Bleacher Report - Articles by Walt Webb

Maple Leafs Finally Win a Game

Walt Webb — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:45:41 -0400

Well the goose egg was finally broken. If you watched the Leafs game or search for Leafs sports news or sports on the web you are aware that the Toronto Maple Leafs recorded their first victory of the 2009-2010 season, beating the Anaheim Ducks by a score of 6-3 .

The Maple Leafs endured a 0-7-1 start to the season which just happened to be the clubs worst start in the History of the franchise, dating back to 1917-1918 when the Toronto Arenas came into a new league called the NHL

So allsports decided to wait on publishing this post until after tonight’s game in Dallas. Well the winning streak came to a screeching halt at one win. Toronto lost in Dallas tonight 4-3 in overtime. They played well enough to win but again a couple of mental breakdowns cost them the game.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Michael Vick: Allsports Commentary- He Derves a Second Chance!

Walt Webb — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:06:45 -0400

If you have been keeping up with sports news or following sports on the web, you will know that Michael Vick became a free man yesterday.

I am sure that if you looked him up you will find numerous articles on him throughout sports on the web and even a couple of trees worth of paper in the print media.

He had the bracelet removed from his ankle yesterday after serving 23 months for his dog fighting conviction, the last 60 days of which were served under house arrest.

So what does old Michael do now?

First off, he has to go to Roger Goodell on bended knee and apologize for his stupidity and the black eye that his antics gave the NFL and his old team, the Atlanta Falcons.

While he is at it maybe he should tell his old teammates how sorry he is for screwing up what everyone was working so hard toward and the shit-storm they had to endure while he was incarcerated.

That would be a good start.

He must also convince Goodell that he is very remorseful for his acts and that he will promise to use his god given talents to try and promote the league in a much more positive light.

Then maybe, just maybe, he will get a second chance.

From allsports mire mortal point of view Mr. Vick needs to remember that it is a huge privilege to get paid the money he does for playing a game.

Whether he likes it or not he is in the public eye and thus is a role model to kids everywhere that watch football.

He must also remember based on the intelligence he has displayed thus far that he owes everything he is to the game of football and without it he is likely working in a factory somewhere making minimum wage.

So, tread lightly Mr. Vick, show your remorse and acknowledge your stupidity.

You will get your second chance. Your far to good an athlete to not get one. Chances are many NFL teams will be lining up to get a shot at your talents.

The New York Jets for one could really use a quarterback. Vick could make them a true AFC contender for the Super-Bowl.

Don’t Blow it

Some Michael Vick Highlights

“No Guts No Glory”

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Allsports Believes It's Time for J.P. Ricciardi to Go

Walt Webb — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:37:49 -0400

For awhile now, I have had a passing interest in baseball for sports on the Web and other sports news involving the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays are my home town team and play in the toughest division in Major League Baseball. That division would be the American League East. Perenial power houses New York and Boston are always in a dog fight for the division pennant and now the new kids on the block, the Tampa Bay Rays have added themselves to the mix.

Toronto under the guidance of J.P. Riccardi have fallen way off the pace and are sitting two games below 500 after a promising start. In May, they were one of the best teams in baseball and allsports thought that they might have a chance if they could keep it up. Last year the start of the season was a disaster for the Blue Jays and they played the rest of the season out just trying to play catchup to the Red Sox, Yankees and Rays. Good luck with that, those ball teams are just to consistent to try and make up ground on.

This year a better start turned into the same result as Toronto is eleven games back going into the all star break. Good luck on making that up against Boston. The Jays also took it on the chin resently when they had to cut B.J. Ryan loose. The Jays are still on the hook for $15 million of his contract which is a huge amount for a guy that has become a batting practice pitcher. Ryan has never been the same since his arm injury and subsequent surgery. He has lost at least 10 miles per hour off his fastball and with that there is no bite to it anymore.

Now, I am not saying that Ricciardi or Ryan are to blame for this resent event. Some thing’s are unforeseen and injuries do happen. You pay your money and take your chances. No the beef that allsports has is that Riccardi’s song and dance at the helm of the Jays is wearing thin. His five-year plan has turned into an eight-year plan and the team is no farther ahead than the day he took over. One thing remains consistent with Riccardi, he seems to overvalue the talent he brings in. They may have some talent but most have lacked heart and the desire to compete everyday through a long and grinding season. Vernon Wells is the poster boy for under achievement and has not been worth a crap since he signed his huge contract.

The only bright spots for Toronto this year are Roy Halladay who is Mr. consistent again this year and Aaron Hill who is the deserving starter at second base for the American league in the all star game. Halladay, for the record is the starting pitcher for the American League in the game.

Halladay has been a breath of fresh air for Toronto because of his commitment and loyalty to the club. He deserves a shot at the prize before it is too late and sadly he won’t get that shot in Toronto. Riccardi should trade him and then step down from the helm. He is a mediocre general manager who has had too many chances and just builds a mediocre team. The Jays will never get out of the rut until Riccardi is cut loose. Riccardi has a brilliant baseball mind, just ask him and he will tell you so. That is where his problem starts, he thinks he is smarter than he is.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

Allsports on the Ruling of the Phoenix Fiasco

Walt Webb — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:35:27 -0400

If you have been paying attention to sports on the web or sports news on TV or in the print media, you will be aware by now that Jim Basillie’s proposed purchase of the Phoenix Coyotes and subsequent move to Hamilton has be rejected by Judge Redfield T. Baum. Here is a quote from Judge Baum’s 21 page report ” No cases have been found that precisely or even closely fit this scenario,” Then later in the ruling, he wrote that there are no reported bankruptcy court decisions that “order a relocation of the magnitude proposed here.” You can bet Judge Baum did not want anything to do with being the first.

The payment and move were not what Judge Baum took issue with in the case. For him it was the question on the time frame that Basillie’s legal team gave to have a verdict. The cutoff date given was June 29th and Justice Baum did not feel that was an adequate amount of time considering the weight and ramifications of the decision to be made.

For his part you have to admire Jim Basillie’s dogged determination here, for he has said that there no way the decision will keep him from pursuing the franchise and moving them.

The NHL may feel that Basillie has had his third strike and he is out but as far as the question of another southern Ontario franchise goes, how long can the NHL continue to ignore the economic landscape of another team there. To ignore it is not good business sense. Besides the way Bettman considers franchise locations, they need another viable one to help pay the week sisters in the revenue share. For that matter, how long can they ignore the money that Basillie is willing to spend to get a team. It looks to Allsports like Mr. Bettman would cut off his nose despite his face.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports thinks the Penguins came up Aces

Walt Webb — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 01:43:32 -0400

If you didn’t watch game seven of the Stanley Cup final last night, you missed a truly entertaining contest.

The Red Wings rolled the dice and crapped out, losing the game by a score of 2-1. The Penguins heroes' in the game were Maxime Talbot, who scored both of Pittsburgh’s goals, and Marc-Andre Fleury, whose stellar performance kept the Wings to just one goal.

He was great in game six as well, when he held the Wings to just one. He really got it together after being pulled in game five.

It was a tough night for Sidney Crosby. The Pens' captain was knocked out of the game in the second period with a knee injury, the cause of which was a very questionable hit by Johan Franzen.

The hit was late at best and likely could have been interference. The hit was a bit of a cheap shot and should have been called. Crosby was forced to watch the third period (other than one quick shift) from the bench, only able to give his teammates moral support.

The rest of the team picked it up for him and came through.

Things of note for the series: Evgeni Malkin was the Conn Smythe Trophy winner for playoff MVP.

At the ripe old age of 21, Sidney Crosby became the youngest captain in NHL history to lead his team to the Stanley Cup.

Mario Lemieux became the first person in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup as a player and as an owner.

The Penguins got even with Detroit by parading the cup around on Detroit’s home ice, just like Detroit did to them last year.

You have to wonder how Marion Hossa felt about seeing his former team with the Stanley Cup. He put on a brave face but it must have been eating him up inside.

Hossa was a Penguin last year, but decided to sign with Detroit for less money than the Pittsburgh offer because he thought he had a better chance of winning Lord Stanley’s mug with the Wings.

All Allsports has to say is "Marion, stay away from the roulette tables if you go gambling."

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

P.S. This years' Cup final had to be right up there as one of the best that Allsports has seen.

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Allsports and the Phoenix Fiasco

Walt Webb — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:16:41 -0400

Since the real sports news on the web has been delayed an extra day, Allsports thought why not talk a little about the other NHL news story on the web.

That would be the legal story of Jin Balsillie against Gary Bettman and the NHL. In case you have not heard, Balsillie has offered $212.5 million for the Phoenix Coyotes. A tidy some indeed, and much more than the franchise is worth.

The problem is that Jim wants to move the club from Phoenix to a much better hockey market in Hamilton, Ontario, and Gary does not want to have any of that. If he did, then he would have to admit that his idea of putting a team in the desert was a foolish idea in the first place.

Bettman whines about the loyal fans in Phoenix losing their right to have NHL hockey in their fare city. Give your head a shake Gary. If the fans were loyal, the franchise would not be moving. For that matter, where was this great crusader when the truly loyal fans in Winnipeg lost this team in the first place?

In a just society, the Coyotes would be moved back to the City of Winnipeg, where I might add they would have a much better climate for success than Phoenix. Winnipeg could support the NHL in today’s economic market, especially with the salary cap and such in place.

Gary Bettman

No, this is not a case of logic. Rather, it is a good old fashion pissing contest. Balsillie has dealt with the NHL on two previous occasions. He bid on both the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Nashville Predators. The problem was that he wanted to move those franchises too, and Bettman vetoed the transaction.

Bettman blamed Balsillie for reneging on the deal, but the real reason was that Bettman was trying to tell him what he had to do with his money. You can’t blame Balsillie for pulling out.

Jim Balsillie

Balsillie has not endeared himself to the rest of the owners in the “old boys club,” and he may not have followed protocol. Now, what Balsillie is trying to do is show Bettman for the primadonna that he is, and Allsports thinks he is doing a pretty good job of it.

If I were an owner of the other floundering franchises, (are you listening Florida, New York Islanders, Atlanta, Nashville, and Tampa?) I would be very nervous. If the Bettman NHL wins this case, they will be doomed to keep their respective teams in the crappy markets they are in, and continue to pour money into the financial sink holes.

All of the Canadian owners should band together and tell Bettman to run along. They are tired of giving about 50% of the revenue share to his weak sister locations.

Bettman has been at the helm for about 16 years now and the game is no better off in the US than it was when he started. This latest fiasco could just be enough to finally push the wimpy New York lawyer out the door.

Allsports says "don’t let the door hit your behind on the way out, Gary." Then maybe the NHL could get a real commissioner.

Can you say, Wayne Gretzky or maybe Brendan Shanahan?

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Red Wings-Penguins: An Allsports Mauling in the Motor City

Walt Webb — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 09:21:44 -0400

The way Allsports sees it, there were two stories in game five for sports on the web.

The first story was the return of Pavel Datsyuk to the Detroit Red Wings lineup.

The benefits of his return were two-fold for the Red Wings. First, they got a great player back on the ice—where he assisted on two goals for the Wings, and established his great defensive presence as well. It looked like he was never on the shelf for seven games.

But Allsports believes the biggest impact was the emotional lift it gave his teammates to have him back in the lineup. It is a credit to the Red Wings how they could survive with a player of Datsyuk’s caliber out of the playoffs for the length of time that he was and still keep on winning. Allsports misjudged Datsyuk’s worth to his team on and off the ice.

The second story is the oversized bumper pool table called Joe Louis Arena. Chris Osgood and company know the arena well—every angle and bounce of the boards. They have managed to burn Marc-Andre Fleury a few times in the series with some deft bounces to the net.

There is no better example of this than Chris Osgood’s assist for the second goal of the game. He knew the puck would come to him quickly and his angle pass off the boards to Marian Hossa caught the Penguins on a line change.

Osgood was perfect in the game while Fleury was ordinary, being pulled after five goals on 21 shots. The Wings' power play finally came alive too, scoring three goals in the game.

The Pens have to regroup and find a win at home. Sometimes it is easier to do so after a blow out than if you play great but lose in OT.

The Pen’s will get a big game from Fleury and win at home—but they still have to solve the Joe Louis jinx to get their hands on the Cup.

“No Guts, No Glory.”—Walt Webb

Penguins on Their Way, Allsports Thinks

Walt Webb — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:01:41 -0400

Did you watch the barn burner of a hockey game at the Mellon Arena last night?

If not, did you search the results for sports news on the web and NHL playoff hockey?

Pens coach Dan Bylsma must have read my last post. (Ha! Yeah, I wish.) He did pretty well what I was talking about with using the horses that got you there.

But let's not digress from the issue at hand. The Pittsburgh Penguins tied the series up last night with a 4-2 victory. The win evens the Stanley Cup final at two games apiece and makes the series a best of three now.

Staal, Malkin, and Crosby each had two points in the game. Jordan Staal had his best game of the final so far and if he keeps playing like that with the way Crosby and Malkin are smelling Red Wing blood, the Wings could be in deep trouble.

Marc-Andre Fleury was excellent last night, making 37 saves, and held his team in it until they started rolling. Malkin opened the scoring for the Penguins, but Detroit replied with two goals of their own to take the lead.

Jordan Staal started the comeback with a great individual effort on a shorthanded goal in the second period. The goal was the turning point in the game, and dare I say the turning point in the series.

A goal by Crosby from Malkin and then a tic-tac-toe goal by Tyler Kennedy, from Crosby and Kunitz put the Pens up to stay. The Penguins' three-goal burst happened in the span of just over five minutes and proved to be too much for the Wings to come back on.

Pittsburgh still has to win a game in Detroit, but now with Staal finding his game to go along with Crosby and Malkin, Allsports thinks there may just be too much fire power for the Wings to handle.

Fleury has played much better in the last two games as well, and has given Pittsburgh the goaltending I thought they would have.

Rumours persist that Pavel Datsyuk will be in the lineup for game five, which should help the Red Wings' cause, but there may be some question as to whether he is 100 percent or not.

Bottom line here is that the Penguins have found their legs and their confidence, realizing the Wings can be beaten and are not invincible. Allsports thinks the Pens will now dethrone the mighty Red Wings.

For the complete game story for sports on the web, go here.

Here is the Kennedy Tic Tac Toe goal for your enjoyment.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

Allsports Says: The Pittsburgh Penguins Get Some Luck of their Own

Walt Webb — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 10:31:39 -0400

So the Penguins hosted their first game (game three) of the Stanley Cup final last Tuesday at the Mellon Arena. If you have been watching sports on the web or any type of sporting news for that matter you will already know that they were victorious, with a final score of 4-2.

The Penguins got a little bit of luck back in this affair because at one point in the game they managed to cycle the puck in the Detroit zone for about thirty seconds with an extra man on the ice. The officials did not notice and neither did the Red Wings.

Marc- Andre Fleury provided his best game of the series. He held the fort for the Penguins in the second period when they were out shot 14-4 by the Wings, with the score knotted at two apiece. The Penguins slanted the ice surface the other way in the third period scoring two unanswered goals, one into an empty net to seal the victory.

Maxime Talbot was the unsung hero of the game with two goals. He was a threat every time he got on the ice. Henrik Zetterberg did a decent job shadowing Sid “the Kid” Crosby and held him to one assist, but it was on the power play and he could not be blamed.

The problem for the Wings was that they could not keep the other guy in check. Evgeni Malkin recorded three assists in the game to take over the playoff scoring lead.

The way Allsports looks at it now is you play the crap out of the horses that got you here. Throw Crosby and Malkin on the ice as much as possible, even together at times and see if Detroit can withstand the pressure. Zetterberg has played great but did seem to look a bit tired in the third period of game three.

Without Datsyuk in the lineup, Detroit will have a hard time shutting down both Crosby and Malkin. Even if Datsyuk returns I don’t think he would be ready to play the minutes required to cover either Crosby or Malkin. Let's not forget that Pittsburgh also has a pretty good No. 3 center in Jordan Staal as well.

Game four goes tonight in Pittsburgh and Allsports is looking for the Penguins to tie the series up, making it a best of three heading back to Detroit.

Montreal Canadiens, Edmonton Oilers: Are Coaching Changes Good For the Team?

Walt Webb — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 00:57:25 -0400

Here are some thoughts for sports on the Web.

The Montreal Canadians hired Jacques Martin as their new head coach on Monday.

Martin, who was the general manager in Florida, decided he wanted to get back to a hockey hot-bed market. Well, Montreal will sure keep his feet to the fire on that front.

He is the first head coach Montreal has hired out of the previous five to have NHL experience before the hiring. The last one was Jacques Demers back in the early 90s.

Martin will meet with Bob Gainey and the assistant coaches, Kurt Muller, Doug Jarvis, and Don Leaver in the next week or so to see if they will be retained.

The only thing Allsports can see about Martin in Montreal is that he speaks the language, and he has some experience. Maybe he and Bob Gainey can bore each other to death.

I don’t think the fans in Montreal will be to pleased with Martin’s defence-first approach.

Last week Edmonton hired Pat Quinn as their new head coach with Tom Renney as an associate coach.

Allsports likes this coaching combination, both Renney and Quinn have years of experience behind the bench.

Renney, you may remember if you follow sports on the Web or sports news, was fired as the New York Rangers head coach back in the spring and replaced by John Tortorella.

Quinn’s latest coaching position was leading the Canadian Junior Team to the gold medal back in January.

Tom Renney Pat Quinn

Allsports thinks Pat Quinn could help a young Oilers team. His knock was that he was never good with young players, but he did OK leading the Canadian Junior Team.

“No Guts, No Glory”—Walt Webb

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Allsports thinks the Detroit Red Wings have Lady Luck on their Side

Walt Webb — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:54:14 -0400

If you've been watching the Stanley Cup final or have been searching for sports news on the web, you will be aware that the Detroit Red Wings have won the first two games of the series with Pittsburgh by identical 3-1 scores.

Allsports thinks that the Red Wings are very lucky to be up 2-0 in the series and that Lady Luck has been smiling on them. But as the saying goes you have to be good to be lucky and you have to be lucky to be good.

The Penguins on the other hand have had no luck at all so far, hitting posts in the games and carrying the play for the most part. Chris Osgood has played very well in the Detroit net and Detroit has gotten some gratuitous bounces for goals at the other end of the ice.

The refs have even been in on the act to help Detroit’s cause. In game two Henrik Zetterberg covered up on the puck in the crease, with no penalty called.

In game one he closed his hand on the puck in the crease and avoided a call there as well. The Penguins should have been awarded a penalty shot on both of these instances. Below is the video of Zetterberg’s hand on the puck in game #1

To add insult to injury, the go-ahead and eventual game winning goal by Detroit was caused because Marion Hossa hooked the Pittsburgh player and broke his stick, leaving the Penguins down a man. The hook was a penalty all year and all playoffs. The lack of a call lead directly to the goal.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not a fan of the new sticks. They break far too easily, but the refs need to be consistent with the call. I wrote a post on the sticks titled, “Sorry coach my stick blew up” on May 11th of last year.

The frustration for the Penguins finally blew up at the end of the game, when Talbot jabbed at the puck when Osgood clearly had it. Then Malkin decided to throw some punches at Zetterberg.

Malkin got the instigator in the fight, and since it was in the last five minutes of the game there could be a one game suspension. Let's hope not, because a lot of the frustration was a direct result of the ref’s missing critical calls.

It is a hard job to do but there is still no excuse for missing the calls. Hossa’s hook was blatant and a no brainer.

For the complete sports news story on the game go here.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports Having Trouble Finding Time to Write

Walt Webb — Thu, 21 May 2009 23:27:29 -0400

If you have been looking for sports on the Web or anything written recently by Allsports you will find that I have been lacking recently with my NHL playoff articles or articles on any sports, for that matter. For that, I apologize. I am finding it hard these days to find the time to write.

I guess that goes with the territory - when your a single father and have two teenaged girls who both play rep lacrosse for their city. Rep means representative, so the best players play for the rep team to represent the city against other cities here in southern Ontario.

Here is a typical week for me. Monday nights, they play house league. The reasoning here is that the rep girls will help the house league girls learn the game and become better players. Tuesday nights they umpire the games for the young girls that are U11, which is under eleven years of age. After the umpiring, maybe, just maybe, dad might get the chance to play a game for his baseball team, but that only happens when the timing is right.

Wednesday night is Rep practice from 6:30 p.m. until about 8 p.m., then something to eat and I can watch the last period of the hockey game.

Thursday night is a carbon copy of Wednesday night. Friday night is a free night to maybe kick back a bit and have a beer. You can’t get to carried away, though, because chances are you will have one rep game or another on Saturday morning at about 8 a.m. your up with the birds to get there on time. You guessed it, all the rep games for the league are played on the weekend, so you can see that I don’t know the meaning of free time. Add to that holding down a full-time job and see where I am going with this.

Don’t get me wrong though, I am proud of my two girls and what they accomplish on the field as well as doing well in school. My youngest, Bonnie, is in her last year of U15 rep lacrosse and is one of the two captains of the team. Lindsay, who is in her first year playing U19 rep has made the “A” team and is the youngest member of that group.

As I write this, I will have to take a break because rep practise beckons.

Well I am back now and I hope to write on the NHL playoffs with my next post. My predictions for the second round were 50%, a little off the pace from the first round. The hockey though from what I have seen has been quite good. The early view in the conference finals is looking like a repeat of last years final between Pittsburgh and Detroit. If that happens it will be the first time in 25 years that the same two teams have repeated in their respective conferences. The Edmonton Oilers and the New York Islanders were the last to do so.

Regretfully, I am sorry the post is so bland. My regular computer is in the shop, and I am posting from an old laptop, which just can’t handle the Internet well. Pictures and video would be a bit of a reach with it.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports Thinks Animosity Building in NHL's Second-Round Playoff

Walt Webb — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:54:30 -0400

If you're looking for sports on the web involving hockey there will be two subjects that pop up most readily.

The first is the National Hockey League second round playoffs and the other is the IIHF “World Hockey Championships“.

Canada remains unbeaten with a 5-0 record, which is no surprise at this stage of the tournament.

So the sports news on the web that will be the major topic of discussion today is the second round of the NHL playoffs.

Three of the four match ups have played two games so far with them all tied up at one game apiece. The animosity and hate is building up so the recipe for some great hockey is evident. Here is a recap of what's going on.

Washington and Pittsburgh have only played one game so far in their series, a 3-2 Capitals win. If this series can’t generate interest in the US, nothing can.

It features arguably the best young players in the game today, although I am sure some players on the Chicago Blackhawks would disagree.

Crosby brought his usual game with a goal. He would have had two if not for the save of the playoffs by Simeon Varlamov.

Pittsburgh will be better tonight and hopefully the search party they sent out found Evgeni Malkin, who was invisible in game one.

The Capitals grinders outplayed the Penguins grinders and that was the difference in game one. That, and the Malkin disappearing act.

Here is the save if you have not seen it yet.

In the Boston Bruins-Carolina Hurricanes series, Boston opened with a convincing 4-1 win. Game two last night was a different story. Paul Maurice had his charges playing a gritty disciplined game.

Two players stood out. Cam Ward was phenomenal in the net, and Eric Staal went right after Cedeno Chara and refused to be intimidated by his size. Ward shut the Bruins out 3-0, stopping something like 36 shots in the process, many of which were point-blank.

Detroit took game one 3-2 on a late goal in the last minute by their captain Nick Lidstrom. The Wings weren’t so lucky in game two, however.

The Ducks scored the winner about three minutes into the third overtime period to escape Detroit with a split.

Jonas Hiller was strong in the Ducks net stopping 59 of 62 shots for the win. Allsports bets that’s the longest game the young Swiss goaltender has ever played.

The Vancouver-Chicago series is also tied up 1-1 as the locale shifts to Chicago. The Stadium will be rocking as the Blackhawks fans will bring up the decibel level. Vancouver should be thankful they're not down 0-2 in the series.

They managed to win game one 4-3 on a last minute goal by Sammy Salo. The Canucks added one into the empty net for a 5-3 final. The young Hawks got over exuberant and gave the Canucks a four-on-one for the goal.

What should worry Vancouver though is they were leading the game 3-0 going into the third period. In game 2 the Canucks were up 2-0 and then the wheels fell off.

Chicago seemed to find a new gear, turning the speed up a notch and Vancouver seemed to be a step behind for the second half of the game.

Chicago won 6-3. Luongo has not played his best hockey in the series yet and they will need him at his best in Chicago or the Hawks will run away with the series. They are young and skilled, they never quit and are gaining confidence by the minute.

That could kill the Canucks Stanley Cup hopes. Thunder Bay native Patrick Sharp was a standout for the Hawks in game two.

As is Allsports custom, if the Blackhawks take out Vancouver, the lone Canadian team left. I will be rooting for the Hawks the rest of the way. Vancouver will have to match the Hawks' speed and enthusiasm to have a chance.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports gives a brief Update on the NHL Playoffs

Walt Webb — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:27:58 -0400

I was going to do an update on the NHL playoffs but decided to do just a brief over view and then once I got started it turned into anything but brief.

There have really been no surprises as far as allsports is concerned.

I will mention that the Calgary Flames and Chicago Black Hawks series is tied at two games a piece now with both teams winning their games at home.

This is the best series of them all and is turning into a pretty nasty, in your face affair. Calgary tied it with a 5-4 win but scored their fifth goal late in the game.

The Hawks never quit and came back from a 4-1 deficit.

It was good old smash mouth hockey.

So, the faint of heart like Gary Bettman should watch the girls play in the NBA; they play again on Saturday night and it is by far the best entertainment for sports on the web or any other media.

Game five is back in Chicago and the start time is 8 p.m. check it out, as it should be a wild one.

This is going to be a long series as predicted. The Hurricanes scored the winning goal the other night with 0.2 seconds on the game clock to post a, 4-3, victory and tie the series at two games each.

Martin Brodeur lost it a bit when he found out the goal beat the buzzer because he had felt that he was interfered with. It was ruled incidental contact and the goal stood.

The Bruins put Montreal out of their misery last night with a convincing 4-2 win. The Hab’s didn’t win a game and were swept four straight.

Michael Ryder scored two goals and assisted on another against his former team and was arguably the Bruins biggest threat in the series, scoring four goals in the four games.

Montreal was pretty banged up for the series and missing some key players but I don’t think the outcome would be in doubt even with a healthy roster. Roberts Lang’s offence could never be replaced when he severed his Achilles tendon about half way through the season.

It was about at that time Montreal started to slide. That being said Montreal was just too small and played too soft lacking the grit required to compete against the Bruins.

All that can be said in this series is Roberto Luongo 4, St Louis Blues 0.

Luongo was outstanding again as the Canucks won series clinching game four in overtime. The Blues played their best game of the series and threw everything they had at Luongo but he didn’t crack and held the fort.

The Blues were something like 0-24 on the power play. The Canucks will now get a 7-10 day break to lick there wounds and rest for the next series.

Henrik Lundqvist did it to the Capitals again last night, stopping 39 shots in a 2-1 win.

The Rangers lead the series three games to one. I picked the Caps in six for this series but also said Lunqvist could steal the show, which he has, so far.

Without him it is 3-1 the other way.

Henrik got the win in spite of jerk off Sean Avery’s antics. Avery was in the box for at least ten minutes in penalties and Tortorella must be seething. Look when the camera pans the Rangers bench and you will see Avery sitting by himself.

Even his teammates don’t want anything to do with him.

Marc Andrea Fleury took a page out of Luongo’s book the other night making 45 saves, stealing the game as Pittsburgh beat the Flyers 3-1 and also took a 3-1 series lead.

Pittsburgh can close it out tonight at home but something tells me Richards, Carter and company are not quite done yet.

Chris Osgood was very good again in the net for the Wings the other night in Columbus. Detroit posted a 4-1 win to go up 3-0 in the series.

Detroit is just too strong for the Blue Jackets and their depth and experience are really showing through. This series will likely be over after tonight’s game, with a Detroit sweep. Detroit rarely makes a mistake and when they have Osgood has stood tall in the net.

Dan Boyle and Rob Blake put their Sharks teammates on their collective backs and carried them to a 4-3 victory in game three.

Boyle had two goals and one assist, while Blake contributed one of each. Anaheim now leads the series 2-1 with game four tonight in Anaheim.

Is it just me but could they not come up with a better name than the Ducks. What a BS name for a hockey team. Well at least they aren’t mighty anymore because that was truly a Micky Mouse name.

They say that in order to get through the playoff grind and have a realistic shot at the Stanley Cup. You have to have at least one short series out of the four.

So, right now the best bets for the cup are Vancouver, Boston and Detroit—maybe Pittsburgh, if they can finish the Flyers tonight.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports Views on the NHL Playoff Picture

Walt Webb — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:38:55 -0400

If you have been following sports on the web and in particular the NHL playoffs, your aware by now that the Boston Bruins have the Montreal Canadians on the brink of elimination. Boston handed Montreal a 4-2 loss last night to go up 3-0 in the best of seven series.

Montreal at least tried to use their team speed more in this game than in the previous two in Boston where they tried to match brawn with the Bruins. We know how that turned out. Alex Kovalev seems to be the only Canadians forward who is dangerous.

The Habs stayed out of the penalty box too but in the end, it did not matter. This was Montreal’s game to win because they caught a break when the league suspended Milan Lucic for the game. Lucic crosschecked Maxim Lapierre in the head at the end of game two.

No matter the Bruins inserted Byron Bitz into the line up to replace Lucic, he is almost as big so they did not miss a beat in the physical department. Bitz even recorded an assist in the game. Michael Ryder scored the winner last night and yes this is the same Michael Ryder that was not good enough to play for the Canadians.

Will the Canadians win a game? they might but I doubt it. As I stated at the start of the series, just too much BIG, BAD, Bruins.

In Philadelphia the Flyers did what they had to do, playing a physical game against the Penguins but staying out of the penalty box to post a convincing 6-3 win. We have a series here and game four goes tonight.

In New York the Washington Capitals finally solved Henrik Lundqvist to post a 4-0 win. This was a good thing for the Caps because Lundqvist was in their heads pretty good after game two.

Rookie Simeon Varlamov posted the shutout in his second game after replacing an ineffective Theodore after game one. Varlamov may be working is own brand of syke on the Rangers. Sean Avery was up to his usual stunts last night and coach Tortorella did not look impressed.

I don’t know about others but I have no room for a jerk like Avery on my team. He is a total embarrassment to his teammates and the league. Its to bad because he can play, he is just an idiot though.

New Jersey won in overtime the other night in Carolina. Allsports does not care to much about this series because I am not a fan of either team. It will be a long series and I would like to see Carolina come through for Paul Maurice.

He got a raw deal in Toronto because of the clowns he had to report to. Martin Brodeur and Brendan Shanahan would be the only two reasons why I would care about the Devils.

Calgary came through at home last night and beat the Blackhawks 4-1. The Flames managed to hit the young legs on the Hawks into submission on this night and played a full 60 minutes of hockey. Something they had not done in the first two games.

This series is starting to get ugly too and the teams just don’t like each other. That makes for great hockey to watch. The Flames will try and take more swagger out of the Hawks tomorrow night. The guys in the trenches did the job for Calgary, not their big guns.

Vancouver is up on St. Louis 3-0 and the story here begins and ends with Roberto Luongo. He did let in 2 goals the other night but the Canucks got three. Luongo has stopped about 196 of 200 shots the last six or seven games he has played.

Right now I don’t think you could shoot a pea by him. That does not bode well for the Blues and they will be singing them shortly.

Detroit is looking every bit the defending champs and is playing there brand of mistake free hockey. Osgood has been very good for the Wings so that won’t help Columbus who will be singing the Blues along with St.Louis.

You have to feel sorry for the San Jose Sharks, another great regular season and then snake bitten in the playoffs again. They are playing tight and squeezing those sticks. Jonas Hiller is outplaying Nabokov and the Sharks are being out coached as well. Unless this changes the Sharks are dead in the water.

Thats Allsports take on things so far.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

Tiss the Season for Allsports and the NHL Playoffs

Walt Webb — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 13:44:01 -0400

So if you follow sports on the web or watch any hockey at all, you're already aware that the National Hockey League regular season is over and that we are on the verge of the playoffs beginning.

Allsports, a Maple Leafs supporter, has had to take it on the chin again this year. The usual jokes like,

“How can you tell that it is Spring, cause all the Leafs are gone,"

surface again, so I endure even though the first time I heard most of them I “kicked the slats out of my cradle.”

What makes the sarcasm even more biting this year is the fact that my cousin is a big Boston Bruins fan. Yes, those same Bruins that finished first overall in the East.

You would think he did not have a regular job with the amount of bad jokes he finds and sends my way. To make matters worse I like the Bruins chances this year to fight for Lord Stanley’s Mug. Here are a couple of Bruins commercials that I thought were funny, enjoy!

Never tuck in your Jersey (You Gota like the fish slap)

Never date in your own Conference

Here are my picks for the first round of the playoffs. Based on my past record, the good money won’t be following my advice, lol.

NHL Eastern Conference:

1) The Boston Bruins vs 8) The Monteral Canadiens: Boston in Five (Six?)

Boston and Montreal is a hard one for me.

Being a Canuck myself, I usually root for the Canadian teams while there in the playoffs. The problem with this series is that unless the ghost of Maurice Richard comes back to score for the Canadians, I can’t see them winning it.

Boston is big, strong, and fast. Unless Carey Price stands on his head and Tim Thomas is a sieve, Boston will win it in about five or six. The Habs do have history on their side though but allsports thinks there will be just to much bruising Bruins for them to overcome.

2) The Washington Capitals vs 7) The New York Rangers: Washington in Six

the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers seems intriguing.

The Caps have to much size and firepower for the Rangers, who I feel are soft anyway. If Henrik Lundqvist shines and Jose Theodore is average though, New York could take it. Washington in six.

3) The New Jersey Devils vs 6) The Carolina Hurricanes: Carolina in Six

The Hurricanes and Devils were going in opposite directions near the end of the season. Paul Maurice has done a great job with the Canes and deserves credit. However, Unless Martin Brodeur puts on a goal tending clinic the Devils will be done in six games.

4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5) The Philadelphia Flyers: Pittsburgh in Seven

With the Penguins and Flyers you have a great rivalry. They are in the same division and bad blood exists between them. The big question is, can Marty Biron match Fleury save for save? This series will go seven games with the fire power of the Pens coming through in the end.

NHL Western Conference:

1) The San Jose Sharks vs 8) The Anaheim Mighty Ducks: San Jose in Six

The San Jose Sharks finished with the best record in the league and won the Presidents trophy.

Can Joe Thornton finally come through and win it all?

These are the questions about their series with the Ducks of Anaheim. The Ducks are experienced, having won the cup a couple of years back, and are playing their healthiest and best hockey right now.

This will be a tough series but I think the Sharks will come through because they have too many weapons for the ducks to handle. Sharks in six.

2) The Detroit Red Wings vs 7) The Columbus Blue Jackets: Detroit in Six

The defending champion Detroit Red Wings play the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets who are making their first playoff appearance.

Rick Nash and Steve Mason will give Detroit some fits and there is a question mark for Osgood in the Wings goal but in the end the Wings are just too good and experienced so they will prevail in six.

3) The Vancouver Canucks vs 6) St. Louis Blues: Vancouver in Six

The Vancouver Canucks and the St Louis Blues will be interesting. The blues have had to play playoff hockey for the last month just to qualify while Vancouver has been playing quite well too. In the end Roberto Luongo will hold the fort for the Canucks and they will advance in 6 games.

4) The Chicago Blackhawks vs 5) The Calgary Flames: Calgary in Seven

The Chicago Blackhawks are making their first appearance in the playoffs in the last seven years.

They have great young talent and should be there for many years to come if they can stay together. The Calgary Flames have run into some injury trouble but they have experience over the Hawks. Chicago has owned the Flames this year in their head to head meeting but the playoffs is a new season.

Allsports hopes Jerome Iginla and company can get it together and win the series in seven games. I am picking the Flames by default because they’re a Canadian team. I do like the Hawks though and would be rooting for them if they were playing any of the US teams. I have liked the Blackhawks since the days of Bobby Hull.

So there you have it, Allsports picks for the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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It's Over: Toronto Maple Leafs Golfing Again

Walt Webb — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 11:19:47 -0400

So the season is over for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and now all they will have to worry about is booking their tee times.

Allsports will be gearing up for the second season, meaning the playoffs for Lord Stanley’s mug.

It's the toughest grind in professional sport. Who can stay healthy, who will get the stellar goal tending required to be champions?

These are the requirements to ensure a long playoff run. Keep checking back for sports news on the web to see how your favorite team is doing.

So the Maple Leafs finished up the season last night with a 5-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators. It is always nice to beat Ottawa, but if Toronto had lost they would have had a chance at a lottery pick.

The highlight of the game was a hat trick by journeyman Boyd Devereaux, the second of his career.

Devereaux just happens to be looking for a new contract and is hoping that his strong play of late will convince Mr. Burke to resign him.

Martin Gerber also got a little revenge on his former team by recording the win.

Last Wednesday Curtis Joseph appeared in what was likely his last game at the ACC, losing 3-1 in an uneventful game against the Buffalo Sabres.

The previous night the Leafs beat a shaky Martin Brodeur (yes even Marty can have one on occasion) 4-1. This game was all about Martin Gerber who was outstanding, making 47 saves.

For the full sports news story on the games you can check out the links below.

Ottawa at Toronto

Buffalo at Toronto

Toronto at New Jersey

`No Guts No Glory`

Walt Webb

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Allsports says “Happy Easter” to All

Walt Webb — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 14:36:57 -0400

I would just like to wish everyone a Happy Easter, today as it is Good Friday. I hope your Easter is a happy health one and that everyone gets time with family and friends.

A 16th Century Russian Orthodox description of the Resurrection

It was not all great news though in the sports world today. In fact, the news was quite sobering and it is to bad the clown driving the white minivan was not. You can see what I mean Here.

The Los Angeles Angels are mourning the death of pitcher Nick Adenhart who was killed it a traffic accident yesterday, two others were killed in the car with him by a suspected drunk driver.

Of course the drunk driver was not injured and fled the crash on foot, only to be apprehended a little later.

What a waste of a life, Adenhart was only 22-years-old, and had just realized his dream of playing Major League Baseball. Fate can be a very cruel dance partner sometimes.

The drunk driver had a suspended license due to a previous DUI. They are throwing the book at this clown and so they should. Anyway I hope everyone has a great holiday and play safe.

“No Gut No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Toronto Maple Leafs Are Playing Out the End of Season, Allsports Is Not Excited.

Walt Webb — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 10:03:47 -0400

If your following the sport of hockey on the web or any other media you know that with April showers the NHL regular season finishes up and the new playoff season begins. The Toronto Maple Leafs will be on the outside looking in again this year, the 4th year in a row. At least this year was not a surprise, but the kicker is that it is the first time in the history of the franchise that they have missed the playoff’s four straight years.

It must be hard for the players to get up for these games when they’re just playing out the string, I know it is tough to watch on my end.

So for those who care, here is what happened this past week in Leaf land.

Montreal was in town last Saturday night and it was a case of turn about being fare play. A couple of weeks back Toronto went into Montreal and spanked the home side.

Well this time around the Canadians did the spanking by a score of 6-2 and looked like a totally different time than the last time they played. I am sure Bob Gainey is breathing a little easier these days because the Hab’s may have their game together in time for the playoffs.

On a bad note for the Canadians, their top defence pair of Andrei Markov and Mathieu Schneider were injured in the game. Markov’s injury was caused from a hit by Montreal’s favorite son Mikhail Grabovski. Neither of them were available for the Ottawa last tonight, which they lost.

Markov is gone for about three weeks with a knee injury and it looks like Schneider is gone for the year and will require shoulder surgery. Needless to say they won’t play against New York on Tuesday, April 7th. This could hurt them as they are still not a lock for the playoffs and Tuesday is a big game because the Rangers are neck and neck with them, fighting for a playoff spot.

The Leafs split a home and home series with the Flyer’s last week. Last Wednesday April 1st, Joseph played a good game for the Leafs and Biron was pulled after the 3rd Leafs goal in what eventually was a 3-2 Toronto win.

Then in the rematch Friday in Philly, Joseph came in to replace Gerber after he let in three goals on nine shots and the game was only nine minutes old. Joseph then let in a soft one and the score was 5-0 for the Flyer’s after one period. The score was 6-0 before Toronto rallied slightly to make it 6-3 after two periods.

Gerber came back out to start the 2nd period. The Leafs ended up loosing the game 8-5, but did not mail it in. They made the score respectable when it could have turned into a laugher. Christian Hanson made his Leafs debut, but was uneventful in his first NHL game.

If I am the Flyers, I would be a little nervous with my goal tending going into the playoffs. Marty Biron has been named as the go to guy for the playoffs, but in the two games against the Leafs he has looked pretty uncomfortable in the net and exhibited some rather poor rebound control. Philly won’t be around long in the playoffs unless Biron can find his game.

The Maple Leafs close out there schedule with a game in New Jersey tonight, followed by Buffalo at home on Wednesday, and finish the season with Ottawa at home.

Brian Burke, president and general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced Friday that the hockey club has signed free agent forward Tyler Bozak to a two-year entry level contract.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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No Surprise: Maple Leafs Eliminated

Walt Webb — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 13:50:13 -0400

Following sports on the web or watching the Toronto Maple Leafs this past weekend, people will be aware that the Boston Bruins officially eliminated the Leafs from the playoff dance on Saturday night at the Air Canada Centre.

There was no surprise there as for all intent and purpose Toronto had no realistic shot at a playoff birth anyway.

It was just a matter of time and now with six games remaining they find themselves 11-points out of the last playoff position, with four teams ahead of them in the mix.

Boston was playing their first game in a week and did not look to sharp but the Leafs goal tending let them down again.

Justin Pogge started for Toronto and was not sharp, seeming to be fighting the puck and going down early and Curtis Joseph had to come in to relieve him. It was the same scenario for Curtis Joseph the previous evening in Buffalo.

He was going down early and only stopped five out of nine shots before Pogge was called upon. Maybe, they should have switched starts with each other.

The results were a 7-5 Boston win and a 5-3 Buffalo victory. Toronto deserved to beat Buffalo but could not overcome Joseph’s shaky start.

Who would have thought that a team would miss Martin Gerber when the Leafs picked him up off waivers from the Ottawa Senators?

To give Gerber credit he has been very steady in the net for the Leafs and given them a chance to win every game he has been in. That’s all you can ask for from a goalie.

He is making the Leafs brass think about a contract renewal, but it still won’t be like the money he got from Ottawa.

The reason, if you missed it, that the Leafs are missing Gerber is that he got himself suspended for three games in the Leafs shootout win over Washington.

He ended up loosing it and making contact with Mike, “let go of my Leggo,” the Ref, which is an automatic three game suspension.

I can’t blame Gerber much though as Leggo was out to lunch on the goal Washington scored to tie the game. The Capitals player, Brooks Laich pitchforked Gerber and the puck into the net and Leggo let the goal stand.

There was not a chance in hell that Leggo could see the puck from his vantage point and the whistle should have gone.

If not that then Laich should have received a goaltending interference penalty on the play, but hey, inferior officiating is what we have to put up with in Gary’s NHL Get that extra Ref on the ice so you need twice as many of them and put them into a game they have no business being in.

Some of these guys could not ref junior, never mind the NHL Ron Shick and Don Koharski is really going to be missed when they retire.

The Leafs ended up winning the game 3-2 in a shootout, thanks to Curtis Joseph’s heroics.

Getting back to the Bruins for a minutes hear, that week they got off just before they played the Leafs could be great for a long run in the playoffs.

I like Boston’s chances, Allsports thinks they have the most depth in the east and they are a big strong team that will be tough to play a seven game series against.

They have played good team defense all year and if their goaltending holds up they should come out of the east. Mind you Martin Brodeur may have something to say about that.

For more sports news on the web coverage on the games, click on the links below:

Boston @ Toronto

Toronto @ Buffalo

Washington @ Toronto.

“No Guts No Glory”

The World Baseball Classic Was a Far East Affair

Walt Webb — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 19:54:45 -0400

If you watched the World Baseball Classic or searched the web for sports news stories on the subject, you will already be aware of the final being played between Japan and Korea.

That’s right folks, a complete far east final. Both of these teams deserved to be there too. They were the class of the tournament and finished play before the final with identical 6-2 records. Loosing only to each other.

Korea got to the final by crushing Venezuela 10-2 while Japan had a neat and tidy spanking of the USA by a convincing score of 9-4 in their semifinal. The US made three errors in the game which accounted for five unearned runs.

Both Japan and Korea got to the final by playing exceptional defence, with great pitching and textbook execution.

The three main ingredients for winning baseball. These two teams may have had a bit of an advantage as they had been playing together since Feb. 1, long before the other teams were assembled.

The point is moot because they were both deserving and were far and away the two best teams. The teams weren’t here by accident or fluke. Japan is the defending World Baseball Classic champion and Korea is the current Olympic gold medalist from the Bejing games.

In the final, the Korean team dodged bullets all night, Japan threatened to blow the game open on a few occasions. Every time though it just seemed that when Korea needed a big play on defence, they got it to wiggle off the hook and keep the game close.

Japan went ahead 3-2 in the top of the ninth, but Korea came back and tied it up in their half of the inning. So going into the 10th inning, the score was 3-3. Japan had left on 11 base runners, while Korea had been pretty efficient, cashing in almost every base runner they had.

In the top of the 10th Suzuki Ichiro came to the plate with two runners on and two outs. With first base open Allsports thought for sure the Korean manager would intentionally walk him to load the bases and take his chances with the next batter.

Much to my suprise, he pitched to Ichiro, and he made them pay, driving in both runners with a single up the gut of the infield. They turned out to be the winning runs as YU Darvish came back out for the bottom of the 10th and retired the Korean batters.

Dice “K” won the MVP for the tournament, going 3-0 with a 2.45 ERA but Allsports says move over Dice “K” cause this Darvish kid is the real deal. He has a fastball clocked in the 96-100 mph range along with a knee buckling change up and great curveball.

The kicker is, he is only 22 years old. How many MLB scouts were drooling over this kid. The answer, all of them.

Here are some Highlights from the Game

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Montreal Messed Up: Gut Check Needed for Canadiens to Make Playoffs

Walt Webb — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:44:22 -0400

The Maple Leafs went into the Bell Center last night ready to face a team they thought would be tough and hungry for two points considering the Canadians were fighting for their playoff lives. What Allsports saw and what the Leafs encountered was a team in total disarray with no heart or drive to compete.

It must be driving Bob Gainey crazy to see the total lack of effort being displayed by his squad. Heart was one thing you could never accuse Gainey of not having during his playing career.

The Maple Leafs jumped all over the listless Canadians and before the Montreal faithful could catch their breath the home side was down 4-0. Jaroslav Halak got the start for the Canadians, in place of an ineffective Carey Price, but the results were the same.

I am sure there were at least two goals that Halak would like to have had a mulligan on. The Leafs fired 37 shots at Halak in the eventual 5-2 win. Gerber was steady again for the Leafs stopping 26 of 28 shots.

Jaroslav Halak

The Montreal fans as usual, booed Mikhail Grabovski without mercy but it did not take long for the wraith to get directed at the home side. Grabovski got the last laugh recording a goal and three assists. Grabovski, Kulemin and Ponikarovsky were the best players on the ice and contributed 11 points in the victory.

Allsports was torn in his opinion of the game result. Although a die hard Leafs fan, part of me wanted the Canadians to win considering they are the only Canadian team in the Eastern Conference with a realistic chance at a playoff spot.

Mind you if the Habs keep playing the way they are it won’t matter, even if they back into the playoffs much like Ottawa did last year it won’t take long for them to be gone. Gainey can do nothing more to right the ship.

The players themselves have to look in the mirror and get back the heart and desire to compete in the last ten games of the season.

For the complete sports on the web news story on the game, go Here.

Previously this past week the Leafs played 500 hockey on their trip through Florida. They lost 3-1 to a very hungry Florida Panthers team chomping at the bit to make the playoffs.

Vokoun was strong between the pipes for Florida as they swept the season series against the Leafs for the first time since 1995. The Leafs started three rookies on defence and they could not handle the speedy Panthers fore check.

Last Tuesday Toronto was in Tampa where they got off to a sluggish start against the Lightning. It was 3-0 for Tampa and could have been much worse if not for the work of Curtis Joseph in the cage.

Toronto got one just before the end of the second period, then came out in the third like a totally different team. The Leafs stormed back to tie the score 3-3, led by Jason Blake and John Mitchell. Overtime solved nothing but the Leafs went on to win 4-3 in the shootout.

In other sports news on the web, it didn’t take Martin Brodeur long to claim the most career victories for a goaltender. He beat Chicago at home in his very next game to stand alone at 552 career wins. Congrats Marty you deserve it. Great goalie and a very humble and nice guy too. Not anything like Patrick Roy.

Walt Poddubny died suddenly at home yesterday in Thunderbay. He was 49, that makes you take notice as he was the same age as I am. Just goes to show that you never know when your number comes up so make your days on this earth count.

Poddubny played for five years with the Leafs in the early '80s. The Toronto Sun has more sports news on the web for this story.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

Allsports Thinks It Was a Tragic Accident

Walt Webb — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 22:07:45 -0400

So my post today is not really about sports on the web, but does have implications to sports news and a previous post that I did not to long ago.

If you have been following news on the web or in the print media, you will be aware by now that Natasha Richardson has passed away due to brain complications that arose from a seemingly harmless fall while skiing at the Mont-Tremblant ski resort in the Laurentians north of Montreal.

The poor woman was even on the beginner hill for peat sake.

She was with an instructor at the time of the fall, which the instructor said was nothing at all really and happens often through the course of a skiing day. He said she fell and got up, brushed herself off and was a little embarrassed that she had fallen on such a gentile slope.

She was talking and seemed fine for a while, but then problems started. Doctors refer to this condition as the “talking dead.” A small blood vessel in the brain ruptures and the brain cavity slowly fills with blood, damaging all the cells in the brain.

The resort called one ambulance, but it was turned away because Richardson had said that she was fine and did not need it. Later though, her condition deteriorated and she was rushed to hospital, but by then it was too late. Who knows if she would have survived had she gone in the first ambulance.

Condolences to her family for their loss and especially to her two sons and husband Liam Neeson.

It just goes to show that freak accidents can happen even in seemingly very safe conditions. I am sure she would have refused to wear a helmet, thinking, what could possibly happen?

For more web news on this tragedy go Here and Here

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Allsports Thinks Phil Oreskovic Is Brian Burke's Kind of Player

Walt Webb — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:17:40 -0400

Well, if you're into sports on the web and lean towards NHL hockey sports news, you will be aware that there is a new guy patrolling the blue line for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

His name is Phil Oreskovic and he is one tough SOB. 6'4" tall and weighs in at 217 lb. You don’t have to ask this guy twice if he wants to dance on the ice. Andre Roy, of the Calgary Flames, found out in a hurry that Oreskovic is not shy. Watch the video.

Tim Jackman of the New York Islanders found out the same thing as Roy did a couple of games earlier.

Brian Burke and in turn Don Cherry will love this guy, count on it. They have the same philosophy on fighting in hockey and allsports agrees with it.

No Guts No Glory”

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Another Week Off: The Toronto Maple Leafs Rebuilding Season

Walt Webb — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:44:32 -0400

Have you been following sports on the web this past week?

In particular, have you been following hockey for sports news?

If so, what’s your favorite team and how are they doing?

Will they make the playoffs in the very tight race to the wire?

With just more than 10 games to play, there are only hands full of teams out of the 30 that don’t have a realistic shot at a playoff birth.

My team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, is one of those teams.

The Leafs are sitting in 11th place, 10-points out with 12 games to go.

Although, mathematically, they still have a shot.

The chances are very slim and it would be a steep hill to climb. The Leafs would have to leap frog at least three teams to get in, but that’s not what this season is about for the Leafs.

Leafs management knew at the beginning of the season that a playoff birth was a very long shot, but I think they have been pleasantly surprised by the way the team has competed, hovering around 500 hockey.

This past week was no exception as Toronto was two wins and two losses since all sports last post on the topic. Looking back here are the highlights of what went on.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

The Maple Leafs hosted a tired Calgary Flames team that was finishing up a seven game road trip.

The reason the Flames were away from home for so long, was due to the fact that the Sadledome was hosting the men’s Brier in curling.

This was a fairly entertaining tilt for the fans, but I am sure the game gave the coaches nightmares.

It was a seesaw battle with Toronto jumping out to a 3-0 lead, only to have the Flames come back to tie it 3-3.

Toronto moved ahead 5-3 and Calgary got it to 5-4 but that would be as close as they could get, as the final was 8-6 in the Leafs favor.

The game marked Martin Gerber’s first career wins against the Flames.

Saturday was also a very special night in Montreal as hometown boy; Martin Brodeur came into town with the New Jersey Devils and posted a 3-1 victory over the home squad.

The win gave Martin 551 career victories, tying him with Patrick Roy for the most in NHL history.

It was fitting that it happened in Montreal and the fans gave him a standing ovation at the conclusion of the game.

Brodeur gets his first chance to make the record his own Tuesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Here’s Martin Brodeur’s Top Ten, for your enjoyment.

Thursday March 12

Tampa Bay came into the confines of the Air Canada Centre and ended up cruising to a 4-1 victory.

Toronto started well enough but faded as the game progressed.

Bad penalties took a toll on the Leafs. The Refs were brutal and did not have a clue.

Ron Wilson ended up getting ejected from behind the bench for giving the Ref an ear full. I could not blame Wilson in the least.

Tuesday March 10

The New York Islanders were in town to play the Leafs.

Toronto was lethargic for 40 minutes but did manage to put together 20 minutes of hockey in the third period and escaped with a 3-2 overtime victory.

Mikhail Grabovski scored the winner in overtime, which was his first goal in 17 games.

Martin Gerber had a strong game for the Leafs and was the only reason Toronto had a chance to come back and win the game.

Monday March 9

Toronto travelled up the Road to Ottawa to resume the battle of Ontario.

It is just not the same anymore as both team are on the outside looking in at the playoff picture. Curtis Joseph got the start and played very well in a 2-1 loss to the Senators. Joseph always seems to play well in Ottawa.

Follow Martin Brodeur for sports news on the web to see when he gets the record for career victories.

You can also follow the sports news story as Martin closes in on Terry Sawchuck’s career shutout record of 103.

“No Guts No Glory.”

Allsports Disappointed with Canadians' World Baseball Classic Result

Walt Webb — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 10:48:28 -0400

The World Baseball Classic started with so much anticipation for the Canadian contingent to do well, considering that they had home field and a pretty strong roster to work with. As people now know, if they follow sports on the web or the games on television, that was not the case.

The Canadian team was knocked out and is now left to wonder what could have been.

After a promising start against a very strong U.S. squad, the Canadians eventually fell 6-5. It was a great game and Canada was in it right up to the final pitch.

Based on that showing, I thought Canada would pull it together against Italy—a country not known to be a baseball powerhouse by any means. Well Allsports was wrong; Canada left something like 20 men on base against the Italians. They ended up dropping the game by a score of 6-2.

The loss combined with the one previously to the USA, knocked Canada out of the tournament. This left Ernie Whitt and company scratching their heads as to what went wrong.

Special mention should be given to Toronto’s local boy Joey Votto. He hit the cover off the ball in both games Canada played. It's just too bad the rest of the team did not do as well.

Moving forward, Australia has been a pleasant surprise in the tournament and has advanced to the second round. In the end, it should be interesting to see what country will come out on top.

The U.S. will be trying to avenge its poor performance of 2006. The U.S. has a team of Major League all stars and should be there when the dust settles. But in a one-game format, anything can happen. All they need to do is have a game like Canada did against Italy, and they will be gone.

Japan and Cuba are looking strong again this year and should advance to the final round too.

It's anyone’s guess as to who will come out on top, but the four countries that I think have the upper hand are the USA, Cuba, Japan, and Korea. Only time will tell.

Go Here for more on the WBC.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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Toronto Maple Leafs Week That Was

Walt Webb — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 15:28:23 -0400

With the week that was for the Maple Leafs for sports on the web, you’ll know that they are playing just well enough to be on the outside looking in come playoff time.

This is no surprise, and in fact I thought they would be closer to the bottom of the standings instead of playing .500 hockey.

The fan in me likes to see the win, but the realist wants to see a better job of going in the tank.

Last Tuesday, March 3, 2009: About twenty hours before the trade deadline, the Maple Leafs hosted the New Jersey Devils and a rejuvenated Martin Brodeur.

Vesa Toskala was outstanding in the net for Toronto and was the only reason that the Leafs got the game to overtime before falling 3-2 to the Devils. John Mitchell made the most of his increased ice time by scoring both goals for the Leafs.

Last Thursday, March 5: Martin Gerber made his debut in a Leafs uniform after being plucked from Ottawa on waivers. he was great in posting a 2-1 road victory over the Washington Capitals.

Gerber caught a bit of a break as Alex Ovechkin sat out the game after being hit on the foot with a shot the previous day in practise. The only thing he could have done better was stop the Alexander Semin wrist shot that spoiled the shut out was 39 seconds left in the game.

Last night the Leafs hosted a hungry Edmonton Oilers team in the thick of the playoff race out west. Gerber was okay but let in three goals on 18 shots. In his defense though, two were breakaways and one was deflected. Dwayne Roloson made sure those goals stood up for the victory by stopping 39 of 40 Leafs shots. Edmonton added am empty net goal to make the final score 4-1.

The Leafs defence was depleted down to four during the game as both Mike Van Ryn and Jonas Frogren went down with lower-body injuries. Van Ryn has had no luck with the injury bug this year and just seems to be getting back into the groove when another injury strikes.

The Leafs remain about nine points out of the last playoff spot in the East.

Allsports' Top Guys You Won't Win a Championship with

Walt Webb — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 12:36:49 -0500

I thought today I would put a little bit of a twist on my post for sports on the web. What triggered this post were resent events that have happened in the sports news world. So here are my top three guys in professional sport that you won’t win a championship with.

All three athletes have one thing in common: They think they are more important than the team and worry more about their own needs than those of the teams they play for.

1) Sean Avery: I am a little surprised that Sean got back into the NHL as quickly as he did because I was sure that no GM was going to risk having him in their dressing room. The guy was a cancer in the Dallas Stars room and look how Dallas rebounded once they were done with him.

The only thing I had not counted on was just how desperate the New York Rangers were to find a little sand paper for their lineup.

If Avery can keep his nose clean and just play hockey he might help the struggling Rangers but it won’t really matter because even if the Rangers make the playoffs, they just don’t have the guns to advance.

It just goes to show how little help the Rangers have in the minors because you can be sure that Glenn Sather’s job depends on the teams performance. Allsports thought they got rid of the wrong guy when they let Renney go.

This will be Avery’s last kick at the can in the NHL, so he better behave or his modelling career could start earlier than he thinks. Watch the opposition get shots in on him whenever they can as well, he is not well liked in the league and most of the players think he is a clown.

2) Terrell Owens: Well what can you say about this guy. He has worn out his welcome in San Francisco, Philadelphia and now the Dallas Cowboys have cut him loose. He is the best receiver in the NFL, just ask him and he will tell you so.

The whole league has grown tired of his antics and I would be very surprised if any team shows much interest in “Me First” Terrell. He never seems to get enough passes for his liking and usually ends up in confrontation with his quarterback.

So who is more important to your football team the quarter back or some whining receiver who always complains, has good stats, but has never played in the big game.

So long Terrell.

3) Alex Rodriguez: A-Rod or A-Roid. Yes people I make about 25 million a season and believe me when I tell you I had no idea what that substance was that my cousin was putting in my ass with that needle.

Ok there A-Rod, we believe you. Yes, you would just follow blindly and put an unknown chemical in your body. The only reason A-Rod came clean was because he saw what a mess Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens got themselves into by perjuring themselves.

A-Rod always puts up great numbers in the regular season but comes up short in the playoffs. The Yankees, with all that money on the payroll have not even been close since A-Rod came along.

He has another thing in common with Bonds and Clemens, they put themselves ahead of the game that made them who they are in the eyes of the public. All three are shallow little men once off the playing field and have given America’s national pass time a black eye.

Give me a guy like Derek Jeter any day, A more complete ball player and human being. I am sure Jeter would like to have A-Rod or better yet A-Hole on another team.

All three players think there is an “I” in team and would not be a good fit in the locker room, at least that’s the way I see it.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

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NHL GMs Nervous Nellies Were at Trade Deadline

Walt Webb — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:04:50 -0500

Well the trade deadline in the NHL came and went yesterday, and if you were following it for sports on the web or on television you will be aware that there were not many trades of note.

Most of the General Managers were a little nervous about the uncertainty in the economy and what that will do to the salary cap limit for next year.

No one wanted to take on anymore guaranteed contracts beyond this year, so there were not quite as many transactions as previous years.

Darryl Sutter was about the busiest GM, because he feels that the flames are within striking distance of the cup. The Flames made a deal with the Colorado Avalanche to acquire Jordan Leopold and then pulled off a blockbuster by acquiring Olli Jokinen, a No. 1 centre and perennial 30-40 goal scorer, from the Phoenix Coyotes.

Both players could be in the Flames' lineup as early as Thursday, when the Flames play in Philadelphia.

The Flames sent defencemen Lawrence Nycholat, acquired just a day earlier on waivers from Vancouver, and Ryan Wilson, along with a second-round pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft (originally Montreal’s choice) to the Avs.

The Flames received Jokinen and a third round draft pick in 2009 in exchange for forwards Matthew Lombardi and Brandon Prust and a conditional first round draft pick in either 2009 or 2010.

Brian Burke in effect cleaned some house:

- Traded veteran winger Nik Antropov to the New York Rangers for a second-round and a conditional draft pick.

- Sent centre Dominic Moore to the Buffalo Sabres for a second-round pick.

- Claimed goaltender Martin Gerber off waivers from the Ottawa Senators.

- Picked up 26-year-old defenseman Erik Reitz off waivers from the Rangers.

- Traded Marlies defenseman Richard Petiot to the Tampa Bay Lightning for veteran goaltender Olaf Kolzig, defenseman Jamie Heward, AHL defenseman Andy Rogers and a fourth-round pick.

Both Moore and Antropov would have been free agents at season's end and Burke seemed to think they were asking more than their worth. Picking Gerber up off waivers means that now Toskala can have the surgery sooner and be ready for training camp in the fall. Ottawa pays half of his salary and he becomes a free agent after the season.

The trades with the Lightning are more or less a wash because the players are all injured. Burke gets a fourth-round pick for taking salary off the Lightning's cap. All of the players in the trade become free agents this summer, so the Leafs won’t owe them anything. Petiot was likely a career minor-league player and would never have cracked the lineup on the big club.

Burke likes Erik Reitz because he is big, and plays with grit and Burke feels he can add some sand paper to the lineup.

Heading into this year’s draft, the Leafs have a first-round selection, two second-rounders and picks in the next five rounds.That’s more picks than the Leafs have ever had in one draft year.

So, while on the outside it may appear that the Maple Leafs did not do much at the deadline, if you read between the lines you will see—they got the draft picks that were coveted and also will have a lot of cap space room to go into the summer with. However, they also face an uncertain cap limit for next year.

“No Guts No Glory.”

Maple Leafs Improving with OT Practice

Walt Webb — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:45:18 -0500

If you have been paying attention to the Toronto Maple Leafs or sports on the web in general, you will have some recollection of the week that was. A certain NHL team has been on a specific kind of tear.

Toronto has played the last six games on their schedule into overtime and was victorious in the last four of them. Vesa Toskala has given the Maple Leafs pretty good goaltending, and Curtis Joseph even got into the act by posting the 4-3 overtime win over Ottawa in the nation's capital last Saturday.

Last Thursday, Feb. 26, the Leafs went into Long Island and beat the Islanders 5-4, getting the win in a shootout. Tim Stapleton was called up that day and scored the winner for the Leafs.

There was a ugly incident in the game when Brendan Witt of the Islanders took a five-minute elbowing major for a blow to the head of Niklas Hagman. It was totally uncalled for, and Witt ended up receiving a five game suspension.

I found it out-of-character for Witt, who usually plays a tough, physical game but does not resort to the cheap stuff. This hit was cheap, though, and had the intent to injure.

Vesa Toskala had a rather poor third period but still managed 40 saves on the night.

The night before that, the Leafs hosted the Rangers at the Air Canada Center. Toskala was stellar and the main reason for the Leafs 2-1 shootout win. Kulemin scored the winner.

It was John Tortorella`s first game on the Rangers' bench, but Toronto handed N.Y. their second loss in as many nights.

I think Tortorella may be pining to be back in TSN's broadcast booth after he gets a taste of coaching the Rangers. He'll only be a good fit in the Big Apple because he can usually give a good quote to the media scribes.

The Maple Leafs entertain the surging New Jersey Devils tomorrow night at the ACC. Maybe they can win one in regulation.

This will be tough to do, considering Martin Brodeur is back after missing 50 games with an elbow injury. He'll likely continue his assault on the NHL record books; he's won all three of the games since his return, two of them by shutout.

Old Marty is playing like he never missed a game. Watch the Devils down the stretch and into the Playoffs. That goaltender, well-rested, could win a couple of series all by himself.

`No Guts, No Glory.`

Walt Webb