: Korie Lucious nailed a buzzer-beater three to win over Maryland and Ali Farokhmanesh hit a huge three with less than 30 seconds left to put NIU out of Kansas' reach.

Michigan State, however, faces some problems coming into this game.

Kalin Lucas, point guard and last year's Big Ten Player of the Year, went down in the Maryland game with an ankle injury.

Prior to an Lucas receiving an MRI, Spartan head coach Tom Izzo stated that regardless of the outcome Lucas would almost certainly not be playing in the Northern Iowa game.

The MRI this morning confirmed that Lucas has sustained a ruptured Achilles tendon, an injury that will keep him out of basketball for 4-6 months.

This leaves Korie Lucious, the hero form the Maryland game, to run the point for the Spartans. On the season, Lucious averages 21 minutes and 5 points per game, down considerably from Lucas' averages of 31 minutes and 15 points.

As if losing Lucas isn't enough, Michigan State has injuries in other areas as well.

Chris Allen played just four minutes against Maryland with an injury to the arch of his foot. Raymar Morgan is nursing a broken tooth, and Delvon Roe has been playing on a surgically repaired knee for some time now.

Draymond Green becomes a huge factor for the Spartans. He and big man Durell Summers will need to step up to take some of the weight off Lucious' shoulders.

Northern Iowa, conversely, is healthy...and they will need to be. Michigan State, even while injured, is much more athletic than NIU.

The Panthers need to stay on their hot streak and rely on outside shooting from Ali Farokhmanesh and the inside presence of Jordan Eglseder.

If NIU can slow down the potent offense of Michigan State they have a very realistic chance in this game (ESPN has already picked them over the depleted Spartans).

Northern Iowa is one of the four remaining teams who are at least a 9 seed. (#10 St. Mary's, #11 Washington, and #12 Cornell the others)

Michigan State, in the sweet sixteen for the ninth time in thirteen seasons, is two wins away from a nation-high sixth appearance in the Final Four since 1999.

Coach Izzo gave some insight on his team's injuries and the upcoming game:

"We've got a 'MASH' unit," Izzo said. "The bottom of Chris' foot is purple, Delvon is playing on one leg and Raymar looks like a hockey player with his tooth cut in half. We think we can get Chris back -- after showing toughness we've never seen from him -- and we'll hold Delvon out of practice to let him rest as much as we can."


"We're going to need everybody we have in uniform to step up," Izzo said. "There were times we had two walk-ons, a freshman and a sophomore on the court Sunday and that probably won't be the last time in the tournament. Northern Iowa is good, but thank God they're not a team that presses like Maryland."

Childress Has Different Favre Strategy

Minnesota Vikings' coach Brad Childress has decided to go a different route than the Green Bay Packers in dealing with Brett Favre's indecisiveness. Instead of rushing Favre into a decision, Childress has told Favre he can take as long as he wants to decide on whether he is going to come back.

Childress believes that rushing Favre into a decision may led him into retirement, after hearing his reasoning for coming back after retiring from the Packers the first time. Childress believes that with Favre they are a Super Bowl caliber team and without him they probably miss the playoffs. Instead of focusing on an eventual future plan for life after Favre, it seems the Vikings have put all their eggs in Favre's return basket.

It will be interesting to see if the Vikings use their draft picks to pick a quarterback for the future in this April's draft. If Vikings wait until August and Favre comes back they could be a Super Bowl favorite. But if Favre does decide to retire in August, the Vikings will be desperately searching for the last piece they need for their strong team to make it to the Super Bowl.

Once again, another off-season that will be filled with Favre news...

Tiger's New Interview

Tiger Woods did an interview with ESPN to continue his huge uphill battle to fix his image. What I think he did is just continue to not answer any questions. Half of his answers in this interview were no comment, or that is between my wife and I.

I have no problem with Tiger Woods not telling everything about that day but sometimes I guess I don't get why he would do this interview and really say nothing. If you want to completely fix your image you have to be completely straight with others. But to be honest he is going half way but what is happening is that he is making it worse.

My favorite question in the interview is when Tom Rinaldi asks Tiger, why he made the public apology it was just a personal issue after Tiger didn't answer any of his questions.

Another Game.... Another Last Second Shot

Milwaukee native Korie Lucious comes up big for the Spartans! I guess Izzo is happy he didn't finish his timeout call!

Scrub takes it Hard

This has to be my favorite video of the tournament, not because it is of a huge upset where a small school beat a powerful Kansas. The reason is that the man who can not be dragged of the floor had as much to do with the game as the water boy.

It is very common to see a player that happens to lose the game for his team by missing free throws to stay on the ground and cry. I can't say I don't understand but sometimes players that don't play great cry. In rare occasions a role player- Tim Jarusmzesque player will cry and people will question it.

But this is epically the funniest person to not be able to drag off the floor. Mario Little, a redshirt senior.... Does that even exist? Yes it does for players this bad. Little has been redshirted as a senior and has not gotten a single minute during the season. However when they are upset by Northern Iowa he is the one the team has to console. This is epic and probably my favorite video of March Madness.

It's like if when the Milwaukee Bucks lost in the 2000 playoffs, George Karl had to drag Joel Przybilla off the court. ENJOY!

Top Seed Kansas Hits The Showers Early

The number 1 overall seed Kansas Jayhawks were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament yesterday by an unlikely opponent, the 9th seeded Northern Iowa Panthers.

The Jayhawks' opening basket and the 2-0 lead that followed lasted just 56 seconds. It proved to be the only time Kansas lead Northern Iowa.

Early in the first half the Panthers took an eight point lead, and maintained at least a 4 point lead for the rest of the half. Northern Iowa went into the half up 36-28.

In the second half the Panthers quickly built upon their lead, going on top by 12 at one point, the largest lead Kansas had surrendered to this point in the tournament. 

Kansas, however, was the overall number 1 seed for a reason.

With around five minutes to play Kansas went on a run, pulling the scoring-gap to within three points by the three minute mark.

With a minute to play, Kansas made a basket to make the score 63-62.

UNI responded in monumental fashion.

Ali Farokhmanesh brought the ball down the court for Northern Iowa, found himself left alone, and drained a three-pointer to put the Panthers up four points.

Kansas guard Sherron Collins was called for an offensive foul on the next possession and UNI was able to connect on one of the free throws. 

After another missed basket and foul for Kansas, Farokhmanesh sealed the game by hitting two free throws, making Marcus Morris' buzzer-beating three-pointer irrelevant, the final score 69-67 in favor of the Panthers.

This game was a huge upset, as Kansas was heavily favored to go deep into the tournament. The top ESPN analysts all had Kansas in the final four, and many of them picked Kansas to win it all. Sports Illustrated had Kansas as their champion.


Kansas becomes the first number one seed to lose before the sweet 16 since 2004, when both Kentucky and Stanford fell in the round of 32. This also marks the 13th time a number one seed has fallen in the second round, the third time it has happened to Kansas.


Northern Iowa becomes the first Missouri Valley tournament champion to reach the sweet 16 since 1979 when the  Indiana State Sycamores, led by the now NBA Hall-of-Famer Larry Byrd, went there and beyond, eventually losing in the National Championship to Michigan State.


Farokhmanesh's huge three at the end of the game was not the first big shot he has hit in this tournament. In the first round, UNI was tied with UNLV with just seconds to play. Farokhmanesh nailed a deep three to win it for the Panthers.


In the first two games of the tournament Farokhmanesh has amassed 33 points, and has hit 9 threes out of 19 attempts, none bigger than the game-changing threes to end both tournament games.

Personally, I would love to see this underdog UNI team keep rolling - forget my bracket (which is still in decent shape despite the Kansas loss).


UNI's next challenge will be decided today when #4 Maryland and #5 Michigan State square off.

2010 NCAA Tournament, Round 1: Madness Indeed!

When I first saw this year's NCAA Tournament bracket, I couldn't help but think this was one of the weakest fields of 65 I have ever seen, with the absences of teams such as North Carolina (last year's champions), Connecticut, Memphis and Virginia Tech.

Despite this seemingly skimpy playing field, the first round of March Madness was one of the most thrilling and exciting in recent memory.

Three games went into overtime, with one of those heading to double overtime.

Nine games were decided by five points or less, and 10 games saw the lower seed advancing to the round of 32.

Here's some observations from the first round:



Newcomers


The Southern Conference Champion Wofford Terriers and SWAC Champion Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions made their first ever NCAA Tournament appearances.

Ark-Pine Bluff won the play-in game against Winthrop and earned the right to take on #1 seed Duke, who proceeded to quickly diminish any hopes of a second tournament win for the Golden Lions, beating them 73-44.


#13 Wofford, in its first tournament appearance, drew the 4th seeded Wisconsin Badgers.

In a game that was much too close for my liking, Wofford fought back from a ten point deficit to take their first lead of the game with around five minutes left.


Jon Leuer, however, proved to be too much for the Terriors.

With less than 30 seconds remaining, Leuer hit a baseline jumper to put the Badgers up 51-49. After a Terrior turnover Leuer was fouled and hit both free throws to seal the victory for the Badgers.




Major Upsets

#14 Ohio over #3 Georgetown

Georgetown looked great heading into the tournament. They lost in the Big East Tourney Championship Game on a shot by West Virginia's DeShaun Butler in the closing moments of the game.

Ohio, on the other hand, had a losing conference record this season and was seeded ninth in the MAC Conference Tournament.

Despite the daunting challenge, Ohio came out with guns blazing. Armon Bassett dropped 32 points as the Bobcats toppled the Hoyas in convincing fashion, 97-83, wreaking havoc on brackets all over the country.

The win was the first tournament win for Ohio since 1983, when as a 14 seed they knocked off the third seeded Kentucky Wildcats.

#13 Murray State over #4 Vanderbilt

Danero Thomas. You had probably never heard of him before this game.

Expect to see his game-winning shot over and over in future March Madness commercials.

The inbound play that led to Thomas' winning shot was intended for the Racers' star Isaac Miles. Instead, Thomas, the third option on the play, received the pass and proceeded to shock Vanderbilt, 66-65.

This upset marks the second time in three years that Vanderbilt stumbled in the first round as a four seed. (In 2008 they lost to Sienna)



Close Call

#2 Villanova over #15 Robert Morris

Villanova needed overtime to put away the Colonials.




Scottie Reynolds, Villanova's star point guard, shot abysmally from the field the entire game, going 2-for-15 (13%).

He made up for it in the closing minutes of the game by drawing fouls and sinking his free throws, as the Wildcats went on an 11-3 scoring run to end regulation and force overtime. Reynolds made 15 of 16 free throw attempts on his way to 20 points.

Nova escaped becoming just the fifth 2 seed ever to lose to a 15 seed in tournament history.

Murray State Defeats Vandy

Another game, another upset

Old Dominion Beat Notre Dame, Harangody Pats Stats

First upset of tournament...

Get Off Your Knees Ref...

The Blackhawks trip to California for back to back tilts with the Ducks and Kings is now half way over. Their nightmarish 4-2 loss to the ducks showcased what has been called some of the officiating of the season, but the greater loss was Olympian D-man Brent Seabrook. Word on Seabrook's condition is still unknown, but it's said he's nursing a concussion. Seabrook left the game during the second period after taking a dirty hit from former teammate James Wisniewski. Take a look at the hit that somehow didn't result in a power play...

And then take a look at a shove from behind that somehow didn't result in any penalty at all, and led to the Duck's go ahead goal...

South Park Takes On Tiger Woods

Here you go, South Park takes on Tiger Woods.

Packers Unveil New Alternate Jerseys

Nick Collins, Brad Jones, and Jordy Nelson recently showed off the new Packer alternate jerseys at the 2010 Packer Fan Festival.

The new jersey is reminiscent of the Packers' 1929 jersey, with slight modifications to conform to new NFL guidelines.

Alternate jerseys can be worn up to 3 times a season (twice at home, once on the road) and can be used for a period of up to five years.

Packer CEO Mark Murphy stated that the Packers would likely wear the jerseys just once this season, but said to expect to see it over the next few years.

WCHA Final Five

This is one of the most competitive and highly-ranked fields in the 23-year history of the WCHA Final Five Playoff Championship. One consisting of the nation's No. 1 team in Denver, the nation's No. 3 team in Wisconsin, No. 6 St. Cloud State, No. 5 North Dakota and No. 11-ranked Minnesota Duluth who all head to Saint Paul this week for the 2010 Red Baron WCHA Final Five, to be held Thursday-Saturday.

All five of these teams have at least 22 victories overall this season and those five clubs also finished first, second, third, fourth and fifth respectively in the WCHA during the regular season.

WCHA regular season and MacNaughton Cup champion, Denver (27-7-4), is the No. 1 seed for the league playoff championship, second place regular season finisher Wisconsin (24-9-4) is the No. 2 seed, St. Cloud State (22-12-5) is the No. 3 seed, North Dakota (22-12-5) is the No. 4 seed and defending WCHA Final Five and Broadmoor Trophy champion, Minnesota Duluth (22-16-1), is the No. 5 seed.

Although the tournament will be without the home town Gophers this year, it should still make for a very interesting finish with such a talented field and also more of a variety of colors in the stands. The UMD Bulldogs will take on the Fighting Souix this Thursday night for the play in game at 7:07pm Ct. time.

Both teams will try to match what the Bulldogs did last year when Minn. Duluth became the first play-in team to ever win the tournament.

Lets get some feedback on this.. leave some of your picks and further comments!

A Snapshot of the Top of the Western Conference

With the conclusion of the 2010 Winter Olympics it’s time for the world’s best hockey players to return to the NHL and head down the home stretch to the playoffs. As of now the top eight Western Conference teams are the Sharks, Blackhawks, Canucks, Coyotes, Kings, Avalanche, Predators, and the Redwings. While these teams are by no means locked into their position and shake ups in the best of West are inevitable, here’s a few strengths and weaknesses of the elite eight.

Sharks

· The Sharks are (and have been for the majority of the season) leading the West anchored by arguably the best offensive line in the NHL with Thorton, Heatley, and Marleau. The only worry plaguing shark fans is an embarrassing first round play off loss to the Anaheim Ducks in the 08-09 season bringing a seemingly premature end to their once promising season.

Blackhawks

· This skilled young team anchored by their six Olympians has shined all season and is a shoe in for a 1 or 2 seed in the west. Also the return top enforcer and former badger Adam Burish adds some much needed grit and energy to the squad. However, their goaltending tandem of Cristobal Huet and newcomer Anti Niemi leave the Chicago hopeful skeptical that the hawks will win their first Stanley Cup since 1961

Canucks

· This gritty and strong Canadian squad leads the Northwest division winning six of their last eight. They’ll head into the playoffs lead by their gold medal netminder Roberto Luongo. Despite their strong finishes the fraternal duo of Henrik and Daniel Sedin have been uncharacteristically quiet as of late tickling the twine only once in their last 11 games on an empty net.

Coyotes

· The coyotes are a solid team, there’s no question about it, but with red hot Ilya Bryzgalov tending the twine who wouldn’t be? He’s set a franchise record with 34 wins this season for the hungry coyotes. Without much depth elsewhere, Phoenix may find problems down the stretch having no real stars and only one skater with 50 points or more.

Kings

· The Kings are a skilled young team with an average age of 23. They play a fast paced style of hockey and goal tender Jonathon Quick boasts a league high 37 wins. In order to make a run late into the season the Kings will need to step up their 22^nd ranked penalty kill.

Avalanche

· While Avalanche haven’t exactly shined since their return from the Olympic break with a 2-2 record the Avs have shocked haters and established themselves as a powerful team in 2010. A major key for this former NHL super power is just getting pucks to the net. Averaging only 27.1 shots per game, the Avs are worst in the league.

Predators

· The predators are a team with good depth and skill throughout. They also have decent support in the net between Pekka Rinne and Dan Ellis, but, much like the Coyotes they lack a star player to lead the team deep into season. They also struggle on the penalty kill with only the lowly Maple Leaves acting as a buffer between them and the worst PK in the league

Red Wings

· The Red Wings are on track to loose their division for the first time in almost a decade to the mighty Blackhawks due to a plague of injuries to key players. While they may be on the playoff bubble in the West if they can maintain their position they’ll be sure to give the top seed a very difficult first round.

New Guy

Hello to the Two Cents nation. I'm Kevin Kennedy, freshman at UW Madison and potential journalism major. I'm super excited to be a part of Two Cents From the Nosebleeds and I look forward to contributing to the site. I was born and raised in the Northern suburbs of Chicago making me a Cubs, Bears, Bulls, Badgers and (most of all) Blackhawks fan.

Most of my posts will probably relate to what I know most about, which is hockey and the NHL. Don't worry Brewer fans, I won't be commenting much on the Cubs. One of my major goals is to bring new perspectives on hockey especially to those who may not watch a whole lot of it.

I understand it's not nearly as mainstream as football, basketball, or baseball but when you start to watch it you really get hooked on it. Hockey is an exciting sport and I look forward to posting all about it here, mostly at the professional and collegiate levels. Having said that, I look forward to reacting and hearing your reactions. More to come soon Two Cents Nation...

Brandon Jennings Will Protect this House!

Nice Under Armor commerical, giving some Milwaukee love! As much as it has been an up and down season for Jennings there is no way you can ignore how much he helps open the floor for the Bucks! Still think one of the most valuable rookies on the best team out of the other leading ROY candidates.

Bucks Finally Getting National Attention

The slogan "Fear the Deer" is echoing in the heads of the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics, two of the probable first round opponents for the Milwaukee Bucks heading into this years playoffs. The Celtics came to town on Tuesday and expected to get an easy win with their physical play and star power. Well, the Bucks did not back down. They outmatched the Celtics for an 86-84 victory in which the Celtics' aging veterans came up short down the stretch. Remember the Bulls-Celtics classic 7 game playoff series a year ago?

Well this easily has the potential to match it. The Bucks are the hottest team in the Eastern conference, with their only blemish in the last 13 games coming in Atlanta against a superhuman Joe Johnson led Hawks' team in a game that went into OT. Surely the physical team-oriented style of play can not be something the Hawks or Celtics wish to see in the first round of the playoffs, especially after these recent games against the Bucks.

However, the Bucks get two more shots at Atlanta at home to see just how well they matchup against the Hawks, and have one home and one away game remaining against the Celtics. I strongly recommend checking out the Bucks-Clippers game Wednesday on ESPN at 8:30 if you had not had the chance to see the team play at all this year.

Check out these articles on the Bucks for additional info:
Sekou Smith talks about how the Bucks and Bobcats will be scary come playoff time
Bucks rank 11 in NBA.com Power Rankings, other sites have them even higher
For instance, ESPN.com has the Bucks up the 8th spot, 3rd highest team in the East
Brew Hoop explains the bigger picture for the Bucks

Steve Francis Picks His Nose

Bogut Named Eastern Conference Play of The Week

Andrew Bogut has received the Eastern Conference Player of the Week honor. The Bucks are the talk of the NBA and are starting to get the recognition for it. Experts see the Bucks' stock rising and the Hawks and Celtics stock falling. Many predict that the streaking Bucks may even catch the Celtics and take over home court advantage. Its an exciting time to be a Milwaukee Bucks fan, as weird as that sounds!

FEAR THE DEER!

Inspiring Story

While many know that Trevon Hughes is a Queens point guard who spent a few years at a Wisconsin High School, few know the whole story. I can say that I am a pretty avid Badger fan and was a little awed and inspired when reading Hughes' story in the NY Daily News.

Hughes was able to defy all odds and stay out of the trouble that most in his crowd he hung with in Queens had to deal with. As a 14 year old through talking to his AAU coach and his mother, Hughes decided to leave the streets of Queens and give a military school in Wisconsin a try. Hughes says, "he was tricked," but through some inspiring words from his grandpa, he decided to listen to his mother and go to St. John's Military Academy in Delafield.

Despite hating his new military life the Queens' boy understood his future was more important and this was his way of accomplishing his dream. Now this is a wonderful story that hopefully for Badger fans can end in a Final Four!

Wisconsin Man Says Packers Saved His Life

Check out this ESPN article here.

Amazing Ending

Evan Turner may have just locked the player of the year with this shot! I still don't get how there is no pressure on him, but either way amazing shot!

Gomez's Concentration is Key

Carlos Gomez' concentration this season will be key, thank God girls don't dress like this is in Wisconsin

Nomar Retires

Nomar Garciaparra, best known for his quirky batting stance and superstitions at the plate, retired today after signing a one-day minor league contract with the Redsox. Nomar's best playing days came in his nine seasons in Boston, winning the rookie of the year in 1997 and batting titles in 1999 and 2000. With the Sox, he hit .323 with 178 homeruns and 690 RBIs.

The trade that sent him the Chicago Cubs in 2004 was controversial, given his enormous popularity in Redsox Nation, but vaulted the Redsox to their first World Series title since 1918. Though he didn't play on that team, the Redsox players voted to also get a ring him. Nomar finished out his career with the Cubs, Dodgers, and A's, making the All-Star team once, in 2006, but mostly riddled with injuries. He will continue to follow baseball, as he will be a baseball analyst on ESPN.

Batting Stance guy imitating Nomar: