Bleacher Report - Articles by Ian Robinett

WWE SummerFestSlam Has Highs and One Severe Low

Ian Robinett — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:01:41 -0400

Let me preface this by saying that this is really an article about my feelings towards the absolute abomination that was the Cena-Orton match, but it's disguised as a pseudo-recap of SummerSlam.

In what was supposed to be the biggest event since Wrestlemania, SummerSlam delivered some memorable moments.

Sadly, there were both good and bad memorable moments.

To begin at the top of the card, the WWE is severely trying to push over Dolph Ziggler as a upper mid-card talent. It isn't hard to see that "Nicky" is the most talented Spirit Squad member, but the character is just a bore.

Rey Mysterio is a master of helping the younger talent look better, and he did so for a second straight pay-per-view. He took the brunt of the bumps, was beaten harshly, and barely snuck out with a win. Inevitably, this will probably be the last time he actually wins against Ziggler, before dropping the belt to him, and passing the torch on.

Next, we had MVP and Swagger putting on a decent match. MVP, in my opinion, is one of the best "young talents" the WWE has to offer. I was scared that we may see Swagger get put over in this match, only because he was pushed quickly on the ECW brand, and quickly shifted to Raw.

Next up, we had the match that some of the writers were saying would be one of the "matches of the night."

Remind me to never trust the writers!

I'm a huge Cryme Tyme fan, but knew they weren't going to get put over Big Show and Jericho simply because Vince is in man-love with the two. With Jericho, I understand, but with the Big Show, I haven't the foggiest clue.

The match was solid up until the ending. When the Big Show decided he was going to "punch" people as a finishing move, it honestly gave me the deuce chills. It's equally as horrendous of a finisher as the "patented leg drop" by Hulk Hogan. Having Show come out of nowhere, punch JTG, and end the match was a cop-out if I ever saw one.

Could the writers just not think up a good way to end the match? Did they script the ending right before dashing to lunch? It was disgusting!

Let's follow up disgusting with the match I give the honor of "Honorary Divas Match of the Night," or "Quick, Run to the Restroom Now Match," Kane and Khali.

All I can say is...It was short, bad, and thankfully not pushed as a huge match for the night. Why couldn't this have stayed on network TV instead?

Now comes the match I was anticipating most: The return of DX!

The entrance DX had was stellar. The fact they got to roll in on a tank, and it was a little different from normal, gave me a glimpse into DX 2.0.

The match with Legacy was actually quite good. Legacy, for once, looked very well off against DX, and the two teams worked well with one another. The ending was solid, and even though everyone knew DX would win, the match still had a hint of "zOMG!" mixed in.

The second greatest match of the night was the ECW Championship. It lasted three seconds, and Christian won. Nothing more to say! I loved it!

Next up is the match that will forever be remembered as one of the absolute worst matches of all time!

Cena and Orton have fought time and time again. We've seen Cena win, we've seen Orton win, but wow...the way the writers decided this match should end shows me someone deserves to be fired, even if it's Vince himself!

To begin with, the match was fairly decent. Both guys were getting their shots in.

Sounds good, right?

Then as Cena gets an upper hand, Orton pushes the referee to get disqualified, but keep the title.

When have we seen that before?

Now, mass chaos ensues!

Lillian quickly hops up and announces "Ladies and gentlemen, the winner and new WWE Champion, Randy Orton!"

Wait! What?!

First off, Orton was the champion going into this match, and secondly, he is the one who pushed the ref!

Oh, wait...Lillian has more to say! She announces that Mr. McMahon has ordered this match restarted, and if Orton gets disqualified again, he loses the belt.

At this point, this match hasn't gone down the tubes yet.

Orton returns to the ring, and the two begin fighting again. This time, as Cena gets the upper hand, low and behold, Orton runs out of the ring and is counted out!

Cue Lillian! She announces that the match will be restarted once again. This time, if Orton is counted out, he loses the belt.

I now saw what was beginning to happen!

Upon this restart, the two collide, Orton scores a quick roll-up, props his feet on the ropes, and wins!

I think I'm going to throw up!

A second referee comes darting to the ring to say Orton cheated to win, and the match would...yep you guessed it, be restarted!

As this final restart happened, we saw Orton slowly getting ready to tap, and then out of the blue some fan...ahem...brother of Ted DiBiase Jr., attacked the referee. It caused enough of a distraction for Orton to snap Cena's neck on the rope, and jump in to deliver the RKO.

This had to have been the biggest atrocity of a match since the infamous "Montreal Screwjob." The writing was terrible, the restarts were terrible, Vince should honestly have every penny he earned for Summer Slam taken away and returned to the consumer for this match alone. It was that bad!

Thankfully, the last match of the night made up for it somewhat. Punk and Hardy gave plenty of "HOLY $#!7" moments, and the switch-a-roo between Hardy and the Undertaker post-match was pretty cool, and kind of creepy, with the camera angle they used.

All-in-all, and with the exception of that one match, SummerSlam was a decent event, but that one match left such a sour taste in my mouth, Vince better do a lot to make up for it.

Why I Criticize the WWE: A Columnist Responds to Reader Comments

Ian Robinett — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:05:09 -0400

After some of the negative comments I've received, I've decided that, instead of replying to each one, I'll address their common comments.

When I have voiced my annoyance with some of the ways the WWE is portraying itself on television, everyone seems to think that by "no longer watching" would instantly make me happy or instantly remedy the problem.

The fact of the matter is, they're wrong.

If I were to stop watching, how would the product get better? How would the WWE change?

Sure, you can argue that it would force Vince to change things in order to try and recapture the fans, but think about this from a business standpoint.

If everyone who was bitter turned the product off, ratings would go down, and advertisers would pull out. At first, the WWE would initially change, hoping to curb the lack of revenue.

This is what happened with WCW. Their product slipped, they tried to change things around by dumping Eric Bischoff for Vince Russo, and it was too little, too late. The ratings were gone, and advertisers weren't buying air time because of it.

This is how media works. Why do you think shows that are thought to be popular end up getting cancelled? It's due to advertisers not having faith in the product, and not renewing.

So here's the question—do you want the WWE to go away?

I sure as hell don't.

I don't want to see WWE go anywhere: I just want to see it get better. What is wrong with that?

How are people supposed to see that something isn't going over if it isn't for people standing up and saying "Hey, we don't think this is good, fix it!" I'm not saying "Hey, this sucks, I'm done watching!"

Instead of, basically, wishing death on something you're defending, understand the point that is being made.

Tonight's Raw Promises To Be the Same As Every Week, Predictable

Ian Robinett — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 09:38:39 -0400

In my last column, I wrote about how I felt the WWE should possible start looking towards the days of the "Attitude Era" for inspiration on how to make the business more interesting once again.

I was met with some positive, and some negative reviews on it, but I figured since last week's episode of Monday Night Raw is what spurred the column, I'd write one continuing my views regarding this "shocker" of a storyline the WWE is going with.

As I stated, the WWE has come to a point where, anytime Vince thinks he has thrown a "surprise" into the mix, it turns out to be easily seen as to where it's going. Last week, Vince hoped that the "selling" of Monday Night Raw's franchise to Donald Trump would be a "shocker."

In a sense, it was. But not in a good way.

Why Vince would see Donald Trump as the catalyst for Raw's so-so numbers, I'm not sure, nor will I pretend I can put myself in that spot where I would understand. Regardless, after this "announcement" the USA Network was forced to send out a press release stating that this was all a storyline anyway.

First off, who actually believed this was legit? Why would Vince McMahon sell his moneymaker to anyone? To whoever actually caused USA to release that, you're an idiot!

Now back to the rant...

Tonight's episode of Raw is, in my opinion, predictable as always. Sure, it has some things that may make it more "unpredictable," like the fact there will be no commercials.

The storyline of this, is that Trump had made this superb decision to run with no commercials, when in fact it was released to the public a few weeks ago. It's an idea USA and WWE have been toying with to see if it'll help keep people from flipping channels during the commercials. I can guarantee that if the ratings don't breach the 4.0 mark, Raw will be back to commercials next week.

IF Monday Night Raw can eclipse the 4.0 mark, it could potentially set a trend for cable television.

What could happen if Raw can set higher marks could mean advertisers would shift commercials from forcing shows to break, to having them placed into the shows themselves, have the announcers perform live reads like in radio, or be like TBS and simply have them appear at the bottom of the screen.

If this proves an effective manner of circumventing the changing of channels during commercials, it could be more widely adopted.

As for the storyline of the show, here's what to most likely expect.

To open the show, expect Trump to come out and make some canned speech about how he's made Raw go commercial free, and going to make it bigger and better than ever.

From there, I'd expect a special entry from none other than Randy Orton to confront his new boss and declare that this was "his show," like he does for everyone who is an authority figure on Raw, and say that Trump better reconsider his little idea of he and HHH fighting tonight.

Already I'm sensing a stellar Raw!

Then you can expect Trump to get cranky with Orton, and announce that he has selected his General Manager for Raw, and it'll be someone who he can guarantee will run Raw with the authority Trump would as well, to which Orton, as usual, makes goofy face, foams at the mouth, and gets in Trump's face.

The suspense is killing me!

Trump will stand up to Orton, and announce that the new General Manager is none other than Ric Flair, most likely, and Orton will jump around, whine, cry and plead for Trump to reconsider.

Flair will then come out, cut one of his classic promos (no sarcasm there), say something to the effect of Orton will be fighting HHH, and that is that.

Since that will eat up a good 15 minutes of the opening of Raw, they'll probably have a match or two scattered right after this.

Sometime, backstage, I would presume we'd see a meeting of Vince and Trump to discuss how Vince feels about Trump's decisions so far, and boy can I not wait to see more of Donald Trump try and be valid in wrestling (plenty of sarcasm there)!

The high point of Raw will be probably be somewhere near the top of the second hour, and most likely come from one of the following people(s), MVP, The Oddities 2.0 (Santino, Goldust, Festus, and Hornswoggle), or, well I think that may sum up where the high point may be.

The bulk of the second hour, I will guess, will be the match between HHH and Orton version 3.14^937464e3. Since it's supposedly going to be a Last Man Standing Match, I would bank on this being a lengthier match.

Don't get me wrong, it'll be a long match, but it won't be stellar.

What we've seen from these two is, they cannot carry a big match. Vince just simply feels safe in using them, and he feels that he can count on them to "deliver."

What matches Vince thinks he sees I will never know!

In the end, I'm guessing we'll see Legacy get involved to take out HHH, and somehow Flair comes down to join the fray. Ultimately I don't see this match having a decision so that they can push the actual outcome over to The Bash.

The Trump angle I don't see going on very many weeks. It won't boost ratings like Vince hopes, and it won't garner the reaction he is hoping for either.

I honestly am not holding out much hope for the "positive reviews" of Raw tonight. I sincerely hope I'm wrong in a lot of these predictions, so that maybe I'll begin to see that Vince is finally starting to change things up, but I doubt it.

So please, let me be wrong!

It's Time for the WWE to Get Its "Attitude" Back

Ian Robinett — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 09:45:12 -0400

For years, the WWE (nee WWF), and WCW alike, had a pretty "cookie-cutter" system for booking and promoting their shows. They would sit around in booking meetings, lay out the clear faces and heels, figure out how the hero would overcome the odds, and put it to tape.

It was a predictable mentality, geared towards the youth that were the main clientele of the industry. To that clientele, the excitement was there, the anticipation of hopefully seeing their hero defeat the powers of evil were there, and the pure enjoyment of the product was there.

Then they began to grow up.

When the clientele of the professional wrestling business began to mature in age, the "cookie-cutter" mentality didn't cut it anymore, the fans began to grow restless. It was this, along with the emergence of ECW to a more mainstream stage, that caused the executives and writing staff to begin to rethink how they pulled off their shows.

It all culminated in the mid-'90s (between 1996-1998) when the face of sports entertainment changed.

At the 1996 edition of the WWE King of the Ring pay-per view, the face of the "Attitude Era," as it is known now, was born. In the finals of the King of the Ring Tournament, Jake "The Snake" Roberts was defeated by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.

Austin, who was supposed to be the clear heel, changed the minds of the entire wrestling world with one speech as Jake Roberts was exiting the walkway area:

"... You sit there and thump your Bible, and you say your prayers, and it didn't get you anywhere! Talk about your Psalms, talk about John 3:16, Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!"

It was with those words, the world of professional wrestling was turned on its head. From this point forward, until roughly early 2001 the WWE would be in the middle of the "era" it now calls the "Attitude Era."

Throughout this "era" of professional wrestling, the shows were edgy, the characters were edgy, and the product exploded. The WWE produced characters like Austin, The Rock, D-Generation X, The Godfather, etc.

They were able to have storylines involving the battles between anti-establishment mentality of "Stone Cold," against the corporate mentality of Vince McMahon, D-Generation X "invading" WCW in Norfolk, VA, and the most infamous, the "Screwjob in Montreal."

Unfortunately, when the WWE bought out their chief competitor, WCW, it effectively ended the era that made wrestling bigger than ever.

Since then, the business of professional wrestling has been pretty stagnant overall. There has been a noticeable lack of creativity in storylines and development of new talent. Obviously, there have been a few exceptions, John Cena, Randy Orton, Batista, and Jeff Hardy most notably.

It is this reason I write this column.

Over the past couple of years, I knew that Vince and the WWE were really trying to "get their feet under them." But it has gotten to the point where it is resembling the old "cookie-cutter" style, but on a more predictable and more ridiculous level.

Last night is the best example I have. The WWE had a special three-hour edition of Monday Night Raw, that was hyped because of the fact it would see the three top championships, between the three brands, defended live.

The week prior, Vicki Guerrero had "resigned" as the "General Manager" of Raw, and Vince was also expected to name the successor to her reign.

Instead, Vince went for another attempt to be "shocking" and "surprising" by announcing he had "sold" the rights to Monday Night Raw to Donald Trump.

Now for those who don't know, Trump and McMahon "battled" at Wrestlemania XXIII, which culminated in Vince getting his hair shaved.

So now Trump has "purchased" Raw. Why? Truthfully I wish I could see the point of the storyline now, to hopefully see some promise in it. Instead, all I see is desperation by Vince to do something he sees as "different."

Everyone knows this will end in another Trump/McMahon battle, and Vince will somehow get Raw back. As for promise, I see none.

So, what should be done? The answer to that is easy in theory, but with the mentality of Vince and the writers, damn-near impossible to pull off.

To begin with, Vince needs to move away from his "core" of "safe" superstars he puts in the main events. This "core" consists of Triple H, Batista, Randy Orton, John Cena, Edge, Jeff Hardy, The Undertaker, and Big Show.

Every "main event" at a pay per view consists of a pair or trio of those guys meeting up every single time. Vince is known to think these guys are the "safe bets" to put into a main event match.

At Wrestlemania XXV, which I attended in person, the co-main events involved Triple H versus Randy Orton, and a triple threat between Edge, John Cena, and Big Show. Both were horrible busts compared to the match they had to follow, and the Triple H/Orton match was damn-near unwatchable.

Another issue with the "core" superstars in the WWE is the fact that a couple of them only know how to perform one match, and that is even difficult for them at times. Batista and Big Show don't have an ounce of "entertainment" in their blood. Every match the two of them wrestle, against anyone else, is the same formula.

Of the two, Big Show is the worst! His new gimmick of "punching" people is about as stupid as they come. Since he "fought" Floyd Mayweather, we're supposed to believe Big Show has this superb punching power now? I think not!

The next thing Vince needs to do is have faith in some of his younger stars. The word backstage is that Vince has little faith in the likes of Christian, MVP, CM Punk, and Kofi Kingston to fully perform on the "big stage" reliably. The problem is, it is these superstars who crowds are starting to react to more.

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin was one of these types of guys. He was never intended to become the superstar who took the business to a level that surpassed everything his predecessors had, but Vince said to just let Austin be Austin, and look what happened. He became, arguably, the greatest persona in the business.

Just a note, Mr. Kennedy would have been on that list too, but he was recently released, much to my chagrin.

Finally, Vince needs to get away from these gimmicky ideas he has. His version of the Denver/Los Angeles series from the NBA was worthless. Everyone knew who would win. The same goes for this horrendous idea of "selling" Raw to Donald Trump. These "gimmicky" ideas he gets are bad at their best.

They don't draw in more fans, they don't captivate audience, and they are simply not enjoyable to watch.

Vince needs personalities to carry the WWE, and the ones he wishes would do it are failing miserably. We've seen them time and time again. We get it already. Orton is going to kick people in the head, make retarded faces, and then repeat over and over again.

Triple H is going to be his opponent again, spew water, probably win because he's the bosses son-in-law, and then that'll happen over and over again. Batista will come back for three weeks, and then get injured again. Edge will somehow sneak in at the last second and somehow win.

Big Show will come in and punch someone and it'll somehow be hard enough to render them unconscious. And lastly, John Cena will come out, salute, be cheered by half the crowd, and jeered by the other half.

Vince, we get it already! Quit forcing the same thing down our throats time and time again. Give us entertainment. Give us "Attitude."

Quit pandering to the "youngins" that you think are the main demographic. Cater to everyone. Have some of the "kiddy" stuff, and then balance it out with some of the edgier stuff, and everyone will, at least, be a little more content with it, instead of absolutely bored.

Just know, if the best thing you have going is Santino Marella and his tranny sister, you need to seriously, and I emphasize SERIOUSLY, reevaluate your product.

Nieuwendyk Begins Reign of Dallas Stars with Ousting of Tippett

Ian Robinett — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 10:26:58 -0400

Today will mark a historical day for the Dallas Stars, as they formerly announce Marc Crawford as the 20th coach in franchise history.

The Stars issued a press release confirming Crawford's hiring, and stating an announcement will be made today (Thursday, June 12, 2009) at the American Airlines Center.

When news broke of this last night, I had a bevy of mixed emotions.

To begin with, I was a big fan of Dave Tippett. His calm and cool demeanor was one I found to be stellar behind the bench.

He got past his playoff demons last season, and injuries killed the team this season, keeping Dallas from returning to the playoffs.

Then comes Joe Nieuwendyk, who I am also a huge fan of.

I saw the move of Les Jackson and Brett Hull out of the Co-General Manager positions, and Nieuwendyk's appointment, as a bold and positive move from the franchise.

Hull and Jackson had said they would be making "big moves" for the franchise, and the addition of Brad Richards.

Then after that nothing "major" happened.

Nieuwendyk's hiring gave me the same kind of hope Jackson and Hull did, and obviously he's doing the same thing from the start.

Just a few days into the job, he gives Tippett the boot for Marc Crawford.

How will this move work?

Crawford is an experienced coach. In 13 seasons of coaching, he has made eight playoff appearances, and has one Stanley Cup Championship under his belt.

His last three seasons, however, haven't been as stellar as he posted a combined 101-116-29 record with the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings.

I, personally, think this move has the potential to be a solid one for the franchise.

Crawford will bring a new view behind the bench. He will bring a new mentality to the game, from the mentality of Dave Tippett and Ken Hitchcock.

Ultimately, if this is the beginning of the "Nieuwendyk-era" in Dallas, who knows what to expect next. The foundation of the team has definitely been rocked, and hopefully he'll be able to bring in the "big-named" talent that Stars fans, like myself, have desired for years.

If he cannot deliver, and this season marks a fourth consecutive mediocre season for the veteran coach, I foresee this not being a lasting partnership. If he succeeds, this could help boost the Stars back into the Stanley Cup talk.

It's Time for Michael Wilbon To Man-Up to "The Big Nasty"

Ian Robinett — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 10:44:46 -0500

When I heard Michael Wilbon, host of ESPN's Pardon the Interruption (PTI), call out Wes Malott for not bowling in the PBA's GEICO Plastic Ball Challenge, I was intrigued.

How often is it you have one of ESPN's highest rated shows calling out the guys I want to be like?

And before you say anything, yes I'm a bowler, and my dream would be to go pro...Now back to what I was saying.

Wilbon criticized Malott, arguing that he (Malott) wouldn't be able to bowl as well using the plastic bowling balls of old.

Malott's response was clear. He was in favor of the tournament because it showed the versatility of today's professionals on tour, but he wasn't in favor of the placement of the tournament in the schedule.

The GEICO Plastic Ball Challenge was sandwiched between the USBC Masters, which is a "major" in the bowling world, and the Etonic Marathon Open, an event where the bowlers would be put through 54 games in a four-day span.

Malott argued that the transitioning between reactive resin, to plastic, and back to reactive resin is fine, but being that it was put between two tournaments with such high stakes was not fine.

So that brings us to this past Sunday, where Wilbon's nemesis sits as the No. 1 seed in the Marathon Open.

Prior to the event, Malott was interviewed again about his antagonist, Michael Raymond Wilbon.

He made it clear he would be willing to go one-on-one with Wilbon, who claims to be a bowler himself, in a head-to-head competition where Wilbon would be allowed to use any high performance equipment he so chose, and Malott would counter with a plain, plastic, ball.

Fast forward to Monday's episode of PTI.

The clip of Malott's interview is played, and Wilbon is officially issued the challenge.

How does he respond? Does he step up and accept? Oh no! He says he'd only do it if he could be spot 55 pins to start.

55 pins?! Seriously?!

C'mon Wilbon, if you're this bowler like you claim, step up to the plate. It's bowling! It's a sport where, on any given day, any bowler, pro or not, could bowl great or bomb severely.

If I were in your shoes Michael, I'd accept, try my best, and hope "The Big Nasty" has a "nasty" day. Instead of cowering and begging to be spot 55 pins! Besides, it would be fun. And who doesn't like fun?

Outlawing the A-11 Is a Disgrace to the Game of Football

Ian Robinett — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 15:41:06 -0500

The decision by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFSHSA) to outlaw the use of the A-11 offense disgraces the sport of football and the evolution of the game.

The A-11 offense utilized the "scrimmage kick" loophole, and created upwards of 16,000 combinations of receivers.

So why would this be outlawed? I'll tell you...It is simply because the coaches opposing the A-11 are inept at creating a successful defensive scheme against it.

Why is it coaches can whine because another coach was innovative and smart? Why is it coaches can't use the same ingenuity to create a defense geared towards defending the innovative offense?

I blame lazy and unintelligent coaches.

It took brilliance to create the A-11. Why can't brilliance create a new defense?

Instead, coaches went to the NFSHSA to whine and cry because they were too stupid to figure out what it would take to defend the A-11.

What those coaches are also doing is this. They are single-handily keeping the game from growing and evolving. They, inevitably, want the game to remain with its few schemes and its few defenses. They don't want to think, they don't want to try, they simply just don't want to do anything more than the basics they already know.

I am simply disgusted at these coaches. What is next? Outlawing the Wildcat Formation? Outlawing the Victory Formation because they can't do anything to get the ball back? It is stupid of them, and a complete insult to football.

"The Last Emperor" Wins in a Disappointing Way

Ian Robinett — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 13:09:03 -0500

Last night, I watched a fight I hoped to be great in some way, shape, or form.

I didn't get any of it.

Now, before I get too far, I want to preface this by saying I don't know if the outcome would have been different. I am just stating my disappointment in the fight, and the sad ending it had.

The way the fight began, I honestly thought Andrei Arlovski was going to shock the world. Fedor did not look good or comfortable at all, and Andrei looked ready to win.

Arlovski was pressuring Fedor, and winning the first round by a considerable margin.

To counter Arlovski, Fedor tried to mount some offense by pinning the Belorussian to the ropes and taking the fight to the ground. Arlovski made sure that didn't happen.

After "Big John" McCarthy moved the fight back to the middle of the ring, Andrei went back on the offense.

Then came the disappointment.

With Fedor continuing to back off and Andrei pressuring, Fedor lands a lucky punch to win the fight.

Why was this disappointing?

Well let me express why...

To begin with, "The Last Emperor" was not impressive to say the least. He was running from Arlovski, and all-in-all not being this "dominating" presence that I have seen in the past.

So he gets to land a punch, that was lucky, and win the fight and be praised? I don't think so.

To me, this fight didn't end like it should have. It was not something to remember, or something Fedor should even think of being proud of. Nor do I think anyone should praise him for it.

He won, yeah. But he didn't win by his dominance. He won by luck. He was losing decisively, and got lucky.

So what do I think? This fight needs to happen again. Yeah, I know lucky punches happen, and it's part of the sport, but at the same time when a fight like this, hyped about the "dominance" of Fedor, ends like this...That makes the fight a disappointment.

Again, I'm not saying Arlovski would have won, but he didn't deserve to lose on a fluke like that.

Dallas Stars Hope All-Star Break Acts as Reset Button for Second Half

Ian Robinett — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 11:10:27 -0500

The first half of the NHL season, for me at least, has been a shocker.

Why?

Mainly because my team has been a .500 team, and showing only a few glimpses of the team everyone knows they can be.

When the Stars kicked off their season, I—like many Stars fans—had hopes of being atop the Pacific Division, and fighting for the lead in the Western Conference.

But add in injuries from hell, blasé goaltending, and the Sean Avery fiasco, and the Stars are sitting four points out of a playoff spot going into the All-Star Break.

Honestly, this break couldn't have come soon enough.

Leading the way for the lackluster Stars is the man between the pipes, Marty Turco. Turks has not looked like himself this season. He's been constantly out of position, making careless mistakes handling the puck, and all-in-all just not being Marty Turco.

Turco knows he has to carry this team as he has in the past. But with a 19-16-7 record, he isn't getting it done. Thankfully he should benefit from this break. He can take some time to rest, recuperate, and hopefully regain the focus he'll need for the second half of the season.

If he can't, the Stars will know that the golfing season in Dallas will be around sooner than hoped.

The other bummer has been injuries. Sergei Zubov hasn't been able to play much in the past two seasons due to his nagging hip injury. A lot of it is due to the fact he knows he is needed badly. He tries his best to come back as soon as possible, and it ultimately sidelines him again.

Another injury that has proved to be detrimental to this Dallas team was the injury to captain, Brenden Morrow. Brenden tore his ACL and is out for the season. With the captain out, the rest of the veteran Stars must step up and lead as a whole.

On the positive side of the puck, Dallas did improve their defense with the return of Darryl Sydor. Plus, the surprising rookie sensation, James Neal, has stepped up and become a sniper with the puck.

So what do I see for the second half? Honestly I wish I knew. I thought I knew what I was going to see as a whole this season, and instead I have seen only a few glimpses of it.

What I can say is this: I think this break will help Dallas as much, if not more, than the rest of the league. The players who need the rest can get the rest. While, Modano and Robidas are work-horses who can handle the lack of rest.

Hopefully what I hope to see this second half comes true. Hopefully the Stars come out of the gate more focused and primed to make a run at the playoffs. Again, if not, I expect some severe changes both on and behind the bench come 2009-2010.

Fedor Emilianenko Will Have His Hands Full Caging MMA's "Pit Bull"

Ian Robinett — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:56:02 -0500

In 48 hours, the world gets to see the best of the best, Fedor Emelianenko, put his streak of 26 consecutive non-losses (one no-contest to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria in 2004) on the line again.

This time, I can honestly say the outcome could be different.

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't bet against Fedor. But of his recent opponents, Andrei Arlovski is different.

Now, why do I say this? I mean Tim Sylvia was decimated by Fedor, and notched consecutive wins against Arlovski in the UFC.

Here's why I say Arlovski is different. Tim Sylvia is a big, bumbling, oaf. He never looks "in shape," and on top of that, he can't go more than two rounds into a fight. And even that can be a stretch.

Arlovski's two losses to Sylvia, and two subsequent wins over Marcio Cruz and Fabricio Werdum were not "The Pit Bull" everyone knew. He didn't look like he had the fire that catapulted him to the UFC Heavyweight Title.

Then came the fight with Jake O'Brien at UFC 82.

Arlovski entered the octagon with a fire in his eyes that reminded the world of the Andrei Arlovski of old. He not only won, he won decisively.

From there, he has had two fights with Affliction/EliteXC Both of those fights have been the true "Pit Bull" that everyone remembered.

He has looked fresh, agile, strong, and smart in the cage. That's why I say if anyone outside the UFC has a chance to knock of "The Last Emperor," it's "The Pit Bull."

Andrei will pose many threats to Fedor. Andrei will have a height and weight advantage going in, and it isn't flab like Sylvia. Arlovski has vicious hands that could possibly catch Fedor and give the Russian's chin a real test.

What this fight will ultimately boil down to is Arlovski's mental game. If he can keep his composure and fight smart, he has a legitimate chance. If he does not panic if he makes a mistake, he'll have a chance.

Regardless of who wins, I see Arlovski being the first guy since Mark Coleman to escape the first round with Fedor.

My prediction...Simple...Double knockout! Seriously? Fedor in the middle of the second round.

NFL Demands That Fun Be Banned from Sports

Ian Robinett — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:58:57 -0500

The more and more I watch the NFL, the more and more I realize that Roger Goodell doesn't have a clue what would make the game better, ratings better, and the league more profitable.

Everyone hears the NFL referred to as the "No Fun League," and watching everything that gets called as "Excessive Demonstration," shows me that that phrase is exactly right.

So here is my question. What determines what is really "excessive?"

I know that the idea of choreographed, prop-laden, multiple person, line dancing is what they're trying to eliminate, but seriously, why?

I am someone, along with many I know and hear from on a national media level, that is something that adds to the entertainment factor of the game. And believe it or not, entertainment makes money! Hell, if someone gets a degree in broadcasting, like myself, they teach you two things right off the bat: "If It Bleeds, It Leads" and "Sex Sells".

How does that have any bearing on the "overly-excessive" celebrating we see after a touchdown? It is all a matter of how you look at it.

Let me point out one advertisement that is all over the NFL. It is a commercial for GoDaddy.com, staring WWE Diva, Candice Michelle. Since the first one back during Super Bowl XLII, she has worn nearly no clothes, and flaunted her "talents" all over the screens of America.

Am I complaining? No! Just keep reading!

Anyway, commercials like this are all over television, and in the sporting world, primarily in the NFL. In the league that allows that, it cannot allow Terrell Owens to grab a couple of pom-poms and dance a little jig?

Seriously?!

Does the NFL remember back when Jamal Anderson created the "Dirty Bird," and how insanely popular it became all across the NFL "Fanation?" What about the "Ickey Shuffle?" Or one of my favorites, spinning the football in the end-zone and several members of the team warming their hands? What about Deion Sanders' dance that has been imitated by NFL players today?

These are what is called entertainment and fun. I know it is a difficult concept to learn, but that is what it is.

Instead, they call anything that might be a celebration with a teammate a foul, and knock-off 15 yards. They must seriously want players to score a touchdown, and quietly walk to the bench while being golf-clapped by the fans.

This must be their mind-set, "Any ruckus could be bad for our image! I mean the poor golf fans are being taken over by 'Get in the hole!' chants, we must preserve our perfectly boring image and keep old, cranky, unhappy, people happy with absolutely no fun whatsoever! Quick call that foul! Hrumph! Hrumph! Hrumph!"

What the NFL needs to do is crack down on things that matter. Crack down more on dangerous collisions that can end people's careers and cause paralysis, crack down on steriod use, crack down on things that make the game look bad, but quit taking things away that cause the NFL to lose it's ability to be entertaining.

Quit policing what you personally feel is "entertaining," and let the fans decide. Remember, Roger Goodie-two-shoes-ell, we're the ones who pay for this, we're the ones you should make happy.

Jarkko Ruutu: Nibble Me This, Nibble Me That

Ian Robinett — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 04:09:21 -0500

I've seen the video; I believe what I saw.

When I first read the story on Jarkko Ruutu's bite on Andrew Peters, I was expecting something gory.

I was expecting another iteration of Tyson/Holyfield.

Instead, what I got was an over-reaction by a good actor, and a non-story.

The video shows, yes, Ruutu did bite the glove of Peters. That is pretty obvious to see.

What I don't get is why the media isn't really looking at this for what it is.

Peters had his glove in Ruutu's face, which is normal for goons and agitators. What isn't normal is that Peters stuck his glove in Ruutu's mouth!

Being human, if someone did that to me, without thinking I would instinctively bite down and try to get it out of my mouth. Ruutu bit down on the glove, and discarded it to the side.

Then the Oscar-winnning performance comes into play.

Peters begins to do his best Nancy Kerrigan impression, only using his finger. I have worn hockey gloves many times, and unless Ruutu is the living embodiment of Jaws from James Bond, he isn't biting through the glove. It just isn't happening. Those gloves are so padded, especially in the fingers, that he isn't going through them.

So to conclude my rant of the day, Ruutu bit him. No question there. Does it warrant all of this media attention and a suspension? No! Peters overacting made this the complete farce of a story that it is.

You know what the NHL should do? Inspect Ruutu for stainless steel teeth! Only then will I believe Andrew "Oh Boo Hoo My Pinkie Finger Hurts" Peters. But until there is proof, Andrew Peters will remain an overacting-moe, and a wimpy enforcer.

BCS Goes Little League: Everyone's a Winner!

Ian Robinett — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:08:22 -0500

As the asterisk-laden BCS Bowl Season slowly draws toward its end, the articles coming out over last night's Fiesta Bowl have my bowels in a tangled mess.

Why? It is simple.

Let me begin with how the articles began when "Bowl Season" first started. All I was reading was how the game between Oklahoma and Florida was aptly deemed the "BCS National Championship."

They were filled with many praises saying the BCS had successfully narrowed the FBS-eligible teams down to the two who deserved to be there.

As much as it disgusted me and I disagreed with it, I had succumbed to accepting that whoever walked away from that game with a victory would be the National Champions of NCAA FBS Football.

Looking at the articles now, especially coming out of my home state of Texas, are suggestion we're going to have co-National Champions.

Wait, what?!

Let me get this straight, since Texas wasn't in the National Championship, and beat a lack-luster Ohio State, in an amazing game I will say, is deserving of a share of the National Championship? Wow, that is dumb.

Well then, if Texas "deserves" a share, then Utah does too. They proved themselves against the team that held the No. 1 ranking for the bulk of the season, Alabama. Utah showed that, yes, they did deserve to be in the big dance.

In an article on Yahoo, one reporter mentioned that a lot of voters based their votes on Utah on the fact they didn't "see" them play.

Again, what?!

These people who vote for who deserves to have opportunities to play for the biggest prize in collegiate football only vote for teams that they can see from the comforts of their home?

These quacks, I can guarantee, make more money than I'll ever see, and can't afford to drop a few bucks to get a cable package that allows them to see every team who statistically deserves an equal chance at being considered? Wow, I am completely disgusted.

The people the NCAA gives this responsibility to don't even take the time to give teams equal consideration? We have some lazy creeps making some major decisions who are ill-informed boobs.

Hey maybe whoever loses the National Championship can have a share of the championship too?

Congrats Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, and (most-deserving) Utah on being the co-co-co-co-National Champions of the BCS! Wow that sentence made me want some hot cocoa...

Snub Overshadows Heisman "Finalists"

Ian Robinett — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:16:42 -0500

I continue to be appalled by NCAA Football in this season.

What began with completely ridiculous results of the BCS, have continued now with the Heisman Trophy.

How can anyone say that only Sam Bradford, Tim "I Get to Vote for Myself Ha Ha Ha" Tebow, and Colt McCoy are the only three deserving of being invited to the ceremony, and be nominated? Seriously? Quite frankly, there are two more individuals who deserve to be named, one is arguable, the other, however, is not.

I'll begin with the one that has my biased opinion, and I admit it, and is argueable. Shonn Greene, running-back for the University of Iowa, was the number one back in the nation this season. Hell, he's the only non-Big 12, major offensive player to be named to Rival's All-American Team.

He lead Iowa, whose passing attack was dreadful to say the least, to a shocking 8-4 season, and a birth in the 2009 Outback Bowl. So, personally, I think he deserves a nomination, the trophy, not necessarily, but a nomination.

Now let me exit my biased soapbox, and step on my "what-the-hell-are-you-dummies-who-nominated-thinking" soapbox.

Honestly, I have the gut feeling whoever programmed the BCS computers also made the pics for the Heisman. How else could Graham Harrell, who is arguably better than McCoy and Bradford, not even be invited?! Harrell took Texas Tech to one of its greatest seasons. He not only proved he could lead the, often under estimated, Red Raiders to victory 10 straight weeks, he lead them to a victory over, then number one, Texas.

Oh and who was Texas's quarterback in that game? Hmm?

Anyway, this season is qualified to be deemed a joke. An inept system of computers picked a tainted National Championship game, and the people who decide who is deserving of a Heisman nod completely disrespect Graham Harrell, and suck up to the schools that bring in the money that lines their pockets. Yes, this all coincides with money. How else can you snub someone as deserving as Harrell?

BCS Fails Again in 2008-09

Ian Robinett — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 13:11:24 -0500

The BCS results are in, and who would have guessed, it has failed again! How Oklahoma and Florida made it to the BCS Championship Game is beyond me.

The argument is made every season. Should there be a playoff system created for NCAA Div. I Football, and join pretty much every other NCAA sport with that type of system, or should we stick with the current BCS format?

Every season the answer is the same, get rid of the piece of garbage that is the BCS, and implement a playoff system. This BCS Championship game is tainted in every sense of the word.

First, let me address Florida, the biggest joke of the BCS this season. Florida lost one game this season, and unlike Oklahoma, it wasn't to a team who is worth a damn.

Florida lost at home, against Ole Miss, a team never meant to have a chance, and a team that was unranked at the time. How on Earth does that qualify a team to play for the National Championship?

I don't care if they finished strong, I don't care if the loss was early, they lost to an unranked team at home! So, we have now disqualified the undeserving, overrated, and completely over-hyped Gators.

Now to their opponents. The Sooners have some argument to say they belong because they won the Big 12. But, that argument is completely useless against the exact, and equal, argument from Texas and Texas Tech. All three teams had a single loss, and it was all against one another!

Regardless of scores, each team had an equal, and I cannot emphasize the word equal enough, right to be in the Big 12 Championship. Instead, the useless BCS Computers decided that too?

This BCS system is about as unfair as it can be. It caters to teams who have more financial prowess over its peers, and to those who can be marketed better. It actually takes into account which teams would give better ratings?! Are you kidding me?!

Ratings have bearing on who deserves to play for a National Championship? I think not! I am completely sickened by what the BCS has crapped out this season. It disgusts me to think that teams who should have a simple opportunity are stuck in meaningless bowls.

So what do I think? Personally, I could give a damn how hard a conference is, if you finish a season with a perfect record, you're deserving of a shot for the BCS Championship.

Therefore, only two teams, and two teams alone, have a right to be there. It should be Boise State and Utah. I do not care if there are teams that are superior, they proved to be superior to their respective seasons.

And when Boise wins the Poinsettia Bowl (which I personally would be embarrassed to think I dominated my season to be rewarded with that piece of garbage), they will be the National Champs for the second time in three seasons, congrats, guys!

If the BCS had a playoff system, which it will after this debauchery season I am convinced will happen, here's how it would look if I were in charge:

1. Boise State (for their undefeated season)
2. Utah (for their undefeated season)
3. Oklahoma (one-loss, Big 12 Conference Champions)
4. Florida (one-loss, SEC Conference Champions)
5. USC (one-loss, Pac-10 Conference Champions)
6. Penn State (one-loss, Big 10 Conference Champions)
7. Cincinnati (Big East Conference Champions)
8. East Carolina (C-USA Conference Champions)
9. Virginia Tech (ACC Conference Champions)
10. Troy (Sun Belt Conference Champions)
11. Buffalo (MAC Conference Champions)
12. Texas Tech (one-loss, at-large)
13. Alabama (one-loss, at-large)
14. Texas (one-loss, at-large)
15. Ball State (one-loss, at-large)
16a. TCU (one-loss, at-large)
16b. Ohio State (one-loss, at-large)

Obviously the first round would be:

Boise State v. Winner of Ohio State/TCU play-in game
Utah v. Ball State
Oklahoma v. Texas
Florida v. Alabama
USC v. Texas Tech
Penn State v. Buffalo
Cincinnati v. Troy
East Carolina v. Virginia Tech

Honestly as odd as this looks, I believe this would shut up anyone having arguments. And besides, those match-ups wouldn't be too lop sided.

So all-in-all, the BCS is a joke, this season is officially a joke, and quite frankly if I were associated with this piece of garbage, I would be a joke too.

Sean Avery Exposes NHL for What It Is, a No Humor League

Ian Robinett — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 09:36:17 -0500

Time has passed since the latest incident involving Sean Avery, and the complete out of proportion explosion by the media. And much like his defensive stance against Martin Brodeur, I think the reaction by the media and league, is completely ridiculous!

First off, in the middle of the 2008 NHL Playoffs, the league made up a rule because notorious cry-baby, Martin Brodeur, couldn't see the play because Avery was facing him and blocking his view.

I do have some playing experience in hockey, and on the power play, a player is assigned the job of screening the goalie! Sadly, if you're screening a boo-hooing, whining, crying, and cheating goalie like Brodeur, it's illegal!

Now, let's look at the current situation. Sean Avery hooks up with a notorious Canadian celebrity, who has a reputation of dating hockey players. They split, she moves on, and Avery decides to do what most people do with their exes, he talks about her like she was a huge mistake in his life, and he's better than her.

So what is the logical solution? Become complete boobs, suspend him, and revoke his right to play hockey!

What?! When did having a celebrity ex who you didn't like, and about whom you voiced an opinion, land you a suspension? Seriously!

In a league that requires players to physically assault one another, which on the streets is a crime, and also allows fighting, has to suspend people for stating a simple opinion.

Talk about completely stupid! The NHL has to succumb to stupid emotions, when it is known for allowing hitting, fighting, and the occasional stick to the face. Wow, that is completely sad!

So all-in-all, the league has a personal grudge with a player who draws fans. Like him or not, Sean Avery gets people to watch the game, and go to the game. I can guarantee Avery is not sorry, nor would I be.

I would say whatever I was supposed to say, and expect everyone to simply shut up which is exactly what is going to happen. Avery will be back, and he'll be right back to normal where he belongs!

The NHL has lost it's renegade feel to it as compared to the other major sports leagues. It joins the No Fun League as the No Humor League.

Before I get the comments, Yes it was tacky and unnecessary, but it was not worth a suspension of any kind! No argument you can even fathom will change my opinion of that.

Dallas Stars: Familiar Face Returns to the Dallas Blue Line

Ian Robinett — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 09:45:35 -0500

In a surprising move, the Dallas Stars have traded away one of their All-Star defensemen, Philippe Boucher, in exchange for a familiar face to the Dallas Stars and member of their 1998-99 Stanley Cup Champion roster, Darryl Sydor.

The trade marks an obvious attempt for the Stars to fix their ailing defense in this early season.

Dallas has stepped up its scoring prowess by adding Mark Parrish, but has still been suffering tremendously on the defensive side of the ice. With Sydor, a notable "stay-at-home" defenseman, the Stars will definitely have added some leverage to their defensive game.

Sydor had not been getting a good amount of playing time in Pittsburgh, and felt he needed to move elsewhere in order to continue playing like he feels he can.

Boucher gives the Penguins a stellar, scoring, defenseman, who is very savvy on special teams.

Dallas Stars Continue to Shape Roster

Ian Robinett — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 10:46:00 -0400

While most people are out preparing their personal fireworks displays, the Dallas Stars are building their roster for the upcoming season.

After signing Sean Avery to a four-year deal, Dallas then inked youngster B. J. Crombeen to a one-year contract worth $550,000. Crombeen played eight games for Dallas during their 2007-08 campaign, and was able to get two assists while chalking up 39 penalty minutes. Crombeen will add another physical presence to Dallas lineup, standing alongside the likes of Sean Avery, Brenden Morrow, and Steve Ott.

Dallas has also signed veteran right winger Landon Wilson, son of Stars assistant coach Rick Wilson, to a one year deal. In his NHL career, Wilson has notched 51 goals and 60 assists in 348 career games.

The Stars were also able to sign two-year contracts with Francis Wathier, Maxime Fortunus, and Garrett Stafford. All three played in the minors last season. On a somewhat sad note, the Stars lost the opportunity to sign one of the best young talents they had. Antti Miettinen signed a multi-year deal with the Minnesota Wild.

Dallas Stars: From Rumor to Reality, Sean Avery Signs

Ian Robinett — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 07:52:54 -0400

It didn't take Brett Hull, Les Jackson, and the Dallas Stars long to sign Sean Avery.

Just hours after the team announced they were in negotiations with the forward, Avery put his name on the dotted line.

The Stars and Avery came to an agreement to a four-year, $15.5 million contract, that will keep him in "Big D" through the 2011-2012 season.

In a press release from the Dallas Stars co-General Manager, Brett Hull said, “We are excited about the opportunity to add a player like Sean Avery to our group," and “His ability to play the game with skill and tenacity makes us a better team and is a great complement to the players we have here.”

Avery, a native of Pickering, Ontario, Canada, will be entering into his 7th season in the NHL when he joins Dallas for the 2008-09 campaign. In his previous six seasons, he has amassed 65 goals, 102 assists, and a massive 1067 penalty minutes.

Open Mic: Sport: An Ambiguous Term Causing Pointless Controversy

Ian Robinett — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 05:13:57 -0400

An ongoing argument between self-proclaimed word gurus is often "What is really a "sport?"

Think about it! What really constitutes whether or not an activity should be considered a sport?

In America today, we might consider baseball, football, hockey, and basketball to be our main sports. Four activities that many Americans would consider our fundamentals. We also have eating hot dogs, playing cards, darts, Scrabble, paper/rock/scissors, and arm wrestling labeled as "sports."

So what really should be considered a "sport?"

My opinion is simple. A "sport" is exactly its definition states. It is an activity governed by a set of rules, and in some way, shape, or form, is competitive.

By this definition almost any activity can be considered a "sport," but this brings about a problem of association. The word "sport" is often closely affiliated with the word "athlete." Many times people do not realize these are two different terms.

An athlete, by definition, is someone who competes by means of physical exertion or physical skill. So bowlers, golfers, ping pong players, dodge ball players, divers would be considered athletes. However, by this definition, if you compete in a sport, that doesn't always make you an "athlete."

Poker, eating hot dogs, pumpkin seed spitting, underwater basket weaving, all should be classified as "sports," but the participants are not putting any particular effort of physical exertion or physical skill. They fit the definition, and therefore receive the credit of being a "sport," but participants are being wrongly labeled "athletes."

This debate all comes down to how individuals view the definition of a "sport." The definition of a "sport" or an "athlete" can of course be interpreted differently. This is more about the idea that having a differing opinion is wrong and to that I say, go take a flying leap.

Sean Avery to Dallas Stars Is Newest Free Agent Rumor

Ian Robinett — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:40:08 -0400

Since the controversy between Sean Avery and Martin Brodeur in the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the New York Rangers have been mulling over the possibility of keeping Avery or letting him sign somewhere else.

The odds of "elsewhere" becoming a reality seem more and more likely to occur.

The Dallas Stars have begun the discussion of bringing Avery to the Metroplex.

Last night, Stars co-General Manager Brett Hull confirmed that the Stars were in talks with NHL stars Sean Avery and Wade Redden.

At the close of business last night, the talks with Redden had ceased and he subsequently signed with the Rangers, while the talks with Avery were still very much open.

Should this deal become a reality for Dallas, they will increase their physical prowess on the ice and have a strong addition to their already dangerous power play unit.

Avery, a veteran of 379 career NHL games, is mostly known for being a physical force on the ice. In his six NHL seasons, he has averaged close to 177 penalty minutes a season.

He is also credited with the creation of the "Avery Rule," stemming from his screening of New Jersey Devils' netminder Martin Brodeur. Avery basically ignored the play, faced Brodeur, and did everything he could to block the view of the Devils goalie.

Dallas Stars: Eriksson Wastes No Time Signing With Dallas

Ian Robinett — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:07:57 -0400

24 hours after making qualifying offers to six members of their roster, Dallas has inked the first of the six to a multi-year contract. Dallas drafted Loui Eriksson, a 22-year-old left-winger from Goteborg, Sweden, in 2003,, as the 33rd pick of the draft, has signed a two-year deal with Dallas worth $3.2 million.

Dallas said that he will earn $1.5 in the 2008-09 season, and 1.7 million during the 2009-10 campaign. Eriksson enjoyed a career year with Dallas in 2007-08, playing 69 games, and garnering 31 points. Eriksson also played in all 18 of Dallas's playoff games this past season, scoring 4 goals and 4 assists, including 1 power play goal against Anaheim.

With this new two-year contract, Eriksson joins Brett Hull, Les Jackson, Dave Tippett, Trevor Daley, Toby Petersen, and Dan Jancevski, who have all inked new, multi-year contracts with the organization.

Dallas Stars: Stars Make Qualifying Offer to Six

Ian Robinett — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 05:20:25 -0400

Thursday, the Dallas Stars made qualifying offers to six players, including Loui Eriksson. Eriksson was a solid standout for Dallas in only his second season of play, notching 31 points, 14 of which were goals, in his 69 games with the Stars. Compared to his first season, Eriksson played 10 more games with Dallas, and in those 10, scored 12 more points (8G, 4A).

The other players that received offers were B. J. Crombeen, who played 8 games for Dallas and had 2 points, Vojtech Polak, who has played 5 games with the Stars over the past two seasons, and Konstantin Pushkarev, who has 17 NHL games with Los Angeles and five NHL points.

They also gave offers to Francis Wathier, who was a solid winger for Dallas's former AHL affiliate, Iowa Stars, and Vadim Khomitski, a Russian defenseman who played 16 with Iowa. The Stars opted out of qualifying offers to Marius Holtet, Jussi Timonen and Janos Vas.

Should the Stars not make offers to these three players, they will become unrestricted free agents July 1.

WWE Draft 2008: The Supplemental Draft Commences

Ian Robinett — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:48:57 -0400

With the primary WWE Draft being held on Monday, normal procedure is to follow it up with the Supplemental Draft in the following days.

Today was that day.

I figure, I analyzed the picks from Monday's draft, so why not do the same with the changes today. So without any further adieus, here we go!

1. Mark Henry to ECW
To me, this seemed like the way ECW would eventually get its championship back. But instead of making it an "eventually," they threw Henry into the match this Sunday. So be prepared to see this guy win Sunday, and soon after quickly drop the championship. He has never been able to carry any type of momentum for a brand yet, and that won't be changing after Sunday.

2. Jamie Noble to Raw
Completely pointless move. Jamie Noble hasn't lived up to what anyone expected from him, and it isn't going to change now.

3. Trevor Murdoch to SmackDown
This one makes sense. He isn't a huge draw, but if the WWE hopes to push Lance Cade, they can't have him continually feuding with Murdoch. He should be a decent mid-card for SmackDown's roster. He won't be a "diamond in the rough," but he'll be able to help that part of the roster well.

4. Big Daddy V to SmackDown
Another pointless move. Do something interesting with this guy! I know, bring back Men on a Mission!

5. Deuce to Raw
This Draft has turned into the Draft that kills the tag team division. Deuce as a solo-act may do well. We will simply have to wait and see.

6. DH Smith to SmackDown
This one caught everyone off guard. DH was poised to be DiBiase Jr.'s tag team partner, and is now being split off from that brand. Unless they decide to change this, I'm betting, now, on a heel turn by Cody Rhodes Sunday. As for Smith, maybe he'll be allowed to finally wrestle instead of stand there like one of those "boppy" clowns.

7. Hornswoggle & Finlay to ECW
Another setup for Sunday. Hornswoggle was drafted seventh, while Finlay was drafted fourteenth. For the short period they were on separate brands, speculation was going crazy about how this one would turn out on Sunday. With them both on ECW, it is almost certain they'll claim the belts from Morrison and Miz.

8. Super Crazy to ECW
Allowing Super Crazy to return to his roots is an excellent move. All they need to do now is make ECW actually EXTREME again, and Super Crazy will be an excellent draw for the brand.

9. Chuck Palumbo to Raw
Hooray for bad storyline carryover! The ridiculous storyline between Palumbo and Noble was bad to say the least. Now we get to see it on the "Number One Show" within the WWE.

10. Brian Kendrick to SmackDown
Splitting this team up could be potentially good or bad. The two are great high flyers, in a business that isn't geared towards the Cruiserweights anymore. So if the WWE decides to push the flyers again, this could be great for both Spanky and Paul London's career.

11. Matt Striker to Raw
The good thing here is we don't have to see Striker trying to sell that Big Daddy V is talented. Striker is one of the most "vintage" of heel character types in this business. He and Randy Orton can make themselves hated without even trying. If Striker actually decides to perform it will be interesting, but should he stay in the managerial role, I see him as Bobby Heenan v2.0.

12. Maria to SmackDown
With the introduction of the "Divas Championship" the WWE might be trying to split the eye candy talent away from the women who legitimately can perform. If that is the case, Maria will do well on SmackDown.

13. Shelton Benjamin to SmackDown
This pick I knew was coming before Monday's Draft. How? The WWE sent out material to Abilene, TX, where they're holding the house show the night before the PPV, and Benjamin was listed as a SmackDown superstar. He'll probably be better over here than ECW. SmackDown has a mid-card with decent talent, and he should be able to do well within those ranks.

14. Carlito to SmackDown
You know he's loving being back on a show with Triple H. Regardless of that, he and Shelton will be the pillars of the mid-card for SmackDown. The two are solid wrestlers, and solid heels. They should have a better time on SmackDown than they were having on Raw and ECW respectively.

15. Layla to Raw
Again, if they are really splitting the female talent up into wrestlers and "Divas" Layla will do fine on Raw.

16. Kofi Kingston to Raw
This was my favorite pick of the Draft. This guy has some skills that make him fly, and make him a great character to watch. He will skyrocket to the Intercontinental level in almost no time on Raw. And just for the sake of being cheesy, he'll hit Raw with a BOOM BOOM BOOM!

So there you go. The 2008 Draft is seemingly complete, although you never fully know with the WWE.

If I personally had to give this Draft a rating overall, it would be a C+.

Some of the moves, now knowing some of the back-story, are understandable. Triple H wanted to be close to Stephanie as she gets ready to deliver her second child, and Vince is legitimately wanting to get SmackDown beefed up.

So now, we wait and watch to see what happens this weekend. Again, this could turn out to be a great idea from Vince, or something that effectively gives TNA it's opening to face the WWE in a true "Monday Night War."

If that is the case, good storylines, good talent, and good television is on the horizon, but it is not something I am going to hope for.

WWE Draft 2008: Out With the Old, In With The... Old?

Ian Robinett — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 02:21:08 -0400

For virtually my entire life, almost 23 years of it in fact, I have been an avid fan of pro wrestling. Truthfully it isn't something I choose to hide at all. I mean, why hide something you're proud of? I don't care if people think I am dumb; it is a soap opera for men, and I have been glued to my television to watch it proudly for all of these years.

So what does that all lead up to? It leads up to one of my favorite parts of the year, which began back in 2002, the WWE Draft.

The timing of the Draft is pretty regular. It usually happens fairly soon after Wrestlemania, although it has progressively gotten further and further from it, and is usually geared to try and mix up the mid-cards, while giving some of the headliners a chance to swap brands in order to make the title hunts a little more intriguing.

Usually, this promises some good changes that give fans of Raw, SmackDown, and now ECW a little different view of things with the new faces (and heels) on the respective shows.

Sadly, I am learning something about the Draft as it progresses year to year. Vince McMahon, in his infinite wisdom, has run out of ideas. Or he is just certain old ones can boost ratings yet again.

What do I mean? Well let's analyze this years Draft.

The format used was just like the 2007 Draft, in that it was a "lottery." And also much like in 2007, with the exception of the main players in the locker room, nobody had a clue as to what was going to happen, and the reactions really showed that.

The first selection gave me an inkling that maybe, just maybe, the Draft would be something to watch. Although the matches they made, to which the winners brand received the pick, were so sadly predictable.

Raw received the first pick with HHH beating Mark Henry, and selected Rey Mysterio. Honestly, I didn't see Vince moving him over. I saw him more as a pillar of SmackDown, but once this happened, it was obvious who was switching next.

For the second pick, SmackDown obviously was going to receive the chance to fill the Rey Rey void. Finlay, who on a side note is a really good face which I would have never guessed, and Hornswoggle squashed Carlito and Santino. As everyone had already assumed, Jeff Hardy was heading to SmackDown. Honestly, this was one of the best moves in Draft history. Hardy is huge with the fans, can be on the main event level, and from a recent interview, really has his life in order. He'll really be a cornerstone for SmackDown from here on out.

Let me reiterate this... The matches made the "who's going to get the pick" part unnecessarily easy to call. And, instead of going into all of the matches from here on out, I'll just say who got the pick, and then give me thoughts.

Raw received the third pick, and took CM Punk. This was a swap Vince has wanted to make since WrestleMania. It hasn't been any big secret around the company that Punk will be cashing in his Money in the Bank shot against Triple H, so they had to get him on Raw in order to build it up more.

Next, ECW finally gets a chance to have a pick, and since they have been completely treated like garbage since Vince acquired them, it would be their ONLY pick. This pick also marked the first title belt to swap brands, as Matt Hardy was sent to ECW. Sadly, this also began to let the world know who was going to win at Night of Champions on Sunday, but I'll get into that in a bit.

Next we had the bathroom break match, or as Vince calls it, a match involving Divas. This match was intended to end with a double disqualification, but had to be modified as Millena messed her ankle up bad. Raw and SmackDown each got a pick, and the shock of the night was made. When they said announcers would be traded in this match, it was assumed The King and Mick Foley would swap spots. Instead, they showed that nobody really had a clue, and sent Jim Ross to SmackDown in exchange for Michael Cole. Seriously?! Why not send Mike Adamle to Raw? I mean if you're going to commit ratings suicide, at least do it quick rather than make it this gradual process. I sincerely hope this does not last, and we have this "trade" that fixes the announcing situation. Otherwise that will SUCK!

So who is next? Raw gets another pick, and brings another big name to Raw, and it is one that is much to my chagrin. Let's all welcome Batista! Yes, the WWE's version of Machine Gun Kelly is here. Oh... Goodie! Oh wait, is a heel turn for he and Triple H and an Evolution reunion in the works?!?!

Now it is time for the most non-shocking selection of this years Draft. Umaga goes to SmackDown. I am honestly surprised they waited this long. He has been SmackDown-bound since prior to WrestleMania. If they had been smart, they would have had this pick as the second of the night, and had Hardy later. Yeah it would have rearranged the Matt Hardy to ECW part, but why make the one everyone knows about deeper into the show?

I wonder who is picking next? Oh surprise, it is Raw. This marks title number 2 to swap brands as Raw welcomes back Kane. Kane is an awesome character, but why bring him back to the brand where he always ends up being forgotten about? When has he had much success on Raw period? And I wonder, could this mean Big Show is going to win the ECW Championship and miraculously end up on ECW? No, nothing that predictable happens.

Finally, we have a battle royal for the final two picks in the Draft. SmackDown wins because Raw had already had 5 picks to SmackDown's 2. So who do they take first? It’s the man taken last year as the final pick in the Draft BY RAW. Mr. Kennedy Kennedy (yes I know it's there twice) is going back to SmackDown. This upset me. He is one of the best talents they have, and they never even tried to showcase him on Raw. Boo on this one!

The second pick has another flashback. Let's all travel back to 2004 with the 2nd Annual WWE Draft because the result is the same. Triple H, as the champion, is now on SmackDown. His stint in 2004 was a whopping ONE DAY! Even though they tape the show on Tuesday, since it airs on Friday, he will have beaten his own record. Congrats champ! See you back on Raw within a week.

So now we have the picks made. And to play into what Vince is hoping we all do, let's assume these picks stick. On Sunday at Night of Champions (or Vengeance 2.0), the WWE Championship, United States Championship, and ECW Championship will all change hands. More than likely, the US Championship, ECW Championship, World Tag Team Championship, Tag Team Championship (yes there are two), and I would bet Intercontinental Championship will change hands.

BUT WAIT... THE SHOW WASN'T OVER!

How can I not talk about the angle that closed the show? I mean, who saw this coming. Vince gives away $500,000, part of the set collapses, he doesn't run off for shelter, the stage collapses and he falls through it, then his special "McMahon Million Dollar Mania" sign falls on top of him.

Oh my goodness gracious! Of all the dramatic things I've ever seen...

Now here is something to watch. Oh wait... This... Oh no! June 11, 2007, the date of the 2007 Draft, Vince blows up in a car! Then he comes back to life the next week because of this tragedy with Chris Benoit. Obviously, at that time, he couldn't finish that storyline. So he had a brilliant idea! LET'S DO IT AGAIN!

And this time, let's sell it like it's real! I mean, I will call Triple H, Paul, and people might guess this is real. I'll have faces and heels run together to try and rescue me, and, yeah! People will buy into it! I will say though, of all the people in this scene, Cena and Triple H did an EXCELLENT job selling this. If this wasn't 2007's Draft all over again, I might have just bought into it.

When this happened, the crude humor just went crazy between my best friend and I. Now we'll finally know who blew up, I mean tried to kill Vince. And for those who don't want the spoiler, I suggest not reading anymore, it's going to be The Undertaker. Why do I say that? He was backstage last night because he didn't know if the storyline would play out any further or not.

All in all, I was kind of disappointed with this Draft. It began strong, and just fell into an identical storyline as last year, and 2004 too. So I guess we will see if anything new actually happens.

Dallas Stars: Roster Continues to Take Shape

Ian Robinett — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 05:09:44 -0400

Continuing on their offseason trend, the Dallas Stars have proceeded to prepare their roster for the 2008-2009 season.

Thus far, Dallas has inked head coach Dave Tippett, defenseman Trevor Daley, and have established a verbal commitment for a 19th season from Mike Modano, the face of the franchise.

But the Stars haven't stopped there.

Dallas has re-signed center Toby Petersen to a two-year contract that will take him through the 2009-2010 season.

In eight regular season games with the Stars, Petersen notched three assists and four penalty minutes.

During his 63 games with Dallas's former AHL affiliate, the Iowa Stars, Petersen was named the team's MVP due to his 21 goals and 30 assists.

Petersen also joined Dallas for 16 of their playoff games.

Another young talent, defenseman Dan Jancevski, has been signed to a two-year, two-way contract.

The Stars have sent AHL-talent Marty Sertich to Colorado in exchange for a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2009 Draft.

Lastly, veteran defenseman Mattias Norstrom has decided that his campaign with Dallas during the 2007-2008 season would be his last.

Norstrom announced his retirement after 14 seasons in the NHL. In that span, Norstrom amassed 165 points and 661 penalty minutes in 903 regular season games.

During his hockey career, Norstom won gold medals in the 1998 IIHF World Championships and 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy. He also has two IIHF World Championship silver medals and one IIHL World Junior Ice Hockey Championships silver medal.

Big Brown: Desormeaux Good, Dutrow Bad!

Ian Robinett — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:09:56 -0400

As a trainer of horses, Rick Dutro is outstanding.

As the "Public Relations Manager" of Big Brown, to quote a very wise man, "He stinks, and I don't like him!"

Everyone across the world knows Big Brown didn't win the Triple Crown, including Rick Dutrow. It is just said that the trainer, of all people, can't accept the fact that a champion horse like Big Brown had an off day.

In the back of his mind, he swears that if Kent Desormeaux had pushed Big Brown instead of letting up, Big Brown would be the toast of the horse racing town.

Truthfully, how can Dutrow, a seasoned veteran in this business, not realize that horses have off days as well?

Would he have rather had Desormeaux push Big Brown, and in turn, put him at risk?

Of course he would. He was so sure he was going to have his name along side the stellar steed in the history books.

All he wanted was the glory. He wanted it as bad as we all want gas prices to drop.

But it didn't happen.

Instead, he blames Desormeaux, who in the midst of the biggest race of Big Brown's career, pulled the steed up.

Desormeaux isn't some newbie jockey in his first rodeo.

For crying out loud, the man is a Hall of Famer who holds the US record for most wins in a single year.

Do you think he did it because he felt like it? NO!

Do you think he did it because he just didn't want to race that day? NO!

He did it because he is a seasoned veteran who has ridden many horses.

When they came around the turn, you could tell Desormeaux felt something was not right with Big Brown. He knows that horse on a level that no one else does. Remember, he's the one who raced in the Derby and the Preakness.

What Kent Desormeaux did, he did because he cares about that horses health more than any amount of money or fame he might have garnered.

To him, he was protecting a member of his family.

In conclusion, Kent Desormeaux has elevated himself to a much higher level that most people. He sacrificed what could have been the greatest moment in his life to make sure his horse wouldn't be put in a place where he could encounter some catastrophic event.

And to Rick Dutrow, you should be thanking Kent Desormeaux for saving the paychecks this horse will bring in for you. Also, ALWAYS remember that it is better to be safe, than sorry.

Dallas Stars: No Stanley Cup Doesn't Mean Failure

Ian Robinett — Tue, 20 May 2008 02:38:52 -0400

For the Dallas Stars, their Game 6 loss against Detroit, which ended their season, was upsetting.

But overall, the Stars have nothing to be ashamed of.

This season, Dallas was plagued, arguably the worst of any team, with injuries to their top players.

Sergei Zubov, Jere Lehtinen, and Philippe Boucher missed a combined 140 games of Dallas's season, including the playoff games.

Even with those veterans out most of the season, Dallas was able to put together a 12-2 record in the month of February, and make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals.

This opened many people's eyes to the fact Dallas had a team ready, willing, and able to go on the ice and win, regardless of their top stars being out of the lineup.

In all three rounds of the playoffs, Dallas was the underdog to many. But instead of failing in the playoffs again, the Stars stepped up, and made believers of the critics.

Fans of the Stars have nothing to be ashamed of this season, and everything to be excited about for next year's campaign for the Cup.

So it is that time of the year that fans and players of 28 other teams get to all enjoy together, and that is sit back, relax, and watch the two best teams battle for the Grail.

As a fan of the Stars, as saddened as I am to see them ousted from their chance at the Cup, I raise my glass to Detroit and Pittsburgh and say, here's to an awesome series of youth and determination versus defense and experience. Good luck, boys!

How is it That Owners Make Better Coaches?

Ian Robinett — Tue, 13 May 2008 04:49:18 -0400

I am going to deviate from my usual NHL playoff recap today, simply because I am annoyed.

What is it I am annoyed at?

I really don't know. Maybe by the end of this diatribe I'll have a better understanding.

The fact coaches get fired, resign, etc., is a part of sports, I know. But when you have a successful coach, and the greedy owners get mad that another owner had a better team, they fire the coach. I don't get it.

The reason for this rant is because of two incidents that happened yesterday.

It began with the San Jose Sharks firing Ron Wilson, simply because he didn't win a Stanley Cup.

Now I am no Sharks fan by any means, but Ron Wilson is a fantastic coach.

He took over an abysmal team in San Jose part of the way though the 2002-03 season, and went on to lead them to no worse than 2nd in the Pacific since.

So why was he fired? So what he lost in the second round for the third consecutive year. He's getting you to the playoffs!

He has done nothing but put together a stellar roster for San Jose, and the owners got greedy. They got jealous of Anaheim having a cup, so they decided to try and buy someone who can buy them a championship.

That is why I say, owners suck!

The second incident was in the middle of the depressing Dallas and Detroit game.

I was watching online, because satellite is horrible about carrying Versus on a normal package, and reading these chats between fans who think they know what is best for the Stars.

Granted I do the same thing, ignore it! I am ranting!

All of a sudden, when Dallas completely forgets to exit the locker room for the third, all I see is people yammering about how Tippett won't be around next season, and should be fired.

Had he had another losing bid in the first round, I could understand others saying that. With this season though? I think not!

Tippett has taken a beaten and bruised team, and gotten them to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in his coaching career. Also, he has taken rosters labeled as "mediocre" and "undeserving for a playoff bid," and made them into winners and "Stars."

It is absolutely ridiculous! Tippett can't control injuries. He can't control whether Marty Turco is mentally in the game or not.

So why fire a successful coach because he won't give greedy owners what they want?

I HAVE IT!

It is because owners like George Steinbrenner, Jerry Jones, and Dr. Jerry Buss have done it, and succeeded.

I absolutely loathe the fact teams like this are around.

I cannot emphasize how happy I am every year when Dr. Buss and the Steinbrenner's lose another chance at a championship. Jerry Jones I truthfully could care less if he won or lost; my teams are all in the AFC anyway ha ha!

Owners need to stay out of the locker rooms unless they're handing out checks. Nine out of 10 times, they blame coaches over players. Coaches are easy to fire and hire. Owners fear players who don't like them, and fear that their "superstar" won't be around to make them any money anymore.

That makes me absolutely sick!

Anyway...There is my rant! Even though it probably is pretty hypocritical of me to write half of it, oh well.

Celebrating a Wrestling Legend: Happy Belated Birthday Owen Hart

Ian Robinett — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:32:04 -0400

It's been almost nine years since I saw a WWE (then WWF) pay-per-view event that I wish never happened.

May 23, 1999: I was laying in my room watching WWF Over the Edge, waiting for the Blue Blazer to make his entrance.

Next thing I know, I see a blip on the screen of a blue blur, followed by a quick cut-away of the camera and a haunting thud. What exactly was being shown at that moment is up for debate—but believe me, the memory is burned into my head.

At the time, I didn't know what I had just seen.

Then I hear Jim Ross say that Owen had fallen, and it wasn't an angle or a story line. It was real.

It was a haunting thought.

Several minutes later—what seemed like hours—Jim Ross breaks the news every wrestling fan was hoping we wouldn't hear...Owen had passed away.

The next night, Raw and Nitro alike were dedicated to his memory. I cried during both shows. Hearing the stories of one of the, absolute, greatest performers in professional wrestling brought me to tears.

But my intention at this point in time is not to relive that. It's to celebrate the life we lost.

This week—May 7th to be exact—Owen would have turned 43.

In honor of us his birthday, I celebrate the superstar, the performer, and the celebrity that captivated me every time he entered the ring.

I met Owen only one time...but that was enough to show me a lot of what others who knew him well saw. Which is also why I write this.

For younger wrestling fans who may have not had the pleasure of seeing him perform: take the time to do so. YouTube and Daily Motion have plenty of videos that capture his talent in its greatest form, so take advantage.

And to Owen: As a fan who will never forget what you brought to the business—and the champion you were both in and out of the ring—Happy Birthday.